Home inspector does not have asbestos testing capabilities

Q. Before I bought my home, I asked my inspector about the strange insulating material in the attic. He told me that it was used by "old-timers" for insulation. He added in his report that the mining equipment used to quarry this insulation may also have been used to mine asbestos materials. As a consequence, there might be a small amount of asbestos fibers in the insulation. He assured me that the insulation was perfectly safe and that any asbestos contamination would be at safe levels and hard to detect.I found out later that he is either ignorant or was purposely misleading me. After searching online, I believe I have Zonolite insulation, recognized to be contaminated with asbestos in the majority of cases. Is my home inspector liable for downplaying the risks of Zonolite? By the way, he had me sign a contract making him not liable for asbestos in the home.A. Zonolite was a brand name for a type of insulation known as vermiculite. It is a lightweight mineral that is mined from the ground and is commonly mixed with potting soil to help retain moisture. Most home inspectors may be unaware of vermiculite insulation because in many areas of the country, it was rarely used. In fact, in 23 years of inspecting homes, I have only seen it twice. The first thing to remember about asbestos materials is that they only release fibers into the air when disturbed. Therefore, you are unlikely to be affected if the insulation in your attic is left as-is. To determine whether your insulation definitely contains asbestos, you should send a small sample to an environmental laboratory for analysis. According to the EPA, about 70 percent of all Zonolite contains asbestos. Therefore you have a 30 percent chance of being asbestos-free. Not a winning number, but definitely a possibility and worth further investigation.Asbestos disclosure is outside the scope of a home inspection, as stated in the home inspection contract that you signed. However, when a home inspector makes disclosures involving asbestos, as your inspector apparently did, the asbestos disclaimer is no longer credible. A home inspector cannot reasonably disclaim asbestos on one hand and then make definite disclosures and assurances about asbestos on the other. When your inspector stated that the insulation was perfectly safe and that any asbestos contamination would be at safe levels and hard to detect, he immersed himself in liability, especially if he made those statements in writing.Q. Our smoke alarm goes off at random times, sometimes in the middle of the night. We replaced the battery, but that did not help. What could be causing this, and what can we do to stop it?A. All that is needed for a false alarm is a small particle of debris in the detection chamber of the smoke alarm. Often, a small spider will get into that part of the fixture, causing the alarm to activate. The solution is to buy a replacement alarm at the hardware store. And while you're at it, buy an alarm that also detects carbon monoxide.bull; E-mail questions to Barry Stone through his website, housedetective.com, or write AMG, 1776 Jami Lee Court, Suite 218, San Luis Obispo, CA 94301.Access Media Group