If you discover asbestos-containing material in your home or commercial property, one of the first terms you are likely to hear is asbestos abatement.
Many property owners assume that “abatement” means the asbestos-containing material must be completely removed. That is not necessarily the case.
Asbestos abatement refers to methods used to control the potential hazards associated with asbestos-containing materials, or ACMs. Depending on the material, its condition, and the planned use of the space, the appropriate approach may include removal, encapsulation, enclosure, repair, or management in place.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recognizes encapsulation as one method of managing asbestos-containing materials. Encapsulation involves applying a suitable sealant that binds or covers the material so asbestos fibers are less likely to be released.
For flooring materials such as black asbestos mastic and cutback adhesive, this distinction can be particularly important.
Does Asbestos Abatement Mean Removal?
No. Abatement does not automatically mean that asbestos-containing material must be removed.
Removal is one form of asbestos abatement, but it is not the only approach.
The EPA recognizes several potential responses for asbestos-containing materials, including encapsulation, enclosure, repair, and removal. The appropriate method depends on factors such as the condition of the material and whether it is likely to be disturbed during renovation or construction.
In fact, asbestos-containing materials that are intact and unlikely to be disturbed may sometimes be managed in place rather than removed. The primary goal is to prevent exposure to airborne asbestos fibers.
This is especially relevant when dealing with old flooring adhesives.
A black mastic floor may look like something that should simply be scraped or ground away before installing a new floor. If that adhesive contains asbestos, however, disturbing it can create an entirely different problem.
What Is Asbestos Removal?
Asbestos removal involves physically taking asbestos-containing material out of a building and properly disposing of it.
Depending on the material, location, and applicable regulations, asbestos removal can require trained or licensed asbestos professionals, containment procedures, specialized equipment, air controls, proper disposal, and other precautions.
Removing asbestos-containing black mastic can also be difficult because the adhesive is bonded directly to the substrate.
Methods such as:
- Grinding
- Sanding
- Aggressive scraping
- Chemical stripping
- Solvent removal
can disturb or break down the existing material.
There is another practical concern as well.
Even after an old mastic has been removed, the underlying concrete may still contain staining, oils, chemical residue, or adhesive residue that makes it difficult for new epoxy, cement, thin-set, flooring adhesive, or other coatings to bond properly.
Removal may therefore become a considerably larger flooring project than homeowners initially expect.
What Is Asbestos Encapsulation?
Asbestos encapsulation means leaving the asbestos-containing material in place and applying an appropriate coating or sealant designed to prevent the material from releasing fibers.
Instead of grinding, sanding, or dissolving the material, encapsulation minimizes disturbance.
The EPA describes sealing or encapsulation as treating asbestos-containing material with a sealant that binds fibers together or coats the material to help prevent fiber release.
For certain non-friable flooring materials such as asbestos-containing black mastic, encapsulation may offer a way to safely isolate the existing adhesive while preparing the floor for the next stage of the project.
Removal vs. Encapsulation for Black Asbestos Mastic
If you uncover black mastic beneath old vinyl tile, carpet, or another flooring material, your first instinct may be to remove it.
Before doing anything that disturbs the material, however, you should determine what you are dealing with.
Older black mastics and cutback adhesives may contain asbestos. You cannot determine whether a material contains asbestos simply by looking at it.
If asbestos is present, there can be significant differences between removal and encapsulation.
Removal
Removal physically eliminates most of the existing mastic.
However, it can also:
- Require professional asbestos abatement
- Disturb the existing material
- Create regulated asbestos-containing waste
- Require specialized containment and disposal
- Take considerable time
- Add substantial cost to a flooring renovation
- Leave behind residue that creates bonding problems for the new floor
Encapsulation
Encapsulation leaves the existing mastic in place and seals it beneath a specialized coating.
When appropriate for the material and project, encapsulation can:
- Avoid grinding or sanding the mastic
- Minimize disturbance of the existing adhesive
- Reduce demolition
- Eliminate the need to chemically dissolve the mastic
- Prepare the surface for new flooring systems
- Save significant time and expense compared with complete removal
The key is using a product that is actually designed for encapsulating and bonding to difficult materials such as black mastic.
Can You Just Cover Black Mastic With New Flooring?
Simply hiding old black mastic underneath another flooring material is not necessarily the same thing as properly encapsulating it.
For example, placing a floating floor directly over exposed mastic does not seal or prepare the adhesive itself.
Black mastic can also create adhesion problems when installing:
- Epoxy floors
- Ceramic or porcelain tile
- Self-leveling cement
- Decorative cement coatings
- Glue-down flooring
- Engineered wood
- Floor paint
Standard primers and paints are generally not designed to bond directly to asphaltic cutback adhesive.
That is why proper surface preparation is so important.
Can PerfectPrimer Encapsulate Black Asbestos Mastic?
PerfectPrimer® was specifically developed to seal and prime black mastic, asbestos mastic, cutback adhesive, and other difficult flooring surfaces without requiring the mastic to be ground or removed.
PerfectPrimer is a latex bridging encapsulant designed for use over non-friable asbestos-containing mastics and other difficult substrates.
Instead of scraping or dissolving the existing adhesive, PerfectPrimer is applied over the properly prepared surface to isolate the mastic and create a compatible surface for many new flooring materials.
Depending on the flooring system, PerfectPrimer can prepare the surface for:
- Epoxy
- Thin-set and tile
- Self-leveling cement
- Decorative cement
- Glue-down flooring
- Engineered wood
- Compatible floor coatings
PerfectPrimer requires two coats and is designed to remain slightly tacky so the subsequent flooring system can bond to the primed surface.
What If I Am Installing a Floating Floor?
The correct PerfectPrimer system depends on what will ultimately be installed over the floor.
If you are bonding something to the surface, such as thin-set, tile, epoxy, cement, or flooring adhesive, PerfectPrimer is generally used to seal and prepare the mastic.
If you are installing a floating flooring system, such as LVP, laminate, floating wood, or carpet and pad, the floor may require an additional compatible finish coat such as PaintPlus before the floating floor is installed.
Always follow the current PerfectPrimer application instructions for your particular flooring system.
Should I Remove or Encapsulate Black Mastic?
There is no single solution that is appropriate for every asbestos situation.
The condition of the material, local regulations, type of construction project, and planned flooring system all need to be considered.
If asbestos-containing material is damaged, friable, deteriorating, or must be disturbed as part of construction, professional asbestos evaluation or abatement may be necessary.
However, when intact non-friable black mastic can remain in place, encapsulation can provide an alternative to unnecessarily grinding, sanding, dissolving, or removing the material.
The important thing is to understand that abatement does not always mean removal.
Sometimes the safest and simplest approach is to leave the material undisturbed and properly encapsulate it.
A Simpler Way to Deal With Black Mastic
Discovering old black mastic does not necessarily mean your flooring renovation needs to turn into a major demolition project.
PerfectPrimer provides a way to seal and prime difficult black mastic surfaces without grinding, sanding, or chemically stripping the adhesive.
Once properly prepared and encapsulated, the floor can be ready for a wide variety of modern flooring systems.
If you have uncovered black mastic, asbestos mastic, cutback glue, or old flooring adhesive, explore PerfectPrimer® to learn how to safely seal the existing surface and prepare it for your new floor.
