Although the word asbestos is used these days mainly in relation to its health risks and dangers, it is widely applied in a range of functions. This substance, which is actually a group of naturally occurring minerals, has been used in shipping, construction materials, automotive repairs, mining and other purposes. The range of benefits that asbestos offers is huge, but inhaled over a period of time, the microscopic particles of asbestos pose dangerous health risks. They have been linked to rare and painful forms of cancer such as mesothelioma.
Most people have been exposed to minute amounts of asbestos. Houses, businesses and schools built before 1980 often were full of materials containing asbestos. From the cement pipes and vinyl siding, to ceiling and floor tiles and textured paints; asbestos was present in so many products that it is almost impossible to entirely avoid.
Your homes heating and cooling ducts could also contain asbestos. In days past, asbestos was a commonly used material in the manufacture of heating and cooling ducts; if your house is several decades old, the chances that your heating duct has layers of asbestos are extremely high. Even some new houses have heating ducts and pipes made with asbestos. The material was used to line the inside and outside of the pipes in homes as well as other types of properties.
The dangers of asbestos inhalation are at their highest when a person is working in the construction industry in close proximity to asbestos, on a prolonged basis. However, the heath risks that are posed to those who live in residential buildings where the heating system includes ducts and pipes that are made of asbestos, cannot be discounted. Unfortunately, there havent been enough studies to prove the effects of asbestos in heating ducts on the residents of the house. Experts agree, however, that the potential for long-term heath effects could be high. There is also a potential for economic risks; a house with a heating system known to contain asbestos could be harder to sell on the market. Future homeowners could be put off by the thought of asbestos in their heating ducts.
You can draw comfort from the fact that the material lying still does not release enough particles to be a health risk. Its only when the asbestos is moved or damaged that the chances of direct inhalation are enhanced. If you have heating ducts containing asbestos in your home, youre advised not to try removing the pipe wrap on your own, but to call experienced asbestos abatement technicians.
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