With everything that we know about asbestos today, it sometimes seems very surprising how much it was used in the past. It can lead to mesothelioma and other very serious diseases. In a lot of cases, these diseases prove to be fatal.
Those who were promoting the use of asbestos at the time may not have fully understood exactly how dangerous it was. But why did they choose to use something like this in insulation for businesses and homes? What was the advantage, and why would people take this risk? After all, much of this insulation remains, so we’re still dealing with asbestos issues today.
It is great at slowing heat transfer
The basic reason is simply that asbestos works very well in insulation. The goal for insulation is simply to stop heat transfer from occurring rapidly. Asbestos fibers are durable, so they’re able to do that.
In the past, asbestos has also been used because it doesn’t burn easily. For this reason, people thought that it was a safe choice for insulation. You’ll often find it around pipes or hot water lines. It seemed like it could help prevent a structure from burning down, keeping people safe — especially at a time in which house fires were more common. It is only with the benefit of hindsight that we can now see that using it caused far more problems than it solved.
Have you been diagnosed with mesothelioma?
If you’ve been diagnosed with a serious disease like mesothelioma after asbestos exposure, take the time to carefully consider your legal options.