Hey guys so I am really freaking out and came to ask the experts. I am 23 and about a year ago I helped my dad remove a built up roof, consisting of layers of tar paper. I myself didn't rip out the roof but just threw the pieces into garbage bags. Being that there was only a little duast on the roof and none really in the air I didn't wear a mask. I also swept the roof and helped lay down the new tar paper. We didn't do the whole roof but rather just a portion to help lead rainwater to the gutter. overall I couldn't have spent more than 5 days on the job but now my mind is playing tricks on me and saying I was up their longer. My dad brought the building in December of 1991, and tore out the whole existing roof. The old roof was torn out and the new one put in between 1992-1994. At first I thought I was okay because I read that roofing felt and built up roofs stopped using asbestos in the 1980's. But then I read that asbestos was never banned in built up roofs and can still be in use today. What is killing me is that I had no knowledge of this and was simply trying to help and now I feel this will come back to haunt me as I heard the felt can have 10-15 percent asbestos. It seems that when it is used it is chrystolite which is the best type.

My questions are: was I at risk during this job? What are the chances that there was asbestos in this roof? I am really scared. I have family members in construction and they say I shouldn't be worried at all. Of couse my dad removed four roofs in the early 90's containing felt and flashing and such and here he is 20 years later and fine. But I am still scared. What do you guys think of built up roof removal that was put in in the 90's without a mask.

 

Welcome to the forums!

I know very little about roofing but the asbestos dangers are mostly with long term exposure. I doubt you have anything to worry about. I sprayed a good bit of asbestos ceiling texture in the 70's usually without a mask and have no long related health issues.

 

The chances are the felts were clean. sometimes you will see the edge or parapet flashing pieces will have some asbestos content (presumably to increase strength or durability). Either way the fibers are so fully encapsulated within the felt by the asphalt there is very limited exposure risk. There are of course NO guarantees but I would bet that you would breath just as much asbestos at a picnic in your local park. OSHA standards for exposure limits (which are conservative) allow for literally millions of fibers over your lifetime with no statistical increase in your risk of contacting an asbestos related disease. This is not to say you should be cavilier about exposure but you are more likely to die of a meteor strike than due to this one week project. That is just my opinion but I am a licensed asbsetos inspector. Sleep easy young man.

 

spider thanks so much there was some dust from pulling off the felt that I swept would that changer your answer at all.

 

The "dust" you encountered was probably just that, dust. You will inhale more asbestos driving on the highway for an hour (from brake lining) than you did on the roofing job. If you are not a smoker then forget it. My informal and totally non-scientific survey shows that it is smokers that have to worry about asbestos exposure.

 

My answer remains the same. Furd is correct that the dust was probably dust. he is also correct that smoking greatly increases your chances of contracting an asbestos related disease. As for brake pad dust and asbestos: one thought in the industry at this time is that the asbestos that is released from brake pads is so finely ground that the fibers are below the tested range (1 to 5 microns if I remember corrrectly). it is believed that fibers below this size pose little to no threat. The science is of course not difinitive on this but there is no statistical correlation between mechanics or toll booth attendents and asbestos diseases so it is believed that brake pad dust is a none issue. Go ahead and buy green bananas.........you will be around for a long time.

 

Hi,

So expanding on the question.

Have an old garage structure. Older roof on top is just modified bitumen... Removing that... No problem. But under: An old, who know how old (building built in 1924... But it MUST be later than that.) tar, pebble on tar paper. Brittle.. Old.

So after sling that around all day and tossing it off the roof into the wheelbarrow, raising all sorts of grit and dust... I asked myself... Wait... Can any of this be asbestos.

Any "asbestos", ie: legal mesothelioma site will tell you to run for the hills. Wikipedia suggests asbestos was mostly used in the commercial side of the things.

Do the above answers hold for me as well?

Got half the roof off and disting up the driveway... Would appreciate a calming response.

Thanks

 

The "legal mesothelioma site" is pure alarmism. Firstly, mesothelioma is rather rare and you do NOT contract meso from a casual exposure to low concentration asbestos. The chances of you inhaling enough asbestos from that job to have ANY adverse reaction, even forty years from now, is astronomical.

 

Furd is spot on. The problem was with the miners, shipyard workers, industrial pipefitters, etc..that were exposed 8+hrs a day, 5+ days a week, for 20+ yrs. And without any sort of protective gear.

The only reason you see so many ads and warnings is because the case has been settled and lawyers can make quick money with a minimum of work, just for helping you file your claim and charging outrageous fees.

You'd be more likely to incur an injury by falling off the roof.

 

I would add that asbestos is only hazardous in dry dust form where you can inhale it. As already noted, the biggest danger is with repeated exposure. If it will help you sleep better at night, wear a dust mask or wet the debris with a hose as needed.

 

That's just it... There's really no way to make this a dustless job. The old tarpaper/tar/gravel layer is just too brittle. (So I'll skip the dust mustache from day one of the tear down by getting a good mask for day two.)

I'm trying not to buy the alarmist stuff. But I do have a kid and she runs in that yard... A bunch of guys with a dump truck are going to have to haul this stuff off my drive for me. So just out of interest... What are the chances that a "residential" install of tarpaper/tar/gravel has asbestos in it? (I know there's a higher chance with the flashing.)

That should be my last question.

Thanks for the quick response.

 

the chance of asbestos content is very dependent on the age of the material. If I had to bet on it I would wager that the modified bitumen membrane that is fairly old is more likely to have asbestos than a very old tar and gravel roof. Furthermore an old coal tar pitch roof will often have enough tar to help encapsulate many of the fibers even during removal. if I had to guess I would say it is no more than 50/50 (and probably more like 80/20) that there is asbestos content.

Either way the content level is typically 3 to 5% if not even less so your exposure risk is very very very low. Should you wear a mask? absolutely every time. Should you consider a good mask in lieu of a typical dust mask? probably not required but not a terrible idea either. Should you worry about your daughter? As long as you keep her off the roof I would guess that lead paint is a much more likely issue with an older home. (but even this is easily handled if you simply paint over the old lead paint. assuming of course that she is not chewing on your window sills or something similar)