Although most people are aware of the dangers of asbestos there are a few more types of hazardous insulation that are commonly found in older homes.
Old attic insulation dangerous.
And approximately 550 sq.
We are interested in the new owens corning pure safety insulation if you install it.
A few more examples of old insulation are sawdust balsa wood shredded newspaper and loose fill cellulose.
Homeowners can also come across fiberglass insulation during repairing or clearing out the attic.
The tiny fibers of glass from insulation wool can irritate your skin and eyes.
If you experience too much contact with fiberglass it can cause what s called irritant contact dermatitis or inflammation of the skin.
But just because your insulation is old doesn t mean it is dangerous.
Gaps in the attic or between the lower floors and the attic will let heated or cooled air escape to the great unconditioned outdoors making any insulation you add essentially useless.
In case of a fire it gives off an extremely toxic smoke that is more dangerous than regular smoke.
Although some homeowners have used it in this way it was never approved for use in the attic.
Formaldehyde off gasing is a concern so this product is no longer on the market.
Old attic insulation types.
Dangerous old insulation two types of old insulation that are dangerous to your health are urea formaldehyde foam which is usually gray or yellow and brittle and asbestos.
If you ve ever come in contact with fiberglass you already know what it can do to your skin.
Second story addition with 40 year old r 19 insulation in the attic that could be replaced or added to.
In older homes specifically asbestos may be found in many different materials from pipe insulation to flooring adhesive to roof shingles.
We have a 700 sq.
As we mentioned previously vermiculite can often come with some asbestos mixed into it.
One of the most common materials containing asbestos fibers is attic and wall insulation.
The major attic insulation dangers from this type of material would come from combustion.
Of attic space above the ground floor with no insulation and problematic access.
Signs of asbestos contamination one of the biggest problems with old attic insulation types is that some of them are contaminated with asbestos.
If the insulation is not properly sealed off it can get into air vents and circulate through the building.
Find a diagram of common air leaks here here s a quick primer on fixing draft prone spots.
