# Was asbestos common in old drywall?



## joecaption

Never heard of any drywall with Asbestos.
If your just working on the walls and not changing the plumbing there is no reason for an inspection.


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## MTN REMODEL LLC

*I think JOE is right*.... I've never heard or concerned myself with old drywall having asbestos... (of course I always have something to learn).

(I wonder if you might be thinking/relateing-to that Chinese drywall of several years back, mostly on the East coast, that was giving of some kind of dangerous gas (formaldyhide maybe... don't remember). I think alot was imported after maybe Katrina.


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## amodoko

Hey guys, thanks for the replies. I think I'm going to just wear a respirator then and not have the drywall tested. I had heard about it, then googled it, and then tons of websites mentioned some drywall had asbestos in them from the 1900s to 1970s (my condo was built in 1950). Others said it was not common. It seems it was more common in joint compound than the actual drywall though. Regardless, it seems rare to have it in drywall. I'm going to just wear a respirator and then ventilate the place with a box fan/negative pressure system during demolition. Thanks for the replies.


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## christoff

amodoko said:


> I am about to tear out an old shower and install and tile a new one. This is in a condo. The condo was built in 1950 but renovated in 1980 something I believe. I had popcorn ceilings too and before removing them I got them tested for asbestos and luckily it had no asbestos.
> 
> I had heard that drywall had asbestos in it and should be tested, then others told me that was rarely used in drywall. Should I just wear a respirator and tear it out or would you recommend I cut out some drywall and have it tested by an asbestos lab?
> 
> Thanks so much
> 
> P.S. I contacted my local inspector to see if I needed any permits for doing this (removing a shower and installing a new one with a custom built shower pan) or to even have a shower pan inspection done and they said "no." Is that unusual to allow a homeowner to do this without a permit or shower pan inspection? I'm thinking of contacting him again just to double check since that seems odd to me.


Do a search there definitely was asbestos in drywall!!


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## Colbyt

I was always under the impression that it was in the mud and not the board.

This link seems to confirm that asbestosguru-oberta.com/Wallboard.html and the guy has enough initials after the name to lend some credence.


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## Jmayspaint

Could easily be lead in the paint from the 1950's. In any case, if you take precautions, make as little dust as possible, and clean up well you should be ok.


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## christoff

Here is some more info
bergmanlegal.com/asbestos-in-drywall/


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## MTN REMODEL LLC

amodoko said:


> Hey guys, thanks for the replies. I think I'm going to just wear a respirator then and not have the drywall tested. I had heard about it, then googled it, and then tons of websites mentioned some drywall had asbestos in them from the 1900s to 1970s (my condo was built in 1950). Others said it was not common. It seems it was more common in joint compound than the actual drywall though. Regardless, it seems rare to have it in drywall. I'm going to just wear a respirator and then ventilate the place with a box fan/negative pressure system during demolition. Thanks for the replies.


Amadoka....Good smart plan ....IMO


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## Brainbucket

MTN REMODEL LLC said:


> (I wonder if you might be thinking/relateing-to that Chinese drywall of several years back, mostly on the East coast, that was giving of some kind of dangerous gas (formaldyhide maybe... don't remember). I think alot was imported after maybe Katrina.


The Chinese drywall that was sold around the gulf coast after Katrina contained to much sulfer. In the hot humid climate we have down here turned it into sulfruric acid and ate everything that acid likes. Metal fixtures, wiring, switches, plugs, appliances, you name it. You could tell which house had it because it smelled of rotten eggs. 

I would wear protective clothing and mask just in case. I would hate to be in the hospitol and thinking, all I had to do was put on a mask.


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## Tom738

If you want to be really, really safe then get one of those disposable whole-body suits; that being said, one of the expensive respirators and a negative pressure system is probably more than I personally would bother with anyway, so you're pretty safe. 

(Just vent exhaust the negative pressure system to the outside, obviously).


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## Gymschu

Make sure you cover your HVAC openings when tearing out the drywall so you don't get dust/debris down in the duct work that then becomes air borne when the heat/air comes on.


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## amodoko

Just got back on here and saw more posts Well, I did start to do some demolition today, but I really like using that inexpensive Harbor Freight oscillating tool to carefully cut out drywall (it also is pretty weak so if I hit anything I don't want to cut it will be obvious and generally won't cut as easily) and guess what... it died on me finally lol. I at first thought it blew a fuse or something since I was using a green extension cord (not sure if that even matters, I'm still a newbie DIY guy), but then I took it apart and it actually looks like a wire has broken off from a movable object in the tool. Anyways, I've had that thing for years so I got my $20 worth out of it (and if I ever feel like it I may try to fix it).

So I've stopped in the beginning of the demolition. I was wearing a respirator (3M general household one around $30), gloves, googles, ear protection and setup a box fan to vent outside the room. However, the window is in the bedroom part of the room while the bathroom (where I'm doing the demo) has no window. It did not seem to do much so I closed the bathroom door to contain the dust in the bathroom. Plus, the screen to the window is still up so it reduces the negative pressure it seems. Anyways, I've saved a sample of the drywall so I can still get it tested for my own curiosity. But I'll try to be as safe as I can regardless.

And someone had mentioned lead in the paint possibly. I had actually tested that as well, but with a $10 kit from home depot. It came back negative for lead, but I have no idea if that test kit is reliable as that is hard to test and get reviews for (although it got good reviews overall but that doesn't mean the test is necessarily accurate). 

I forgot to close the vent in the bathroom so thanks for reminding me. I'll do that right away. I have a feeling I will just get the drywall tested now so I don't worry about it. This is more to reassure me it has no asbestos, as I heavily doubt there is asbestos in my drywall since it seems uncommon.


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## amodoko

Just a follow up, for anyone that may be interested in this I went ahead and contacted Western Analytical (the lab that is well known for testing asbestos) and asked them if they think I should get my drywall tested and they replied with:

"Hello it's very rare for drywall in residential construction to contain asbestos."

So with that said, I won't get it tested. I'm still using a respirator and I am still venting out debris by using a box fan and windows. And since I'm sensitive to dust I am also randomly placing my box fan inside after demolition with a 20in X 20 inch filter on the back to filter the interior air a bit more. I'm using these filters: 



http://www.homedepot.com/p/Rheem-20...-3-Pack-64300-012020/203140809#specifications

But anyways, just wanted to let you guys know what I found out. Thanks again.


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## mgp roofing

I do know that Australia used a lot of asbestos in drywall, but it is very rare in other countries. They did have the highest asbestos use per head of population in the world, though...


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## HandyMa'am

Thanks. That was great information. I was contemplating making a opening in the drywall between the kitchen and living room wall in my little "fixer-upper" project, but I just decided against it. The little old house has 2 layers of drywall in each room, for whatever reason. There's a good chance I would be cutting into asbestos in the paint or the mud. It might be better to just paint the old walls, tidy things up and sell.


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## 96 Navy

There was never asbestos in drywall boards but there was asbestos in a product called "pure velvet". This was a powdered compound that was the predecessor to mixed boxed drywall mud. You had to mix it up to fill with it and if you were taping you had to leave it overnight to allow the glue to melt properly so it would hold the tape in place. But as far as asbestos, if you wear a respirator you will be fine, people hear that word and go ballistic as they have been scared to death over the years, to be perfectly honest as long as you don't grind up raw asbestos and snort lines of it each day or roll around naked in it every morning for years it's not the mad danger people think it is. Abatement companies like the one my friend owned make great money because of the fear in society. I got a lot of work through him over the years because of that fear, even after his company cleaned things up a lot of people didn't want to do any finishing. 
I'm certainly not saying that you should be reckless, make sure you have the work area sealed and have it properly ventilated. Put on a disposable coverall on and wear goggles and a respirator and gloves. This will make you feel more comfortable and will keep any dust out of your lungs. But calling in an abatement company is really not necessary.
As far as a permit, if you are not making any structural changes and you are comfortable in your ability to do the work then there is really no requirement for a permit, and if you are in a single family dwelling then an inspection can be requested but is not required as you are not endangering anyone if you make a mistake and your pan leaks. And as long as you are not making any changes to your plumbing your golden.


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## b-boy

96 Navy said:


> There was never asbestos in drywall boards but there was asbestos in a product called "pure velvet". This was a powdered compound that was the predecessor to mixed boxed drywall mud. You had to mix it up to fill with it and if you were taping you had to leave it overnight to allow the glue to melt properly so it would hold the tape in place. But as far as asbestos, if you wear a respirator you will be fine, people hear that word and go ballistic as they have been scared to death over the years, to be perfectly honest as long as you don't grind up raw asbestos and snort lines of it each day or roll around naked in it every morning for years it's not the mad danger people think it is. Abatement companies like the one my friend owned make great money because of the fear in society. I got a lot of work through him over the years because of that fear, even after his company cleaned things up a lot of people didn't want to do any finishing.
> I'm certainly not saying that you should be reckless, make sure you have the work area sealed and have it properly ventilated. Put on a disposable coverall on and wear goggles and a respirator and gloves. This will make you feel more comfortable and will keep any dust out of your lungs. But calling in an abatement company is really not necessary.
> As far as a permit, if you are not making any structural changes and you are comfortable in your ability to do the work then there is really no requirement for a permit, and if you are in a single family dwelling then an inspection can be requested but is not required as you are not endangering anyone if you make a mistake and your pan leaks. And as long as you are not making any changes to your plumbing your golden.


Yup - asbestos and mold. 

I sold my house and the inspector found some mold in the attic. The buyer and her agent went nuts and demanded I hire an abatement contractor to clean it, or the deal was off.

I was going to tell them to get lost, but my agent said that once a house gets tagged as a mold house, we wouldn't be able to sell it.

I just had to shell out $1300 to have my attic cleaned and de-molded. It took the guy 90 minutes to do the job. Even the guy who did the cleanup said it was nothing to worry about, but he took my check anyway. :furious:


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## Ron6519

As far as I remember, asbestos was removed from building products in the 1970's. They had asbestos in joint compound. I don't remember it being in sheetrock.


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