asbestos

[atm84]

So how do the domestic electricians amongst us deal with the silent killer. As I am sure most of you will be aware that domestic properties built pre 1997 is very likely to have asbestos in it. Art ex ceilings are one of the most common sources.

So what do you do when Mrs Jones wants some lovely recessed lights fitting etc? Or some floor tiles need lifting or holes need drilling etc.

Just wondering what most of you do. Do you turn a blind eye and hope it goes away, not wanting to upset the customer or do you ask them for an asbestos survey to be carried out.

 

[netblindpaul]

Quality dust mask and the vac running.

Vac is the most dangerous thing to use as far as asbestos goes!

Oh, and to do that is a criminal offence punishable by imprisonment if it is done the way you describe in that sentence.

 

[netblindpaul]

30 smokes a day for 50 years and you think i should worry about a bit of asbestos?????????

Yes because you WILL be more susceptible to it, I trust that your family and friends are not worried how long you are likely to live.

 

[edexlab]

Everyone will have had some level of exposure at one point or another! whether they like it or not

I think your average small builder won't worry too much and will keep mum when breaking it up..... as will lots of farmers

Then you've got the Upvc soffit guys ,never seen one of them wearing a mask when drilling vent holes

Then they all go for a swift one after work and take dust in with them.....
or at the local waste /recycling centre where there are bins for it with nice big lids which waft the stuff about!

I was working near a council owned building recently where the specialist removal guys were dismantling the roof and cladding , they had all the gear on.....
right next to a primary school and a busy row of shops ,
I went into one shop a few weeks later and mentioned it to the owner that I was surprised they weren't doing something to reduce the risk of the dust flying down to the nearby school, and he was absolutely "livid" and showed me a photo on his phone of his car , with a fine layer of dust on it!, he's taken samples and is paying to have them tested.

Obviously you don't want to die from asbestosis or lung cancer etc and I personally do follow the advice and if I'm not sure if it is actually a material containing asbestos I just treat it as though it is.

But you do your best to avoid working on it or take the appropriate precautions when there is no choice but to be near it , but I'm not going to worry too much as the chances are I'm getting more exposure to this stuff away from work

 

[netblindpaul]

I've just moved into a property, built in 1986. Consumer unit is in a cupboard outside in the porch along with gas meter. consumer unit is fitted onto what looks like asbestos boarding or maybe its fibre cement board. Not sure but its been drilled by the gas fitter, electrician etc when it was installed. Whole house has artex. I'm thinking of having an asbestos survey done. I've never come across one domestic property where the owner has ever had one done.

It is not necessarily the legal responsibility of the owner of the property to have a survey done if it is a private dwelling, owned by the people living there.

 

[netblindpaul]

My Mother's Uncle died from it.

He worked with it for 30 years as a Lagger in a power station.

He was 83 years old when he died .......

Well he was lucky to live that long then.

 

[netblindpaul]

You should absolutely insist upon it.

It is NOT their responsibility it is YOURS or your employers to get this done under statute law.

 

[netblindpaul]

Once again on this forum, incorrect and flippant information given and supported with regard to statue law and a material that is known to KILL people before their time.

I can't believe that people are so blasé about a material that is known to KILL people in a slow, painfull and horrible way.

 

[jaypp]

some info here;
HSE: Asbestos - health and safety in the workplace

 

[edexlab]

3% not always true this is a figure quoted on the awareness courses

Did some social housing a few years ago and at first the testing for samples was not really being done properly
but there was an incident and things tightened up H&S wise and more sampling was done
I saw some of the returned sample reports and the percentage varied from 15% to 60% as the fibres were mixed in to the artex by hand and if several areas of the same ceiling were tested these could also vary greatly

So sods law new bag of fibres that ceiling would be 60% 2 doors down the road it'd be a lot lower !!

 

[edexlab]

Although it is good that more people are having to do the awareness courses, as with all H&S it puts the onus of responsibility onto employer and employee

I still think an employee working for a firm (which does the paperwork because they have to, there are a lot of firms with this attitude still) is put in an awkward situation here

Refuse to work and your cards are marked
Work on the stuff and because you've signed the declaration of having the training its a dismissable offence

I think a large part of this is the cost of the PPE surely the govt could have done more to regulate the cost at a more reasonable level

I've worked for good and bad employers and they liked to give a good impression
yet mention the "A" word on many sites and to your employer and you may get blanked ,moved offsite or made redundant and many people will still be more cautious about losing their job and think "hey it might not happen to me"/ its a long way off etc

 

[Geordie Spark]

Well he was lucky to live that long then.

Aye he was. As a very young lad he survived a gas attack in a WW1 trench somewhere in France too.

Men were men back then - not like now.

 

[atm84]

Its interesting to read some of your views. I was told on the asbestos awareness course that if you come across a suspect material then you/ or your employer must advise the client (in this case the home owner) and get them to have a survey done) if the results come back positive then you should refuse to do any work or get it removed or take the relevant precautions.

How many of you are going to do that in the fear that you will lose out on the work and it goes to some other spark who doesn't care.

Everyone should be made aware of the dangers (home owners and contractors) I'm sure if most owners knew that there was asbestos in the artex ceilings and what the possible implication would be if they had recessed lights fitted then they would think twice about having them.

Yes it's likely to make work more expensive but in my opinion you can't put a cost to your health and everyone needs to take the same view of it.

 

[Engineer54]

I thought this was yet another of those asbestos 3036 fuse worry threads when i first saw thread the title... lol!!

 

[shanky887614]

Its interesting to read some of your views. I was told on the asbestos awareness course that if you come across a suspect material then you/ or your employer must advise the client (in this case the home owner) and get them to have a survey done) if the results come back positive then you should refuse to do any work or get it removed or take the relevant precautions.

How many of you are going to do that in the fear that you will lose out on the work and it goes to some other spark who doesn't care.

Everyone should be made aware of the dangers (home owners and contractors) I'm sure if most owners knew that there was asbestos in the artex ceilings and what the possible implication would be if they had recessed lights fitted then they would think twice about having them.

Yes it's likely to make work more expensive but in my opinion you can't put a cost to your health and everyone needs to take the same view of it.

we do a lot of work in hospitals and there are wards that are just locked and have the signs removed because its too expensive to get it removed.

another hospital in birmingham has loads of asbestos, all the lagging has warning stickers etc on it, takes bloody ages In some of these places to skim the register

Its interesting to read some of your views. I was told on the asbestos awareness course that if you come across a suspect material then you/ or your employer must advise the client (in this case the home owner) and get them to have a survey done) if the results come back positive then you should refuse to do any work or get it removed or take the relevant precautions.

How many of you are going to do that in the fear that you will lose out on the work and it goes to some other spark who doesn't care.

Everyone should be made aware of the dangers (home owners and contractors) I'm sure if most owners knew that there was asbestos in the artex ceilings and what the possible implication would be if they had recessed lights fitted then they would think twice about having them.

Yes it's likely to make work more expensive but in my opinion you can't put a cost to your health and everyone needs to take the same view of it.

 

[Fin170]

Its definitely not taken as a serious risk in domestic with anybody I've ever worked with, taken a bit more serious now though



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