Asbestos Costs in Ottawa, by Material and by Type
Ontario sorts asbestos work into Type 1, Type 2 and Type 3, and the Type decides what the contractor must do: training, a Ministry of Labour inspector notice, a clearance air test. Each page below gives the published price for one job and a short "which Type is my job?" finder that marks the line of the regulation that applies, quoted word for word.
Published Ontario contractor prices read September 2026 · reviewed 2026-09-28 · How we set these ranges
Removal, by material
- Popcorn and textured ceilings$6 to $12 per square foot
- Drywall joint compound$10 to $15 per square foot
- Vinyl floor tile and mastic$5 to $15 per square foot
- Pipe and duct insulation$35 to $55 per linear foot
- Vermiculite attic$5,000 to $25,000 per attic
- Ceiling tiles$8 to $15 per square foot (general)
Testing, surveys and clearance
- Asbestos testing$250 to $1,300 per inspection
- Designated substance survey$250 to $1,300 per survey
- Clearance air test$300 to $800 per clearance test
What each Type requires of the contractor
Type 1
- Instruction and training by a competent person for every worker (section 19).
- No inspector notice and no clearance air test prescribed for Type 1.
Type 2
- Instruction and training by a competent person for every worker (section 19).
- No inspector notice, except a glove-bag job removing one square metre or more of insulation (section 11(2)).
- No clearance air test prescribed; you can ask for one.
Type 3
- Notice to a Ministry of Labour inspector, orally and in writing, before starting (section 11(1)).
- Every worker has completed the Asbestos Abatement Worker Training Program and every supervisor the Asbestos Abatement Supervisor Training Program (section 20).
- A clearance air test once the enclosure is dry: every PCM sample at or below 0.01 fibres per cubic centimetre; results posted within 24 hours; the owner keeps a copy for at least one year (section 18).
The regulation's owner duties do not apply to an owner of a private residence occupied by the owner or the owner's family, but a contractor you hire is bound by it in full.
Section 12(6): if a dispute arises about the classification, a party may notify an inspector at the Ministry of Labour office nearest the workplace, work on the operation stops, and the inspector gives the parties a decision in writing.
Mould inspection, mould remediation and lead paint have no cost page: we found too few published Ottawa prices to quote a range. Their service pages explain what to ask for in a written quote.