How To Safely Work In Attic With Vermaculite

So if you have vermiculite insulation look into this.

How to safely work in attic with vermaculite.

The zonolite attic insulation trust was established in 2014 to help homeowners with the cost of removing zonolite attic insulation from their homes. In the meantime homeowners should avoid using vermiculite insulated attics as storage space. Any movement of the vermiculite may release asbestos fibers into the air and eventually into the lungs of the home s occupants. Then have two other points of contact to keep your balance even if it s a rafter above your head.

Leave vermiculite insulation undisturbed in your attic or in your walls. Children should be kept away from the attic too. Only put one foot on one joist at a time. If your attic contains vermiculite.

In this picture the vermiculite is in contact with both fiberglass and cellulose and these materials must also be treated as contaminated. The step of air sealing the attic plane has been a building code requirement for new construction homes for almost 20 years. Removal costs are lowest when there is only 2 3 of pure vermiculite zonolite in an attic with easy access and a high peak. Do not allow children to play in an attic with vermiculite insulation.

You simply can t air seal an attic properly without first removing all of the granules of vermiculite that are covering the attic floor. Do not attempt to remove the insulation yourself. Still have it according to the usgs. Do not store boxes or other items in your attic if it contains vermiculite insulation.

If an attic is insulated with a thin layer of vermiculite a layer that provides less than the minimum r value required by code it s hard to come up with a good way to improve the insulation layer especially if the ceiling has air leaks. That s why it s so much better to have an attic with no insulation at all than it is to have an attic with 8 inches of vermiculite. When vermiculite is 6 8 deep the cost to remove increases. Vermiculite is a naturally occurring mineral that is perfectly safe when pure.

Leave the removal of vermiculite to professional asbestos contractors.