Example Asbestos Removal Projects in Vancouver, Washington

Scope of work

A survey of every material the rewiring and insulation will cut or drill, about 12 samples, lab fees and a written report listing each material, its condition and result. The report is posted at the work site. Opening the plaster under a notice is a separate price.

Project overview

In this example, the owners of a 1940s house in Vancouver plan to rewire it and blow insulation into the outside walls. The electrician and the insulation crew will cut and drill the plaster in many places, so each material is either tested by an accredited inspector or treated as asbestos, and these owners want the test.

The base coat of the plaster on the outside walls and the old window putty are positive. Every opening in those walls is now made under a notice inside plastic, starting with the section between the front windows, and the window putty is left alone because the windows stay.

The goal

The goal is a report that shows which walls need asbestos care, so the rewiring and insulation are planned and priced the right way.

Process

1. Before the visit The electrician marks where walls will be opened and drilled.
2. Visit Samples from the plaster, paint layers, window putty and each floor layer.
3. A few days later Lab results and a written report.
4. Then The wall openings are noticed and booked; the report is posted at the site.

Planning right

• Treating a material as asbestos without testing is allowed, but then it must be removed as asbestos.
• The report has to be posted at the site even when every sample is negative.
• Keep the report for at least 24 months, and longer if you can.
• Drilling through positive plaster for insulation still counts as disturbing it.

Scope of work

Texture tested, the notice filed with its fee, the living room, dining area and hall closed in plastic with filtered air, the ceiling wetted and scraped into sealed bags, disposal and a clean. The clear bedroom ceilings are skim-coated the usual way. A skim coat and paint are extra.

Project overview

In this example, the owner of a 1970s rental in Vancouver wants the ceilings redone while the house is empty between tenants. The living room, dining area and hall texture tests positive; the bedroom ceilings were redone later and are clear.

Because the house is rented out, the owner-occupant rule does not apply, and a certified crew handles it after a notice and its 10-day wait. Booking the test before the old tenant leaves means the wait runs while they move out, and the house sits empty for days, not weeks.

The goal

The goal is smooth, clean ceilings and a rental back on the market with as few empty days as possible.

Process

1. Before move-out Samples taken with the tenant told; lab results back.
2. Move-out week Notice filed; the 10-day wait runs while the house empties.
3. Days one to four Plastic and filtered air in each room in turn, ceilings scraped wet, bags sealed and labeled.
4. Then Skim coat and paint, then the next tenant moves in.

Planning right

• Test before the tenant gives notice if you can. The wait then overlaps the move.
• Let tenants know about any asbestos work planned while they still live there.
• A small patch under 48 sq ft still needs a notice in Clark County, but no fee or wait for a contractor.
• Keep the lab report and the notice with the rental records.

Scope of work

Testing of the torn flooring, the agency notice with its fee, plastic over the walls, ceiling and windows with filtered air, the loose pieces misted and bagged, the remaining backing scraped off the planks wet, a HEPA vacuum and wet wipe of every surface, and disposal. The planks are left ready for a refinisher, whose work is separate.

Project overview

In this example, the owners of a 1950s house in Vancouver pull up old carpet in a back bedroom, and old sheet flooring glued underneath tears with it, leaving felt scraps over the planks. They shut the door and have a piece tested. The felt backing is positive.

Because the felt has already been torn, the job is part removal and part cleanup. The whole room is sealed with filtered air, the scraps are bagged wet, the rest of the backing comes off, and every surface is cleaned before the plastic comes down.

The goal

The goal is a clean room with the torn asbestos backing gone, ready for the planks to be refinished.

Process

1. First visit A scrap of the felt is tested; the door is kept shut and taped.
2. Before work Notice filed; the 10-day wait runs.
3. Day one Plastic over every surface but the floor, air unit on, scraps misted and bagged.
4. Day two Backing scraped wet, walls and planks vacuumed and wiped, plastic down.

Planning right

• If old flooring tears, stop, close the door and keep people and pets out.
• Do not vacuum torn felt with a household vacuum.
• The carpet and pad that came up with it go out as asbestos waste too.
• Owners doing their own removal file a cheaper notice, but the same work rules apply.

Scope of work

One shingle tested, the notice and fee filed, plastic around the foundation, each shingle wetted, its nails pulled and lifted off whole, the shingles stacked on pallets and wrapped for the haul to an approved site, and the yard searched for chips. New windows, wood repairs and paint are extra.

Project overview

In this example, the owners of a 1940s house in Vancouver are replacing every window with a larger one. Cutting new openings through cement shingles would break them, so the installer asks for the shingles to come off first. A shingle tests positive.

The shingles come off whole, wall by wall, a step ahead of the window crew. Under them the painted wood lap siding is in good shape, so the owners keep it as the outside wall instead of paying for new siding.

The goal

The goal is bare walls ready for the new windows, with every cement shingle off whole and the old wood kept.

Process

1. First visit One shingle sampled; window sizes checked with the installer.
2. Before work Notice filed; plantings cut back and plastic laid around the house.
3. Days one to four Wall by wall, shingles misted, unfastened and lifted off whole, ahead of the window crew.
4. Last day Ground searched for chips, the stacks wrapped and hauled.

Planning right

• Schedule the window crew a wall behind the removal, so no opening is cut through shingles.
• Broken shingles count as friable waste, so pieces are never pried or dropped.
• Roofing in good condition can stay. Only the siding is part of this job.
• Some Clark County jobs haul to sites outside the county. The haul is part of the price.

Scope of work

Samples of the wrap and the jacket, the agency notice and its fee, the basement sealed under negative air, the wrap on the pipe runs removed wet with glove bags at the fittings, the jacket checked and sealed, sealed bags, an air check and disposal. New pipe insulation is extra.

Project overview

In this example, the buyer’s inspector at a 1920s house in Camas finds the wrap on the basement heating pipes torn and coming loose. The boiler still works well, and the buyers want to keep it, so only the pipe wrap is the problem.

The lab finds asbestos in the wrap and in the jacket. The torn wrap comes off about 80 ft of pipe inside sealed plastic, the jacket is checked, sealed and left in place, and an air check clears the basement before closing.

The goal

The goal is bare, safe pipes and a working boiler, with the paperwork ready for closing.

Process

1. First visit Samples of the wrap and the jacket; the pipe runs measured.
2. Before work Notice filed; the 10-day wait runs alongside the closing timeline.
3. Days one and two Basement sealed, wrap removed wet, fittings done in glove bags.
4. Day three Jacket sealed, air check, plastic down.

Planning right

• Start testing as soon as the inspection report arrives. The 10-day wait can decide the closing date.
• Give the buyers the lab report, the notice and the air check. They are part of the sale file.
• Bare pipes lose heat. New insulation can go on once the air check is clear.
• The boiler jacket stays sealed. It comes off only when the boiler is replaced.

Scope of work

An inspection of every material in the house, inside and out, about 25 samples, lab fees, a written report and the demolition notice with its fee. Removal of the two positive materials, by a certified crew under its own notice, is priced on its own.

Project overview

In this example, the owner of a 1940s house in Washougal wants to save money by demolishing it himself with a rented excavator. Doing the demolition yourself does not change the rules. The whole house still needs an accredited inspection and a demolition notice first.

The inspection finds asbestos only in the old window putty and the furnace duct tape. A certified crew takes those out under their own notice, and the owner can then bring in the machine once the 10-day wait is over.

The goal

The goal is a complete inspection and notice, so the owner can demolish safely after two small removals.

Process

1. Visit Every part of the house sampled, from the roof and chimney down to the oldest floor layer.
2. Within a week Lab results and the written report.
3. Next Demolition notice filed with the report; removal of the two materials noticed and booked.
4. After 10 days The owner can start the demolition once the two materials are out.

Planning right

• The City of Washougal issues the demolition permit. Ask what it needs early.
• Windows with positive putty come out whole before the machine arrives.
• Post the report and the notice at the site until the lot is clear.
• Call the transfer station about asbestos loads before any waste leaves the site.