Why is a Shower Essential to Asbestos Abatement?

Why is a Shower Essential to Asbestos Abatement?
Earlier this week, a news article reported that a woman died from mesothelioma after years of washing her husband and son’s overall’s which were contaminated with asbestos dust. When they came home from work, they brought the asbestos fibres with them and when she washed the clothes, she breathed in the fibres and eventually died from mesothelioma.
This is a sad story, but this is a reality that many workers and their families are dealing with throughout the world where asbestos is used on a daily basis. In fact, the WHO estimates that more than 100,000 workers will die of asbestos related diseases each year. The tragic part of this reality is the fact that these workers will most likely contaminate their homes with the asbestos dust, which in turn, will negatively impact the health of their families. Asbestos is scary because of the simple fact that it causes death and should be completely banned throughout the world!
The key to ensuring long term health if asbestos is found in a home or building is to ensure that professionals are hired to remove the asbestos. The term used is “asbestos abatement“, which simply means the process of removing or containing the asbestos so that the asbestos fibres can not become airborne.
The process of removing asbestos is exactly the same as mold removal with the exception that a shower must be set up to prevent workers from taking asbestos fibres home with them.
The first step is to take samples, which should be done by a professional who sends the samples to a lab for testing. Once it is confirmed that asbestos is present, then the abatement process can begin.
The top priority of an asbestos abatement professional is to prevent asbestos fibres from traveling freely in the air. For this reason, the next step after asbestos is confirmed is to set up a proper containment so that the fibres that do become airborne are not allowed to travel outside of the contained area. Once the containment is set up with negative air pressure, the process of removing the asbestos can begin. All contaminated materials must be disposed according to industry and geological standards and regulations.
Once all asbestos materials are removed, the air quality should be tested by a Third Party environmental consultant before any reconstruction begins.
In the video below, our founder, James C. Watson, shows you what an asbestos containment is and the shower used by our workers to ensure that asbestos fibres are contained. Enjoy!
To learn more about asbestos, check out these links.
What Percentage of Lung Cancers are Caused by Asbestos?
Saskatchewan, First Canadian Province, to Create Asbestos Registry
Canadian Asbestos Regulations
How Many People Die From Asbestos Each Year?
10 Interesting Facts About Asbestos in the USA [Infographic]
Renovating? Read This Message From Our President!

10 Interesting Historical Facts About Asbestos [Infographic]
ADAO – Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization
The Asbestos Epidemic in America
WHO | Asbestos: elimination of asbestos-related diseases
The Jig Is Up For The Asbestos Industry!
Canada’s Asbestos Industry Could End!
Elliot Lake, Ontario Residents Exposed to Asbestos Dust
Should I Be Concerned About Asbestos?
The Politics of Asbestos: Canada’s Ugly Secret
Quebec Pumps $58 Million into Certain Death
Why is Asbestos so Scary?
Got Asbestos?
Asbestos Removal and Abatement
Asbestos Is The “Ideal Carcinogen”

2 thoughts on “Why is a Shower Essential to Asbestos Abatement?

  1. Sanjay Gupta

    Here is a comment we received from an industry professional on LinkedIn. Great feedback.

    Although the information in this story is OK, but it should include at least some of the following:
    1. the difference between mold remediation and asbestos abatement is NOT the utilization of showers but rather Asbestos is a Regulated Material and must be handled accordingly … mold is not a regulated material. Plus, showers are not always needed during asbetsos abatement.
    2. another difference is the configuration of the containments which have to be more affective during asbestos abatement than mould remediation.
    3. the type of PPE for asbestos abatement is of greater concern as compared to mould remediation because the potential hazards are greater.
    4. the utilization of water often occurs during the abatement of asbestos but should not be used during the removal of mould.
    5. many times, encapsulation needs to occur as part of asbestos abatement whereas encapsulation should NOT be used as part of mould remediation.
    6. there are set criteria, PEL, clearance levels, etc. for asbestos that must be obtained in order to “pass” but no such criteria exist for mould.

    So, for this article to imply that mould remediation and asbestos abatement are identical except for the utilization of a shower is an inadequate statement.

  2. powelleasyepc

    I got to know something quite informative from the above blog. Asbestos abatement is actually a great need which I got to know from here. Government Approved EPC Providers checks all the requirements which are relevant to different domestic and commercial buildings.

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