Asbestos Removal in Lake Oswego

Lake Oswego asks for asbestos testing up front on a residential demolition: its demolition packet lists an asbestos and lead paint testing report among the items to submit. We handle the asbestos side of that, along with testing and removal for remodels.

Lake Oswego built more homes in the 1970s than in any other decade, and over 40% of its housing predates 1980.

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A 1950s bathroom opened for a remodel: tub-surround wall cut out, floor tile lifted, plastic up

Example project

Textured bathroom walls stripped before a tub becomes a walk-in shower

Example project

Home: 1970s two-story house in Lake Oswego with a hall bath upstairs
Original request: Replace the hall bath tub with a walk-in shower, tiled to the ceiling
Testing: Samples of the wall system of board, tape, joint compound and knockdown texture, and of the tub surround adhesive
Found: Asbestos in the joint compound and texture of the wall system
Clear: No asbestos in the tub surround adhesive or the ceiling
Area: About 300 sq ft of bathroom wall
Timeline: A ten-day notice period, then two days in the bathroom
Cost: $3,000

In this example, the owners of a 1970s house in Lake Oswego want a walk-in shower in place of the hall bath tub, tiled all the way up. The remodeler will strip every wall in the room down to the studs.

See the full example and more projects

Asbestos services

Testing for remodels and demolitions

For a remodel, asbestos testing covers the rooms you are changing. For a demolition, the city wants the testing report with the permit application.

Ceilings

Sprayed ceiling texture is friable under DEQ rules when it tests positive. Popcorn ceiling removal takes it down inside a sealed enclosure.

Walls

Joint compound and wall texture from the 1970s and 1980s are worth testing before a wall comes out; see drywall and wall texture removal.

Floors

Old vinyl tile lifts whole after a five-day DEQ notice, while sheet vinyl is friable. Floor tile and sheet vinyl removal covers both.

Demolition and deconstruction

Pre-demolition abatement clears the asbestos before a house comes down or is taken apart by a deconstruction contractor.

Lake Oswego demolition rules

Lake Oswego treats a project that removes half or more of a home’s exterior walls or perimeter foundation as a residential demolition. It needs a demolition permit, neighborhood notice and the city’s Demolition Tax.

Houses built in 1940 or earlier must be taken down by manual deconstruction. Manual deconstruction by a certified contractor is exempt from the Demolition Tax. The asbestos testing report goes in with either kind of application, and DEQ decides what abatement is needed.

City of Lake Oswego residential demolition packet

Lake Oswego homes

Only about 6 in every 100 homes here date from before 1950. Most of the older stock went up in the 1960s and 1970s, and about 3 in 10 homes are rented. In houses from those decades, ceiling texture, joint compound and vinyl flooring are the first materials to sample.

Census Reporter: Lake Oswego housing (ACS 2024)

A section of wall around an old electrical panel neatly cut out, with plastic taped around the opening

Frequently asked questions

Who can write the testing report for a Lake Oswego demolition?

The city’s packet asks for a report completed by an Oregon licensed abatement firm, and the state requires the survey itself to be done by an accredited inspector.

Does deconstruction change the asbestos steps?

No. Asbestos comes out before the house is taken apart, whether by machine or by hand. Deconstruction changes how the rest of the house is salvaged.

Do I need a DEQ notice for a small remodel?

Asbestos removal generally needs one, filed 10 days ahead for friable material and five for nonfriable. The exceptions are an owner doing the work in the home they live in, and small repairs under 3 square feet or 3 linear feet that meet DEQ’s conditions.

Also see asbestos removal in West Linn, or our Beaverton home page.

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Call (971) 446-7537