# What kind of siding is this?



## jdowling80 (Jul 1, 2011)

I was wondering if this was asbestos or maybe some sort of asphalt. Not sure if its possible to tell from pictures or not. any advice on how to tell the difference. Will i need to tear it off to put up vinyl siding.


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## kwikfishron (Mar 11, 2010)

It’s some sort of "ugly old pressboard crap".

Yes, definitely tear it off so you can inspect the walls behind it and make any repairs if needed. 

You don’t want to install new siding over a rotten wall.


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## Bud Cline (Mar 12, 2006)

Looks like that old cellulose-asphalt kinda stuff from hear. I wonder if that stuff contained asbestos back then?

Does it look like a wood or paper fiber impregnated with asphalt and breaks easily?


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## kwikfishron (Mar 11, 2010)

I think you may be right. Never seen that stuff on the left coast.


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## Bud Cline (Mar 12, 2006)

*Where are you Dowling?*

I think that stuff is a Midwest thing. My parents had it in the St. Louis area.


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## jdowling80 (Jul 1, 2011)

yeah it looks like cardboard or something. how can i tell if it has asbestos or not.








I'm in southeast Michigan.


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## Bud Cline (Mar 12, 2006)

Yup, that's the stuff I had in mind. Don't know how to determine asbestos content (if any) but I'll bet it does. Seems like everything of that vintage contained some asbestos. You can have it tested at a lab, there must be plenty of them around these days with all the asbestos and lead testing that seems to be going on.


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## kwikfishron (Mar 11, 2010)

Bud Cline said:


> *Where are you Dowling?*


What’s a Dowling?


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## Bud Cline (Mar 12, 2006)

> What’s a Dowling?


Thirty one year old J. Dowling is the OP:
jdowling80


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## jdowling80 (Jul 1, 2011)

You cracked my code :laughing:i


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## Bud Cline (Mar 12, 2006)

I work for the CIA on the side.:detective:


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## jdowling80 (Jul 1, 2011)

Ill look into having someone test it. If it is asbestos I've heard a lot of people say to just go over it.


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## Bud Cline (Mar 12, 2006)

> If it is asbestos I've heard a lot of people say to just go over it.


I don't know if that is practical in this case. Seems problematic to me.


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## Tom Struble (Dec 29, 2008)

thats Inselwood siding from Mastic,it's a celotex backer with an asphalt granular layer

only way to be sure is testing


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## jdowling80 (Jul 1, 2011)

Well I can't afford to reside it right now anyways was just trying to figure out if I needed to include two or three grand on asbestos removal or not.


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## kwikfishron (Mar 11, 2010)

I know Asbestos is a scary word as it should be but removing that product (if it contains it) is not as scary as you may think. 

Do some research on removing Asbestos Siding. 

Search this site there has been many threads on the subject.


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## jdowling80 (Jul 1, 2011)

Thanks for the help. I just found the site I'm sure I will have a lot more questions later. I Only paid 6500 for the house so it needs a lot of work.


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## kwikfishron (Mar 11, 2010)

jdowling80 said:


> Thanks for the help. I just found the site I'm sure I will have a lot more questions later. I Only paid 6500 for the house so it needs a lot of work.


By the way….Welcome to the DIY Chatroom. :thumbup:


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## jschaben (Mar 31, 2010)

jdowling80 said:


> Well I can't afford to reside it right now anyways was just trying to figure out if I needed to include two or three grand on asbestos removal or not.


That doesn't look like anything that will make dust. Any asbestos would be contained in/by the asphalt. Asbestos siding are hard, ridgid, brittle shingle looking things. They break if dropped and the fibers are visible. It may contain some asbestos but it doesn't look like a hazardous form.


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## STL B. (Oct 29, 2010)

Buds right........I live in an saint louis, mo (inner city)and this siding is all over the city and county . Some neighbors say they've had it tested for asbestos and it was negative......most dont care. It looks pretty brittle like hardi but it's 35-45yrs old ???....I'd bet money that it's got asbestos ( most things that needed to be strong/tough had it) but who knows????

Edit..I didnt see the second set of photo's It does look like a wood/fiber based material.........Theres a lot of old siding (brittle cement type, most likley asbestos) in saint louis. I still would'nt rule out the big "A" but who cares it's in 90% of houses built post war, at least it's on the outside of yours.


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