aston man

i did a safety test last night and read a bit about asbestos,it was a little worrying reading that houses that were built before (not quite sure on the exact year,i think it was mid seventies),were built with materials containing asbestos..they were on about,roofing sheets,electrical wiring ,floor tiles and something else i cant remember...

surely there are steps taken by the oz government to stop people being exposed to these substances...??

any one know anything about this?

sorry i dont want to worry any one..???

aston

Vash the Stampede

Asbestos is only dangerous when the dust is inhaled. No dust inhalation = safe.

In practical terms, this means that it's not really a problem - just as long as you don't start doing stupid things like bashing down walls and breaking up the ceiling without adequate PPE.

My own house in Midvale (WA) was a 1944 asbestos bungalow on a quarter-acre block (see attached). I lived in it for two and a half years without any trouble whatsoever.

Bottom line: treat asbestos with respect, and you'll have no worries.

annqldau

Now now Vash not like you to put out in disinformation, you think you lived there without any trouble whatsoever as you won't know till that little fleck of asbestos starts to grow and spread. So unless you are an electrician who works in high risk areas or asbestos surveyor/removre who has to have regular x-rays you wouldn't know yet.

If you give it a gentle knock with tack hammer and it has more of a defined tap sound than wood panel it's oftern asbestos, wood has more of a dull tap sound.

Paul & Wendy

I guess it is not too different to the UK - we still used asbestos until the mid 80's. It is in artex, floor tiles, old fashioned fuse boxes, as well as the more known items such as garage roofs, insulation etc. In most cases, if it is unlikely to be damaged by impact, then it should be sealed or encapsulated however if impact damage is likely, then it is better to have it professionally removed. And yes, it can take decades before health damage is known. Paul

Pollyana

The building I work in had asbestos in the roof. It was removed a few months ago.......the scary part is that bits of the roof were lying around in skips, we were all still using the building while the work was done. and the only precaution (as far as any of us could see) was a warning that the air conditioning might be turned off for a few minutes at times!
After Cyclone Larry they had a lot of damaged buildings up in the far north which were found to contain asbestos, but a lot of the rescue workers didn't have protective equipment......

Siren & Brian

Its when its in a dust form that its a real problem. Majority of old fences are asbestos and they are fine if left be.

As for the OP you should have known the answer to your question if you passed the BLue Card test.

Vash the Stampede

It's not disinformation, and you don't need a professional qualification or x-rays to know if your walls are flaking or not.

My house was re-painted inside and out, and the walls covered with sealant to prevent flaking. I had it checked before I bought it, and checked again before I sold it. Everything was 100% kosher.

In order for asbestos to "fleck and spread", it first needs to be damaged - and damaged repeatedly. And it can only causes health problems if you inhale it. Hence the points in my previous post.

People get so paranoid about asbestos, as if it's something that can actively leap from the walls, tear out your jugular and drag you down in seconds.

In reality, it can be easily managed with a bit of common sense.

cresta57

Then again if you house was built from asbestos originally chances are that the asbestos sheet was cut to fit in your very house. That means any renovations you do from moving a simple kitchen bench to replacing a light switch could very well expose you to deadly asbestos dust swept under baths, kitchen benches or cavities during construction. Even removing old floor coverings can expose potentially deadly asbestos dust.
If your house contains asbestos your at risk, if it doesn't your not it's that simple!
My dad was a sparkie for nearly 50 years he was diagnosed as suffering from mesothelioma [asbestosis] whilst applying for his Aussie retirement visa. It's not going to be a bundle of laughs watching him die a slow and suffocating death. I'll ask him if he thinks there's no risk from sheet asbestos.
There's a well documented case of a woman whose only known contact with asbestos was as a child using a broken piece as a stone whilst playing hopscotch.
If you think there's no risk your kidding yourself!

aston man

when we were kids we used to soak it in water then chuck it on a bonfire ,,,great fun at the time,,jeez it does explode...not much fun now though thinking what the effects of that may be,,,the sky must of been full of dust...

annqldau

Yes Cresta there are lots of well documented cases of people who just washed their husbands clothes and died of it or worked for the NBC who said there was none in their furnaces etc. and died of it. My mad next door neighbor has bird table made of it and when I pointed out thought it was asbestos she promptly started banging it saying yes it probably is...mad.