Asbestos Asphalt Siding

Most homes have asphalt shingles and asbestos is more common in asphalt shingles.

Asbestos asphalt siding. That cement was then pressed into siding shingles that came in a wide variety of sizes profiles and textures. The resulting product was very durable fire resistant and absorbed paint well. Asbestos cement can be dangerous if pulverized by sawing sanding breaking etc. See siding types installation defects for a guide to siding products of various types.

It is very brittle and has a tendency to crack and break when nailed which can release asbestos fibers into both the air and ground. Asbestos siding was made by adding asbestos a naturally occurring mineral to portland cement. Asbestos cement siding is very brittle and can be easily chipped cracked or broken. Paper like vapor barriers can present more of a hazard since they are considered friable.

Nonfriable means they cannot be broken up by hand pressure. Roofing adhesives roofing felt and base flashing also might include asbestos. Some asphalt roof shingle products and therefore quite possibly some asphalt siding products did indeed contain asbestos fibers in their substrate or coating. The use of a pressure washer for maintenance can crack the siding and lead to moisture intrusion if the pressure setting is high enough.

Removing asbestos is often cost prohibitive for most people. Asbestos siding was manufactured to resemble many different materials so it doesn t always look the same. It is generally very brittle and the back may be black and have the appearance of tar paper. Roof shingles even if the material contained asbestos which it might are rarely the only nor even the principal source of problem levels of asbestos fibers in a building and i suspect the same is true of asphalt based building siding.

Look for a siding that is made to look like roof shingles. A similar looking product composite siding made of asphalt impregnated fiberboard was also used for lap siding and wall shingles but is not an asbestos cement product. Alternatively if you leave the asbestos on your home you can safely seal the old siding underneath the new siding and because asbestos is an excellent insulator you will actually be adding to the energy efficiency of your home by leaving it on. Asbestos siding is composed of asbestos fibers mixed with portland cement.