If you have asbestos siding on your home, whether or not to remove asbestos siding is a tricky question.

If the siding is largely intact and undamaged, it poses no health risk. Asbestos only poses a health risk when the fibers are violently disturbed (such as from breaking or sawing many asbestos siding shingles) and the fibers become airborne.

In most cases, having asbestos cement siding on the exterior of your home poses no health risk whatsoever.

Asbestos is an issue that irrationally scares some people, though, much like mold, and the emotional impact should be considered, especially if you plan to sell your home anytime soon.

A small percentage of buyers will be scared off by asbestos siding, so it’s something to consider as far as the resale value of your house, aside from the actual facts of whether or not asbestos siding poses a health risk.

Should I Remove Asbestos Siding from My Home?

If you use a professional contractor to remove asbestos siding from your home, it will be very expensive, as the work can only be done by a contractor with a special license in asbestos abatement.

In most states, homeowners can remove asbestos siding themselves. With proper precautions and care, this is a safe, economic alternative if you decide to remove the asbestos siding yourself.

Another choice is to install new siding, but to leave the asbestos siding in place. This is commonly done with vinyl siding, with the new siding installed over the old asbestos siding, encapsulating it.

Some care must be taken when doing this not to unduly disturb the asbestos siding, but this can easily be done by any professional siding company and won’t greatly increase the project cost of the new siding installation.