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Acoustical Plaster
Acoustical plaster was an extremely popular product in homes and businesses for two primary reasons: style and function. This plaster is sprayed on walls and ceilings to give them a textured finished that was widely sought after for several decades. The most well known example of this is the "popcorn" style ceiling that topped off homes all across the United States. Besides the professional look a plaster coating provided, it also came with the huge benefit of absorbing sound and reducing the amount of echoes from any noise generated in a small room. People living in apartments or tightly packed track housing, or working in diminutive offices often requested this construction material for the way it looked and for its ability to control noise levels.
During the 1950's, acoustical plaster was made with a naturally occurring mineral known as asbestos. This was used in hundreds of items, and was very common because it was strong, pliable and able to endure extreme temperatures. Although the asbestos provided many benefits, it is also a toxic material that can cause diseases such as Mesothelioma. This fact wasn't fully understood until sometime during the late 1970's, and by this point the hazardous mineral was a mixed into plaster coatings that were in use in thousands of locations.
As long as the plaster is in one solid piece, it poses no threat to human health. However, over time the plaster coating becomes likely to crack or break apart, and that allows tiny particles of asbestos to be released into the air. Since they are too small to be seen by the human eye, people become subjected to inhaling them and that can be extremely dangerous or even deadly. Aside from this hazard, the workers who put the acoustical plaster on the ceiling or walls in the first place were put at great risk. They were responsible for mixing the plaster and spraying it on. At any point in this process they could have easily inhaled enough asbestos to develop potentially deadly diseases.
To make the situation even worse, in many cases the manufactures of the plaster product were aware that the asbestos inside of it was dangerous for several years. Instead of halting production, or developing a new mixture for the plaster, they greedily allowed it to be used until federal regulations finally banned the mineral completely. Workers who may have been affected because of this often band together and file class act lawsuits against their employers. Home owners and office workers who spent time around the hazardous material have also filed suit against the companies that were responsible.
If you spent time around acoustical plaster that contained asbestos, or worked for a company that installed it, contact us today for a free brochure about what steps you should take next.