How Much Does Asbestos Removal Cost?

The excitement of renovations to get the home of your dreams is a common one for Toronto homeowners. Unfortunately, this is also the time that many excited, would-be renovators discover the presence of asbestos building materials somewhere in the house. Once you learn that asbestos is standing between you and a successful home renovation project, having it removed can quickly become an obsession.

The added expense of asbestos removal is rarely something accounted for when planning renovations, so it’s important to find out how much this adds to the bill as soon as possible. It can be hard to give a reasonable estimate on the cost of asbestos removal without a visit to the site for a few reasons.

Factors that Affect the Cost of Asbestos Removal

This should go without saying, but we’ll say it anyway: Asbestos removal, or asbestos abatement, is not a project for the DIY enthusiast. Asbestos is a known carcinogen, and the safe removal and disposal of it is heavily regulated by the Province of Ontario. Bearing in mind that you need to engage the services of a professional asbestos removal company, here are some of the things that will affect the cost of asbestos removal in your home:

• Location of the asbestos: Is it asbestos wrapped plumbing pipes? Attic insulation? Roofing materials? Flooring? The location of the asbestos, and the how much of it is involved, will ultimately affect the cost to remove it. If it is in a spot in the house that is difficult to access and therefore requires special equipment, the cost will be higher than if the asbestos is located in a place that is easier to access.
• Testing and investigation: While an experienced asbestos removal company will be able to give an educated guess as to whether or not asbestos is present in your home, final confirmation must come from a lab. Laboratory testing may seem expensive, but if it turns out that asbestos isn’t present in your home after all, it will be money well spent.
• Small portion of the job, or complete removal: You may be eager to have all traces of asbestos in your house removed ASAP. However, it’s not always wise or practical to do that, especially if it is found in an area not slated for renovations. The size of the removal job will affect to final bill.

Job Should be Based on Needs, Not Budget

Of course you can’t spend money you don’t have, but when it comes to the safe removal and disposal of a dangerous substance like asbestos, it’s important to avoid cutting corners. The recommendations made by professional asbestos abatement firms are based on the needs and safety of the occupants of your home. Safety is one area where compromise isn’t necessarily a good thing.
Asbestos removal is a very delicate operation with many different factors that affect the cost. It seems that, like many questions for the ages, the correct answer to “How much does asbestos removal cost?” is “It depends.”