Uses of Asbestos

Throughout time, asbestos has been used in a variety of contexts. The fiber was originally used by the Greeks who loved it as a fire-proof table cloth that could be tossed in the fire for cleaning whenever it got dirty. Since then, the use of asbestos has expanded into a variety of areas. At the peak of its use and through the late 1980s, asbestos was used in more than 3,000 products in homes.

A large number of products using asbestos are used in construction products. Asbestos is used in various construction components because it is both fireproof and provides insulation. It is excellent for insulating against sound from other room as well as insulating against heat.

Some products in buildings that contain asbestos include:

- Floor tiles and sheet flooring

- Construction putties and mastics

- Decorative plaster or artex

- Acoustic plaster

- Textured paints

- Spray coatings

- Pipework lagging

- Water tanks

- Roofs, gutters, downpipes

- Wall panels

- Door linings

- Floors and walls

- Loft insulation

Asbestos is also used in a variety of industrial compounds and parts of cars. Brake pads, clutch cables, and a number of other items that are subject to heat in cars all have been known to include asbestos. Other items that include asbestos are:

- Lift shaft linings

- Soffits/fascia boards

- Brake linings

- Bituminous felts

- Fire safes/filing cabinets

- Thermal taping compounds

- Packing materials

- Ventilation system linings/laggings

- School blackboards

The prevalence of asbestos in such a wide variety of products that are used in such a wide variety of areas means that almost anyone can be at risk of exposure. Some of the most commonly affected individuals include contractors, car mechanics, shipworkers, firefighters, clean-up crews, and numerous other groups.

Due to the risk of asbestos, individuals should be careful to take any and all precautions possible for avoiding the inhalation of the deadly fiber. While the fiber has numerous uses in the construction and industrial world, it is deadly for human beings. So far, asbestos is the only known cause of mesothelioma, a deadly cancer, and asbestosis, a lung disease.

Asbestos fibers do not immediately trigger disease and cancer. It usually takes more than one exposure to the fiber to trigger or result in asbestosis or mesothelioma.

For more information on the uses of asbestos or the individuals at risk of exposure, please visit http://www.mesolawsuit.com.

Joseph Devine

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