Flintkote Asbestos-Containing Siding

Product Description

Flintkote Company was a major American building materials manufacturer whose product lines spanned much of the twentieth century. Operating under various corporate names and through subsidiary operations, Flintkote produced a wide range of construction products sold to residential, commercial, and industrial markets across the United States. Among its documented product categories were ceiling tile, cement pipe, floor tile, joint compound, pipe insulation, and roofing products — as well as exterior siding materials intended for application on homes, commercial structures, and industrial buildings.

Flintkote siding was designed to offer durability, weather resistance, and fire protection. Like many building material manufacturers of the era, Flintkote incorporated asbestos fibers into certain product lines because asbestos offered tensile strength, resistance to heat and flame, and resistance to moisture — properties that made it a commercially attractive additive for exterior cladding products. Flintkote siding was sold and installed during decades when asbestos use in construction materials was widespread and largely unregulated at the federal level.

The company operated through significant periods of the twentieth century before undergoing corporate restructuring and eventual bankruptcy proceedings. Its products were distributed nationally, meaning exposure risk extended across many states and worksites.

Asbestos Content

Litigation records document that Flintkote manufactured and sold products containing asbestos across multiple product categories, including siding. Plaintiffs alleged that Flintkote incorporated asbestos-containing materials into its exterior siding products, consistent with industry practices for building cladding manufactured during the mid-to-late twentieth century.

Asbestos-containing siding products of this type typically relied on chrysotile (white asbestos) as a reinforcing fiber, though litigation records in cases involving Flintkote and similar manufacturers have also referenced amphibole fiber types in certain product lines. The asbestos fibers were bonded within a cement or resin matrix in many siding formulations, creating a composite material intended to be stable under normal conditions. However, plaintiffs alleged that cutting, nailing, drilling, sanding, breaking, or otherwise disturbing this material during installation, renovation, or demolition released respirable asbestos fibers into the surrounding air.

Flintkote’s broad product portfolio — spanning cement pipe, floor tile, ceiling tile, joint compound, pipe insulation, and roofing products in addition to siding — means that workers and contractors operating in environments where multiple Flintkote products were present may have faced cumulative asbestos exposure from several product lines simultaneously.

How Workers Were Exposed

Industrial workers generally represent the primary exposure category documented in connection with Flintkote siding and related products. Litigation records document a range of occupational scenarios in which workers encountered Flintkote asbestos-containing materials in the course of their employment.

Installation workers cutting siding panels to size at job sites used saws, snips, and scoring tools that fractured the asbestos-containing matrix and generated airborne dust. In the absence of wet-cutting techniques or respiratory protection — both of which were not routinely required or enforced during much of Flintkote’s production period — workers inhaled these fibers directly.

Renovation and remodeling contractors encountered existing Flintkote siding during retrofits and repairs to older structures. Removing or modifying installed siding through demolition, sawing, or prying disturbed the bonded asbestos and released fibers into enclosed or poorly ventilated spaces.

Factory and manufacturing workers employed at Flintkote production facilities handled raw asbestos fiber and asbestos-containing intermediary materials in the manufacturing of siding and other products. Litigation records document that plaintiffs alleged chronic, high-level exposure in plant environments where asbestos dust was pervasive.

General laborers and trades workers on construction sites where Flintkote products were used — including carpenters, ironworkers, pipefitters, electricians, and laborers working in proximity to siding installation — could be exposed even if they were not directly handling the product themselves. Bystander exposure on multi-trade job sites is well documented in asbestos litigation broadly, and plaintiffs in Flintkote-related cases alleged similar circumstances.

The latency period for asbestos-related diseases — the time between first exposure and clinical diagnosis — typically ranges from ten to fifty years. This means individuals exposed to Flintkote siding during construction booms of the 1950s through the 1970s may only now be receiving diagnoses of mesothelioma, asbestosis, lung cancer, or other asbestos-related conditions.

This article is provided for informational reference purposes. It does not constitute legal advice. Individuals with potential asbestos exposure claims should consult a licensed attorney.

Documented Product Identification

The following details are drawn from public asbestos litigation records, manufacturer catalog pages, technical manuals, and corporate history materials. Each item reflects the product as documented in those sources.

Documented asbestos-use period: 1940-1982

Corporate context: Flintkote Company was a manufacturer of building materials, roofing products, coatings, and industrial cements. The company produced asbestos-containing products and also purchased and resold asbestos products from other manufacturers.

Brand identification: Products branded under names including Fibrex, Thermalkote, Rexalt, Decoralt, Decocolor, Decobase, Decoturf, Van Packer, Unimastic, Spraykote, Nu-static, Steadfast, Viskalt, Weldon, Skykote, Super Stakool, Flintdek

Documented asbestos components: cement, coating, mastic, felt, board, pipe, siding, shingles, floor tile, chimney components, deadener, sealer, adhesive, putty.

Industries served: Railroad, Roofing, Construction, Automotive, Flooring, Tennis court surfacing, Residential building, Commercial building.

Documented product lines:

  • R.R. Car Cement (1940s-pre 1968). Railroad car cements and sealants produced for various railroad companies including NYC R.R., IC, L&N, Missouri-Pacific, Southern Railway, and Pullman — asbestos components: cement.
  • Plastic Cement (Early 1940s-1982). Roofing plastic cement also known as Viskalt Flashing Cement — asbestos components: cement.
  • Fiber Roof Coating (FRC) (1945-1982). Fibrated roof coating for roofing applications — asbestos components: coating.
  • Fibrex Cement (Early 1940s-1982). Fibrated cement product also known as Fibrex I — asbestos components: cement.
  • GP-8 Tile Cement (Early 1940s-1982). Tile adhesive cement also known as R-14-C — asbestos components: cement.
  • Thermalkote (Late 1940s-1982). Insulating coating product also known as Filler Coat Binder — asbestos components: coating.
  • Asbestos Cement Board (1950-1970). Building board material containing asbestos fibers — asbestos components: board.
  • Asbestos Cement Pipe (1962-1977). Pipe products made with asbestos cement — asbestos components: pipe.

Flintkote manufactured numerous asbestos-containing cements, coatings, and mastics with asbestos content ranging from 1% to 65%. The company also purchased and resold asbestos products from other manufacturers including joint treatment compound, spray texture paint, and ceiling tile.