If you’re taking a structure down to the foundation, this is the survey you need. Also called a pre demolition survey, a demo survey, an AHERA survey, or good faith asbestos survey. If your permit office or your contractor asked for any of those, you’re in the right place.
Certified inspectors
From scheduling to receiving your report, we make the process straightforward. No unnecessary hassle, no confusing paperwork. Just one less thing on your to-do list
Request an inspection online or give us a call. Review and approve the details online, and we'll get your visit scheduled.
An AHERA-certified inspector visits your property, evaluates the materials involved, and collects the necessary samples
Samples are analyzed by an accredited lab. Standard results in 3 business days, with 24-hour rush and 1-hour analysis available for faster, same-day results.
Receive a clear, professional report with your results, ready to share with your contractor or permitting office. One more thing checked off your list.
Green River specializes in asbestos inspections and testing, not removal. Our job is to identify suspect materials, provide clear results, and help you understand your next steps. Not sell you an abatement job.
With AHERA-certified inspectors and straightforward reporting, you get the information you need to move your project forward with confidence.
We’re an inspection company, not an asbestos removal contractor. Our focus is providing accurate results and straightforward answers, not selling you an abatement job.
Need testing quickly? We offer flexible scheduling and rush laboratory analysis, including 1-hour analysis when available. Tell us your deadline, and we’ll help keep your project moving.
Get documented results you can share with your contractor or permitting office. We make it easy to understand your findings and what comes next
Straight answers to the questions we hear most from homeowners and contractors before a demolition starts.
No. PSCAA Regulation requires an AHERA-certified building inspector for every demolition survey, with no owner occupied exception. Only that inspector’s determination counts, and it has to cover the whole structure being torn down.
Earlier than most people think. The survey itself is quick, results come back in 3 business days or the next business day on a rush. The delay is everything that comes after if asbestos turns up.
If asbestos is found, it has to be abated before demolition, and that’s its own track:
Leave ample time so your schedule isn’t affected if the results come back positive. We’d recommend at least a month, if not more, because the scope of removal can range from a single floor to thousands of square feet of popcorn ceiling.
PSCAA regulation makes it unlawful to demolish without first obtaining the survey, and every demolition also requires a formal notification filed with the agency and a 10-day waiting period before work can legally start. Skip either one, and you’re not just risking a denied permit. You’re looking at violations and fines, and a project that can’t legally proceed at all.
Yes. Under Puget Sound Clean Air Agency regulation, it’s unlawful to cause or allow a demolition unless the property owner or their agent obtains an asbestos survey from an AHERA-certified building inspector covering the entire structure. Only a certified inspector can determine that a suspect material doesn’t contain asbestos, and a summary of the results has to be posted at the job site or given in writing to everyone who might come into contact with the material.
In our experience, the most common materials we find are:
Pro tip: if your home has HVAC floor registers, pull the grill and look at the sides of the opening. Sometimes you can see multiple layers of flooring, which tells you there’s more to test than what’s visible.
Check the pricing tables above for the base rate and per-sample cost. As a general idea of scope:
These are rough averages. Every structure is different, and the count depends on:
A demolition survey covers the entire structure, not one room or one work area, so the sample count runs higher than it would on a renovation survey of the same building. These are general guides, not a quote.
If asbestos is found, it has to be properly abated before the structure comes down. That work goes to a licensed abatement contractor, and they’ll give you the specifics for your materials and scope.
At a high level, here’s what that process involves so you know what to expect:
None of that happens same day. The Clean Air Agency requires a 10-day wait after the demolition notification is filed before the structure can be demolished, and your permit office will want the survey and that paperwork before signing off. Order the survey early so the abatement and the waiting period fit inside your schedule
Yes. There’s no exemption for a structure that looks like it’s all wood. Washington requires an asbestos survey by an AHERA-certified building inspector before a demolition, regardless of what’s visible.
Asbestos was used in hundreds of building products, and plenty of them aren’t obvious. Gaskets, vent and duct components, caulking, window glazing, roofing felt, and adhesives all show up in structures people describe as plain wood. A trained inspector knows where to look for them.
You also need the survey as documentation. It’s what proves the structure was reviewed by an AHERA-certified inspector before it came down. Seeing wood isn’t proof, and it won’t satisfy the permit office or the Clean Air Agency.
No, you don’t need to be present, as long as our inspector can get into the home, whether that’s a lock box, a door code, or someone else letting us in. Most of our customers aren’t there for the visit.
What we need from you ahead of time:
On access: whatever’s in the project’s scope needs to be open to us. A kitchen remodel means we need the whole kitchen, no locked closets or blocked areas inside that scope. A full demolition means we need access to the entire home.
Most surveys take about 2 hours. Hard-to-reach spaces or a bigger scope of work can push that to 4 hours or more. It really depends on the scope.
Book your visit online. We’ll confirm the time, come out and test, and send you a written report for your project.
