Getting rid of carpet without it going into a landfill.
Some of the less becoming features of the family room are the carpeting which consisted of 4 different sized pieces and the popcorn ceiling. There is also the panelling, but we will cover that in a later post.
Carpet
I posted the carpet on Kijiji to give away for free. I had 2 people wanting it in less than 15 minutes after posting the ad and many more after that. I suggested that it could be used under a drum kit or for a child's play area. It wouldn't be a big deal if the child spilled on it or drew on it with crayon like one of my youngsters had done in the past.
Once we rolled up the carpet, I noticed a stain on the underside of one of the pieces that I wasn't aware of before then. The first couple people saw the stain and walked away without taking the carpet. When I contacted the next person that was interested, I mentioned that there was a stain on the back before they came to look at it and they took it no problem. I have found that when I post ads on Kijiji, it is best to mention a flaw in the item before they come and then they aren't taken by surprise.
I am pleased that someone else could make use of the carpet we no longer needed and that it didn't go to the landfill.
Popcorn Ceiling
Our family room is in the basement and has a 7' ceiling. The popcorn made it shadowy, not helping to brighten the room and it turns out it wasn't even white, but a grey colour.
There was a time when popcorn ceilings were made with asbestos. In the late 1970's, it was banned in popcorn ceilings, but if the product had already been purchased it was grandfathered in and was allowed to still be used. So ceilings installed up into the mid 1980's could still contain asbestos.
I was pretty sure ours did not contain asbestos, but to be on the safe side, we had it tested. I sent a sample, along with a cheque for $25 plus tax, in the mail to LCS Laboratory Inc in London. I had the results in a matter of days - and we were asbestos free! We wrapped bandannas on our heads and we covered our faces with a mask or bandanna and away we went. We sprayed water on the popcorn and then used a putty knife to scrape it off. I was surprised at the amount of dust that had collected on the ceiling and we didn't even know it. When we ran the putty knife across the ceiling, the popcorn would hang down on the dust. Now that the popcorn is gone, the room feels less closed in and looks much better.
Green Highlights:
I posted the carpet on Kijiji to give away for free. I had 2 people wanting it in less than 15 minutes after posting the ad and many more after that. I suggested that it could be used under a drum kit or for a child's play area. It wouldn't be a big deal if the child spilled on it or drew on it with crayon like one of my youngsters had done in the past.
I am pleased that someone else could make use of the carpet we no longer needed and that it didn't go to the landfill.
Popcorn Ceiling
Our family room is in the basement and has a 7' ceiling. The popcorn made it shadowy, not helping to brighten the room and it turns out it wasn't even white, but a grey colour.
There was a time when popcorn ceilings were made with asbestos. In the late 1970's, it was banned in popcorn ceilings, but if the product had already been purchased it was grandfathered in and was allowed to still be used. So ceilings installed up into the mid 1980's could still contain asbestos.
I was pretty sure ours did not contain asbestos, but to be on the safe side, we had it tested. I sent a sample, along with a cheque for $25 plus tax, in the mail to LCS Laboratory Inc in London. I had the results in a matter of days - and we were asbestos free! We wrapped bandannas on our heads and we covered our faces with a mask or bandanna and away we went. We sprayed water on the popcorn and then used a putty knife to scrape it off. I was surprised at the amount of dust that had collected on the ceiling and we didn't even know it. When we ran the putty knife across the ceiling, the popcorn would hang down on the dust. Now that the popcorn is gone, the room feels less closed in and looks much better.
Green Highlights:
- carpet was given away on Kijiji
- kept the existing ceiling
- popcorn ceiling was asbestos free
Have you ever removed a popcorn ceiling?
-TJ
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