After placing your sample in a ziplock plastic bag and labeling it with a sample ID or location on the bag, you may drop off the sample at any of the over 40 testing locations throughout the United States and Canada; please visit www.emsl.com for a map of local locations or mail samples to the labs listed below:
Canada samples:
EMSL Canada, Inc.
2756 Slough Street
Mississauga, ON, L4T 1G3
United States samples:
EMSL Analytical, Inc.
200 Route 130 North
Cinnaminson, NJ 08077
Although there is no federal ban in the U.S. on homeowners removing asbestos in a single family dwelling, we highly recommend the use of a professional removal company. It is imperative to check your local regulations first, but generally if it is a renovation project in a single family home removal may be done by the homeowner (you may not hire unlicensed personnel to do it for you). In addition, you are not allowed to dispose of the asbestos containing material as regular trash, but are required to take the material to a hazardous waste site. Asbestos exposure should always be limited and safety precautions must be taken. There are websites with instructions for homeowners who want to do the removal themselves.
If it is a demolition project, most localities require a report generated by a permit from a Certified Asbestos Consultant (CAC). Same thing applies for projects on properties that are public places, like churches or schools. Please check your local regulations.
You are limited to licensed Asbestos Abatement Contractors; General Contractors are not allowed. In most localities, Abatement Contractors accept reports which are generated by accredited laboratories, like EMSL, from samples taken by homeowners. So, yes, you may use our report.
However, there could be localities (for example, Los Angeles County) that require Abatement Contractors to only accept reports generated by a Certified Asbestos Consultant (CAC). In other words, in some counties, the rules of demolition jobs and public places apply for simple renovation projects in private homes. Initially, you hire a Certified Asbestos Consultant who takes the samples to an accredited laboratory, like EMSL. After you get a report from the CAC, then you can shop around for an Abatement Contractor. Because hiring a CAC is expensive, it might still be worth it for you to send samples to EMSL yourself. If your samples test negative for asbestos, then, of course, a CAC would not be needed.
Regulations, like the ones in Los Angeles county, are not common. But you should check with your city to be sure.
Below is a list of the common asbestos contain material, but it is important to check any material that you are working with for asbestos content:
Floor Tiles: Ensure that if there is mastic on the back of the tile, a pea size amount can be scraped off for analysis.
Popcorn Ceiling: If scraping from a ceiling, a teaspoons worth of material is needed.
Vinyl Flooring (sheet flooring, linoleum)
Ceramic tiles
Grout
Caulk
Glazing
Pipe wrap
Boiler insulation
Gaskets
House trap
House singles
Paint
Sheetrock: It is recommended to sample close to the seam of two pieces of Sheetrock as the joint compound used to blend the seam may contain asbestos.
Insulation – Fiberglass
Insulation – Blown In
Insulation – Vermiculite: If present in an attic, it is best to sample from the bottom as the asbestos in this type of material is known to settle.
Roofing: Roofing may have different layers, and flashing is known to be a suspect material.
Etc.
There are many regulations regarding asbestos analysis. Many samples will be sampled and have multiple layers of material, each layer must be tested and invoiced accordingly as separate samples. In your example there are multiple floor tiles layered on top of one another, there may also be multiple layers of mastic holding the tiles together. In this case you need to know if any of the layers are considered asbestos containing, therefore there will be multiple layers to the one sample that should be submitted to the laboratory for analysis.
Potential layered samples:
As a general rule, EMSL will treat any sample manufactured as a product to be a single sample. For example, linoleum consists of a vinyl layer and a backing layer, analysis will be performed on both material but only one result will be reported. Taking a minimum of three samples is recommended by EPA
POPCORN CEILING: One or two materials (material 1: paint coating, material 2: foamy interior) – This will be billed as two samples.
WALLBOARD: A wall system can consist of multiple layers (1-4), the Sheetrock, joint compound, wall tape, and texture. If any layers contain asbestos, it must be reported and charged as separate layer
ROOFING: Is another sample that tends to have multiple layers, any of which can contain asbestos. Roofing can also yield different results from different areas of the roof therefore multiple samples are recommended.
FLOOR TILE: Two materials (material 1: tile, material 2: mastic)
VERMICULITE: One material (Note: NYS does not allow the testing of Vermiculite Loose Insulation for asbestos content and it must be assumed positive.)