Our church was built in the 1960s. We are in the process of attempting to sell the building and the prospective buyer states there is asbestos in the building that will require “expensive” removal in the future. I am aware of the floor tiles in the kitchen area and in the sanctuary. Are there other possible sources of asbestos in the materials that could have been used in the construction/building?
Chilled (air conditioning) or hot water (heating or domestic) piping insulation may contain asbestos. Cementitious exterior siding or roof shingles from that time may also contain asbestos.
Floor tile adhesive used to contain asbestos sometimes, even after the 9 by 9 inch VAT tiles were no longer being used.
Organic roofing felts and mastics (and hope that you don’t have coal tar bitumen).
Other concerns can included lead-based paints and PCB in fluorescent lighting fixtures and transformers.
Other potential asbestos-containing materials could include mastic for the floor tile and mirrors, joint compound for gyp board assemblies, joint sealant, acoustical ceiling panels. Investigation and testing for asbestos is not an uncommon thing to do - and neither is abatement - probably not a thing for a buyer to get worked up about.
Why not hire a firm and have a hazardous abatement survey done?
There might also be other hazardous materials in the building such as PCBs in the fluorescent light ballasts and mercury int the switches.
I worked for a community college system with several buildings built in the 60s. Some of the most common places asbestos was found when we had the buildings tested were:
Floor tile adhesive (oddly vinyl-asbestos tiles often had less than 1% asbestos)
“Blue mud” on piping elbows where the rest of the pipe insulation was fiberglass
Glazing compound
Mastic for attaching blackboards & mirrors
Acoustic plaster
Built-up roofs sometimes had asbestos felts, especially in base flashing and parapets, but that is likely to have been removed by now when the building was reroofed. Joint sealants are also likely to have been replaced.
Removal (and monitoring) can be expensive, but the buyer might be trying to use that as a bargaining chip.
Another one is sealant (when it was called caulking) around window exteriors, and I suppose elsewhere on the exterior.
It is critical to note that it’s only a problem if it is going to be disturbed. In the case of the window sealant, it only mattered because they were being replaced.
As pointed out above, abatement is pretty routine, now, if sometimes pricey. I think the costs have settled down from the '80s and '90s when the regs were in flux and the market for removal was young.
David Act was really on it - with a quality survey the Owner/Church should have a good idea of the extent of the “asbestos” issues. Also the survey and testing will/should check for the other “hazardous” materials. The evaluation/survey team should be able to more accurately give a better guesstimate of cost of abatement.
Also if was built in the 1960s the possible use of Historic Tax Credits in the renovation could offset some of the abatement costs.
You guys have given me a lot to bring to the church council when we meet next. Thanks a bunch and keep the thoughts and ideas coming.
I know we’ve painted and I know windows have been replaced. I also know we’ve put on new roofs, most recently last year. A couple of years ago, we changed a membrane roof to a pitched, shingled roof, so some of the issues may have already been dealt with, but I’d still want to bring these concerns to the council where we can determine the truth of what’s there and what the buyers will legitimately have to contend with.
I eventually would probably have thought of most of these, but thanks to you, I can report with more authority.
Your dealing with a sales Technique. It sounds like you are trying to sell the building? The prospective new owner is more then likely dealing with a realtor that knows how to play this “Game”. If the church has the property inspected, then they “Know” about any hazardous materials within the building, and depending on the ordinance’s and local laws, the current owner may have to either post the building as known hazardous site, or potentially have to have the hazardous materials remediated prior to the sale of the building. In both instances the new owner benefits…
Interior and exterior plaster (even gypsum plaster) was another common place for asbestos to be used.
We’ve encountered something new to me, the use of “Zonolite” as a sound insulation under wood athletic flooring on sleepers, especially installed pre-1970. Back in the day lightweight insulating fill was notorious for having high asbestos concentrations.
Early in my career I worked on the renovation of may victorian houses in San Francisco. Floor assemblies were typically composed of (wonderful, never to be replaced) old growth redwood framing sheathed in softwood tongue and groove boards with a finish hardwood floor, usually oak. I learned to look out for buildings originally built for the well to do. They often included a layer of wood sleeper boards placed over the tongue and groove sheathing that created voids when the finish floor was placed over them. High end work circa 1895 would fill those voids with a cementitous slurry containing asbestos, turning what might have been a minor modern day remodel into a toxic superfund site.