Asbestos Backed Vinyl Sheet Flooring

We describe sources of asbestos in older forms of sheet flooring including felt backed flooring rubber backed flooring and vinyl cushion backed resilient flooring products.

Asbestos backed vinyl sheet flooring.

It also was installed over tongue and groove wood floors particleboard and plywood. Additional guidance can be found in the how to safely remove asbestoscode of practice 2011. Details for identifying asbestos or asbestos suspect sheet flooring products are at resilient sheet flooring id guide. Unfortunately vinyl sheet flooring manufactured with an asbestos backing poses a serious exposure risk when it is disturbed.

But before about 1978 in products that looked like this same material asbestos fibers were used as a strengthen material on vinyl sheet flooring backing. Asbestos backed sheet vinyl flooring was commonly installed in many ways including over hardwood softwood and concrete floors. Where asbestos backed vinyl sheet flooring is to be removed it must only be removed by an a class asbestos removal licence holder in accordance with the workplace health and safety regulation 2011. This article describes sheet flooring products known to contain significant levels of asbestos.

Manufacturers often made this type of flooring with a friable asbestos backing which means asbestos fibres are easily released into the air if the sheet flooring is disturbed or damaged. Like floor tiles vinyl sheet flooring is a long lasting and economical material and it also offers more aesthetic options to suit a homeowner s taste.