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Asbestos Products, Hazards & Asbestos Flooring in Puerto Rico
Possible Asbestos-Containing Materials - Puerto Rico
POST a QUESTION or COMMENT about how to identify asbestos-containing flooring or other materials and what to do when asbestos-containing floor tiles or sheet flooring are found in a building.
Photo ID guide to Puerto-Rico asbestos-containing products including asphalt-asbestos or vinyl-asbestos flooring.
In sum the list of building and home products sold, used, or installed in Puerto Rico is about the same as those on the U.S. mainland, for which we include a link to a comprehensive asbestos-products list at the end of this page.
This article includes flooring identification requests & photographs & discussion of flooring tiles installed in Puerto Rico between the 1950s and the mid 1980s and that may contain asbestos.
This article series describes and helps identify the forms in which asbestos-containing products & materials are found in building.
Readers can use the bottom COMMENT BOX to submit photos of flooring to get help in identifying floor tiles or sheet flooring that might contain asbestos.
InspectAPedia tolerates no conflicts of interest. We have no relationship with advertisers, products, or services discussed at this website.
- Daniel Friedman, Publisher/Editor/Author - See WHO ARE WE?
Asbestos-Containing Flooring in Puerto Rico
This information will assist Puerto Rican home owners or renters who need to determine the probability that their homes contain asbestos and then to decide what to do about asbestos-containing material in their home when it is in poor condition or presents a more-urgent hazard.
Asbestos is safe and legal to remain in homes or public buildings as long as the asbestos
materials are in good condition and the asbestos can not be released into the air.
Reader Comments & Q&A
Question: does this 1975 vinyl floor in Puerto Rico contain asbestos?
I live in a house in Puerto Rico (USA) that was built in 1975 and has this vinyl floor. Please help me identify if there is a possibility of asbestos in the flooring like the black glue under them. - Anonymous by private email 2022/04/02
Moderator reply:
It would be prudent to assume that that flooring and the adhesive mastic contain asbestos
And of course I should add that our readers should know perfectly well that Puerto Rico is a USA territory, not a foreign country.
But thanks for the reminder.
And that you or other readers are also welcome to post questions in Spanish.
Please post your photos, one per comment but as many comments as you need, at our website on any of our asbestos floor tile identification pages and you may find more detailed help there.
[Done by the reader, shown below - Ed.]
Additional Puerto Rican vinyl floor tiles and black mastic adhesive photos are shown below, courtesy of this InspectApedia reader.
...
...
Below our reader illustrates exposed black mastic floor tile adhesive that may contain asbestos.
Neither the floor tiles nor the mastic are friable but may become so when damaged or during demolition.
FLOORING ADHESIVE MASTIC SEALANTS - for coating flooring or exposed mastic adhesive that are to be left in place, includes a reference to this product:
Mapei PRIMER T [PDF] MAPEI Americas Headquarters
1144 E. Newport Center Drive
Deerfield Beach, Florida 33442 USA, Technical Service: 1-800-992-6273 (U.S. and Puerto Rico).
For help with locating a distributor of MAPEI products, call Customer Service at 1-800-426-2734 (1-800-42-MAPEI).
History, Manufacture & Use of Asbestos in Puerto Rico
InspectAPedia tolerates no conflicts of interest. We have no relationship with advertisers, products, or services discussed at this website.
Current & Historical Asbestos Contamination, Regulations, Services in Puerto Rico
In addition to the widespread use of asbestos in many home and building products used and installed in homes in Puerto Rico up until the U.S. bans concluding in the mid 1980s, workers at some companies in Puerto Rico, such as the Union Carbide plant in Ponce, Puerto Rico, Schering-Plough, and also The Life Savers Company may have been exposed to hazardous levels of asbestos.
Asphalt-asbestos and vinyl-asbestos tile flooring and sheet flooring products installed in homes in Puerto Rico were provided principally by flooring manufacturers on the U.S. mainland, possibly with the inclusion of some Canadian products and a few products from the U.K. between 1950 and the present.
Modern flooring products sold in Puerto Rico would not contain asbestos
Puerto Rico is among the U.S. territories or states to which U.S. Federal Asbestos rules or regulations have been delegated to oversee OSHA's asbestos program. (Farquhar 2009).
1990 Housing Highlights: Puerto Rico (C 3.224/3-8:CH-S-1-53), 92-13108 in Monthly Catalogue, United States Public Documents, 1992
1990 Census: Introduction to 1990 Census products for Puerto Rico, (C 3.223/18-990 CPH-1-3 PR (E)), 92,3830
Aspecta manufactures contemporary, luxury vinyl flooring for commercial building interiors.
Baker, Michael Jr., Inc., FINAL ASBESTOS INSPECTION REPORT FOR NAVAL ACTIVITY PUERTO RICO Ceiba, Puerto Rico [PDF] U.S. Navy, Under Contract with
Department of the Navy
Naval Facilities Engineering Command
Engineering Field Activity, Northeast- retrieved 2022/04/03 original source: https://www.navfac.navy.mil/niris/SOUTHEAST/PUERTO_RICO_NA/N40003_001883.pdf
Excerpts from Summary:
... An inspection of military family housing at NAPR was
conducted simultaneously and is documented in a companion Baker report, Asbestos Inspection
Report, Military Family Housing, for Naval Activity Puerto Rico, dated June 2005.
The work was
performed so that the federal government can transfer the properties. TA total of 2,006 homogeneous materials were identified during this investigation. Of those, 317 were
found by laboratory analysis to be ACM, and five were assumed to be ACM due to access or safety
issues that precluded sampling.
The ACMs that were identified are presented in the building-specific
sections of the report, which are included in Appendix E.
Castleman, B., & M.J. Vera Vera, Impending proliferation of asbestos, Pub Med, NIH, National Library of Medicine, PMID: 7419310 DOI: 10.2190/MCKW-CNWF-2A4W-B5FQ
Abstract: The international asbestos industry is under considerable pressure in some countries to control dust exposures in the workplace and restrict pollution. In addition, major firms in the United States face mounting compensation costs for past failures to protect asbestos workers. At the same time, however, the asbestos industry is expanding in developing nations, largely on the strength of sales of asbestos-cement construction materials.
This report describes problems encountered with the use of asbestos-cement in schools and low-income housing in Puerto Rico, resulting in the condemnation of these buildings and the relocation of over 1,000 families at public expense.
The manufacturer of the asbestos-cement panels, a Colombian affiliate of the European-based multinational Eternit, escaped all liability. The issue is presented as a needless, expanding threat to public health worldwide. Safe, economic alternatives exist, such as the use in some cases of crop waste fibers in place of asbestos as a cement binder. There have also been major advances in the commercialization of asbestos-free brake and clutch friction products.
CTS Group, Inc., Asbestos Material Inspections, Puerto Rico, 400 Calle Juan Calaf, Suite 235
San Juan, PR 00918
.info@ctsgrouppr.com
San Juan Office: 787.247.064
Miami Office: 786.643.5292
Website excerpts:
In Puerto Rico, the EQB (JCA) requires for every demolition project to be inspected by a Certified Asbestos Inspector and if asbestos is found, a certified and registered contractor will require a permit for the asbestos removal and disposal.
The CTS Group team feature inspectors certified by the PR EQB (JCA) which have performed asbestos inspections, conducted contractor oversight during asbestos abatement activities and prepared AHERA re-inspections for clients throughout Puerto Rico and can use our expertise to guide you through the complex world of asbestos compliance. ...
Thousands of commercial products contain or have contained asbestos. In homes built before 1978, asbestos was used to insulate boilers and pipes. It is also found in many other household materials such as:
Stucco Ceiling
Some vinyl floor tiles
Glue used on floor tiles
Window glazing and caulking
Roofing
Heating and AC duct insulation
Siding
Plaster
Cuadrado, 333 Calle Coll Y Toste, San Juan, 00918, Puerto Rico
info@cuadradoalfombras.com Web: https://www.cuadradoalfombras.com/luxury-vinyl-tiles Tel: (787) 250-8000 / (787) 438-8000
Alfombras - Pisos - Mantenimiento
CWS Central Waste Services, Asbestos Removal in Puerto Rico,
Street #683 Km 1.6 Barrio Factor
Sector Garrochales Arecibo, PR 00612
(787) 846-1010 / (787) 815-1212
office@centralwastepr.com Web: http://www.centralwastepr.com/
EPA, U.S., EPA FILES COMPLAINT FOR ASBESTOS VIOLATIONS IN PUERTO RICO SCHOOLS Continues to Work with Commonwealth Agencies to Ensure School Safety [PDF] (2003) - retrieved 2022/04/03 original source: https://archive.epa.gov/epapages/newsroom_archive/newsreleases/ab826c396c443532852571550064b144.html
Excerpt: (#03117) San Juan, P.R. Violations of federal asbestos regulations identified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) earlier this year in five Puerto Rico schools has led to an evaluation of conditions in schools with asbestos-containing building materials by the Puerto Rico Department of Education (PRDOE), conducted with EPA and Puerto Rico Environmental Quality Board (EQB) oversight.
EPA is issuing a complaint to PRDOE for violations of the Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act (AHERA) at the five schools and a complaint against the Puerto Rico Public Building Authority (PRDPA) and Indutech Environmental Services, Inc. for violations of the National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAPS).
Farquhar, Doug, Scott Hendrick, STATE ASBESTOS REGULATION ENFORCEMENT [PDF] (October 2009), National Conference of State Legislatures, NSCL, 444 North Capitol Street, N.W. Suite 515
Washington, D.C. 20001
Phone 202.624.5400 Website www.ncsl.org
Email info@ncsl.org- retrieved 2022/04/03 original source: https://www.ncsl.org/documents/environ/Asbestosmemo0909.pdf
FloorCon, 22 Street A Suite 1
Mario Julia Industrial Park
San Juan, Puerto Rico 00920 Email: sales@floorcon.com Tel:
(787) 942-8300 Web: https://www.floorcon.com/
FloorCON is a consulting and contracting company dedicated to the distribution, sales, installation and maintenance of flooring products in Puerto Rico.
IMPORT OF VINYL FLOORING IN SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO [PDF] Recent List of Vinyl Flooring Companies or Ports in Puerto Rico, retrieved 2022/04/03 original source: https://www.zauba.com/USA-import-vinyl+flooring/port-of-discharge-4909-data.html
Polyflor Ltd
+44 (0)161 767 1111
mmarzouk@polyflor.com
PO Box 3, Radcliffe New Road, Whitefield, Manchester, UK, - ships to
Puerto Rico
Excerpt: These asbestos removal specifications are necessarily general and are intended only to
give a description of what is required to adequately complete an asbestos abatement
project in the Puerto Rico Public Building Authority (PR-PBA).
Excerpt:
AECOM Caribe, LLP (AECOM) was retained by the Puerto Rico Ports Authority (PRPA) to
perform a Limited Asbestos and Lead-Based Paint (LBP) Survey at several vacant and
deteriorated buildings scheduled for demolition at Rafael Hernández Airport (BQN Airport) in
the municipality of Aguadilla, Puerto Rico.
Puerto Rico Government, EXTENSION OF THE TERM OF REGISTRATION OF WORKERS ALL ASBESTOS WORK DISCIPLINE According to Executive Orders EO-2020-020 and EO-2020-038 [PDF] (May 19, 2020) - retrieved 2022/4/03 original source: https://www.drna.pr.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Segunda-Extension-Termino-Registro-Trabajadores-Asbesto-19may20-English.pdf
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In addition to any citations in the article above, a full list is available on request.
"Asbestos Floor Tile Removal", the University of Minnesota's advice on removing VAT (vinyl asbestos or asphalt asbestos floor tile) can be read in detail at www.health.state.mn.us/divs/eh/asbestos/floortile/index.html
MANAGING ASBESTOS in PLACE: A Building Owner's Guide to Operations and Maintenance Programs for Asbestos-Containing Materials ("Green Book"), web search 08/11/2010, original source: http://www.epa.gov/asbestos/pubs/management_in_place.html How to Develop and Maintain a Building Asbestos Operations and Maintenance (O&M) Program, This information is designed to assist building owners and managers in understanding how to develop and maintain an operations and maintenance program for asbestos-containing materials in their buildings.
"Asbestos Floor Tile Removal Guide & Instructions - copy on file as Asbestos_Floor_Tile_Removal_MDH.pdf ] - ", Minnesota Department of Health, retrieved 12/7/2010, original source: http://www.health.state.mn.us/divs/eh/asbestos/floortile/index.html
Asbestos Identification, Walter C.McCrone, McCrone Research Institute, Chicago, IL.1987 ISBN 0-904962-11-3. Dr. McCrone literally "wrote the book" on asbestos identification procedures which formed
the basis for current work by asbestos identification laboratories.
In addition to citations & references found in this article, see the research citations given at the end of the related articles found at our suggested
Carson, Dunlop & Associates Ltd., 120 Carlton Street Suite 407, Toronto ON M5A 4K2. Tel: (416) 964-9415 1-800-268-7070 Email: info@carsondunlop.com. Alan Carson is a past president of ASHI, the American Society of Home Inspectors.
Carson Dunlop Associates provides extensive home inspection education and report writing material. In gratitude we provide links to tsome Carson Dunlop Associates products and services.