Before you open a wall: what to test first
Before you open a wall is the second section of HomeAge. From the year the house was built, the room and what you are opening up, it lists the materials to test before you disturb anything, and its Hazard Era Checker makes a pre-demolition checklist.
Guide revision: 2026-10-11
10-step walkthrough with voiceover, recorded from the same checked steps.
Voiceover: Kokoro text-to-speech (Apache 2.0).
How do I start?
Open HomeAge and tap Before you open a wall, under the four tabs. No account is needed.
Open HomeAgeWhat do I do next?
- 1
Open Before you open a wall
In HomeAge, tap Before you open a wall, under the four tabs.
Know what may be behind the finish before you open it.
- 2
Tell it about the house
Type the year the house was built and pick the room.
1975, basement.
- 3
Opening the ceiling
Under What you are opening up, leave only Ceiling on, then tap What should I test for?
Six things to test for.
- 4
Read each material
Scroll through the cards.
Why it is flagged, where it sits and what to do.
- 5
Ceiling texture, joint compound and solder
Keep scrolling.
Textured ceilings, joint compound and solder joints.
- 6
Add the floor
Turn on Floor and tap What should I test for? again.
Vinyl asbestos floor tile is added.
- 7
Try a newer house
Change the year to 1995 and tap the button.
Only polybutylene pipe.
- 8
How to read this
Read the note under the results.
A reason to test, not a finding.
- 9
Hazard Era Checker
Tap Hazard Era Checker at the top, type the year and tap Check Hazards.
The whole-house list for that era.
- 10
Download the checklist
Tap Download Checklist.
A pre-demolition checklist downloads.
What result should I expect?
A list of things to test for before disturbing — for example aluminum branch wiring, asbestos in older materials, lead paint — each with where it usually sits. It lists what to test; it does not say what is actually there — only a test can.
How do I save, share or get help?
Use the list to book testing before demolition. For suspected asbestos, removal is done under Ontario's asbestos regulation by trained workers.
Every screenshot here was taken while doing these exact steps on the app's current build (f0c9e51), on a phone-sized screen, signed out, on 2026-10-11. Steps that need an account are marked. Nothing was submitted or bought.
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