What Does Old Asbestos Siding Look Like

Unfortunately asbestos siding was originally designed to mimic many different types of materials.

What does old asbestos siding look like.

The front appears with a grainy sandy like texture. Layers of paint or finish coatings. The original shingles of both asbestos cement and fiber cement usually come from the factory painted white on one side. The vermiculate look like popcorn and many of you might remember your old high school science lab with this material.

These shingles are generally 12 by 24 inches and the bottom tends to have a wave like pattern though that is not always the case. The use of a pressure washer for maintenance can crack the siding and lead to moisture intrusion if the pressure setting is high enough. Amosite is also known as brown asbestos. The front may have a grainy sandy texture.

The siding may also contain asbestos if it is old with a wood grain texture to resemble cedar. Owners often painted cement asbestos shingle siding to make it look fresh or if it was weathered and fuzzy to preserve it. It was commonly used in a range of materials from brake pads to roofing materials. It is very brittle and has a black tar paper like backing.

Asbestos cement siding is very brittle and can be easily chipped cracked or broken. It is part of the serpentine family whilst all other types of asbestos are part of the amphibole family. Chrysotile was the most widely used asbestos and is commonly referred to as white asbestos. Asbestos siding was manufactured to resemble many materials so it won t always look the same.

Asbestos ceiling tiles are also comonly used. Asbestos ceilings can be found in many forms which include asbestos fibre cement sheet fibro vermiculite spray applied ceilings. Asbestos siding usually looks a lot like roof shingles. Look for asbestos cement shingles a mixture of asbestos fibers and cement or asbestos cement corrugated roofing which is thicker and more often found on old sheds barns and low income housing.

Look for siding that looks like roof shingles. Testing your siding for asbestos if your siding fits either of these descriptions you should consider having it tested. It is usually brittle and the back may be black and have the appearance of tar paper.