Service 10
Asbestos Removal
Asbestos removal is the work that has to happen before demolition or renovation can legally start in a building that contains it. In Massachusetts it is tightly regulated: the material is identified by survey, the work is notified to MassDEP in advance, the area is contained and under negative pressure while it runs, and the waste is tracked to a licensed disposal facility.
What the job covers
- Survey and sampling to identify what is actually present before anything is disturbed
- Notification filed with MassDEP ahead of the work, with the required waiting period observed
- Containment, negative air and decontamination set up before removal starts
- Pipe and boiler insulation, floor tile and mastic, plasters, roofing, siding and transite
- Removal, bagging and transport to a licensed disposal facility, with the waste manifested
- Clearance air monitoring before the containment comes down
- Documentation handed over for the building file and the demolition permit
What affects the quote
- What the survey finds, how much of it there is and where it is
- Whether the building is occupied, and whether it can be vacated for the work
- Friable versus non-friable material — friable is more tightly controlled and slower
- The notification period, which is set by regulation and cannot be compressed
- Access and containment complexity, particularly around live services and shared systems
- Disposal volume and the distance to a facility that will accept it
Every job is quoted after we understand the site. Photographs of what needs to come down, and of how a machine would reach it, get you an accurate number faster than a description will.
Common questions
Before you call
Do I need an asbestos survey before demolition?
In practice, yes. Massachusetts requires asbestos-containing material to be identified and removed before demolition or renovation that would disturb it, and the local building department will generally want to see the survey before it issues a demolition permit. Any building from before the 1980s should be assumed to contain something until a survey says otherwise.
How long does the notification take?
MassDEP requires advance notice before the work begins, and that waiting period is set by regulation rather than by the contractor — it is not something that can be shortened by paying more or starting early. It is the reason abatement should be the first thing scheduled on a project, not the last.
Can I just leave it and demolish around it?
No. Demolishing a structure with asbestos still in it disperses the material, and it is both illegal and expensive to resolve afterwards. Emergency situations have their own procedures, but they are not a way around the requirement.
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Ready ToClear The Way?
Tell us about the project. Allied will take it from there.
