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Jamie'

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Hi all, just wondering what you all make of the insulation bellow? Is this asbestos? Never seen it before was changing a fuse board and loads of started coming through the ceiling.


Is this asbestos? Or Not? 231A8AD2-0FD8-425B-AED2-8CF6D25FAA49 - EletriciansForums.net
 
Well, the quality of the photo isn't great. A closer up, in focus shot would help.

However there is only one way to truly know, an that's to have it tested.

No asbestos register? Floor doesn't look like a domestic environment. Unless it's in a garage etc..
 
As Rob said ^^^
Asbestos can be found in many products and with varying degrees of amounts (%'s) and varying degrees of severity. If its a commercial or industrial premises then there should be an asbestos register available. If not the only way to be 100% certain is to get in a specialist and have it tested.
If you go to the HSE website they have good guides on what procedure you should take if you happen to come across what you suspect as asbestos.

Here is a link to it HSE: Asbestos - health and safety in the workplace - http://www.hse.gov.uk/asbestos/

Personally it doesn't look like any material I have come across that contains asbestos. but you would be very surprised on the vary products out there that do contain asbestos in some degree or other. An example of this is things like - old toilet seats and floor tiles...
 
It doesn't cost much to have it tested so you're sure.

@SparkyChick is probably a good person to talk about it. I know she posted about going on training and having things tested fairly recently.
there are many training courses available but the most common are either a 1 day or 1/2 day course. The 1 day course is asbestos awareness with additional training allowing you to work with non licensed material. The 1/2 day course is just an awareness course. I have completed both courses. I highly recommend the full 1 day course. This enables you to get a good understanding of whats involved in asbestos and guidance on how to deal with it, yourself or if necessary by a licensed contractor.

Here is a link to a website that offers what I'm talking about, there are plenty of training centres country wide that offer similar.
Asbestos Awareness Training Courses - https://www.oracleasbestos.com/services/asbestos-training/?mh_keyword=asbestos%20training%20course&mh_matchtype=e&mh_keyword=asbestos%20training%20course&mh_adgroupid=75131800492&advert=345491305623&gclid=Cj0KCQjwn8_mBRCLARIsAKxi0GLiJ0FLqr9q3iaBn2t6SEhHWF_jWOQzzKIV6MnAxBDzrkWvPfroHi4aAnH-EALw_wcB
 
Just to add, personally I feel that for the small cost of the courses its worth the money for a few of reasons.

1. Peace of mind that you have good awareness of the possible hazards of asbestos and if or when you are likely to come across it
2. A good understanding of the types and severity of asbestos and where you are likely to find it.
3. Knowledge of how to deal with, work with or avoid it if you do come across it.
4.Many companies ask for you as a contractor to provide evidence of asbestos awareness training before commencing work (this will increase in the future)
5. When presented with an asbestos register you will have a better understanding of what you are reading and looking at.

The scary thing is most of us (at least around 30+) have probably ingested into our lungs more than too much asbestos over the years. Based on the lack of awareness prior to the late 90's early 00's the health department expects a significant number of carcinogenic related deaths to increase dramatically for the next 20-30 years due to us lot breathing in all this crap without realising it.
 
MDF fibers will likely be the next big thing.
On topic at the moment is any thermal insulating materials that could be carcinogenic.
Basically any material that you can breath in, gets stuck in your lungs and your body struggles to rid of. The EU are looking at upgrading the risk rating from low to high risk, and this is just one area.
 
MDF fibers will likely be the next big thing.

That and silica... silicosis is high on the agenda.

I second what @Intoelectrics said about the non-licensed works training. It's very handy to know how to properly and safely deal with it, but be warned your usual business insurance may not cover you (and insurance that does is eye wateringly expensive).

If you are at all unsure get it tested. I would agree with @ruston , it looks like vermiculite and as such should not be anything to worry about apart from silica dust.

It's also worth pointing out that if you're working on properties that were built before the year 2000 (IIRC), I believe it's a legal obligation to have gone through asbestos awareness training.

For all my asbestos issues I deal with a local company that specialises in it. I can ring them any time and seek guidance and as a consequence I push all the testing I have clients do their way.

If you need to do non-licensed works, you have to have suitable training even though the HSE provide excellent guidance documents that you should stick to rigidly. And keep in mind some non-licensed work are notifiable to the relevant authority (such as the removal of large amounts of artex using gelling) which then requires you to undertake a respiratory medical regularly and keep the records for 50 years I believe.

The company I deal with for everything else asbestos related (overalls, disposal bags, equipment hire etc.) are SMH Products (IIRC) and they have branches all over the place. Prices are pretty reasonable, I hired a class H vacuum from them for drilling/cutting artex ceilings and walls, well worth it compared to the pasting method you can use as it saves a lot of time.

But the key advice is if you are uncertain, get it tested. It's not your problem if (as one of my clients did after I requested she have the insulation in the loft checked) they have asbestos in the ceiling of every room in the form of artex for example. If you don't and it turns out you inadvertently find some and release fibres, then the fines can be astronomical... if the HSE are paying attention.

To clarify that last comment... I reported a possible release of asbestos fibres to the HSE as a house I know to have asbestos present in nearly every wall and ceiling (I know this because I rewired it and had to drill and cut it) has recently undergone major renovations, the waste from which was simply left in the front garden like normal uncontaminated building waste. The HSE did nothing, as far as I can tell, they didn't even send someone to the site to look at it.
 
....The scary thing is most of us (at least around 30+) have probably ingested into our lungs more than too much asbestos over the years. Based on the lack of awareness prior to the late 90's early 00's the health department expects a significant number of carcinogenic related deaths to increase dramatically for the next 20-30 years due to us lot breathing in all this crap without realising it.

Remember "Rawl Plastic" ? Brilliant stuff for plugging nasty rough holes... until they realised it was made from white asbestos ! Came as a powder, which needed wetting to make it into a putty. Easiest way to wet it was spit... so you'd put your face right over it !.... Happy days...
 
That and silica... silicosis is high on the agenda.

I second what @Intoelectrics said about the non-licensed works training. It's very handy to know how to properly and safely deal with it, but be warned your usual business insurance may not cover you (and insurance that does is eye wateringly expensive).

If you are at all unsure get it tested. I would agree with @ruston , it looks like vermiculite and as such should not be anything to worry about apart from silica dust.

It's also worth pointing out that if you're working on properties that were built before the year 2000 (IIRC), I believe it's a legal obligation to have gone through asbestos awareness training.

For all my asbestos issues I deal with a local company that specialises in it. I can ring them any time and seek guidance and as a consequence I push all the testing I have clients do their way.

If you need to do non-licensed works, you have to have suitable training even though the HSE provide excellent guidance documents that you should stick to rigidly. And keep in mind some non-licensed work are notifiable to the relevant authority (such as the removal of large amounts of artex using gelling) which then requires you to undertake a respiratory medical regularly and keep the records for 50 years I believe.

The company I deal with for everything else asbestos related (overalls, disposal bags, equipment hire etc.) are SMH Products (IIRC) and they have branches all over the place. Prices are pretty reasonable, I hired a class H vacuum from them for drilling/cutting artex ceilings and walls, well worth it compared to the pasting method you can use as it saves a lot of time.

But the key advice is if you are uncertain, get it tested. It's not your problem if (as one of my clients did after I requested she have the insulation in the loft checked) they have asbestos in the ceiling of every room in the form of artex for example. If you don't and it turns out you inadvertently find some and release fibres, then the fines can be astronomical... if the HSE are paying attention.

To clarify that last comment... I reported a possible release of asbestos fibres to the HSE as a house I know to have asbestos present in nearly every wall and ceiling (I know this because I rewired it and had to drill and cut it) has recently undergone major renovations, the waste from which was simply left in the front garden like normal uncontaminated building waste. The HSE did nothing, as far as I can tell, they didn't even send someone to the site to look at it.
Spot on and very informative there Sparky Chick!

The only down side to these increasing regulations is that some companies are using it all as an excuse to make mega bucks rather than actually tackling the true issue of H&S.
I recently worked on a factory where a specialist asbestos removal company were called in (rightly so) to investigate possible contamination from a damaged A.I.B that had fell from a ceiling smashing on to the floor. The A.I.B was actually a low risk board made up from a marginal % of white asbestos (can't remember the exact figures) But it should have been a small containment set up and a straight forward clean up with air monitoring in place. Anyhow nobody at the company had a clue what the true situation was and the asbestos company played on this with a big scare monger act and totally ripped them off. A complete overkill with massive costs.
This experience just reaffirmed to me that asbestos awareness is an essential qualification to gain these days, for lots of reasons!
 
In my opinion this asbestos awareness should be included in electrical apprenticeships.
It would only take a day to educate people on the potential risks, people who are about to embark on an lifetime of drilling chasing etc would be a good starting point, half of the industry is clueless.

A lad at work who has just finished his college hasn’t got a clue about it but they did cover radicalisation!?
 

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