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My home was built in 1951 and it has this fiberboard, it feels like paper, peels and separates like layers of paper. The home was modular construction. I'm screwed in terms of exposure already, but if somebody knows for sure I'd rather save the money than getting it tested because I've already exposed

This is a piece of it having been ripped in half, with a layer of paint, it's a brownish/tan color on the back but the inside is gray:

this is a piece of it having been ripped in half, with a layer of paint, it's a brownish/tan color on the back but the inside is gray

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    Can only tell if it is tested. Asbestos is usually a long term(years) exposure to working with it, not just having it in your house. A simple mask is usually enough to safely work at removing sections of it from a house. With the exposure you probably had, if you tell your doctor, they will probably ask you to come back in 20 or 30 years for a check up. Lawyers will have you pay thousands on tests so they can get a few dollars.
    – crip659
    Commented Mar 23, 2023 at 17:55
  • It's very likely that it does contain asbestos.
    – Hot Licks
    Commented Mar 23, 2023 at 18:02
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    I’m voting to close this question because nobody, but nobody can tell if it's asbestos just by looking at it. The only way to know for sure is to get it tested. Also, unless you've been actively ripping it to shreds and breathing deeply the resulting dust cloud, you're most likely just fine.
    – FreeMan
    Commented Mar 23, 2023 at 18:45
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    Test it. Things that "look like they could be asbestos" abound. Only some of them are asbestos, and only a lab test can tell for sure (You can look up how they do that if you like, but without a fancy polarized light microscope and considerable experience it's pretty clearly out of the realm of DIY, after having looked into how it's done.)
    – Ecnerwal
    Commented Mar 23, 2023 at 19:25

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No one can tell just by looking. You'd need to get it tested if you really have to know. You are not screwed. That limited exposure will do no harm. The warnings out there are for people who have worked with it for years breathing in the dust.

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