Asbestos is a hazardous element when it is disturbed or exposed in the air. It is made of long fibres which are finer and thinner than a human hair. When inhaled, the asbestos may cause mesothelioma cancer, lung cancer or pleural plaques among other health risks. They were a standard building material due to their availability, strength and fire resistance before it was discovered how dangerous they were in the 1980s.
As such, if your house was built around the 1980's, chances are the roofs or walls contain asbestos. If you want to remodel the house, a natural disaster has disturbed the asbestos or parts of your home are worn out, it is vital that you hire asbestos inspectors to come and test for the presence of asbestos. If it is discovered that your home has asbestos, you will need to hire an asbestos removal contractor.
These are different from asbestos inspectors as the inspector will test for the presence of asbestos whereas the contractors will remove the asbestos from your premise. Some contractors may have the capability of testing and removing. Below are three critical areas to look out for when retaining an asbestos removal contractor.
Look for recommendations
Very few asbestos removal companies will have the competence to remove the asbestos adequately. To be sure you have the right people, seek recommendations from family and friends who have been in that situation before. If none can recommend you, find reviews and ratings of the company. When looking at ratings, look at the number of people who have rated the company. A company that has several positive ratings from a lot of people is preferred. However, find out what the negative reviews are addressing. If it is a fundamental issue like the removal was not adequately done, it is safer to move along.
Experience
Once you have found a company with positive ratings, look at their experience in asbestos removal. Settle for one that has been in business for a long time.
Insurance
Make sure that the company has insurance such as general liability and workers compensation. This way, in case of any accidents, you will not be liable.
Cost
Cost should be the last thing that you look at. Generally, asbestos removal is costly, hence a gullible homeowner will rush to look for a contractor offering suspiciously low prices. Cheap contractors will not have the adequate equipment or experience to handle the removal adequately. If the removal is not done correctly, then the risk is even greater than when the asbestos was lying around because they would have disturbed it and released the fibres into the air.
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