What is Non Friable Asbestos

In my previous Post i told about Friable Asbestos and how it is dangerous to your health.Now talking about Non Friable Asbestos;it is less harmful than friable but still it is harmful enough to risk your life.

By Proper Definition Non Friable Asbestos is one that can not be easily crushed (at least not by applying little mechanical force by hand). As a thumb of rule,Non friable can not be crushed,crumbled or pulverized by hands alone.The reason behind this is that asbestos fibers in Non Friable Asbestos are tightly bounded and could not be broken by bare hands.

Few Examples of Non Friable Asbestos are : vinyl asbestos floor tiles,sphalt/cement roofing products, base flashing, asbestos cement, siding, packing material,gaskets and acoustic ceiling tiles.

<img src="http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2018/2180240695_529d4a7a12_m.jpg" alt="Non Friable Asbestos" />

Picture Above Shows Non Friable Asbestos Pipe.

Non Friable Asbestos is further divided into Two categories :

1. Category I Non Friable Asbestos : They are those that can be converted in the Friable form by continuous heat and pressure.Old houses contains 70% Category 1 Non friable Asbestos  which  can convert back into Friable asbestos over time.

2. Category II Friable Asbestos : These are those that can not be converted into Friable.However chances are that they may get converted in Category 1 Non Friable form.

Though Non Friable Asbestos are less dangerous but it doesn't means that you can play with them.Never try to remove Non friable asbestos just by reading any DIY manual.