Don’t Wait With Asbestos Testing
A few months after my wife was diagnosed with breast cancer, I received my kidney cancer diagnosis. Understandably, we thought there might be a common thread for our diseases.
We therefore hired an asbestos testing company in order to have our house tested. We looked on-line and were surprised by the vast amount of businesses in that field advertising their services. Apparently, there must be a solid demand for asbestos testing.
Only a few days later, someone from the company showed up and took samples of drywall, the water, the siding and the soil in the backyard. He said he was going to send the samples to his asbestos testing lab. About two weeks later we received a report in the mail and it was confirmed that everything was okay with our house. Apparently, they did find a slightly elevated radon level in our basement. However, the report clearly indicated that it was still in the normal range and therefore required no corrective action. Of course, my wife and I were quite relieved.
Many people might expose themselves to asbestos unknowingly. Up until the early 80s this material was very popular in the construction and building business and used for insulation, wiring and plumbing – sometimes it is even found in fire places.
If you might wondering about your house and your safety, it is recommendable not to wait too long before you have asbestos testing done. By the way, you can also contact a testing lab directly and arrange an appointment. That might save you some money.
And if you consider collecting the testing samples yourself, you should really think twice. I think this is the wrong project trying to save money on. It is definitely the better choice to hire an asbestos testing company, because they have the experience and all the gear that’s needed.
And as for the money; keep in mind that either way it is way less expensive to have a professional asbestos testing company coming in for the job, than doing it yourself and therefore being exposed to a significantly higher risk of developing a serious disease such asbestosis or mesothelioma.
Therefore and as I mentioned earlier, look on the Internet or in the phone book for an asbestos testing service close to where you live. And also, the health department of your town might be able to give you a list of testing companies in that area, too.
The experts say that of your house was built prior to 1975, it is likely that your house was never tested for asbestos. And just for your own peace of mind, it might be a good idea to have it done and rather sooner than later.
And if the testing report confirms that everything is okay with your living environment – Congratulations, one less thing to worry about!
The author of this article has website dedicated to his kidney cancer and cancers in general. He features a section on Asbestos Exposure and Mesothelioma and talks about the importance of hiring an Asbestos testing service rather sooner than later.