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Asbestos/Black Mastic under Parquet Flooring

10 years ago
last modified: 10 years ago

I recently pulled up some parquet flooring in my house (built 1960's). It came up fairly easy. I was able to slip a pry bar under the tiles and pop them off. During conversation with a family friend, they mentioned that the glue I described to them may have been black mastic and contained asbestos. After some on-line research, I read that the glue was mainly used for VCT tile. Was it industry standard to use this for engineered wood products as well? If so, what would be the significance of exposure? I don't recall there being dust...just dirt that had fallen into the tongue/groove.

Thanks

Featured Answer
  • 10 years ago

    I did not see this the first time around. A similar situation came up a few days ago. Every year thousands of homeowners do home improvements like you are doing and get exposed to asbestos, yet asbestos related cancer is very rare. Even my husband and I removed a similar old floor 30 years ago - and my husband is a lung doctor.

    Knowing the dangers of asbestos, it is important to take precautions when doing work around materials that may contain asbestos. That said, you should not over worry about your exposure. The rare lung cancer related to asbestos is most often seen in workers who were constantly exposed to asbestos on the job before we knew the dangers. You may want to mention the exposer to your doctor just so it's on your records, but it is unlikely that you will have any problems due to this limited exposer.

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