FACT – some forms of asbestos were not completely banned in the UK until 1999 and many asbestos containing materials were still manufactured up to the mid 1990’s, as such an asbestos survey is a legal requirement for all non domestic properties built before the year 2000.

From the early 1900’s it is estimated that over 6 million tonnes of asbestos were imported into the U.K. This asbestos was used in over 3000 documented building materials. Only an asbestos survey, carried out by a trained asbestos surveyor can identify the location of asbestos containing materials through an asbestos inspection and asbestos sample analysis in a UKAS accredited laboratory.

The main reason for this is that asbestos was used in sometimes quite small quantities, from just a few percent (but up to 100%) as part of the ingredients of other non asbestos containing materials such as; asbestos containing floor tiles and adhesives, asbestos containing linos, asbestos containing paper, asbestos containing textured coatings (commonly known as Artex), asbestos containing putty, asbestos containing sealants, asbestos containing floor bath panels, asbestos containing partition walls, asbestos containing doors, asbestos containing soffits and fascia panels, asbestos containing water tanks, asbestos containing insulation to pipes and heaters, asbestos containing roof tiles, asbestos containing cement roofs, asbestos containing packers around beams in floors, ceilings and walls, and as such the visual appearance of any building material may seem quite innocent but potentially hides a killer mineral – asbestos.

An asbestos survey is a legal requirement prior to any employed person working in a domestic or commercial property in the UK. The asbestos survey does not need to be conducted to the whole property if only a small section is due for alteration. For example, you can carry out and asbestos inspection of just the kitchen or bathroom, if those are the only rooms which are going to be worked in. The basic requirement is that if the fabric of the building is to be disturbed then this disturbance should be preceded by an inspection for asbestos containing materials.

Quoting published HSE statistics in 2010 there is approximately between 0.5 million and 2 million commercial buildings still with asbestos containing materials. Llewellyn of BRE suggested that 75% of commercial building contain some asbestos. This includes, corner shops, pubs, offices, factories, industrial buildings, basic work units, high street shops, hotels, in fact it can be present in any place of work, anywhere.

There are approximately 2.4 million domestic properties (this includes houses, flats and bungalows) with asbestos containing materials.

Increasingly insurance companies and solicitors are requesting that an asbestos survey is carried out prior to the completion of sale on properties built prior to the year 2000.

This year it is expected that 5000 people (nearly 14 people per day) will die of an asbestos related disease. By approximately 2020 this will have risen to 12000 people per year (nearly 33 people per day).
The highest risk groups of people are those working in the building and allied trades.

Using Transmission Electron Microscopy it has been shown that in the region of 60% of plumbers tested had been exposed to asbestos though company documents only showed that 20% had been working with asbestos containing materials.

An asbestos survey, (be this a refurbishment asbestos survey, Predemolition asbestos survey which have superseded the type 3 asbestos survey or management asbestos survey – which has superseded the type 2 asbestos survey) carried out correctly can prevent these exposures, however the asbestos inspection has to be in place prior to works commencing. This is why the HSE have made it a legal mandatory requirement that persons in control of building premises and those in the building and allied trades, including, builders, plumbers, electricians, surveyors, architects, carpenters, shop fitters and demolition operatives have annual asbestos awareness training.

When it comes to asbestos, a person is most vulnerable when:

• The are carrying out work on a site which is not known to them very well
• The premises on which the person is working was erected prior to the year 2000
• Asbestos Containing Materials (ACM’s) were not looked for and identified prior to any work commencing
• Asbestos Containing Materials (ACM’s) were noticed however the correct information was not communicated with the people carrying out the work
• A person is not educated on how to correctly and safely deal with the removal, surveying and disposal of asbestos
• A person does know how to treat asbestos safely but takes shortcuts to either save time or money, or because no-one else on site is taking the proper precautions

It is rare that asbestos is a major threat if it is left undamaged or undisturbed, or if it is in a location in which it is unlikely to be damaged.
Always remember that it is impossible to actually see asbestos fibres in the air and neither will they carry any odour.  The damaging effects of breathing in asbestos fibres take years to become apparent.  Smokers or cigarettes are at an increased risk.  Only when asbestos fibres become airborne is there a danger.

If any given substance is known to contain asbestos, or if it is assumed that the substance contains asbestos then it is referred to as an ACM (Asbestos Containing Material).

The main reason for carrying our asbestos surveys is to establish a materials assessment. In other words:

• To seek out Asbestos Containing Materiels and to make a note of where it is situated, what exactly it is, and how much of it we are dealing with.
• To capture information on how accessible the asbestos containing material is, what condition it is in, as well as any information on the treatment of the surface.
• To capture the information on the type of asbestos which is done by either sampling or by presuming

The various types of asbestos survey:

It is very important that the exact type of asbestos survey that is required is clear to the duty holder, employer, building owner and the asbestos surveyor.

The following are the two types of survey for asbestos containing materials.

• Management Survey: The Management Asbestos Survey is needed to manage Asbestos Containing Materials throughout the typical occupation and usage of a building or premises.  The duty-holder can make a Management Survey where the premises are simple and straightforward.  Otherwise, an asbestos surveyor is needed.

The aim of a Management Asbestos Survey is to ensure the following:

• that no-one is harmed due to the prolonged presence of Asbestos Containing Materials in the building or within equipment.
• that the Asbestos Containing Materials remain in good condition; and
• that the ACM is not disturbed by mistake.

The Asbestos Survey must identify Asbestos Containing Materials that could be either damaged or disrupted by every day activities, by foreseeable maintenance, or via the installation of new machinery or equipment.  It does of course involve minor intrusion and minor disturbances of asbestos to carry out a Materials Assessment.  This shows the ability of Asbestos Containing Materials, if disturbed, to release fibres into the air.  It also guides the client, eg in prioritising any remedial work.

• Refurbishment or Demolition Asbestos Survey: The Refurbishment or demolition Asbestos Survey is needed where the building, or part of it, needs upgrading, refurbishment or demolition.  The Asbestos Survey does not need a record of the Asbestos Containing Materials condition.  Typically, an asbestos surveyor is required for Refurbishment and Demolition Asbestos Surveys.

  The main aims of a Refurbishment or Demolition Survey are as follows:

  1. no-one will be harmed by work on Asbestos Containing Materials in the building, machinery or equipment;
  2. all work will be done by the correct contractor in the correct manner

  The Survey must locate and identify all Asbestos Containing Materials prior to any structural work being carried out at a stated location or on stated equipment at the premises.  It involves destructive inspection and asbestos disturbance.  The area surveyed must be vacated, and certified 'fit for reoccupation' after the asbestos survey.

Asbestos fibres display properties of high tensile strength, high heat resistance and a soft texture that can be woven. The first reference to asbestos can be traced back to ancient Greece in around 300 BC when an ancient philosopher wrote about an unnamed substance resembling rotten wood that, when doused with oil, would burn without being harmed.

Importation of asbestos from the 1800’s led to an estimated 3.5 million tonnes of material arriving in the UK mainland up to 1967. The importation of all asbestos was banned in the late 1990’s with an estimated 6 million tonnes having been imported into the UK. This has been used in over 3000 different building materials, in trace amounts from door handles to toilet seats, stud walls through to industrial insulation applications. The first report deaths related to asbestos were described in the late 1800’s/ early 1900’s and over the following decades legislation was passed to gain some control over health and safety at work. This included the introduction of factory inspectors and the Factories Act.

• The Emperor Charlemagne is reported to have thrown an asbestos tablecloth into a fire and pulled it out again without any damage to the cloth in an attempt to impress some dinner guests.

• Marco Polo visited an asbestos mine in China in the latter half of the 13th century. He concluded that asbestos was a stone, ending the myth that asbestos was the hair of a woolly lizard.

• Benjamin Franklin brought a purse made of asbestos to England. The purse is now in the Natural History Museum.

• Telephones and various other household items were made from a blend of asbestos and plastic.

• Vehicle brake shoes were made of asbestos.

• Asbestos industry regulations were passed in the UK in 1931 to address concerns that asbestos exposure particularly among textile factory workers led to lung damage.

• It is reported that in the 1939 film, ‘The Wizard of Oz’, the snow that falls while in the poppy fields on the way to the Emerald city was actually asbestos – The scare crow also had asbestos within his costume to protect him from the scene in which he catches fire.

• Wartime paraphernalia including fireproof suits and parachute flares and some masks contained asbestos.

• Construction after the war relied very heavily on asbestos products.

• Health concerns began to surface in the US and UK during the 1960s, after studies revealed that low levels of asbestos exposure could be more dangerous than previously thought.

Safe Asbestos removal is a subject that concerns a lot of people even though asbestos when left alone doesn’t really cause a lot of problems.   This is not to say of course that due care should not be taken to prevent asbestos fibres being released into the air, as this can cause serious health issues.

Asbestos is a mineral that occurs naturally and historically has been a key ingredient in many construction materials. The reason for this is that asbestos lends fire resistant properties to materials and also makes them a lot more rigid.. Believe it or not asbestos has been used in the past in home products such as ironing boards and even oven gloves!
From the 1950s right through to the 1980s, asbestos was used as a key construction material.

At home you might locate asbestos in the following typical areas:

• rain water fall pipes, eaves and gutters
• fire blankets
• shed roofs and garages
• linings for doors, ceilings and walls
• storage heaters (usually within the insulation panels)
• bath panels
• flues for central heating
• loose asbestos packing between party walls and floors
• floor tiles

Generally speaking, people are only exposed to very low or minimal levels of asbestos which is present in the atmosphere. Quite often there are no seeming health effects. However it is potentially extremely hazardous if asbestos dust or fibres are inhaled in high amounts over a period of time.  This can cause serious lung diseases and cancer also.  The symptoms of these diseases often do not appear for between 20 -30 years after exposure to asbestos.

Removing asbestos

Taking the following steps will be beneficial if you are planning asbestos removal or the non-licensable asbestos:

• dust masks.  Make sure you obtain and wear an asbestos certified mask
• overalls.  Disposable overalls are ideal for asbestos removal
• do not allow others in the vicinity or the asbestos removal area
• using water and a little washing up liquid to wet the asbestos prior to removal will help minimise the release of asbestos fibres into the air.  Always make sure that you are not working with water too close to any electrical cables of course
• do not break up large sheets of asbestos.  Rather try to remove and dispose of them without breaking
• Bag up, label and seal any smaller pieces into plastic bags
• Any remaining dust should be cleaned up with a damp cloth.  The cloth should then be sealed in a plastic bag whilst still a little damp, and the bag labelled
• Never use a domestic vacuum cleaner.  It is possible that asbestos fibres can pass through the filter and be released into the air

You may have been involved in asbestos removal at home yourself.  If so you should have disposed of your asbestos waste separately to the way in which you dispose of your household waste. You should arrange to have it collected by a hazardous waste carrier or, for asbestos removal contact an asbestos consultant.