Asbestos Products/Materials

47A Strand St, Sandwich, Kent CT139EU - - 29 St Lawrence Ave Ramsgate CT110HZ

Offices: 01304 614647 / 614453 (24hr) 01843 592243 - For a Prompt Service First Call Direct - 07712068424

All information on these pages are copyright Kent Surveys and not to be used without written permission. All information presented here is for general information on asbestos materials only and not to be used as a basis for any asbestos related work including remediation or removal.

I will try and list many of the asbestos products and materials found in buildings on a regular basis, it will not be an absolute list, because listing all the 3000+ materials will take forever. Asbestos materials were still being used in buildings as late as the mid 1990's, any building built before that date may contain asbestos materials.

The friability (ability to release fibres) of the material will determine whether its removal requires the full range of control measures and notification to HSE or whether it can be carefully removed using basic, but still effective, control measures, as a basic guide I have coloured the material descriptions as NOTIFIABLE AND NON-NOTIFIABLE.

Notifiable material is defined as a material that, when disturbed/removed releases asbestos fibres above the airborne exposure limit or 'control limit' for asbestos, the revised control limits are 0.1 f/cm³ for all type of asbestos and 0.6 f/cm³for short duration work (10 minutes), these limits must not be exceeded without full and suitable RPE and PPE protection.

Removal of these materials will required the full control measures as defined in the Asbestos License Regulations and notification to the HSE 14 days prior to the planned removal, which is why they are referred to as 'notifiable' materials. The notification consists of an ASB5 form, method statement and risk assessment detailing suitable fibre suppression control measures, equipment specifications, plan of work, a marked drawing showing layout of equipment.

"Under the Asbestos Regulations, anyone carrying out work on asbestos insulation, asbestos coating or asbestos insulating board (AIB) needs a licence issued by HSE" (HSE website http://www.hse.gov.uk/asbestos/regulations.htm )

As a rule asbestos cement/plastics/bitumen/resin are non-notifiable and any AIB/rope/sprayed/insulation materials are notifiable, each material should be assessed by a suitably qualified professional before any work is carried out, this list is a rough guide only!

AIB (Asbestos Insulation Board) and Asbestos cement sheeting (flat) were both used in similar instances, it is very important to know the difference because AIB carries a much greater risk of asbestos exposure than cement sheeting, if in doubt, assume the worst and treat accordingly. There have been many instances where AIB has been wrongly assumed to be cement or plasterboard resulting in exposure.

Asbestos floor tiles (vinyl) , asbestos floor tile adhesive (bitumen), asbestos floor coverings (old lino etc) flooring under felt, asbestos flooring/carpet paper lining, asbestos paint and asbestos paper wall coverings, asbestos under floor heating pipework insulation (various types), asbestos under floor vent and duct lining (AIB), asbestos under floor cable/heating duct lining, asbestos under floor drainage (asbestos cement), asbestos electric fire plinths, asbestos electric fire backing panels, storage heaters (internal), asbestos toilet seats and cisterns, asbestos fire blankets, asbestos fire place infill panels, asbestos cement fireplaces, asbestos chimney sealing panel, asbestos cement fire/stove flue, asbestos boiler flue, asbestos loft hatch lining (AIB or cement either side of hatch) asbestos boiler/flue ceiling panel (fire protection), asbestos flue ducting lining, asbestos fire doors (facings or internal panel), asbestos under stair fire protection (AIB/cement various areas), asbestos electrical switches back panel, asbestos flash pads on main fuses, any wall panels/partitions and extensions (asbestos cement sheets and/or AIB used as plasterboard), asbestos boarding stairwell panelling (all areas), asbestos AIB lift shaft fire protection lining (internal and external), asbestos lift motor brake pads/shoes and clutch plates, asbestos pipe insulation in lofts, asbestos cement water tanks in lofts, asbestos lose fill insulation in lofts, asbestos roof felt, asbestos fire protection (boarding) of beams AIB, asbestos oven/range/stove components, asbestos worktop/sink sealing mastic (old units), asbestos sink pads (bitumen), asbestos ironing board/iron rests, asbestos marble effect windowsills, bay window internal wall panels, asbestos textured ceilings, asbestos ceiling boarding (cement sheet and/or AIB), asbestos window mastics and putty, asbestos lathe and plaster (asbestos fibres used instead of horse hair), asbestos wall plugs (screw fixings), asbestos cement roof/balcony floor tiles.

Asbestos soffit panels (cement or AIB), asbestos facia panels (cement or AIB), asbestos guttering and downpipes, asbestos roof tiles, asbestos cement vertical wall tiles, asbestos balcony floor tiles, external bay window wall panels (cement or AIB), asbestos cement garage roofs and walls, asbestos garage ceiling panels (cement or AIB), asbestos damp course (bitumen), asbestos cement external flues, asbestos alcove/vestibule ceilings and roofs cement or AIB, asbestos cement roof tile filleting.

Most of the above plus, asbestos fire protection of steelwork (AIB boarding), asbestos fire protection of steelwork (sprayed asbestos), asbestos fire protection of roofs/roof sheeting (sprayed), asbestos sprayed acoustic insulation (any surface), asbestos roof internal lining panels (AIB, cement sheets and sprayed boarding), asbestos ceiling void fire baffles (AIB), asbestos gable end fire baffle filleting, asbestos cable ducting (AIB), metal/wooden cable ducting lining, any type of asbestos gaskets, any asbestos ducting sealants (mastics, gaskets etc), asbestos flexible ducting joints (asbestos cloth), asbestos pipework insulation (numerous types), asbestos paper on hot pipework (under insulation) asbestos vessel, tank and plant insulation (numerous types), asbestos office safe door linings and gaskets, commercial hair dryers (older types), asbestos laboratory pads, asbestos industrial / commercial boiler insulation, flues, ducting and gaskets (numerous types), asbestos office heating vent lining panels, asbestos service void ducting (cement and AIB), asbestos ceiling tiles fixed and suspended (AIB or asbestos content), asbestos ceiling fire protection linings (shops etc), asbestos bitumen dap course and expansion joints, asbestos cement window sills, fire door surrounds and lintel panels (AIB), asbestos cement roofs, asbestos cement guttering and downpipes, asbestos cement and AIB soffit boards, asbestos cement fascias and external panels, asbestos vents and ducting, asbestos cable tray lining and fire protection, commercial oven door gaskets and door liners, fire protection of kitchen machinery and plant (sterilizers, extractors, hot plates/cupboards, food warmers etc), asbestos pipework caulking (in sleeves).

Asbestos dust, debris and contamination from materials removed, broken or damaged (mostly invisible and often overlooked) asbestos fibres can be 1000 times thinner than a human hair!

Areas where asbestos materials have previously been removed may need checking for contamination if the removal was carried out by not licensed contractors and/or there is no independent 'certificate of re-occupation' available from a UKAS accredited laboratory.

Areas that have damaged asbestos materials will also need to be checked for contamination, simply sweeping/vacuuming it up (probably the very worst thing you could do to asbestos!) is not an option.

Asbestos contamination is basically loose asbestos and therefore extremely high risk, the area may look clean, but bearing in mind the ideal fibre size for lung damaging inhalation is between 0.5 and 10 microns (human hair is about 60 microns), they are invisible to the naked eye.