Can Asbestos Floor Tiles Be Painted

Asbestos found in the vinyl floor tiles at the toh tv project house means a state licensed and well protected abatement crew must do the removal.

Can asbestos floor tiles be painted. Asbestos floor tiles will not release toxic fibers and pose a health risk unless they are disturbed. That said it can be difficult to get a level surface for the new floor especially if the old tiles have chipped away. Photo by russell kaye i m told that the old vinyl floor tiles in the basement of our 1950 house contain asbestos and that i should not try to remove the tiles but cover them with wall to wall. Asbestos becomes dangerous when it s disturbed through chipping cutting breaking which sets the fibers in the air and any removal should be handled only by a certified asbestos abatement team.

Sanding sawing drilling or tearing the tiles out however can release fibers into the air. But the good news is that if you don t disturb it you can paint tile install laminate or carpet over it. The thin coating that the paint could provide would not be enough to encapsulate fibers that may become friable if crushed or punctured making it just as bad as if you had made no treatment at all. Damage to the asbestos tile may require a professional to safely remove the material.

Intact tiles can painted cheaply to give floors in your home a more modern look. In many cases installing a new floor over the tiles encapsulates the asbestos fibers and is an acceptable way to manage the material. You can also use other materials to cover up the asbestos flooring. Painting over asbestos tile is a safe way to cover up the material and seal in the asbestos as long as the tile is still intact.

Asbestos issues from the 1950s to the 1980s almost every vinyl floor tile sold contained between 2 per cent and 10 per cent asbestos. Vinyl tile can be adhered directly to asbestos tiles that are not loose or peeling and many vinyl tiles are thin enough that they will only slightly raise the height of the floor. The thing about painting over the asbestos is that your top coating is only going to be as strong or durable as the coating underneath it.