How to get ready for abatement
Renovating, demolishing or repairing your home? If you require abatement, take these tips to heart to speed up the process!
Make sure you have completed your hazardous materials survey – and told the tech what will be impacted.
Sometimes the scope of work on a project can change, so let the tech know about other areas which might be included as well. Often, distributing the samples differently can increase the coverage of the survey without increasing the cost.
The hazmat survey also helps you identify materials you can avoid, or encapsulate. Abatement can sometimes be minimized if materials are identified early. Mid-way through a project is often the worst time to discover them, when working around them is no longer an option.
Clear the area completely before the crew arrives.
All items should be removed from the area, including appliances when possible. Drawers, furniture, area rugs, pictures, paintings, and most importantly breakables should be cleared from the workspace, and ideally from the path to the workspace as well. Crews will be moving tools and equipment through the home, and anything left over could be accidentally bumped into and broken, so keeping it clear is always the best plan.
Make sure to keep your utilities on!
Even for houses set to be demolished, we will need to run negative air pressure units, HEPA filtered vacuums, lights and other tools. If the system is easily overloaded, we may need to use the plug behind your stove or dryer, so be prepared! We will also need water for clean up, so be sure to keep these utilities available and on for the crew for the duration of the project.
Make note of emergency shut offs.
You never know what’s behind a wall, under a floor or buried in insulation. When running into old, brittle pipes or live, bare wires, knowing the location of the shut-offs is imperative for safety and to prevent damage. Be prepared to show the project manager the locations of these shut-offs during the pre-job walkthrough.
Reach out with questions!
It’s ok to be unfamiliar with the process and to be nervous about remediation work. We do a walk through a few days before the job starts to go over all the details and answer your questions in person and on site, but if you have any others, don’t hesitate to reach out. We’re happy to help!
