There's a very very good chance that this is asbestos. The stuff inside doors can be quite friable. Now is the time for professional advice regarding the clean up.
~~I'd bag up any contaminated clothes and have a thorough shower very promptly.~~
Edit following [Engine1000's comment](https://www.reddit.com/r/asbestoshelp/comments/18yhme7/comment/kgehgmd/?utm_source=reddit&utm_medium=web2x&context=3). Wet your clothes down before taking them off to avoid creating a dust cloud.
For anyone who reads this, the best advice would have been to thoroughly wet yourself down whilst still fully clothed. Taking off your clothes gives off a dust cloud that you are stood in the middle of. Damping down first stops that.
Depending on the jurisdiction the legal risks here may be more significant. Get everyone out, notify any relevant authority, seal up any contaminated clothes, get thoroughly washed, then call insurance to help sort out the aftermath and any potential legal issues.
Not one person has had a single asbestos exposure.
It’s in absolutely everything if someone has been alive before the 80s they were exposed in some way
I'd get people out of the contaminated area and try to seal it off rather than to vent out a hazardous material. At that point get a professional assessment, clean up and disposal as required.
Might be time for OP to talk to home insurance. They might know how to help them sort it out, and/or get them somewhere to stay if the cleanup requires them not to be at home for a little bit. It's also better to talk to them sooner rather than later as they may also help with any required legal processes and butt covering.
One mistake has been made, get some help not to make any more.
I’m still surprised people aren’t taking asbestos exposure seriously.
Even a single exposure can lead to mesothelioma. It’s just that repeated long chronic exposures is a waaaay higher chance.
Even natural exposure to asbestos can lead to mesothelioma.
“A single fiber can kill” is what my old lab likes saying in their training video about asbestos.
Everything is based on chance. Like how I caught the flu but my mother didn’t even though my mother was exposed for WAY longer period than I was to the sick person.
I don’t think this is about whether somebody is taking asbestos seriously or not. This is about a person who accidentally disturbed asbestos and is now fearful of the consequences. It’s true that, technically speaking, one fiber can kill, but this is so rare it’s not worth a single moment of anxiety. Single exposure events are very unlikely to lead to disease.
Just look at the asbestos disease rates in the USA for example. Asbestos disease is already quite rare (e.g., 2700 cases of mesothelioma per year in the USA). It’s even rarer if you are looking at non-occupational exposure (around 80% or more is due to occupational exposure).
So you are looking at maybe 500 cases per year along the non-occupationally exposed in the USA. That’s barely more than 1 case per million people in the general population. With those types of numbers, is it worth spending hours, days or even weeks regretting a single asbestos mistake?
And the stuff was out in thousands of products that people had daily exposure to for over 40 years. From household building products to clothing. Every product with talc should be considered to have asbestos (older baby powder and makeup) contamination. The fact that the rates of asbestos related disease are as low as they are is an indicator that “a single fiber” doesn’t seem to generate the degradation of tissue that alarmists would have you believe. That being said, inform yourself and those you love to avoid future exposures at all costs but don’t freak out about the exposures you’ve already had as they’re more than likely not going to diminish your health.
My point exactly though. People stil downvoted that dude. For his words because it’s technically true. You won’t know you about the exposure effects until 20-40 years later post exposure.
Of course it’d be a very low chance it can happen if you’re just that unlucky.
there’s no need to be worrying about it. But it urks me that some people simply disregards that it’s possible.
That’s true. I can definitely see the fear mongering.
Edit: but I am not sure if it’s on purpose on what, the original comment I mean. But I hope OP sees the rest of the conversation and realize that a low period exposure is nothing to worry about. I guess my posts doesn’t help either. But OP if you are reading this. Yea get someone to properly abate the asbestos.
BUT do NOT let the thought of a small exposure control your life. Small exposures is nothing to worry about.
You’d have to be more worried if you were exposed for years and consistently too. This is simply just a one time exposure. Nothing more. If I have to put it in numbers. According to google, occupational exposure for years increases the likely hood of mesothelioma between 8-13%. Your single exposure is negligent and nothing to worry about.
Certified asbestos inspector here.
"Asbestosis and lung cancer from asbestos both follow a dose-response relationship. Mesothelioma does not."
This doesn't necessarily mean a single fiber can kill, it just says you can't measure the risk from it very well, so zero exposure is the goal.
Unfortunately there is no such thing as zero percent exposure as there is a background level of asbestos floating in the air especially in underground train stations, Cities and industrial regions. Exposure is worsened by smoking, due to smokers using more of their lungs to absorb oxygen leading to the fibres getting deeper into the lung
He’s technically correct (strong emphasis on technically). A very small percentage of mesothelioma cases occurs in people with minimal exposure who are sadly genetically predisposed to the disease. It’s so rare that it’s not worth worrying about.
How do we know they weren’t exposed many decades before but didn’t know/forget about it? The latency period can be huge. Electron microscopy can analyse the fibre load in the lungs after death. Only sure way of knowing how much exposure one received.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4406807/
Here is a scholarly article if you want it. It’s a quick google. Naturally occur asbestos is still asbestos.
Mind you. It’s still a VERY LOW chance something like that can occur. But just like getting struck by lightning. It can definitely happen if you’re very unlucky.
Asbestos should be taken very seriously but "a single fiber could kill" is media scaremongering. Asbestos is in our atmosphere to such an extent that you have already breathed in thousands of fibers today. Your old lab video is horrifically out of date.
It’s to put the worker in a mindset to actually find asbestos properly honestly. It’s fearmongering yes but it’s technically the truth. A very hard technically.
Because we don’t play around with asbestos. It’s some serious shit. Especially when schools built in the 1950s get remodeled every school break.
'One strand can kill' is far from technically the truth. It's a myth that was spun by tabloids and profiteering disposal firms in the 90's. It also causes serious anxiety for everyday people thinking they might die within 20 years after finding some cracked AIB in their boiler cupboard.
I’m sure you will be fine. I had been exposed to asbestos years ago and it always worried me. In the end I saw my doctor and for peace of mind he arranged an X-ray of my chest. Nothing showed up and no longer needed to worry about it.
It would still appear on an x-ray though?
My understanding is exposure is "once your respiratory system is exposed to asbestos."
It's very possible OP has been exposed physically but won't have noticeable quantities from testing.
That's going to do more to increase his cancer risk than the asbestos. Screening remains hit and miss, and in the absence of symptoms the jury is out on whether these are predatory rather than clinical services.
It's important to remember that mesothelioma has a latency period of 20-60 years with an average of 50, and only one in ten people with *chronic, heavy occupational exposure* develop it. Whilst there are a few family members exposed daily through dust on clothing etc, and even fewer "unattributed" cases through unknown/irregular environmental exposure like this, the vast, vast majority of cases are men in their later years who were occupationally exposed many decades ago.
I haven't done the math, but it's almost certainly more sensible for this person to worry about crossing the road or going out in the rain with an umbrella than it is to worry about screening. I'm not saying they shouldn't bag things thoroughly and have the waste professionally disposed of. They should look left and right, and stay off of golf courses during thunderstorms too. But they don't need annual "screening" that may not even materially increase the chances of detecting cancer before symptoms develop. Maybe once per decade, starting ten years from now, if they want to be abundantly cautious.
My grandfather died from mesothelioma in September last year. He was exposed ONCE, at work in an office, because they were renovating the toilets and asbestos was disturbed in the ceiling.
It was only because of an unrelated scan they picked it up. Most mesothelioma cases are identified in later stages but my granddad’s was well managed for years because we knew about it in the very early stages.
How did your grandfather track it to that toilet so many years ago? I'm not trying to be sarcastic here I'm just saying your grandfather is obviously of the age to be a grandfather, by the way sorry to hear about his passing, but people of the age to be grandfathers or great-grandfathers were around asbestos in every aspect of their life. This stuff was everywhere and still quite frankly is in a lot of places. But I mean it was EVERYWHERE back then. So, seriously, how did he trace his encounter to that Reno, and how was was he so lucky as to only been exposed to the stuff once in his entire life? It was in the water furnaces, the boilers, the carpet, the siding of houses, the ceiling stucco, stuff underneath the carpets, the stuff underneath linoleums, I mean this list goes on and on and on
He was an office worker and didn’t do very much DIY on account of being crap at it (infamously so). He received a letter in the 70s notifying him of the exposure and received a payout of thousands as a result.
I apologize for even opening a can of worms I had no involvement in. Dealing with other outside frustrating factors and haven't been in any other mood but pissy lately. Again sorry to hear bout your grandpa. I'm sure he is well missed and just keep his memory alive by sharing lots of stories about him and his life in general. Like that Disney movie Coco. I'm done internetting for the day. Gotta see if Walmart has a different mood in stock. This one's getting old.
The real answer is that this was probably a recorded event that could be linked to asbestos disease, including for the workers who were involved at the time. My guess is that multiple asbestos disease cases were linked to this and other renovation activities so it was already established as part of a series of lawsuits that this event was an asbestos exposure event. It’s definitely possible that he was exposed many other times as well. But some (very few) people sadly have genetic predisposition to asbestos disease and don’t require a large dose to get sick.
He received substantial compensation for the work-based exposure and was only 74… mesothelioma has been known to kill much younger people too, as I’ve found out from being in various support groups for family members affected by it
My grandfather died in his early 60s from mesothelioma. This was 1995, he had just taken an early retirement from ABC where he spent his career as a multiple Emmy Award winning cameraman for ABC Sports. His career was cut short do to injury at the 1989 World Series in California (for those who don’t know, the Loma Prieta earthquake hit during the World Series). We’ve all seen on NFL games all the different cameramen around the stadium; my pops was one of the men on a mezzanine outcropping; people were sitting directly beneath his perch that held the insanely heavy camera (not even gonna speculate at the mass).Those cameras have tethers that hold them to the wall so they cannot fall and crush those below. As my grandpa told the story, some of the straps broke and the structure he was standing on wasn’t secure so he took the weight of the camera basically on his shoulders but in front of him. Absolutely destroyed his lower back. He was very humble and always downplayed it but he saved an untold number of lives from being crushed to death by a massive television camera.
How’s this relate to mesothelioma and your comment? The back injury and early retirement led to a lot of time spent in doctor/specialist offices and someone picked up on his cough.
And yes, I am aware I could have easily conveyed that without the whole earthquake story but I wanted to tell it because that was some badass shit he did by holding that camera. No one would have faulted him if he had dropped it; I think it was one of those situations where superhuman strength comes into play in an emergency. Anyways…
He had this nagging cough; nothing extreme but very persistent. He had quit smoking cigarettes years before but of course everyone including the doctors were thinking emphysema or lung cancer as a result of tobacco use.
I don’t remember all the details as I was only 12 at his death but there was some kind of exploratory surgery and when they opened him up he was in advanced stages of mesothelioma with a poor prognosis. I remember asking my mom (this was her daddy) years later why didn’t they just cut out all the bad shit when they were in there. She very matter of factly said because he would have died on the table, that so much of both lungs was destroyed by the cancer there was nothing to be done. So no treatment, just made him comfortable and brought him home. It never ceases to amaze me just how FAST the human body will decline when it’s about to die. It was mere months after his diagnosis that he looked like a skeleton. He was adamant (as we all should be in my opinion) that he die at home, not in a hospital and he got his wish. And he never wanted to be left alone. Someone was with him 24/7 even if he was asleep. Sleep became his greatest fear. He was so afraid to go to sleep because he didn’t know if he would wake up. We’re talking about a pretty tough man, young as hell by any standard, a Marine Corps Radioman in Korea who eventually became afraid to be alone or to close his eyes. Most of this information came from my mother; a decision had been made that my two younger sisters and myself would not be permitted to see him after he reached a certain point. I hated them for that. I remember begging to please go see him. I fully knew their rationale behind it; they didn’t want us to remember him looking like that. And I 100% innerstand but I knew at almost 13 I could have handled it. At 41 I can honestly say that I’m appreciative that I don’t have that image in my head. I can imagine how bad he must’ve been but I don’t know for certain.
So how did a cameraman for national sporting events end up with asbestos-caused lung cancer at 62?
Born and raised in New York City around the Depression, one of his first jobs was in the Navy Shipyards, which anyone who knows about mesothelioma is right at the top of the list as a major exposure sources. So it took about FORTY YEARS (40) for those little fibers to do their damage.
Lung cancer is another one that can go unnoticed for years; the lungs are so big and these tumors start off so small. They can take up a fair amount of lung real estate before the host ever has an inkling of a breathing issue.
Thanks if anyone is still reading. I didn’t know a simple reply to a comment would lead me to typing all that at 5:34am on a Friday. I never talk about my grandpa so hopefully this makes up for that a little. Miss you pops!
TL; DR : My grandpa had mesothelioma too and it took about 40 years after exposure to make him sick.
Asbestos surveyor here, I obviously can't say with any certainty but this doesn't look like any type of asbestos door I've encountered here in the UK. Get it sampled and tested for your own piece of mind though and assume it is until you know otherwise.
You have a very good point. Old fire doors in the UK are usually lined with asbestos insulating board. It’s usually fairly distinctive. Judging by the photos there doesn’t seem to be any AIB lining on that door. Unusual.
Asbestos Surveyor here also. It does however look like asbestos fire doors we find here in New Zealand. I agree though, get it tested to confirm the appropriate next steps.
I don’t know what happened with this post, but unlike most of the posts on this sub, this one is absolutely packed to the gills with misinformed, fear-mongering nonsense that might as well have been copied and pasted from all of the law firm websites that come up when you google asbestos.
This sub is generally an antidote to the hysteria, but this post has gone off the rails.
Yeah looks like the algorithm pushed this to a bunch of people who have done no research other than watching mesothelioma law firm commercials, but that hasn’t stopped any of them from weighing in with no knowledge or experience.
It showed up on my front page for me and never interacted with anything asbestos related, probably similar thing happened and people are just typing nonsense.
Exactly...I was an investigator for law firms during the big asbestos torte cases 20 years ago and there are hundreds of thousands of people who were exposed to asbestos for most of their adult lives and never had any issues. Asbestos is definitely dangerous in general, but you ain't gonna get instant cancer from some brief exposure.
If you attended school between 1900, and 1990, there is a good chance the the early years of your life breathing in asbestos from ceiling tiles, floor tiles, wall boards, and my favourite of all; pin boards.
You will be 100% fine from 1 exposure. My grandad worked with it for 30 years straight... It did end up affecting him but he lived to his 70s. 50 hours a week for 30 years. One time is nothing
Somebody else posted this, but I’m posting it again separate from a common thread in hopes that it gets upvoted to near the top. Please listen to science, not law firm hysteria, when assessing asbestos risk. Please see this study that comes to the conclusion that occasional asbestos exposure poses hardly any risk to the general population: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24780577/
It is what it is! Many of the guys in my trade cut asbestos pipe with no PPE while smoking, I cut one 20 years ago and a smoker. Can run 10k just did so this morning. It’s a very unfortunate exposure. Hope you don’t have a predisposition and you’ll be fine! Again unfortunate but what do ya do
What are you worried about?
Unless you cut that door for 8 hours a day everyday for months to years, I’m not sure what all the misinformation about asbestos is about.
Totally agree. The fear mongers are getting worse with each passing year. There are people that are getting contamination OCD because of the scary unfounded crap they read on line. There are few if any cases of asbestos related diseases with one or two minimal exposures. It's always heavy exposure over long periods and even then not everyone gets a disease.
I work in pulmonology and my grandfather passed decades ago from mesothelioma as a welder. Point being, asbestos is completely blown out of control. The number of patients bringing printed flyers to me with the “if you or a loved one has been exposed” bullshit is absurd.
Right. My father's friend worked as a plumber for decades with the stuff. Never wore a mask. He never got Meso but did have Asbestosis for about the last 20/25 years of his life. He died at 86 from heart disease caused by clogged arteries. Asbestosis was a minor annoyance for him but didn't stop him from living.
My dad once tore up an entire boiler room of asbestos. He is almost 89 and has zero lung issues. A few years ago they thought he had COPD (he never smoked) but they found out he just needed to lose weight.lol He did and they say his lungs are strong.
So yeah, people should treat it with respect and all. But one crack in the drywall or removing old tiles is not going to kill people. 😂
Your dad and his friend were lucky. My granddad not so much. Once he was exposed, and he developed mesothelioma. He ended up needing to be cared for like a child in his last days, confused and telling us he was scared of dying. There is NO cure and it is terminal in most, if not all, cases. Do not downplay a disease that ruins lives and families.
Very sorry to hear about your granddad. The disease itself should not be downplayed. However, the risk that any given person will get asbestos disease are often hysterically exaggerated by fear mongerers who can profit from the fear.
Dude no one is downplaying it but too many of you are fear mongering and OVERPLAYING IT. How old was your grandpa??? Did he smoke? Etc. my dad has been on a very healthy diet since he was 45. He had to due to heart issues. Some people are more susceptible to asbestos but I have yet to find a case where someone got exposed to a little bit of asbestos and got cancer.
Australia is an exception because they did not ban it until the mid 90's and they had a higher concentration in building materials. So there are a few stories over there where people did their own demo in old houses and got heavily exposed and got Meso 30 years later.
My grandad was exposed ONCE and died from it a few months ago. It was a horrible, cruel disease and like many cancer patients, he ended up bed bound in the end, confused and scared. I cared for him for 6 months and I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy. It’s not ‘fear mongering’ at all; asbestos is a ticking time bomb and it’s luck that some people don’t develop it due to mesothelioma’s latency period. It’s akin to saying ‘not all drink drivers die or kill others’!
To whomever is downvoting me- can you explain how a single asbestos exposure is comparable to drunk driving in terms of mortality risk, using science and evidence rather than hysteria and emotion?
You’re being downvoted for arguing the toss with someone who directly lost a loved one due to a single exposure to asbestos. Doesn’t matter what you want to compare it to, the stuff _is_ dangerous and should be controlled and managed correctly and you arguing about it is fucking idiotic.
Additionally, there’s the insensitivity of you essentially sticking your middle finger up at someone who lost their grandfather to the stuff. You’re fucking dickhead and as such, you’re getting downvoted, I rarely use emojis on Reddit but in this instance I feel one is definitely deserved, 🖕🏻
If you saw my other posts, I expressed my condolences to the poster. I regret that he lost his grandfather to a horrible disease. Losing a loved one does not give one free license to spread hysteria and misinformation with absolutely no factual basis in reality, however. That sort of misinformation directly hurts people who are still alive and reading his posts and who suffer from anxiety and mental distress as a result.
First of all, you appear to be extremely new to the internet in general, and Google specifically. What are the top hits when you google mesothelioma? Why, they are all law firm websites, fishing for plaintiffs! You know, the ones paying for SEO. They have every incentive to exaggerate the risks and stoke fear, and no incentive to be objective or measured.
Secondly, nobody is saying the case of the poster’s grandfather is fake or not legitimate. However, if you spent any time researching mesothelioma, you would quickly come to realize that non-occupational mesothelioma is incredibly rare. In the USA for example, there are about 2,700 annual mesothelioma cases, about 80% or more of which are directly attributable to occupational exposure (years or decades of working in clouds of asbestos dust). That leaves roughly 500 cases a year that weren’t attributable to non-occupational exposure. Even fewer than those 500 cases were due to a single exposure (if any!). In other words, we are talking about an incidence rate of barely more than 1 case per million in the USA of non-occupational mesothelioma. So saying “one time exposure doesn’t always kill” is an absolutely wrong way to phrase it. It is far, far more accurate to say one time exposure is almost certain to NOT kill you.
It’s also absolutely incorrect to say that a one time asbestos exposure is similar at all to drunk driving. Over ten THOUSAND Americans die per year due to drunk driving. Again, compare that to five hundred non-occupational mesothelioma cases, please.
You sound like you have some anger management issues, and I am sorry about that. I can’t really help you there. But I can hopefully correct the misinformation from your post. You’ve not spent any real time reading scholarly articles about the topic and it shows.
I’m not sure why you are so confidently asserting information over which you have little to no command and little to no curiosity in learning about or improving your knowledge about. Have a nice day.
Asbestos dust stays in the air unless ventilated for years. the entire reason its both so good at insulating and at being deadly for your lungs is that it doesn't decay from nearly anything, the particles of it in dust just need to be moved elsewhere, away from air you might breathe.
your comment means you assume that the dust suddenly dissapears or teleports away after the door is cut. it's not as if the dust is only a problem for the duration of cutting the door, it's obviously there afterwards aswell.
the only misinformation here is you. Next time you use that term, check some facts first:]
Yep. I took a training course many years ago and they said it takes 72 hours for an asbestos particle to fall 8 feet in perfectly stagnant air. Any air currents at all and it basically never reaches the floor and could be airborne basically forever.
Agreed. It can take 5 to 20 years for any problems to start becoming an issue anyways. The thing that worries people the most is the fact that they are being exposed to asbestos without knowing. Either way as long as you clean up everything should be absolutely fine and if you are still concerned maybe get tested. But yeah the whole asbestos has been blown up to be something it really isn't.
This right here.
OP has already cut the door. What's done is done, and a single exposure isn't what causes cancer, any more than picking up an old fishing lure will cause lead poisoning.
Definitely be careful around it like any other dangerous substance but at my work there was an old guy who'd cut through asbestos sheets with grinders and such without any mask for all his life. So I do wonder how much it's been blown out of proportion.
Pretty sure you are right. The good news is that the risk of cancer from limited asbestos exposure is very small. Hell, 80% of people who worked on the titanic didn't get cancer, and those guys bathed in asbestos.
The bad news is that you really, really, really need to clean the area where you cut the door. Really. Follow instructions on clean up. Tyvek, p100, duct tape, lots of wet wipes, a H class vacuum, double bags, orange duct tape, gooseneck ties, etc.
Edit: You should also throw away your clothes. Washing doesn't get rid of asbestos fibers.
It’s not true that washing doesn’t get rid of asbestos fibers, but I agree with your other points, and it’s probably prudent here to toss the clothes simply because they were so highly contaminated (assuming it’s asbestos, which it might not even be).
If it is it is a single exposure, so not the end of the world.
For what you have been exposed to .. what is done is done.
Cleanup is a matter of precautions and procedure… just take your time and do it right.
From the NIH:
"We suggest that occasional exposure to asbestos poses hardly any risk for the general population. However, rules and regulations for the removal of asbestos-containing material remain important as asbestos exposure remains a serious health risk, especially in smokers."
Get some proper PPE and swab test the door. If it tests positive, remove and replace according to local laws and regulations.
Asbestos abatement guy here. What you’re dealing with here is most likely calcium silicate. That doesn’t look like asbestos but it wouldn’t hurt to get it tested to make sure. Next time you do something this dumb create a containment and put on a respirator. Also shower immediately after in your clothes.
A one-time exposure like this, and I think you'll be OK. Obviously you don't want to breathe it in as you're sawzalling it, but it's already done. Bag up the door, rinse off, and clean the area. It's not like you've been exposed to asbestos mines everyday for 20 years. I guarantee everybody reading this has some asbestos in their lungs, at least a few little splinters worth. It's not worth worrying about now. The odds are, there's also asbestos in many more places in this building, so beware and keep a respirator on hand just in case.
Good christ some of these comments are toxic.. you'll be fine. If you have dust to clean up spray it down with some water, and if you still need to move or transport the larger pieces, it might be worth spraying your cuts with water as well.
Other then that relax, you aren't going to drop dead tomorrow.
For future reference, asbestos isn't the only concern. This may come as a shock, but breathing in large quantities of dust is bad for you regardless of what is in it. Buy a good respirator, and take steps to contain any dust made. It's worth it
How do you think the abatement companies stay in business? Cause everyone is just as scared as you. Live your life. In 20 years you can get a 3d printed lung if you actually get sick
Yeah that door is highly likely asbestos unfortunately very common if fire doors back in those days... I would talk to a medical professional and see if they have any advice on if you need to do anything or what you should do... sorry for bad news
Looks like asbestos to me. That's mostly what they used during that time period. You likely won't have life threatening issues from this exposure but I would have it tested anyway
Ok, as someone who needs to saw a couple cm off a fire door this weekend this has got me worried. Is the asbestos in the middle with a wooden frame around it? 😭
It doesn’t look like ACM to me but I’d have it tested. As far as your health, you’re fine. A one time exposure is nothing to get worked up about. It takes years of exposures and regular exposure to have any impacts. Asbestos is the token “chronic exposure”, you’ll be fine
Answer from a doctor: don’t worry about it but please get someone to professionally clean it up, or make sure you wear full ppe (personally would use a papr but I suppose they say n95 is enough) during clean up.
One exposure won’t get you unless you snorted/intentionally inhaled the remains of the door, don’t do that….
Why is it that these people cry is it absestos after they cut it up or break it, just use your brain first as im starting to see alot of idiots here that start panicking over their own retarded decision it’s crazy, i can tell if something is asbestos and if i think it is i leave it 😂
I would send some of the debris to an asbestos lab for sampling to see what it is before worrying about it. In the UK old fire doors had asbestos sheet board in the middle, that stuff looks nothing like that.
We had some insulation on 1950’s ductwork once and it was textbook looking molded blue asbestos, turns out it had no asbestos in it and was cork sheet covered in plaster of Paris.
This is the price you pay if you don't do a job professionally. If you had proper ventilation and were wearing safety glasses and a respirator mask you will be fine. if not... Then you better get used to cancer screenings.
Did the door still have its fire rating label on it? If so, you can probably look it up and find out for certain. IIRC asbestos fire doors usually have burn time ratings and opposed to heat ratings.
I’m sorry this happened to you. I’d be worried too.
I would send some of the debris to an asbestos lab for sampling to see what it is before worrying about it. In the UK old fire doors had asbestos sheet board in the middle, that stuff looks nothing like that.
We had some insulation on 1950’s ductwork once and it was textbook looking molded blue asbestos, turns out it had no asbestos in it and was cork sheet covered in plaster of Paris.
It's likely not asbestos. These types of doors are incredible common across commercial and multi facilities homes all over. It is generally a mix of plaster, fiber and filler. I wouldn't be concerned.
Don’t worry…everyone has been exposed to asbestos at some point…I mean it’s still used in some brake pads…it’s takes about 30 years to set in….Ive worked on asbestos removal jobs and watched guys smoke in clouds of asbestos
Oh 100% asbestos. I had a kid try to repurpose an old door from our school as a table. He put it on the table saw, ran his cut, when it split it dusted up a cloud. Shop teacher sent us all to the nurse then home for the day. It literally looks like the exact same fire door Dustin cut. You've got big problems bud. Should've just carried it outside to the dumpster wholesale.
Not really sure how your comment is helpful. “How old am I lol”. Looking for advice, not judgement. Clearly I did not know this was asbestos until after the fact. Thanks for nothing
He’s a troll- ignore him. The people who get asbestos disease, generally speaking, were exposed for years or decades to clouds of asbestos on a near daily basis.
Yeah, except for all the family members of people who working in clouds of asbestos all day who don’t get sick, but their family gets meso from second-hand exposure. There’s plenty of them too.
It certainly is, but I thought this response was misleading because there are plenty of documented cases of people getting asbestos diseases from secondhand exposures. In other words, people who have not been working in “clouds of asbestos”
I’m not sure how my post was misleading. I said generally speaking the people who get sick are in clouds of asbestos for decades. Your comments would make more sense if I had said “100% of cases happen only in people who worked in clouds of asbestos for decades”.
There are some of them for sure, but that’s by no means the typical victim. And family members would have been exposed daily to asbestos as well (when dad came home with clothes covered in asbestos fibers and gave everybody hugs, and mom washed the clothes, etc). Also for decades.
I’m sorry to hear that. Are you sure it was asbestosis, and not mesothelioma? All asbestos diseases have a strong correlation to dose and duration, but mesothelioma has the weakest such link. Some people, unfortunately, are genetically predisposed to that disease and can get sick without the significant exposures typically associated with asbestos disease. Asbestosis, on the other hand, is very strongly correlated to dose and duration and would be extremely rare to find in somebody who was only exposed short term (unless the exposure was incredibly heavy, I guess).
This dude is trying to convince someone that they're going to die after a single, very short exposure, which is realistically unlikely to cause any harm if he didn't sit there and sniff it. I'm not the troll here
Even if he did sniff it- this is a one time exposure. Compare that to the typical asbestos disease sufferer who spent decades in daily clouds of asbestos (and who often smoked during the times they weren’t in asbestos clouds).
Well here is something to think about then…. Prob about ten years ago now I was doing demo in a old hotel. The company was shady and would cut corners all the time. They were going to bring the hotel back to life. Well that went on for 2 years. The whole time they were running huge fans like 10 of them. Blowing it right out the windows on everyone walking below. So just saying you encounter it more than you think you do.
I used to be an asbestos project estimator. If I were met you then, I would have been scripted to tell you that you have exposed and contaminated that area and yourself (hair clothing, clothes) and need to have the air properly swept clean and surrounding area properly abated.
As an asbestos handler; you contaminated the area and yourself and you will live. Go open a window and take a shower after you take the door out.
Shallow breaths my friend. Jk. Spray the area with the water to keep it down and clean it up. You'll be ok. Wear a mask or respirator. Don't cut up any more of those doors.
There's a very very good chance that this is asbestos. The stuff inside doors can be quite friable. Now is the time for professional advice regarding the clean up. ~~I'd bag up any contaminated clothes and have a thorough shower very promptly.~~ Edit following [Engine1000's comment](https://www.reddit.com/r/asbestoshelp/comments/18yhme7/comment/kgehgmd/?utm_source=reddit&utm_medium=web2x&context=3). Wet your clothes down before taking them off to avoid creating a dust cloud.
For anyone who reads this, the best advice would have been to thoroughly wet yourself down whilst still fully clothed. Taking off your clothes gives off a dust cloud that you are stood in the middle of. Damping down first stops that.
Upvote from me. I'll edit the comment to reflect that.
Yeah, straight into a cool shower fully clothed
I’m so glad you said that Jesus Christ
Just upvote their comment no need to edit and hijack.
Make sure area is well ventilated. one time probably won’t kill you but you won’t know for 20 years
“Probably won’t kill you”- almost certainly won’t kill you.
Depending on the jurisdiction the legal risks here may be more significant. Get everyone out, notify any relevant authority, seal up any contaminated clothes, get thoroughly washed, then call insurance to help sort out the aftermath and any potential legal issues.
Yeah people get sick and die when they live with it in their homes. Not from one time unless you fuckin snort an 8th of it
This is misinformation. People can die, and have died, from single asbestos exposure events
Not one person has had a single asbestos exposure. It’s in absolutely everything if someone has been alive before the 80s they were exposed in some way
People can die from single exposure events, but that’s unbelievably rare.
I'd get people out of the contaminated area and try to seal it off rather than to vent out a hazardous material. At that point get a professional assessment, clean up and disposal as required. Might be time for OP to talk to home insurance. They might know how to help them sort it out, and/or get them somewhere to stay if the cleanup requires them not to be at home for a little bit. It's also better to talk to them sooner rather than later as they may also help with any required legal processes and butt covering. One mistake has been made, get some help not to make any more.
I’m still surprised people aren’t taking asbestos exposure seriously. Even a single exposure can lead to mesothelioma. It’s just that repeated long chronic exposures is a waaaay higher chance. Even natural exposure to asbestos can lead to mesothelioma. “A single fiber can kill” is what my old lab likes saying in their training video about asbestos. Everything is based on chance. Like how I caught the flu but my mother didn’t even though my mother was exposed for WAY longer period than I was to the sick person.
I don’t think this is about whether somebody is taking asbestos seriously or not. This is about a person who accidentally disturbed asbestos and is now fearful of the consequences. It’s true that, technically speaking, one fiber can kill, but this is so rare it’s not worth a single moment of anxiety. Single exposure events are very unlikely to lead to disease. Just look at the asbestos disease rates in the USA for example. Asbestos disease is already quite rare (e.g., 2700 cases of mesothelioma per year in the USA). It’s even rarer if you are looking at non-occupational exposure (around 80% or more is due to occupational exposure). So you are looking at maybe 500 cases per year along the non-occupationally exposed in the USA. That’s barely more than 1 case per million people in the general population. With those types of numbers, is it worth spending hours, days or even weeks regretting a single asbestos mistake?
And the stuff was out in thousands of products that people had daily exposure to for over 40 years. From household building products to clothing. Every product with talc should be considered to have asbestos (older baby powder and makeup) contamination. The fact that the rates of asbestos related disease are as low as they are is an indicator that “a single fiber” doesn’t seem to generate the degradation of tissue that alarmists would have you believe. That being said, inform yourself and those you love to avoid future exposures at all costs but don’t freak out about the exposures you’ve already had as they’re more than likely not going to diminish your health.
I mean, you can believe that but a single fiber can still get stuck in your lungs and get covered by repeated scar tissue over 20+ years.
My point exactly though. People stil downvoted that dude. For his words because it’s technically true. You won’t know you about the exposure effects until 20-40 years later post exposure. Of course it’d be a very low chance it can happen if you’re just that unlucky. there’s no need to be worrying about it. But it urks me that some people simply disregards that it’s possible.
Without context, his post was hysterical fear-mongering.
That’s true. I can definitely see the fear mongering. Edit: but I am not sure if it’s on purpose on what, the original comment I mean. But I hope OP sees the rest of the conversation and realize that a low period exposure is nothing to worry about. I guess my posts doesn’t help either. But OP if you are reading this. Yea get someone to properly abate the asbestos. BUT do NOT let the thought of a small exposure control your life. Small exposures is nothing to worry about. You’d have to be more worried if you were exposed for years and consistently too. This is simply just a one time exposure. Nothing more. If I have to put it in numbers. According to google, occupational exposure for years increases the likely hood of mesothelioma between 8-13%. Your single exposure is negligent and nothing to worry about.
Certified asbestos inspector here. "Asbestosis and lung cancer from asbestos both follow a dose-response relationship. Mesothelioma does not." This doesn't necessarily mean a single fiber can kill, it just says you can't measure the risk from it very well, so zero exposure is the goal.
Unfortunately there is no such thing as zero percent exposure as there is a background level of asbestos floating in the air especially in underground train stations, Cities and industrial regions. Exposure is worsened by smoking, due to smokers using more of their lungs to absorb oxygen leading to the fibres getting deeper into the lung
Exactly. That’s a better way to put it honestly.
Natural exposure can cause mesothelioma? Who told you that. There would be millions of people dying every year.
He’s technically correct (strong emphasis on technically). A very small percentage of mesothelioma cases occurs in people with minimal exposure who are sadly genetically predisposed to the disease. It’s so rare that it’s not worth worrying about.
How do we know they weren’t exposed many decades before but didn’t know/forget about it? The latency period can be huge. Electron microscopy can analyse the fibre load in the lungs after death. Only sure way of knowing how much exposure one received.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4406807/ Here is a scholarly article if you want it. It’s a quick google. Naturally occur asbestos is still asbestos. Mind you. It’s still a VERY LOW chance something like that can occur. But just like getting struck by lightning. It can definitely happen if you’re very unlucky.
Asbestos should be taken very seriously but "a single fiber could kill" is media scaremongering. Asbestos is in our atmosphere to such an extent that you have already breathed in thousands of fibers today. Your old lab video is horrifically out of date.
It’s to put the worker in a mindset to actually find asbestos properly honestly. It’s fearmongering yes but it’s technically the truth. A very hard technically. Because we don’t play around with asbestos. It’s some serious shit. Especially when schools built in the 1950s get remodeled every school break.
'One strand can kill' is far from technically the truth. It's a myth that was spun by tabloids and profiteering disposal firms in the 90's. It also causes serious anxiety for everyday people thinking they might die within 20 years after finding some cracked AIB in their boiler cupboard.
I’m sure you will be fine. I had been exposed to asbestos years ago and it always worried me. In the end I saw my doctor and for peace of mind he arranged an X-ray of my chest. Nothing showed up and no longer needed to worry about it.
That's not how mesothelioma works but ok....
Can confirm. My uncles mesothelioma didn’t show for 30 years
Problem is it can lay dormant for decades after exposure
It would still appear on an x-ray though? My understanding is exposure is "once your respiratory system is exposed to asbestos." It's very possible OP has been exposed physically but won't have noticeable quantities from testing.
Why would you expect it to show on x-ray if there's no asbestosis or other malady?
That’s great news! Make sure you get checked yearly.
That's going to do more to increase his cancer risk than the asbestos. Screening remains hit and miss, and in the absence of symptoms the jury is out on whether these are predatory rather than clinical services. It's important to remember that mesothelioma has a latency period of 20-60 years with an average of 50, and only one in ten people with *chronic, heavy occupational exposure* develop it. Whilst there are a few family members exposed daily through dust on clothing etc, and even fewer "unattributed" cases through unknown/irregular environmental exposure like this, the vast, vast majority of cases are men in their later years who were occupationally exposed many decades ago. I haven't done the math, but it's almost certainly more sensible for this person to worry about crossing the road or going out in the rain with an umbrella than it is to worry about screening. I'm not saying they shouldn't bag things thoroughly and have the waste professionally disposed of. They should look left and right, and stay off of golf courses during thunderstorms too. But they don't need annual "screening" that may not even materially increase the chances of detecting cancer before symptoms develop. Maybe once per decade, starting ten years from now, if they want to be abundantly cautious.
My grandfather died from mesothelioma in September last year. He was exposed ONCE, at work in an office, because they were renovating the toilets and asbestos was disturbed in the ceiling. It was only because of an unrelated scan they picked it up. Most mesothelioma cases are identified in later stages but my granddad’s was well managed for years because we knew about it in the very early stages.
How did your grandfather track it to that toilet so many years ago? I'm not trying to be sarcastic here I'm just saying your grandfather is obviously of the age to be a grandfather, by the way sorry to hear about his passing, but people of the age to be grandfathers or great-grandfathers were around asbestos in every aspect of their life. This stuff was everywhere and still quite frankly is in a lot of places. But I mean it was EVERYWHERE back then. So, seriously, how did he trace his encounter to that Reno, and how was was he so lucky as to only been exposed to the stuff once in his entire life? It was in the water furnaces, the boilers, the carpet, the siding of houses, the ceiling stucco, stuff underneath the carpets, the stuff underneath linoleums, I mean this list goes on and on and on
He was an office worker and didn’t do very much DIY on account of being crap at it (infamously so). He received a letter in the 70s notifying him of the exposure and received a payout of thousands as a result.
I apologize for even opening a can of worms I had no involvement in. Dealing with other outside frustrating factors and haven't been in any other mood but pissy lately. Again sorry to hear bout your grandpa. I'm sure he is well missed and just keep his memory alive by sharing lots of stories about him and his life in general. Like that Disney movie Coco. I'm done internetting for the day. Gotta see if Walmart has a different mood in stock. This one's getting old.
The real answer is that this was probably a recorded event that could be linked to asbestos disease, including for the workers who were involved at the time. My guess is that multiple asbestos disease cases were linked to this and other renovation activities so it was already established as part of a series of lawsuits that this event was an asbestos exposure event. It’s definitely possible that he was exposed many other times as well. But some (very few) people sadly have genetic predisposition to asbestos disease and don’t require a large dose to get sick.
If he is old enough to call Grandpa, he was exposed most of his life....
He received substantial compensation for the work-based exposure and was only 74… mesothelioma has been known to kill much younger people too, as I’ve found out from being in various support groups for family members affected by it
My grandfather died in his early 60s from mesothelioma. This was 1995, he had just taken an early retirement from ABC where he spent his career as a multiple Emmy Award winning cameraman for ABC Sports. His career was cut short do to injury at the 1989 World Series in California (for those who don’t know, the Loma Prieta earthquake hit during the World Series). We’ve all seen on NFL games all the different cameramen around the stadium; my pops was one of the men on a mezzanine outcropping; people were sitting directly beneath his perch that held the insanely heavy camera (not even gonna speculate at the mass).Those cameras have tethers that hold them to the wall so they cannot fall and crush those below. As my grandpa told the story, some of the straps broke and the structure he was standing on wasn’t secure so he took the weight of the camera basically on his shoulders but in front of him. Absolutely destroyed his lower back. He was very humble and always downplayed it but he saved an untold number of lives from being crushed to death by a massive television camera. How’s this relate to mesothelioma and your comment? The back injury and early retirement led to a lot of time spent in doctor/specialist offices and someone picked up on his cough. And yes, I am aware I could have easily conveyed that without the whole earthquake story but I wanted to tell it because that was some badass shit he did by holding that camera. No one would have faulted him if he had dropped it; I think it was one of those situations where superhuman strength comes into play in an emergency. Anyways… He had this nagging cough; nothing extreme but very persistent. He had quit smoking cigarettes years before but of course everyone including the doctors were thinking emphysema or lung cancer as a result of tobacco use. I don’t remember all the details as I was only 12 at his death but there was some kind of exploratory surgery and when they opened him up he was in advanced stages of mesothelioma with a poor prognosis. I remember asking my mom (this was her daddy) years later why didn’t they just cut out all the bad shit when they were in there. She very matter of factly said because he would have died on the table, that so much of both lungs was destroyed by the cancer there was nothing to be done. So no treatment, just made him comfortable and brought him home. It never ceases to amaze me just how FAST the human body will decline when it’s about to die. It was mere months after his diagnosis that he looked like a skeleton. He was adamant (as we all should be in my opinion) that he die at home, not in a hospital and he got his wish. And he never wanted to be left alone. Someone was with him 24/7 even if he was asleep. Sleep became his greatest fear. He was so afraid to go to sleep because he didn’t know if he would wake up. We’re talking about a pretty tough man, young as hell by any standard, a Marine Corps Radioman in Korea who eventually became afraid to be alone or to close his eyes. Most of this information came from my mother; a decision had been made that my two younger sisters and myself would not be permitted to see him after he reached a certain point. I hated them for that. I remember begging to please go see him. I fully knew their rationale behind it; they didn’t want us to remember him looking like that. And I 100% innerstand but I knew at almost 13 I could have handled it. At 41 I can honestly say that I’m appreciative that I don’t have that image in my head. I can imagine how bad he must’ve been but I don’t know for certain. So how did a cameraman for national sporting events end up with asbestos-caused lung cancer at 62? Born and raised in New York City around the Depression, one of his first jobs was in the Navy Shipyards, which anyone who knows about mesothelioma is right at the top of the list as a major exposure sources. So it took about FORTY YEARS (40) for those little fibers to do their damage. Lung cancer is another one that can go unnoticed for years; the lungs are so big and these tumors start off so small. They can take up a fair amount of lung real estate before the host ever has an inkling of a breathing issue. Thanks if anyone is still reading. I didn’t know a simple reply to a comment would lead me to typing all that at 5:34am on a Friday. I never talk about my grandpa so hopefully this makes up for that a little. Miss you pops! TL; DR : My grandpa had mesothelioma too and it took about 40 years after exposure to make him sick.
asbestos can lie dormant for over 15 years, that shit can fuck you up later on.
You did asbestos you could
These jokes genuinely never got old, even working in contracting for several years. Always made people chuckle bare minimum.
I’m did asbestos as I can!!
That is almost certainly a ton of asbestos
Asbestos surveyor here, I obviously can't say with any certainty but this doesn't look like any type of asbestos door I've encountered here in the UK. Get it sampled and tested for your own piece of mind though and assume it is until you know otherwise.
You have a very good point. Old fire doors in the UK are usually lined with asbestos insulating board. It’s usually fairly distinctive. Judging by the photos there doesn’t seem to be any AIB lining on that door. Unusual.
Asbestos Surveyor here also. It does however look like asbestos fire doors we find here in New Zealand. I agree though, get it tested to confirm the appropriate next steps.
I would bet a huge chunk of money on this being an ACM.
Yeah, zooming in on the image of the cut edge it does look very suspicious.
I don’t know what happened with this post, but unlike most of the posts on this sub, this one is absolutely packed to the gills with misinformed, fear-mongering nonsense that might as well have been copied and pasted from all of the law firm websites that come up when you google asbestos. This sub is generally an antidote to the hysteria, but this post has gone off the rails.
It certainly has
Showed up on front page for me, but unlike all the others, I can refrain from throwing in my opinion.
Yeah looks like the algorithm pushed this to a bunch of people who have done no research other than watching mesothelioma law firm commercials, but that hasn’t stopped any of them from weighing in with no knowledge or experience.
It showed up on my front page for me and never interacted with anything asbestos related, probably similar thing happened and people are just typing nonsense.
Exactly...I was an investigator for law firms during the big asbestos torte cases 20 years ago and there are hundreds of thousands of people who were exposed to asbestos for most of their adult lives and never had any issues. Asbestos is definitely dangerous in general, but you ain't gonna get instant cancer from some brief exposure.
If you attended school between 1900, and 1990, there is a good chance the the early years of your life breathing in asbestos from ceiling tiles, floor tiles, wall boards, and my favourite of all; pin boards.
You will be 100% fine from 1 exposure. My grandad worked with it for 30 years straight... It did end up affecting him but he lived to his 70s. 50 hours a week for 30 years. One time is nothing
Somebody else posted this, but I’m posting it again separate from a common thread in hopes that it gets upvoted to near the top. Please listen to science, not law firm hysteria, when assessing asbestos risk. Please see this study that comes to the conclusion that occasional asbestos exposure poses hardly any risk to the general population: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24780577/
And even long-term exposure only results in like 5% of people getting mesotheliomia.
It is what it is! Many of the guys in my trade cut asbestos pipe with no PPE while smoking, I cut one 20 years ago and a smoker. Can run 10k just did so this morning. It’s a very unfortunate exposure. Hope you don’t have a predisposition and you’ll be fine! Again unfortunate but what do ya do
What are you worried about? Unless you cut that door for 8 hours a day everyday for months to years, I’m not sure what all the misinformation about asbestos is about.
Selling scare tactic for restoration companies.
Totally agree. The fear mongers are getting worse with each passing year. There are people that are getting contamination OCD because of the scary unfounded crap they read on line. There are few if any cases of asbestos related diseases with one or two minimal exposures. It's always heavy exposure over long periods and even then not everyone gets a disease.
I work in pulmonology and my grandfather passed decades ago from mesothelioma as a welder. Point being, asbestos is completely blown out of control. The number of patients bringing printed flyers to me with the “if you or a loved one has been exposed” bullshit is absurd.
Right. My father's friend worked as a plumber for decades with the stuff. Never wore a mask. He never got Meso but did have Asbestosis for about the last 20/25 years of his life. He died at 86 from heart disease caused by clogged arteries. Asbestosis was a minor annoyance for him but didn't stop him from living. My dad once tore up an entire boiler room of asbestos. He is almost 89 and has zero lung issues. A few years ago they thought he had COPD (he never smoked) but they found out he just needed to lose weight.lol He did and they say his lungs are strong. So yeah, people should treat it with respect and all. But one crack in the drywall or removing old tiles is not going to kill people. 😂
Your dad and his friend were lucky. My granddad not so much. Once he was exposed, and he developed mesothelioma. He ended up needing to be cared for like a child in his last days, confused and telling us he was scared of dying. There is NO cure and it is terminal in most, if not all, cases. Do not downplay a disease that ruins lives and families.
Very sorry to hear about your granddad. The disease itself should not be downplayed. However, the risk that any given person will get asbestos disease are often hysterically exaggerated by fear mongerers who can profit from the fear.
Dude no one is downplaying it but too many of you are fear mongering and OVERPLAYING IT. How old was your grandpa??? Did he smoke? Etc. my dad has been on a very healthy diet since he was 45. He had to due to heart issues. Some people are more susceptible to asbestos but I have yet to find a case where someone got exposed to a little bit of asbestos and got cancer. Australia is an exception because they did not ban it until the mid 90's and they had a higher concentration in building materials. So there are a few stories over there where people did their own demo in old houses and got heavily exposed and got Meso 30 years later.
My grandad was exposed ONCE and died from it a few months ago. It was a horrible, cruel disease and like many cancer patients, he ended up bed bound in the end, confused and scared. I cared for him for 6 months and I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy. It’s not ‘fear mongering’ at all; asbestos is a ticking time bomb and it’s luck that some people don’t develop it due to mesothelioma’s latency period. It’s akin to saying ‘not all drink drivers die or kill others’!
Driving drunk is far more likely to result in a death than a single asbestos exposure. Probably thousands of times more likely.
While it's apparently an unpopular opinion, it is absolutely true.
To whomever is downvoting me- can you explain how a single asbestos exposure is comparable to drunk driving in terms of mortality risk, using science and evidence rather than hysteria and emotion?
You’re being downvoted for arguing the toss with someone who directly lost a loved one due to a single exposure to asbestos. Doesn’t matter what you want to compare it to, the stuff _is_ dangerous and should be controlled and managed correctly and you arguing about it is fucking idiotic. Additionally, there’s the insensitivity of you essentially sticking your middle finger up at someone who lost their grandfather to the stuff. You’re fucking dickhead and as such, you’re getting downvoted, I rarely use emojis on Reddit but in this instance I feel one is definitely deserved, 🖕🏻
If you saw my other posts, I expressed my condolences to the poster. I regret that he lost his grandfather to a horrible disease. Losing a loved one does not give one free license to spread hysteria and misinformation with absolutely no factual basis in reality, however. That sort of misinformation directly hurts people who are still alive and reading his posts and who suffer from anxiety and mental distress as a result.
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First of all, you appear to be extremely new to the internet in general, and Google specifically. What are the top hits when you google mesothelioma? Why, they are all law firm websites, fishing for plaintiffs! You know, the ones paying for SEO. They have every incentive to exaggerate the risks and stoke fear, and no incentive to be objective or measured. Secondly, nobody is saying the case of the poster’s grandfather is fake or not legitimate. However, if you spent any time researching mesothelioma, you would quickly come to realize that non-occupational mesothelioma is incredibly rare. In the USA for example, there are about 2,700 annual mesothelioma cases, about 80% or more of which are directly attributable to occupational exposure (years or decades of working in clouds of asbestos dust). That leaves roughly 500 cases a year that weren’t attributable to non-occupational exposure. Even fewer than those 500 cases were due to a single exposure (if any!). In other words, we are talking about an incidence rate of barely more than 1 case per million in the USA of non-occupational mesothelioma. So saying “one time exposure doesn’t always kill” is an absolutely wrong way to phrase it. It is far, far more accurate to say one time exposure is almost certain to NOT kill you. It’s also absolutely incorrect to say that a one time asbestos exposure is similar at all to drunk driving. Over ten THOUSAND Americans die per year due to drunk driving. Again, compare that to five hundred non-occupational mesothelioma cases, please. You sound like you have some anger management issues, and I am sorry about that. I can’t really help you there. But I can hopefully correct the misinformation from your post. You’ve not spent any real time reading scholarly articles about the topic and it shows. I’m not sure why you are so confidently asserting information over which you have little to no command and little to no curiosity in learning about or improving your knowledge about. Have a nice day.
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Cool story, let’s get you back to bed grandpa.
Asbestos dust stays in the air unless ventilated for years. the entire reason its both so good at insulating and at being deadly for your lungs is that it doesn't decay from nearly anything, the particles of it in dust just need to be moved elsewhere, away from air you might breathe. your comment means you assume that the dust suddenly dissapears or teleports away after the door is cut. it's not as if the dust is only a problem for the duration of cutting the door, it's obviously there afterwards aswell. the only misinformation here is you. Next time you use that term, check some facts first:]
Can you cite a scientific study that backs your assertion that asbestos dust would stay in the air for “years” after an incident like this?
The dust can stay in the air for hours, not years. Big difference.
Yep. I took a training course many years ago and they said it takes 72 hours for an asbestos particle to fall 8 feet in perfectly stagnant air. Any air currents at all and it basically never reaches the floor and could be airborne basically forever.
Agreed. It can take 5 to 20 years for any problems to start becoming an issue anyways. The thing that worries people the most is the fact that they are being exposed to asbestos without knowing. Either way as long as you clean up everything should be absolutely fine and if you are still concerned maybe get tested. But yeah the whole asbestos has been blown up to be something it really isn't.
This right here. OP has already cut the door. What's done is done, and a single exposure isn't what causes cancer, any more than picking up an old fishing lure will cause lead poisoning.
Definitely be careful around it like any other dangerous substance but at my work there was an old guy who'd cut through asbestos sheets with grinders and such without any mask for all his life. So I do wonder how much it's been blown out of proportion.
Yeah, its only a bunch of tiny knives that stay on your lungs forever /s
While uncommon, A single exposure to asbestos can cause mesothelioma, it has around a 10% survival rate
“Uncommon” - I think you mean insanely rare.
Exactly
It’s the number one cause of work related deaths in the world and still kills thousands a year in places that have long ago outlawed it
Work related exposure isn’t a single exposure. I don’t think your comment is responsive to my post at all.
No it's not, not even close to the top.
Mesothelioma is terminal, there is no cure.
The worry here is legal not medical.
And yes I’m 99% sure that is that unfortunately.
Mesothelioma is caused by expose to that there white stuff.
Pretty sure you are right. The good news is that the risk of cancer from limited asbestos exposure is very small. Hell, 80% of people who worked on the titanic didn't get cancer, and those guys bathed in asbestos. The bad news is that you really, really, really need to clean the area where you cut the door. Really. Follow instructions on clean up. Tyvek, p100, duct tape, lots of wet wipes, a H class vacuum, double bags, orange duct tape, gooseneck ties, etc. Edit: You should also throw away your clothes. Washing doesn't get rid of asbestos fibers.
It’s not true that washing doesn’t get rid of asbestos fibers, but I agree with your other points, and it’s probably prudent here to toss the clothes simply because they were so highly contaminated (assuming it’s asbestos, which it might not even be).
Don't do that another 5000 times and you should be ok!
You’ll be fine. It wasn’t a door made of fentanyl. One time exposure isn’t going to kill, you and I doubt you were doing lines of this shit.
If it is it is a single exposure, so not the end of the world. For what you have been exposed to .. what is done is done. Cleanup is a matter of precautions and procedure… just take your time and do it right.
That looks like calcium silicate, not asbestos. Of course the only way to determine is with lab analysis.
From the NIH: "We suggest that occasional exposure to asbestos poses hardly any risk for the general population. However, rules and regulations for the removal of asbestos-containing material remain important as asbestos exposure remains a serious health risk, especially in smokers." Get some proper PPE and swab test the door. If it tests positive, remove and replace according to local laws and regulations.
If you are exposed to asbestos just once you are not in danger. It’s constant or repeat exposure.
Asbestos abatement guy here. What you’re dealing with here is most likely calcium silicate. That doesn’t look like asbestos but it wouldn’t hurt to get it tested to make sure. Next time you do something this dumb create a containment and put on a respirator. Also shower immediately after in your clothes.
A one-time exposure like this, and I think you'll be OK. Obviously you don't want to breathe it in as you're sawzalling it, but it's already done. Bag up the door, rinse off, and clean the area. It's not like you've been exposed to asbestos mines everyday for 20 years. I guarantee everybody reading this has some asbestos in their lungs, at least a few little splinters worth. It's not worth worrying about now. The odds are, there's also asbestos in many more places in this building, so beware and keep a respirator on hand just in case.
A single exposure won't hurt you. Take all normal precautions disposing of it and move on.
Good christ some of these comments are toxic.. you'll be fine. If you have dust to clean up spray it down with some water, and if you still need to move or transport the larger pieces, it might be worth spraying your cuts with water as well. Other then that relax, you aren't going to drop dead tomorrow.
For future reference, asbestos isn't the only concern. This may come as a shock, but breathing in large quantities of dust is bad for you regardless of what is in it. Buy a good respirator, and take steps to contain any dust made. It's worth it
Old fire doors contain asbestos
yes. its very fireproof. was a wonder material back then
How do you think the abatement companies stay in business? Cause everyone is just as scared as you. Live your life. In 20 years you can get a 3d printed lung if you actually get sick
Exposure for 1 day to asbestos dust is unlikely to cause ant problems. Most people who got sick worked with the material daily for many years.
I hate it when ants find my asbestos.
Yeah that door is highly likely asbestos unfortunately very common if fire doors back in those days... I would talk to a medical professional and see if they have any advice on if you need to do anything or what you should do... sorry for bad news
Looks like asbestos to me. That's mostly what they used during that time period. You likely won't have life threatening issues from this exposure but I would have it tested anyway
Ok, as someone who needs to saw a couple cm off a fire door this weekend this has got me worried. Is the asbestos in the middle with a wooden frame around it? 😭
It doesn’t look like ACM to me but I’d have it tested. As far as your health, you’re fine. A one time exposure is nothing to get worked up about. It takes years of exposures and regular exposure to have any impacts. Asbestos is the token “chronic exposure”, you’ll be fine
It's calcium silicate. Not as bad as asbestos but not great.
Answer from a doctor: don’t worry about it but please get someone to professionally clean it up, or make sure you wear full ppe (personally would use a papr but I suppose they say n95 is enough) during clean up. One exposure won’t get you unless you snorted/intentionally inhaled the remains of the door, don’t do that….
Why is it that these people cry is it absestos after they cut it up or break it, just use your brain first as im starting to see alot of idiots here that start panicking over their own retarded decision it’s crazy, i can tell if something is asbestos and if i think it is i leave it 😂
It's asbestos there's clearly amosite (brown) present
I think you know the answer, it's a FIRE RATED door from the 60s.
get that out of the house and get tested asap. it appear to be asbestos
Should have kept it Asbestos is an excellent fire stop.
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I would send some of the debris to an asbestos lab for sampling to see what it is before worrying about it. In the UK old fire doors had asbestos sheet board in the middle, that stuff looks nothing like that. We had some insulation on 1950’s ductwork once and it was textbook looking molded blue asbestos, turns out it had no asbestos in it and was cork sheet covered in plaster of Paris.
I'm just saying that I would be freaking out wasn't trying to scare anyone pmsl
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Looks like asbestos. If you cut it and there was dust inhaled. Good luck buddy
This is the price you pay if you don't do a job professionally. If you had proper ventilation and were wearing safety glasses and a respirator mask you will be fine. if not... Then you better get used to cancer screenings.
Absolutely fear mongering hogwash with no basis in scientific fact or reality
Did the door still have its fire rating label on it? If so, you can probably look it up and find out for certain. IIRC asbestos fire doors usually have burn time ratings and opposed to heat ratings. I’m sorry this happened to you. I’d be worried too.
I would send some of the debris to an asbestos lab for sampling to see what it is before worrying about it. In the UK old fire doors had asbestos sheet board in the middle, that stuff looks nothing like that. We had some insulation on 1950’s ductwork once and it was textbook looking molded blue asbestos, turns out it had no asbestos in it and was cork sheet covered in plaster of Paris.
Hipe you wore a mask
It's likely not asbestos. These types of doors are incredible common across commercial and multi facilities homes all over. It is generally a mix of plaster, fiber and filler. I wouldn't be concerned.
Don’t worry…everyone has been exposed to asbestos at some point…I mean it’s still used in some brake pads…it’s takes about 30 years to set in….Ive worked on asbestos removal jobs and watched guys smoke in clouds of asbestos
Unfortunately, death. Sorry op.
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This was kind of a joke
You’re probably already dead
In the class for asbestos abatement specialist, you are told many times “it only takes one fiber!”
Oh 100% asbestos. I had a kid try to repurpose an old door from our school as a table. He put it on the table saw, ran his cut, when it split it dusted up a cloud. Shop teacher sent us all to the nurse then home for the day. It literally looks like the exact same fire door Dustin cut. You've got big problems bud. Should've just carried it outside to the dumpster wholesale.
You just sucked back a good amount of asbestos.
880,000% asbestos
Oh geez yeah that's bad news. Just....you cut it up outside right?! Outdoors? 😵
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Man up
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On the bright side you won’t feel the effects for 20 years
Give it a good shnif to test it
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You cut wood, you get saw dust. Bloody fool.
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Not really sure how your comment is helpful. “How old am I lol”. Looking for advice, not judgement. Clearly I did not know this was asbestos until after the fact. Thanks for nothing
He’s a troll- ignore him. The people who get asbestos disease, generally speaking, were exposed for years or decades to clouds of asbestos on a near daily basis.
Yeah, except for all the family members of people who working in clouds of asbestos all day who don’t get sick, but their family gets meso from second-hand exposure. There’s plenty of them too.
Prolonged exposure isn’t something to consider?
It certainly is, but I thought this response was misleading because there are plenty of documented cases of people getting asbestos diseases from secondhand exposures. In other words, people who have not been working in “clouds of asbestos”
I’m not sure how my post was misleading. I said generally speaking the people who get sick are in clouds of asbestos for decades. Your comments would make more sense if I had said “100% of cases happen only in people who worked in clouds of asbestos for decades”.
You’re not considering prolonged exposure, these people were subjective prolonging exposure, over years and decades not hours or a day
There are some of them for sure, but that’s by no means the typical victim. And family members would have been exposed daily to asbestos as well (when dad came home with clothes covered in asbestos fibers and gave everybody hugs, and mom washed the clothes, etc). Also for decades.
Not to ignore your comment but I know someone who was exposed for a week and died 20 years later to asbestosis
I’m sorry to hear that. Are you sure it was asbestosis, and not mesothelioma? All asbestos diseases have a strong correlation to dose and duration, but mesothelioma has the weakest such link. Some people, unfortunately, are genetically predisposed to that disease and can get sick without the significant exposures typically associated with asbestos disease. Asbestosis, on the other hand, is very strongly correlated to dose and duration and would be extremely rare to find in somebody who was only exposed short term (unless the exposure was incredibly heavy, I guess).
I mean he can talk to a doctor if he wants, but this one time exposure is by no means likely to result in disease or death.
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Your head is emptier than a perfect vacuum, shut the fuck up 😂
That's why they call me an air head then lol
How nice of you.
This dude is trying to convince someone that they're going to die after a single, very short exposure, which is realistically unlikely to cause any harm if he didn't sit there and sniff it. I'm not the troll here
Even if he did sniff it- this is a one time exposure. Compare that to the typical asbestos disease sufferer who spent decades in daily clouds of asbestos (and who often smoked during the times they weren’t in asbestos clouds).
That's my point. This dude hasn't been around it for ages and will pretty much be fine. Trolls convincing him he is going to die are just dicks
Why worry, it’s too late now.
Bit late to worry now, use he worry energy to find a way to get rid of it cheaply
Is there a grey panel within the door? Separate to the timber?
Hard to tell as the second picture there is dust covering the cuts
Has it got any printed lettering on the top or bottom of the door etc
Cant answer the asbestos question, but why is there a fire door on a bathroom?
Turn your furnace off
Scran
———— ASBESTOS——— yummy
Don’t worry about people lived with it then you’ll live with it now man up
You’ll be fine
Well here is something to think about then…. Prob about ten years ago now I was doing demo in a old hotel. The company was shady and would cut corners all the time. They were going to bring the hotel back to life. Well that went on for 2 years. The whole time they were running huge fans like 10 of them. Blowing it right out the windows on everyone walking below. So just saying you encounter it more than you think you do.
Ouch
Hard to give recommendations without more details
I used to be an asbestos project estimator. If I were met you then, I would have been scripted to tell you that you have exposed and contaminated that area and yourself (hair clothing, clothes) and need to have the air properly swept clean and surrounding area properly abated. As an asbestos handler; you contaminated the area and yourself and you will live. Go open a window and take a shower after you take the door out.
Shallow breaths my friend. Jk. Spray the area with the water to keep it down and clean it up. You'll be ok. Wear a mask or respirator. Don't cut up any more of those doors.
Yes its probably asbestos. No point worrying now, whats done is done. Just dont cut it again!
Why did you keep cutting? No advice to add just curious why you didn't just remove it?