Something that comes up a lot with my clients is personal protective equipment (PPE). It isn’t rare that I am asked to go through my estimates line by line so that the homeowner knows exactly what they are getting, and what is covered on their upcoming job. I see this as a very important step in making sure that our clients are completely comfortable with the process and understand fully what they are paying for. During this process, the question I get most often is, “What are the disposables?”
‘Disposables’ is really a catch-all term, and describes anything from the cost of disposing of the debris created from the project, to fuel to get the truck and trailer to the jobsite, to materials like the plastic, tape, and filters used to keep the occupants safe. Additionally, and more specifically, it also includes the one-time use personal protective equipment, which includes (from top down):
- a Full body Tyvek-style suit with hood and feet (It kind of reminds you of the pajamas with feet in them you wore as a kid, just much, MUCH bigger!)
- full-faced respirators with NOISH P100 cartridges that filter out all of the mold and any noxious gas my guys might encounter on a job. This is far from those paper dust masks I too often see homeowners wearing, thinking they are adequate.
- Each remediator also wears leather gloves, each of which is duct-taped to the cuffs of the suit.
The suit, gloves, mask cartridges and tape are only used on one job, and discarded. The mask lasts for a year or so, if taken care of properly. All of these materials are necessary in keeping everyone safe during the process. So now when you see disposables come up on an estimate, you’ll know what it means!