Does this look like asbestos insulation?
SaltyNuggy
| Posted in General Questions on
House was built in 50s. The entire attic is filled with this. Does it look like asbestos?
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Replies
It's hard to say for sure from those pictures. There was some asbestos insulation with a similar appearance, but it also could be rock wool. A close-up picture that includes some other object ( a coin or ruler or something) to get a sense of scale might be better.
Salty,
No one can be sure from the photographs, but it might be plain old cellulose.
It looks like cellulose to me, but it’s hard to tell. Can you provide a pic of it up close, under good (bright) light?
Bill
Salty,
If your concerned, then have it tested. Usually a picture is worth a thousand words, but the answer could cost you a fortune. A picture, in this case, isn't good enough. Asbestos is a bad word in the building trades like lead, and mold. Buildings built before 1978 may have contained asbestos (i.e. popcorn ceilings) or lead (i.e.paint) in some forms.
The fact that there is an attic ruler visible in the picture would likely indicate that this is cellulose. Attic rulers were not in use when this home was built. My guess is that the cellulose was added long after the home was built.
With most cellulose it's possible to distinguish individual flakes of news print, and if wetted *& pressed forms a sticky papier-mâché type wad. Neither mineral wool nor asbestos has that characteristic.