Safety Precautions for DIY Asbestos Removal
If you have been putting off demolishment of your garage because of the reservations you have towards asbestos, do not fret because you are not alone. If not handled properly, asbestos can cause lung diseases such as asbestosis that scars lung tissue thereby causing difficulty in breathing. However, if you do not have the money to hire professional asbestos removal services, you can do the work yourself by observing certain safety precautions. This write-up provides asbestos removal tips that will ensure you do a near professional work while at the same time remaining safe.
Tools
Where asbestos is involved, proper precautions must be taken to avoid using tools that can blow asbestos fibres into the air. Some of the tools you should avoid when tearing down your asbestos-filled room are brooms, brushes, vacuum cleaners, or any other blowing equipment. Such devices disperse asbestos fibres into the air thereby making it easy to inhale especially when in an enclosed area. Your choice of equipment should be handheld as well as manual so that you have control over the level of fibres that is dispersed into the air. For example, chisels, screwdrivers, nail pullers, and nail punches help to eliminate the dangers of exposure. Even if you have a breathing mask on, it is highly advised that you stick to manual tools when handling asbestos.
Gloves
Your choice of gloves will solely depend on the amount of asbestos that is in your DIY project. If there is a considerable amount of asbestos, then you need to use disposable gloves. Do not make a mistake of using fabric gloves and then throwing them into your laundry with the hope that you will get rid of all the asbestos fibres. If for instance, you can only get latex gloves, then make sure that they are powder-free to avoid fibres from sticking on them. Once you are done, clean your hands and fingernails thoroughly.
Footwear
During the process of asbestos removal, the fibres typically settle on the ground. Therefore, you need to protect your feet adequately. Most importantly, your safety boots should be laceless because fibres can easily stick on laces and end up in your home. Additionally, the boots should not have eyelets since microscopic asbestos fibres can easily get into the boots. Notably, you might be tempted to go for disposable overshoes in case you do not have safety boots. However, it is not a good idea because you run the risk of slipping on the asbestos, as disposable overshoes tend to be slippery.