One of the first jobs I did as an adult was Asbestos Abatement. Just a fancy word for dust collector. Asbestos is a cancer causing material that was widely used in construction because it is completely fireproof.
Asbestos Abatement
Spray some of that bad baby on anything and you’ve got your building fireproofed. After 1978 governments decided that newer fireproof material was an adequate alternative to asbestos so production stopped. When all of those old building deteriorated, as they usually do, people started freaking out about the asbestos dust that would seep into the offices. So that’s what gave birth to the amazing industry of removing asbestos.
Getting that stuff out of those old buildings isn’t easy. It’s sprayed on the main buildings structure, above office ceiling tiles and on boiler pipes. Most of the job required crawling around on air ducts with a gas mask and thin jump suite. Once you are in position you have to scrape the stuff off as someone below collects and bags the stuff up. If you feel like you are agile enough to play spider-man this might actually be your dream job.
A typical project begins early in the morning when everyone helps set up the tarp room and fans. Because the dust is what is cancer causing, all precautions have to be taken to make sure no dust escapes the room your working in. Usually big office buildings are done one room at a time. Once set up you have to strip down naked and put on a one piece jump suite with hoodie. This job sucks big time when working on an unheated building in the dead of winter! You enter the tarped room with you gas mask and you maneuver around scrape as much of the stuff off as you can. Whatever can’t be scraped off has to be taken care of by a scouring pad, knife or if needs be, a grinder.
When taking a lunch break you have to exit the tarped room through a shower room where you have to again strip down and this time you have to shower and put your cloths back on. No dust can ever leave the room.
This is a physically demanding job and is very dangerous. It’s easy to make a mistake and accidentally inhale the dust. Nothing ever happens right away so its hard to believe that dust can kill you, but it does. So workers have to take yearly physicals and chest x-rays.
Personally the pay wasn’t all that great considering the danger and physicality involved. I would recommend someone starting a business cleaning asbestos. Not a who lot of equipment is involved just a industrial HEPA fan, temporary shower, and basic hand tools.
Here’s a good video I found that accurately explains the job.
