Can you cover asbestos floors?

Can you cover asbestos floors?

Tom Silva replies: The advice you received is correct: The best way to deal with old asbestos floor tiles is to cover them up. That’s enough to prevent the damage and wear that can release fibers into the air; no sealer is needed. You could also cover the tiles with new vinyl flooring, linoleum, or even ceramic tiles.

What can I cover asbestos tiles with?

New vinyl, laminate flooring, hardwood, engineered floating flooring, and carpeting can all be successfully installed over asbestos tiles. Even ceramic, slate, and stone tiles can be installed on top, as long as a fiber-cement backer is installed first.

How do you cover old asbestos floor tiles?

Install ceramic tile over asbestos. You can tile directly over asbestos with new tile, including ceramic tile. Take care to choose a tile whose thickness is not going to create a problem, and choose a tile that is rated for floor use. Use a Portland cement-based adhesive to adhere the new tiles to the old.

Can you put wood flooring over asbestos tiles?

Although solid hardwood flooring cannot be installed over asbestos tiles because of the impossibility to glue or nail it down, installing floating engineered floor is a feasible option which will work just fine. Floating floors do not need any fasteners, which leaves the problematic tiles undisturbed.

Are all 9×9 vinyl tiles asbestos?

Are all 9×9 tiles asbestos? As Dr. Riegel likes to say, “9×9 is 99% of the time asbestos!” Asbestos is extremely common in 9×9 floor tiles.

Is it safe to carpet over asbestos tiles?

Yes, you can carpet over asbestos floor tiles, provided they are in good condition. When undamaged, they are not a danger and can be left in place. To apply carpet, be sure only to use glue and no nails, not risk piercing the older tile and causing fibers to become airborne.

Can you put carpet over asbestos tile?

How do you cover asbestos vinyl flooring?

Encapsulation with a sealant is probably the easiest way to go. Purchase a good sealant that is made for vinyl flooring as asbestos tile is a type of vinyl flooring material. Make sure that you have a full face respirator, gloves and any other recommended personal protective equipment.

What can I use to cover black mastic?

The three most common non-toxic ways to seal mastic without removing is to use a cement overlay material such as Ardex, a coating-like sealer such as Fiberlock, or a sealer/primer such as PerfectPrimer or PerfectPaint. The Ardex is a cement used to level the floor.

Can I put a subfloor over asbestos tile?

When you are dealing with asbestos, you can either remove it with an abatement or manage it in place. In many cases, installing a new floor over the tiles encapsulates the asbestos fibers, and is an acceptable way to manage the material.

Can you cover asbestos tile with carpet?

How dangerous is asbestos flooring?

Several facts about the dangers of this building material have been uncovered and asbestos is rarely used in flooring nowadays. However, many older homes may have asbestos floor tiles, or flooring that contains asbestos. Asbestos is only dangerous in floor tile that is cracking or breaking.

What flooring can you put over asbestos tile?

Install ceramic tile over asbestos. You can tile directly over asbestos with new tile, including ceramic tile. Take care to choose a tile whose thickness is not going to create a problem, and choose a tile that is rated for floor use. Use a Portland cement-based adhesive to adhere the new tiles to the old.

When was asbestos banned in vinyl flooring?

Asbestos Vinyl Sheet Flooring. Many types of vinyl flooring manufactured before 1980 contained asbestos. After 1980, asbestos use in this type of flooring was phased out. If paper-backed vinyl flooring in your home was manufactured prior to 1980, for safety’s sake, assume that it contains asbestos.

Can I cover asbestos floor tiles with concrete?

Mitigate risk of asbestos tiles by encapsulating them with concrete. Let’s look a little closer at the process involved with covering asbestos floor tiles with concrete: Using concrete to encapsulate asbestos tiles starts by having a clean, well-washed floor surface.

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