I found this in the walls of a 70-80 year old home, looks and feels like unused plaster? Has anyone ever seen this and or had it tested for asbestos materiel These are in the Kitchen and washroom [ATTACH]
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Charles, if you don’t know, or would like your client to know what it is for sure have a local company sample and send for lab analysis. Most charge around $100 per sample which is well worth it. Check out http://iac2.org/ to find a local guy you might be able to hook up with. Who knows, you might be able to build a working relationship with them in the future. Either way- knowledge is power 
Yes getting it all tested, the material in the wall along with the different layers on the wall, just wondering if anyone has seen this in the walls before and if they had it tested and if so what did they find. thanx. Chuck
I do know at one time they did use vermiculite in some of this old plaster so testing is a great idea … Roy
Were there any installation holes on the outside? It almost looks like air-krete
If so–it was an expensive (and some say fantastic) insulation improvement…There would be no asbestos in that and it probably cost them several thousand dollars to install it. It also has excellent sound dampening properties…
This stuff is not foam, and was installed many years ago, thanx for the reply.
Hi Roy, did you mean asbestos in some of this old plaster not vermiculite.?
No real old plaster had Horse hair and this had arsenic
in it on wood lath .
Later they had 2 inch channel iron with wire one side .
This was primary used in apartments and office buildings .
They put on the wire lath a base coat ,when hard they filled the rest with light weight that had vermiculite in it then when hard they put on the white coat .
.I think the also did use the light weight in Homes for a short period of time .
I am with you on this Stuart.
Organic Mulch insulation.
The holes do not necessarily have to be on the outside, The application can be dry or wet spray applied. Wet spray wall can look like Shotcrete. The drywall could have been of the wall as the kitchen was being updated.
help me here, I see diamond lath,. Whats on the other side? Is it a bathroom or repair of plaster and lath?
I had this in my house, and found it during a renovation of the bathroom. I believed it was Cellulose fiber insulation but to appease my better half I got it tested only to find my original prognosis was correct.
Cellulose fiber insulation is made recycled newspapers, finely ground up and added to a fire retardant. It could be moistened so it would stick to surfaces.
Used since the 1950’s, the stuff made in the middle 1970’s may have issues with it’s fire retardant capabilities. Don’t breath it in as it’s an irritant. To test for the flammability sprinkle some into a blow torch flame, if it bursts into flame it’s no longer (or never was) fire retardant, if it just about catches fire and drops down in flames it’s good, if it doesn’t even start to flame, get it tested, it might have a big concentration of asbestos in it.
It is Shotcrete mixed with a backer board and was used to stabilize the wall. Back in the day the plaster and lath provided this, take it away and you have weekend the structure in one area.
Len is also correct about the insulation and it is still used today but in more fire retardant properties added.
Marcel C I would say has probably done this work before.:mrgreen: