Vermiculite insulation. Loose, pebbly, gray-brown or silver-gold flakes that look like kitty litter or popcorn.
Insurance: asbestos abatement roughly doubles the insulation line on your claim.
If your home was built before 1990 and it's near the Old Trails, Autumn Lane or Fairview burn areas, read this before anyone goes in the attic. π«
Vermiculite insulation. Loose, pebbly, gray-brown or silver-gold flakes that look like kitty litter or popcorn. Most of it sold in the U.S. came from the Libby, Montana mine, and most of that is contaminated with asbestos. Libby is 3 hours from Spokane. We have a lot of it here.
Why it might be in YOUR attic:
ποΈ Your house was built between the 1920s and 1990. Vermiculite was sold as "Zonolite" at every hardware store in the Inland Northwest.
ποΈ A previous owner "topped off" the attic. It was the cheap DIY insulation of its day. It's often buried under a layer of newer blown-in, so you can't see it from the hatch.
ποΈ It was used as fill in concrete block walls, around chimneys, and under floors, not just attics.
ποΈ Older farmhouses, ramblers and cabins around Nine Mile Falls, Suncrest, Mead, Airway Heights and the Palouse were prime candidates.
ποΈ Nobody disclosed it at sale. It's legal to have, and most inspectors don't dig for it.
Why it matters right now:
π₯ Fire-damaged homes: if the structure burned, the vermiculite is in the debris and the ash. Asbestos fibers don't burn off. They're in the cleanup.
π¨ Smoke-damaged homes: the insulation has to come out anyway, and if it's vermiculite, it's a full asbestos abatement job, not a shop-vac job. Don't let a cleanup crew or a well-meaning relative disturb it.
π° Insurance: asbestos abatement roughly doubles the insulation line on your claim. Most adjusters don't catch it. Get it tested and documented before you sign.
We're licensed for asbestos insulation removal and we've been pulling vermiculite out of Spokane and Coeur d'Alene attics for years. Under full containment, negative air, supplied-air respirators, proper disposal. Then fresh cellulose goes in.
Not sure what's up there? We'll look and we'll test it.
π
Attic inspection:
insulationspokane.com/inspections
π (509) 879-0495
π Selling or buying near the burn areas? Home Sale Hotline (509) 351-2811
Everything Attic. Except Bats. We're Terrified of Bats.
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