Silicate Calsilite - Mesothelioma and Asbestos Exposure Risks

Silicate calsilite is a product that was used in making pipe covering and block insultation from the 1890s (block insulation) and 1926 (pre-formed pipe covering) through 1972 when GAF discontinued the Calsilite product line in the wake of reports about the dangers of asbestos. Calsilite was the brand name used by GAF (originally the General Aniline and Film Corporation) for a product line that included asbestos containing insulation products. Calsilite produced a number of variation of its insulation, including Calsilite-Hi, for high temperature insulation (rated up to 1800 degrees F), Calsilite (rated for temperatures up to 1250 degrees F) and Calsilite-SS (specially designed for use on stainless steel pipes).

Calsilite block insulation and preformed pipe wrap are among the short list of asbestos products that are banned from being sold in the United States because of the high probability of it becoming friable (a word used to describe asbestos that may become airborne). In most uses today, asbestos is bound in a polymer or resin of some sort that prevents the asbestos from being released into the air. Before the 1970s, this precaution was not often observed, and as a result, those who worked with asbestos containing products like silicate calsilite were routinely exposed to high concentrations of asbestos fibers in the air.

Inhalation of asbestos fibers has been implicated as the single known cause of a deadly cancer, mesothelioma, which affects the linings around the lungs, the heart or the abdomen. Pleural mesothelioma is the most common form of mesothelioma, and results from inhaling asbestos dust which become lodged in the lungs and remain there for years. It is often decades before the end results of asbestos exposure are felt. The earliest symptoms of mesothelioma, in fact, are often misdiagnosed as symptoms of much more benign illnesses.

If you worked in pipe fitting, insulation, plumbing, heating or related industries, or in home construction, demolition or remodeling, you may have worked with silicate calsilite in the course of your duties. It may have been called Calsilite, or have gone by another brand name. Similar products that contained asbestos include Kaylo, Super CalTemp, VeeBlock and Hylo. Some of the activities that may have exposed you to asbestos dust from silicate calsilite are cutting insulation block to shape, cutting preformed pipe wrap to size, removing old insulation from pipes and boilers, replacing insulation with another asbestos containing insulation. In addition, workers who were involved in demolition and remodeling were often exposed to high concentrations of asbestos exposure in the course of their work. Finally, family and household members of workers in those industries were often exposed to asbestos fibers that were brought home on the clothing and hair of workers who were exposed to asbestos.

In addition to those who used silicate calsilite products and Calsilite products, those who were involved in mining asbestos and in mixing and manufacturing Calsilite products also were exposed to asbestos fibers, particularly if they mixed dry powders together to create the products.

If you worked with silicate calsilite in the past, or were exposed to it in the course of your work or daily life, and have since become ill with an asbestos related condition like mesothelioma, you may have legal recourse. The courts have awarded high settlements to plaintiffs who were exposed to asbestos fibers without adequate warning of the dangers of inhaling and ingesting asbestos. Even if you don't know how or where you were exposed to asbestos, if you have been diagnosed with mesothelioma, an attorney who specializes in asbestos related litigation and negotiation may be able to help you get compensation for your illness and injuries.

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