Asbestos Removal in Empire

In Empire, we test before we quote, take out only what the lab confirms and handle the notice and disposal paperwork, whether the job is a basement, a kitchen or a whole building.

Almost every home in Empire is a one-unit home, and more than a third of them date from before 1980. Those older houses are the ones to sample before a remodel.

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A 1960s laundry room with the washer and dryer still in place and floor tiles lifted in patches to show black adhesive

Example project

Old floor tile lifted after a wood stove is taken out of a family room

Example project

Home: 1970s rambler in Empire with a family room addition and an old wood stove on a brick hearth
Original request: Take out the stove and hearth, then lay one new floor across the whole room
Testing: An MDH-certified inspector samples the floor tile, the glue beneath it and the hearth mortar
Found: Lab finds asbestos in both: the 12-inch squares and the black glue
Clear: No asbestos in the hearth mortar
Area: About 240 sq ft of floor
Timeline: Five-day notice, then two working days
Cost: $2,750

In this example, nobody has lit the wood stove in a 1970s Empire rambler’s family room for years. The stove, its chimney pipe and the brick hearth are coming out, and the owners want one new floor wall to wall instead of tile with a bare patch where the hearth stood.

See the full example and more projects

Asbestos removal services

Sampling

Before a remodel or teardown, start with asbestos testing so you know what each material contains.

Ceilings

Sprayed ceiling texture that tests positive comes down under popcorn ceiling removal.

Floors

Each flooring layer is sampled, then lifted under floor tile and mastic removal.

Heating

Duct wrap, seam tape and furnace insulation belong to duct and furnace insulation removal.

Exterior

Cement shingles and older roofing are covered on the asbestos siding removal page.

Bigger projects

Additions, gut remodels and demolition are handled under remodel and demolition abatement.

Empire homes

About 45 percent of Empire’s homes went up from 2000 on, and about 30 percent in the 1960s and 1970s combined. Renters occupy fewer than 1 in 10 homes.

Homes from the 1960s and 1970s

A house built in those two decades may have asbestos in its ceiling texture, its joint compound, its duct insulation or its floor tile and mastic. MDH names each of these, and only a lab can say which ones your house has.

Owner-occupied houses

Who lives in the house decides whether the exemption applies. An Empire owner living in their own one-family home may do asbestos work there without a license and without paying the permit fee. A landlord may not. MDH still strongly advises qualifying owners to bring in a licensed contractor.

Census Reporter: Empire housing Minnesota Department of Health: asbestos in homes Minnesota Statutes 326.72

Permits in Empire

Empire’s building permit application includes demolition among its project types but asks nothing about asbestos. State rules cover that side, so plan for an MDH-certified inspector to look at a building before it comes down.

Waste

Removed material must stay wet and go into leak-tight, labeled containers. Landfills accept it only with a waste manifest.

City of Empire: building permit application MPCA: notification of intent to perform a demolition MPCA: managing asbestos waste

Entry hall of a 1960s house with plastic taped along the walls and a half bath door open

Frequently asked questions

How soon can removal begin?

Regulated work can start no sooner than five calendar days after MDH gets notice.

Is asbestos found during a remodel an emergency?

A discovery mid-remodel is not an emergency under MDH’s rules. Stop work in that spot and call for testing. Licensed removal then follows the normal five-day notice.

What does a licensed setup look like?

MDH describes plastic walls, a decontamination shower, negative air and sealed bags.

Who files the state notice?

Only a contractor holding a Minnesota asbestos license can send MDH the notice, so that is our job, not yours. When more than one licensed contractor works on a site, each one sends its own.

Rosemount owners can see asbestos removal in Rosemount, or our homepage.

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