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Asbestos floor tile and mastic in Denver
Floor tile, sheet vinyl and the glue under them all appear on the Colorado health department's list of products that may contain asbestos. Looking at a tile won't tell you. A lab test will, and the result decides which Colorado rules apply.
When Colorado requires a test
In a single-family home, a Colorado-certified inspector has to test before you disturb more than 32 square feet of other surfaces. One 4-by-8-foot patch is already 32 square feet, so most kitchen, bath or basement floors cross the line. In apartment, commercial and public buildings the line is 160 square feet of other surfaces.
Since Feb. 28, 2018, CDPHE has expected at least two samples from each distinct non-friable material. A floor with two tile patterns over one kind of mastic can mean six or more samples.
Whole tile versus ground-up tile
Federal rules put asbestos floor covering (more than 1 percent asbestos) in a group called Category I nonfriable. It becomes regulated asbestos material once it has gone crumbly or is sanded, ground, cut or abraded.
Colorado draws the same line. Tile that comes up without turning friable counts as renovation, and CDPHE allows contractors who are not abatement companies to do it under Regulation 8, Part B. Above the trigger amounts it needs a state non-friable notice ($80). A plan that grinds mastic or pulverizes tile is abatement: a state-certified General Abatement Contractor, a state permit and a 10-working-day notice.
Tile glued to concrete or wood
CDPHE does not allow concrete or wood with floor tile or mastic stuck to it to be recycled. Where possible, a concrete floor covered with tile should come out in large sections. Littleton posts this same state sheet with its permit forms (Littleton asbestos permit steps).
Tearing down a building with tile still inside
A demolition can go ahead with non-friable vinyl asbestos tile still in place above the trigger amounts only if the work does not make it friable. Every demolition still needs a certified inspection first and a state demolition notice ($50 plus $5 for every 1,000 square feet demolished). Denver won't issue its own demolition permit before the state approves (Denver demolition permit asbestos steps).
Where the old flooring goes
All asbestos waste has to go to an approved asbestos disposal site, no matter how small the amount. WM lists both friable and non-friable asbestos as accepted at the Denver Arapahoe Disposal Site (3500 S. Gun Club Road, Aurora), and some waste types there must be scheduled ahead.
Doing it yourself
Colorado law exempts a person removing asbestos from the single-family home that is their own primary residence. CDPHE asks owners who plan to rent, sell or tear down the home to contact it first. The dust is no safer for being legal: CDPHE calls asbestos fibers a known carcinogen and says researchers have not found a safe level of exposure.
What it costs
We have not found a dated, Denver-specific price for floor tile removal, so we don't print one. The state fees above are fixed amounts. Price guides and the full fee list are on Denver asbestos removal prices and state permit fees.