Washington

asbestos, I always considered the other exotic substances that the military deals w/ (artillery shells, binary weapons, tons of other stuff not listed) would be the issues but didn't realize how prevalent asbestos is in the military. I guess it makes sense.

My other half works in flooring (used to, now in another dept) at Home Depot, and he said that when they do a measure for a floor (for new installs), if they determine that the old flooring is one that old flooring made of asbestos-related byproducts, they will walk away for the job immediately.

Removal of products that has asbestos in them is a big NO NO in the Hardware business. They want no part in it, as removing the asbestos could stir up particles in the air and behold, you have a breathable environment laced w/ asbestos particles. Removal of asbestos requires extreme measures and forces the workers to wear protective gear and masks, to prevent contamination.

You would be amazed at how many people, in the city environments where tons of old houses are at, where asbestos was used in flooring components. A lot. AND, the nasty thing about this (beware to DU people here, for your benefit if you're looking to buy a rehab etc.), is that they wouldn't take out the asbestos-laden floor, but simply cover it up and HIDE it).

So, if you're buying an older property, be sure to see if you can gain more information on the original flooring used in the structure. In one house we had, there were 10, I repeat, 10 different layers of flooring installed over the years. Wow. Thank goodness none of them were contaminated. Be sure to try and hire a specialist to come and look closely at the house prior to buying it too. You may save yourself a ton of money later (and yes, it's very sad and pathetic that these 'flippers' took the short and easy way out, and dumped the asbestos issues onto you).