Asbestos?!

We knew this was potentially a problem when we moved in. When we were buying our house, our inspector said the upstairs floor was likely made from asbestos tiles. He said as long as you don't disturb them, it will be fine. So, we lived with the ugliness for awhile. When we were expecting our first born, we decided to cover the tiles with carpet. I didn't like the idea of a baby crawling around on those tiles. Jeff did an amazing job at making that space a cozy family room. While watching the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, Jeff painted the wood paneling white and installed the white carpet. That became our guest room and family room. We have made that space our place for special movie nights with the kids. It is the place where the kids sneak up to early on Saturday mornings to watch cartoons. It is the place were the kids play on rainy days. It is the place Jeff retreats too when kids climb into our bed in the middle of the night. It is where the craft supplies are. We have gotten 8 years out of that room and it is sad to see it go.

But now that the time has come to say goodbye, it is also time to disturb those tiles. Jeff took a small sample of tile and the mastic underneath and sent it away for testing.

The spot where the tile sample was removed.

We are still waiting for those results, so we are moving forward with the assumption that they are asbestos. Our neighbor recommended an asbestos abatement company and the came in early Thursday morning. Jeff pulled out the carpet and the kids got to see the ugly tile for the first time.

The kids in the carpet-less upstairs. 

They thought it was really cool and echoey. They sang "Tomorrow" to play with the acoustics and La danced.

Jeff put the old door back on the stairs. The hinges are being held together with screwdrivers, because of course they are.

The workers sealed off the stairwell and put a ventilator into the upstairs window. They hauled up a bunch of equipment including several barrels. I had to leave for work, but the report I got later was that they were "really loud." The kids were getting ready for school and eating breakfast while the workers pounded on the ceiling. As they removed tiles, they sealed them into the barrels. When I got home the work was done.

The removal of the tiles and subfloor revealed long wide planks. This would actually make a really cool floor if only we could finish it. Sadly, this is not an option.

There is a mysterious gap in one portion of the floor. We were speculating about what was there in the past. Maybe the stairs are a more recent addition and there used to be a pull down ladder.

Mystery gap.

The molding and closet doors were put into the storage room. 

With the floor gone, the upstairs is officially a construction zone. Jeff made a sign to hang on the door. We made a rule for the kids that they are only allowed up there if they are wearing shoes and with either one of us. La took this very seriously and held my hand the whole time when we went upstairs to look.

Now we are all set for the true demolition to begin...