What To Do if Vermiculite Has Been Disturbed

Vermiculite has often been used as an insulation material in many homes that, when it’s pure, poses no threat to the health and safety of a home’s inhabitants. Unfortunately, a majority of vermiculite is contaminated with asbestos and thus can become a serious hazard when present in a home. If your home has vermiculite insulation, it’s generally best to leave it undisturbed. However, you should definitely be prepared by knowing what to do if vermiculite has been disturbed.

What Is Vermiculite?

Because vermiculite itself is not the threat, it’s likely you may have never even heard of it before. Vermiculite is a naturally occurring mineral made up of shiny flakes similar to mica. When heated, these flakes expand upwards of eight to 30 times their original size. This expanded form of vermiculite is very lightweight, fire-resistant, and completely odorless. These features made them a popular material as insulation for attics and walls because of how effective and unintrusive it was—until it was discovered so much of it was contaminated with asbestos.

Reacting To Disturbance

Now that you can identify vermiculite, you need to learn what to do if vermiculite has been disturbed. The most important thing to do is to evacuate the affected room as quickly as possible to avoid inhaling the asbestos fibers. To avoid vermiculite health risks, be careful not to track vermiculite into the living areas of your home. After you and your family are safe, call for professionals who have the expertise and equipment to safely remove the vermiculite. If you’re in the area, you can contact us directly for vermiculite removal in Massachusetts.

Prepare Safety Measures

If you know there is vermiculite asbestos insulation in your home, take precautionary measures. If removal isn’t necessary, it’s not the best solution. Protective equipment such as masks and respirators are important should a disturbance occur—however, note that common dust masks will not be sufficient against asbestos fibers. We recommend referencing the equipment recommended by OSHA for a checklist of protective equipment to have on hand. For safe and professional asbestos clean up, contact Air Safe Inc today.