Many of the Huntridge Homes Still Have Original Siding Shingles – We’re Looking For Some Replacements

One of our regular readers in the Huntridge called. Some of the original siding shingles from her home were ripped off during the big windstorm 2 weeks ago.

Her insurance company wants to tear them all off and stucco her home. Fortunately, she’s one of us, and wants to keep the look of the home as original as possible.

I don’t know a source for them, but I’m willing to bet one of you has a pile of them in the backyard. Or, maybe you’re about to remodel, and instead of throwing them away, they can be saved and put to use again.

These same type shingles were used by one of the prolific 50’s and 60’s  homebuilders in Charleston Heights out at Rainbow and Buffalo. 

If any of you know of a stash of them, please contact me.

There’s a huge amount of misconception about this type of shingle. They were made from a mixture of asbestos and cement.

There’s one of those fancy scientific terms used to describe the fact that they’re generally NOT HARMFUL.

Non-friable asbestos-containing material (ACM) is not regulated because it contains a binder or hardening agent such as cement, asphalt or vinyl. Examples of ACM are asphalt roofing shingles, vinyl asbestos floor tiles and transite siding made with cement. ACM products are still being manufactured today. The danger with this type of material is that it can pose the same hazard as friable asbestos during remodeling, repairs or other construction. Burning ACM also creates friable asbestos.

There have been many scams from unscrupulous contractors where homeowners are misled into believing there is a health danger merely by virtue of the products having been used in their homes. There’s are thousands of buildings in every city that have ACM.  The picture from the left is the floor tile we found under the carpet in my own home.

Among the many articles and resources I found while researching this is from The National Park Service Website.

http://www.nps.gov/history/hps/tps/recentpast/asbestosarticle.htm