Asbestos In Roofing Paper

Using asbestos in roofing had many other advantages.

Asbestos in roofing paper.

What is roofing felt made of. Asbestos in tar paper put workers at risk of developing mesothelioma. It is black and pretty difficult to remove. Asbestos may be present in textured paint and in patching compounds used on wall and ceiling joints.

However old asbestos felt remains in the floors and roofs of millions of american buildings constructed between 1900 and 1980. Roofing felt is comprised of a base made from natural materials such as wood cellulose or synthetic ones such as fiberglass or polyester and then coated or saturated with a protective coating such as bitumen asphalt which repels water but still allows the product to breathe. Just working inside the plant posed a threat to asbestos exposure because a large amount of asbestos dust that collected in the air could be inhaled by any worker in the plant. Asbestos wouldn t rot rust conduct electricity or react to heat.

Some roofing and siding shingles are made of asbestos cement. Asbestos flooring felt is one of the few asbestos products completely banned in the u s and regulations now require other products to contain less than one percent asbestos. Asbestos cement in roofing due to its fantastic thermal qualities and being extremely fire retardant it is not surprising that asbestos was extensively used in roofing and insulation in the 20 th century. Asbestos cement roof tiles are usually square shaped and their color is a combination of grey and black.

Asbestos was also in wall insulation roofing shingles and siding because paper is highly flammable and the need for protection against any potential for fire was necessary. A number of asbestos roofing products like tar paper were put into millions of homes in this country particularly in the post world war ii housing boom. It was one of the most used types of asbestos containing material for roof building mainly as an underlayment. Houses built between 1930 and 1950 may have asbestos as insulation.

However old asbestos felt remains in the floors and roofs of millions of american buildings constructed between 1900 and 1980. By the 1960s its usage reached the commercial sector resulting in thousands of factories commercial facilities schools and other buildings also containing tar paper. Asbestos was easy to work with widely sourced and low cost to purchase. Their use was banned in 1977.

Asbestos flooring felt is one of the few asbestos products completely banned in the u s and regulations now require other products to contain less than one percent asbestos. They can last for more than 40 years and if undamaged they pose little risk of exposure. That solved structural issues for heavy roof loads. Asbestos paper is also sometimes found under man made mineral fibre mmmf insulation on steam pipes.