(I typically don’t do “guest posts”, but sometimes there are important topics I simply know very little about… asbestos is one of those topics. Today I am allowing a guest post by Ben Stillwater, freelance writer for Asbestos News, an online resource on asbestos and mesothelioma cancer. I believe you’ll find the information both informative and important.)
I remember that moving into the first home we bought, excited kids in tow, was a huge step towards the family stability that all of us trek toward one step at a time. If you’re like most parents, there are fixer-upper projects that become on-the-job training for us and like many OJT tasks, research is the difference between an acceptable job and a restart. In homes built before about 1975, remodeling can also be a safety issue because prior to that date, homes were built with many products that contain asbestos. What tens of thousands of twentieth century industrial workers learned the hard way is that inhaling asbestos fibers can lead, decades later, to asbestos cancer, which in its most lethal form, is known as mesothelioma.
Asbestos fibers are generated in the form of microscopic particles that drift in those dust clouds we generate in projects that involve removing old housing materials. They are generated by crumbling, deteriorating asbestos products or by the cutting, sanding, or scraping that goes on in any remodeling task. If possible, the first thing you want to do is have tests done on any household product you intend to remove for asbestos content. Most states have their own asbestos abatement programs, and they are a good source of information about removal and about getting materials tested. A list of state agencies responsible for asbestos is a good place to start, as is this list of EPA regional offices.
Here are some products to be concerned about: ceiling tiles, floor tiles, old linoleum, floor adhesives, wall joint compound, roofing tiles, siding, cement, textured paint, spackling and home insulation. Pipe insulation in older homes is often wrapped in asbestos blankets. Here is some good general information from the EPA on household asbestos and also some suggestions for moms and families who are living in an older home going through a rejuvenation program:
Keep the dust from your remodeling under control. If you’re dismantling, scraping or cutting old, crumbling stuff, wear breathing protection and clean up the dust after every session in order to minimize exposure for your kids. If your wall insulation is forty years old and adequate, leave it in place. Undisturbed asbestos products won’t give off fibers. If you’re in a home with old, blown in insulation (particularly vermiculite) consider having a professional asbestos abatement company remove it. Loose, deteriorating asbestos products require professional management.
The only known cause of mesothelioma is asbestos, which finds its way into the body through inadvertent inhalation. While most victims were exposed on multiple occasions on job sites, some cases have resulted from brief exposure. The insidious thing about the disease is that mesothelioma symptoms don’t begin to manifest for decades after the exposure has occurred. Protecting your household from asbestos dust today is really protecting your family from catastrophic health problems well into the future.
(Thanks for the terrific information, Ben!)


states canceled school because of a quarter inch of the white stuff!
der glass doors on your fireplace as opposed to screens.
duct work!
The next few weeks will be high time for parties! (I love parties! And I mean for any and all occasions!)
paper. Or check out
Vinegar is always on my grocery list… and I buy it by the gallon. Today, in fact, I will be using it to help
vinegar and brew it, or add a cup to your washing machine and run a cycle without clothes to give it a good cleaning.
rinse with cold water, and it will reduce the smell dramatically.
We all know we use far too many paper towels. Wipe down this, clean up that! Even if you use a recycled brand, it can get a little excessive (and expensive) and they get thrown away after only one use. Sponges are another household supply that is essentially useless. Everyone knows that, after even a short period of time, they get disgusting and flat-out “schtanky” (yes, that IS a word… when the stink goes BEYOND stinky!) And that smell just let’s you know that bacteria is growing in abundance!
I happened to stumble upon Jennifer’s post at
an organic, chemical-free mattress so we could have peace of mind while he was getting a peaceful night’s rest. The issue is the excessive chemicals sprayed on traditional mattresses to make them meet government standards for fire retardants. They are so, so dangerous for everyone, since we inhale these toxic chemicals each and every night, but especially for children with developing bodies and systems.
The truth of the matter is this: Mattresses do NOT need to be sprayed with chemicals to make them fire retardant! They do, however, need to meet standards for BEING fire retardant. There are other ways to meet this standard but unfortunately, for consumers, the cheapest way to do this is simply to spray on a load of dangerous chemicals.
The lights ARE going out on incandescents… would Thomas Edison be sad? Maybe, because lightbulbs haven’t changed much since he invented them(!) but now his invention is being banned in the 
Sometimes it’s easy to get so consumed with planning and preparing for a vacation that we forget about the home we’re leaving behind.
I switched our cushy Cottonelle Ultra toilet paper to an eco-friendly recycled brand and he is not happy. So much that it prompted him to