Example Asbestos Removal Projects in Bellevue

Scope of work

An accredited inspector's visit, about eight samples with each spot patched, lab fees and a short report that names the positive windows. Taking out the old windows is priced separately.

Project overview

In this example, the owners of a 1960s house in Clyde Hill plan to replace 14 windows and a sliding door. The old steel windows are glazed with putty that has hardened for sixty years, and the window installer asks for a test before the first pane comes out.

Only the glazing putty on the steel windows tests positive. The windows come out as whole units, so the putty is never scraped or broken, and the rest of the job goes ahead without special steps.

The goal

The goal is a clear answer on the windows before the installer books, with the steel windows marked for whole removal.

Process

1. Before the visit A list of the windows and doors being replaced, so the inspector samples one of each type.
2. Visit About 8 samples of putty, caulk and sealant, each spot patched.
3. A few days later Lab results and a short written report naming the positive windows.
4. Then The installer plans the steel windows as whole-unit removals, bagged in labeled containers.

Planning right

• Replacement windows can come with their own caulk and foam, so sample what the work will touch.
• Ask the installer to lift a steel window out whole and not to cut or scrape the putty.
• Sample both painted and bare putty if the colors differ.
• Give the installer a copy of the report before the order date.

Scope of work

A lab test of the texture and a notice to the clean air agency, then each bedroom in turn: emptied, sealed, fixtures down, texture wetted and scraped into bags, vacuumed and wiped. Disposal is included. Registers, skim coat and paint are extra.

Project overview

In this example, the owners of a 1970s house in Bellevue want air conditioning, with the ducts in the attic and a register cut into every bedroom ceiling. Each register is a hole through the sprayed texture, so the owners ask for a test before the installer books a day.

The texture is positive in every bedroom and the hall. The four ceilings add up to far more than 48 sq ft, so a notice goes in first, and the ceilings come down one room at a time before the registers are cut.

The goal

The goal is bare ceilings in the three bedrooms and the hall, ready for the registers.

Process

1. First visit A sample from each of the four ceilings; the rooms measured.
2. Before work Notice filed and the 10-day wait observed; beds and dressers moved out and the fans and lights taken down.
3. Days one to three One bedroom a day goes under plastic and comes out bare, and the hall is finished with the last bedroom.
4. Then Final clean, and the installer starts cutting registers in bare ceilings.

Planning right

• Hold the installer until the ceilings are bare, since one cut through the texture spreads it.
• Rooms in a house this age can differ, so each ceiling is sampled on its own.
• Pick the register spots and the ceiling finish together, so the painter comes once.
• Choose the ceiling finish before the crew comes, since a skim coat or new board sets how the surface is left.

Scope of work

Separate samples of the tile and the glue, the kitchen sealed with plastic and a filtered air unit, the tile worked up piece by piece, the black glue scraped off wet, sealed and labeled bags, a HEPA vacuum and disposal. The new plank floor and any floor repair are extra.

Project overview

In this example, the owners of a 1960s split-level in Bellevue want a vinyl plank floor in the kitchen and the eating area. The cabinets are staying, so the new floor will stop at the toe kicks.

The 9-inch tile and the black glue under it test positive. Only the open floor is lifted. The tile under the cabinets is never touched, so it stays where it is, and the planks stop at the toe kicks.

The goal

The goal is a clean open floor for the planks, with the tile under the cabinets left alone.

Process

1. First visit The open floor measured, the cabinet line marked and a sample of the tile and glue taken.
2. Day one Kitchen sealed, appliances rolled out, the tile worked up piece by piece into labeled containers.
3. Day two The glue scraped wet from the open floor, the floor vacuumed and wiped.
4. Then The installer lays underlayment and the planks up to the toe kicks.

Planning right

• Tile that lifts whole needs no notice to the clean air agency, as long as nobody sands or grinds it.
• Leave the cabinet bases where they are, since moving them would disturb the tile below.
• Sheet vinyl or a thick felt layer under the tile would change the plan, which is why every layer is sampled.
• Keep the report for the day the cabinets are replaced.

Scope of work

Samples of the shingles and the paper under them, a notice to the clean air agency, the deck cleared of furniture and sheeting spread below it, the shingles wetted and levered off whole and wrapped for the haul, a HEPA vacuum of the strip, and disposal at an authorized site. The deck, flashing, siding and paint are extra.

Project overview

In this example, the ledger board that carries the back deck of a 1950s Bellevue house has gone soft behind the gray cement shingles. The deck builder wants the wall bare along the deck so the framing shows and new flashing can go in.

The shingles test positive and are friable. About 200 sq ft has to come off, which is over the notice limit, so the notice goes in before anyone climbs a ladder. The strip stays wet while the shingles are lifted away whole, and the deck builder starts on bare sheathing.

The goal

The goal is bare sheathing behind the deck, with every shingle in the strip out of the yard and hauled away.

Process

1. First visit Shingles and building paper sampled where the deck meets the wall; the strip marked out with chalk.
2. Before work The notice goes in and the 10-day wait runs; then the deck is cleared and the planting beside it is covered.
3. Day one The strip is wetted down and the shingles are levered off one at a time into wrapping.
4. Day two Wall, deck and ground vacuumed, and the wrapped load hauled away.

Planning right

• Soft wood behind the shingles is the carpenter's job, so budget for it.
• A dry week suits the work, because the bare wall has no cover until the new flashing goes on.
• Pieces that land on the deck boards are picked up damp and added to the same wrapped load.
• Ask the city's permit center whether a rebuilt deck and new siding need a permit before ordering material.

Scope of work

Taking out about 1,200 sq ft of ceiling texture, about 400 sq ft of floor tile and glue and about 40 ft of pipe wrap before demolition, a room at a time behind plastic, with labeled bags, an air check and the haul to an authorized site. The survey and the wrecking are not included.

Project overview

In this example, the owners of a 1960s house on Mercer Island are building a new one on the same lot. They live in the house until a week before the work, but a teardown always needs a survey by an accredited inspector, so they hire one even though the house is theirs.

The sprayed ceilings in four rooms, the kitchen and bath floors and the wrap on the basement hot-water pipes test positive. They are cleared one room at a time once the notices are in.

The goal

The goal is an empty house with nothing left to disturb, so the new build can start when planned.

Process

1. Survey The inspector works through the house, the garage and the shed, and the lab report lists every positive material with its amount.
2. Notices The PSCAA notice goes in and its 10-day wait begins. The L&I notice goes to L&I before work starts.
3. Removal Four ceilings, two floors and the basement pipes, taken one area at a time behind plastic.
4. Handover The air check passes, the final loads go to the disposal site and the wrecking crew gets the keys.

Planning right

• Even an owner who lives in the house needs an accredited inspector for a teardown.
• Keep the survey and the notices together, and ask the city's permit office what it wants with the demolition permit.
• Cedar Hills schedules asbestos on Tuesdays and Fridays, so book the haul early.
• Republic Services in Seattle also takes the waste and asks for a copy of the notice.

Scope of work

A survey of the common areas, a notice to L&I, a sealed work area with a filtered air unit around one room at a time, certified workers under a certified supervisor, as state law requires, the tile lifted whole and the glue scraped wet into sealed bags, an air check before each room reopens, and disposal. New flooring is extra.

Project overview

In this example, the board of a 1960s condominium building in Bellevue is replacing the worn floors in the lobby and two shared laundry rooms. A condominium association cannot use the single-family owner exception, so an accredited inspector surveys the common areas first.

The 9-inch tile and the black glue under it test positive in all three rooms. Certified workers lift the tile whole and scrape the glue wet, one laundry room at a time, so one laundry room stays open.

The goal

The goal is bare, clean floors in the lobby and both laundry rooms, finished while the building keeps its laundry.

Process

1. Survey About 12 samples from the lobby, the laundry rooms, the mailroom and the stairs; a written report with the floors measured.
2. Before work L&I is notified, and a flyer for residents lists the closing days and the open laundry room.
3. Days one to four The first laundry room, then the lobby, then the second laundry room, each sealed in plastic with the tile lifted whole and the glue scraped wet.
4. Last day A final air check and clean, then the rooms go back to the association for new flooring.

Planning right

• Post a notice for residents with the dates and the laundry room that stays open.
• The association keeps the survey and the waste shipment records.
• Before accepting a bid, ask who the certified supervisor on site will be.
• The same tile may run under the unit entries, so sample before the next floor project.