Example Asbestos Removal Projects in Hillsboro

Scope of work

A visit by an accredited inspector, about nine samples from the kitchen and the family room, lab results for each layer and a written report. One printed copy stays on site with the contractor, and another travels with the debris loads.

Project overview

In this example, the owners of a 1990s house in Hillsboro hire a contractor to open the wall between the kitchen and the family room and replace the floors. The house is newer than most with asbestos questions, but it was built before 2004, so the survey rule still applies.

Every sample comes back clear. The report still does two jobs. The contractor keeps it on site during the work, and the hauler shows it at the transfer station, which asks for a survey or lab results before it takes remodel debris from a home that age.

The goal

The goal is a written answer for every material in the remodel, so the work and the debris haul go ahead without a stop.

Process

1. Before the visit The contractor marks the wall, the floors and the cabinets that will come out.
2. Visit About nine samples, with the board, tape and compound taken together as one wall system.
3. A few days later Lab results and a report showing every material clear.
4. Then Demolition starts, and the debris leaves with the printed report.

Planning right

• A clear report is still worth printing, since the hauler will need it.
• Tell the inspector what will be cut before the visit, so nothing is missed.
• A newer backsplash or floor gets its own sample.
• Keep the report with the house papers for the next remodel.

Scope of work

Samples of each textured area, the friable notice to DEQ, the empty house sealed room by room under negative pressure, the yellowed texture wetted and scraped into double bags, a HEPA clean and wipe of walls and sills, and the haul to a DEQ-permitted landfill with the shipment form. Skim coat, primer and paint are extra.

Project overview

In this example, new owners buy a 1970s house in Hillsboro from a long-time owner who smoked indoors. The textured ceilings have turned yellow, and the painter warns that the stain bleeds through new paint and that a roller can pull the texture loose.

The texture tests positive in every room. The house is still empty, so the crew works through it room by room and leaves bare ceilings for the painter before the move-in date.

The goal

The goal is bare, clean ceilings through the whole house, ready for primer and paint before the new owners move in.

Process

1. First visit Samples from each room; the ceilings measured and the move-in date noted.
2. Before work Notice filed; the empty rooms prepared and the heating system switched off.
3. Days one to four Rooms sealed and scraped one at a time, bedrooms first.
4. Day five Walls and sills wiped, a final clean, and the last bags hauled.

Planning right

• Plan removal before the move, while the house is empty.
• Do not roll paint onto textured ceilings that have not been tested.
• Ask the painter about a stain-blocking primer for the bare ceilings.
• Leave the furnace and the fans off while the rooms are open.

Scope of work

Samples of the tile and the adhesive, the nonfriable notice to DEQ, the three areas sealed with plastic, the soiled tile lifted and bagged, the adhesive scraped wet, the floor cleaned and wiped down twice, labeled double bags, and the haul. Plumbing repairs, subfloor repair and the new floors are extra.

Project overview

In this example, a sewer line backs up into the hall bath and the laundry of a 1970s house in Cornelius. The plumber clears the line, but the soaked tiles have lifted, and the owners want new floors in both rooms.

The tile is clear, and the black adhesive under it tests positive. The tiles come up with adhesive on their backs and go in the same bags, then the floor is scraped wet and cleaned. The family uses the other bathroom meanwhile.

The goal

The goal is a clean, dry subfloor in the bath, the laundry and the hall, with the old adhesive gone before the new floors.

Process

1. First visit Tile and adhesive sampled apart; the wet areas and the subfloor checked.
2. Before work The plumber finishes; the notice goes to DEQ while the rooms dry out.
3. Day one Rooms sealed, tiles lifted and bagged with the adhesive on their backs.
4. Day two Adhesive scraped wet, the floor cleaned twice, the plastic folded inward and hauled.

Planning right

• Keep the doors to the wet rooms closed and stay off the lifted tiles.
• Ask the plumber to write down where the backup started, for the insurance claim.
• Clean the floor before the new floor goes in, not after.
• A soft subfloor shows once the tile is off, so leave room in the budget for repairs.

Scope of work

Ceiling texture over some 1,000 sq ft and sheet vinyl over about 250 sq ft, cleared in sealed rooms, then about 70 ft of cement sewer pipe lifted out whole and wrapped as the excavator uncovers it. The price covers both DEQ notices, labeled bags, an air check and the haul. Digging, the survey and the demolition are not part of it.

Project overview

In this example, a builder who owns an empty 1970s house in Hillsboro plans a new one on the lot. The first line of the city's demolition checklist asks whether asbestos is in or around the structure, and the new house needs a new sewer connection, so the survey also covers the old line in the yard.

The ceilings and the sheet vinyl test positive, and so does the cement sewer pipe. The pipe stays nonfriable while it is whole, so it is lifted out in lengths and wrapped once uncovered, and the house is cleared room by room.

The goal

The goal is a house and a yard line cleared of asbestos, so the builder can apply for the permit and dig the new connection.

Process

1. Week one Survey of the house and a test hole at the sewer line; a report with every positive material.
2. Next The friable and nonfriable notices go to DEQ, and the waits run.
3. Removal days Rooms sealed one at a time for the ceilings and the vinyl; the pipe uncovered, lifted whole and wrapped.
4. Last day Air check, the last bags hauled, and the survey and shipment forms filed with the permit papers.

Planning right

• Ask the excavator to stop when the old pipe shows, so it is not broken in the trench.
• Cement pipe can run under the yard to the street, so sample it before digging.
• Every structure coming down, garage included, is part of the survey.
• The demolition crew keeps a copy of the survey on the lot.

Scope of work

A survey of the units and halls by an accredited inspector, about 26 samples, lab results for each layer, and a written report with the positive texture mapped unit by unit. Any removal is priced separately.

Project overview

In this example, the owner of a 16-unit building from the 1970s in Hillsboro plans to replace the old water pipes. The plumber can run the new lines through the ceilings or through the walls and closets, and the owner wants to know which route avoids asbestos. A building of five or more units is surveyed before renovation whatever its age.

The ceiling texture tests positive, and the wall system is clear. The plumber routes the new pipes through walls and closets, so the repipe needs no abatement in the units, and the tenants keep their ceilings.

The goal

The goal is a pipe route that stays clear of the positive ceilings, so the repipe goes ahead without abatement in the units.

Process

1. Planning The plumber marks both possible routes on the unit plans.
2. Sampling days About 26 samples from typical units and the halls, with tenants told the day before.
3. About a week later Lab results and a report mapping the positive texture.
4. Then The plumber draws the final route through the clear walls and closets.

Planning right

• Survey before choosing a pipe route, not after.
• Give tenants a day's notice before sampling in their units.
• Units updated at different times are sampled on their own.
• Keep the report for the next project in the building.

Scope of work

Samples of the bag contents, the friable notice to DEQ for the broken material, the garage sealed with plastic, the old bags and loose pieces wetted and packed into labeled double 6-mil bags, the garage floor HEPA vacuumed and wiped, the shipment form, a call to the landfill and the haul. New garage floor finishes are extra.

Project overview

In this example, a couple who just bought a 1930s house in Forest Grove find nine torn bags of old floor tile stacked in the garage, with broken pieces and black scrapings on the floor around them. That is far more than household hazardous waste will take.

The tile and the scrapings test positive. Broken tile is handled as friable, so the crew wets everything, packs it into labeled double bags, cleans the garage floor and drives the load with its shipment form to a landfill that has agreed to take it.

The goal

The goal is a clean garage and every piece of old tile at a permitted landfill, with the paperwork to show it.

Process

1. First visit The bag contents sampled; the bags counted and the garage floor checked.
2. Before work Notice filed; the landfill called and the delivery approved.
3. Work day Garage sealed, the old bags wetted and packed into new labeled double bags, the floor vacuumed and wiped.
4. Same day The load driven to the landfill with its shipment form.

Planning right

• Leave old bags where they are, since carrying torn bags spreads the dust.
• Keep the garage door shut and children and pets out until the crew comes.
• Household hazardous waste takes only two small bags a day, so a load this size needs a landfill.
• Keep the shipment form with the house papers.