How Do I Know If I Have Asbestos In My Home

Sophie Anderson • Feb 28, 2022

How Do I Know If I Have Asbestos In My House?

The first thing we would recommend you do, is to find out if your home was built prior to the year 2000, this will help determine the likelihood of Asbestos being in your home.

The reason for this being, that 1000’s of Building materials began being produced with Asbestos in the 1950’s, becoming particularly popular in the UK during the 1960’s, 70’s and 80’s before eventually being banned in 1999, due to the high rising cases of Asbestos related illnesses.

Therefore, if your home was built pre-2000’s then it is much more likely to contain Asbestos materials. If you wish to find out what Asbestos may be within your home, then we would recommend an Asbestos Management Survey.

If you plan to have any Refurbishment works carried out to your home by contractors, then you will need to have an Asbestos Refurbishment Survey carried out by a competent surveyor.

The surveyor will carry out an intrusive inspection to your home, sampling any suspect materials for Asbestos. This is to ensure that any refurbishment works can be carried out safely without putting the contractors and yourself at risk.

The surveyor will then send the samples to the lab and the results will be written up into a detailed report making it clear where the Asbestos materials have been identified.

Materials containing Asbestos should not be disturbed and should be left in situ; Asbestos becomes harmful to humans once airborne. If the Asbestos is exposed it will need to be encapsulated or removed.

For all of your Asbestos related questions/ requirements please contact our friendly reception team at our Head Office;

Email- Info@ces-asbestos.com

Phone- 01939 291074

Website- www.ces-asbestos.com

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Wet Strip Removal Project

by Sophie Anderson • 06 Apr, 2022

Wet Strip Asbestos Removal

What is the difference between a Licensed and a Non Licensed Asbestos

by Sophie Anderson • 12 Nov, 2021

There is often a lot of confusion for people who are not in the Asbestos industry as to what the difference is between Licensed (Notifiable) and non licensed (Non Notifiable) asbestos removal. We find this can very often lead to stress and confusion when trying to gain quotes for Asbestos removal. There are still many Grey areas within the Asbestos industry, therefore making it almost impossible to write the exact difference between Licensed (Notifiable) and non licensed (Non Notifiable) materials in a small blog post. We can however discuss the basics that need to be known by all and hopefully this will help you to gain better knowledge and understanding in Asbestos Removal. The damage/ deterioration and quantity of the material plays a massive part as to how the material should be removed, but the general rule is that if the material is non fibrous and bounded, such as Cement, vinyl, Bitumen etc it is treated as non licensed (Non Notifiable) removal (Providing its in good condition). Non licensed materials almost always contain the Chrysotile fibre and sometimes crocidolite. Some Examples of these non-licensed (Non notifiable) materials are – Asbestos Cement Roof Sheets, Asbestos Vinyl Floor Tiles, Asbestos Ceiling panels, Asbestos Bakelite Toilet Cistern, Asbestos Cement undercloaks and Asbestos Roof Slates. You then have materials that should be removed by Licensed Asbestos Removal Contractors; These types of removals require a 14 day notification to the HSE, Enclosures to be built around the material that is being removed, Fibre suppression, Decontamination units for the operatives to shower, Negative pressure units and much more. This material is often more fibrous then non licensed materials and requires minimal disturbance to realise fibres. Materials such as Garage ceilings (Board), Soffit Boards and Undercloaks often require a sample to be taken prior to removal to determine the type of material that is present. These types of materials almost always contain the Amosite Fibre, also Chrysotile or Crocidolite. You sometimes even have all 3 fibres mixed within the one material. For example: A Garage ceilings can either be Asbestos Cement or Asbestos Insulation Board, these two materials can easily be mistaken for one another by an untrained eye and sometimes even by professionals. By sampling these materials, the lab can determine the type of material and avoid Asbestos being wrongly removed and disposed of. Some examples of Asbestos that should be removed under Licensed (Notifiable) conditions are – Asbestos Insulation Board Soffits, Asbestos Insulation Board to Garage/other Ceilings, Asbestos Pipe Insulation (Also known to some as Pipe Lagging), and Asbestos Insulation board to Airing cupboards. There are many more Asbestos materials that have not been spoken about in this post and it is always highly recommended that you instruct an Asbestos Surveyor prior to any Refurbishment/ Demolition works to help identify any Asbestos that may be present. Please find some photos below of Asbestos materials that should be removed under licensed (Notifiable) conditions and also an example of an enclosure that would be built for licensed removal of a Garage Ceiling -

Asbestos Related Illnesses

by Sophie Anderson • 09 Nov, 2021

Asbestos Related Illnesses There are several different types of Asbestos related illnesses that can be caused from exposure to Asbestos fibres, some of these illnesses being - · Asbestosis – Where the lung tissue becomes scarred. · Lung cancer. · Mesothelioma, which is cancer of the tissue around the lungs. · Pleural effusion, a type of pleurisy – This is inflammation to the sheet like layers that cover the lungs. · Pleural plaques, which are hard structures around the lungs and diaphragm. Who can be exposed to Asbestos fibres? The easy answer to this question is that anyone can be exposed to asbestos fibres however some people are more likely to be exposed then others. If you are a contractor (On the Tools) and work in older Buildings that were built or refurbished around the 1960’s- 1990’s then you are more likely to be exposed. More about Mesothelioma: Mesothelioma is a malignant tumour that is caused by exposure to asbestos fibres and forms in the lining of the lungs, abdomen or heart. Some symptoms of Mesothelioma can include shortness of breath and chest pain. More then 2,600 people are diagnosed with Mesothelioma each year in the UK, The majority of them being Men aged between 60 to 80 Years old. Unfortunately, it's rarely possible to cure Mesothelioma, although treatment can help control the symptoms and research is continually evolving. A link attached, showing new developments in Asbestos related Illness – https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-10147525/Life-extending-drug-sufferers-asbestos-lung-disease-finally-available-NHS.html Asbestosis: Asbestosis is a lung condition caused by long-term exposure to asbestos fibres. When asbestos fibres are inhaled they enter the lungs and can gradually damage them over time by leaving scarring. Some of the symptoms include: · Shortness of Breathe · Persistent Cough · Wheezing · Tiredness/ Fatigue · Pain in the chest and or shoulders Some helpful foundations/ charities below, for further advice and/ or support: · British Lung Foundation – helpline 03000 030 555 · Cancer Research UK: Mesothelioma – Helpline 0808 800 4040 · Mesothelioma UK : Helpline 0800 169 2409 Please find a link below to the NHS website for more information on Mesothelioma- https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/mesothelioma/