Asbestos Cement (Mineral Fiber) Siding

ASBESTOS CEMENT (MINERAL FIBER) SIDING
Asbestos cement siding is essentially a light concrete panel reinforced with asbestos fibers. It was a common siding material in the mid 1900s.


Asbestos cement siding typically comes in large shingles. Sometimes the surface is grooved or mildly corrugated. They are usually painted white or pastel colors. This siding is almost always installed horizontally, with consecutively higher rows overlapping the row below. Be careful when identifying this material. There are other materials very similar in appearance to the asbestos cement shingle.

Asbestos cement is a good siding material that, in many areas, has unfairly developed a bad reputation because of its asbestos content. There is no evidence that there is any health issue associated with this siding while on a building. Asbestos fibers can be a health issue if they are friable. This means that fibers are free to float around in the air and may be inhaled by people.
With asbestos cement siding, the asbestos is not free or friable. People sanding or cutting asbestos cement shingles should consider this, but other than during construction activities, this shouldn’t be an issue.


The siding is extremely durable and its only arguable weakness is that because it is brittle, it is susceptible to mechanical damage. However, most other sidings are also susceptible to mechanical damage, and one has to hit an asbestos cement shingle pretty hard to break it
Another advantage to the asbestos cement siding is that it is tolerant of moisture, and while the substrate may be vulnerable if it is installed too close to grade, the asbestos cement siding itself will not deteriorate even if buried in the ground.


Another benefit of the asbestos cement siding is its non-combustibility and, to a lesser extent, its fire resistance. As most people are aware, asbestos is used as insulation against heat in many applications. However, since asbestos cement siding is typically secured with steel nails, there is a limit to the fire resistance.


Matching replacement pieces for damaged shingles may be hard to find.
Home Inspection Services

Federal Pacific Electric Panels

** Safety Warning*** Federal Pacific Electric service panel

This panel is a latent fire hazard: it's circuit breakers may fail to trip in response to an over current or a short circuit. Failure of a circuit breaker to trip can result in a fire, property damage, or personal injury. A circuit breaker that may not trip does not afford the protection that is intended and required. Simply replacing the circuit breakers is not a reliable repair. While the panel may appear in acceptable condition at this limited cursory inspection, a licensed electrician who is familiar with this equipment should be called to inspect the panel for immediate fire and shock hazards, and regardless of its visually-apparent condition, the buyer should consider having this equipment replaced. Additional information about the fire and shock hazards associated with this equipment can be read on the internet at http://www.inspect-ny.com/fpe/fpepanel.htm.