Removal of asbestos fuse box

[pc1966]

An old and now deceased friend's place has some rewirable fuses with asbestos flash pads. They are long overdue for replacement and now that seems to be getting underway. If the siblings now owning it can sort it out before the estate is settled that is not an issue, but there is a chance that could run for a year and it really needs done now. Actually, it needed done 40 years ago, but that is water under the bridge.

I have read the HSE guidance a33 on this but really it strikes me as too much trouble and expense for kit like a class-H vacuum cleaner, etc, if I had to deal with this as a one-off job. So I'm guessing the best option if it falls to me would be to isolate and disconnect the cables, and get a 3rd party in to remove and dispose of the asbestos-containing equipment.

Has anyone had to do this, and if so who did they get to do the removal/disposal of the equipment? (Ideally someone in Scotland)

Roughly how much did it cost?

TL;DR Options to get asbestos-containing equipment removed.

 

[Flanders]

We do industrial and commercial sites we get charge about £450 for a visit to remove the flash pads . It the same if there are 5 DBs or just 1 . We use a company called oakmere group.

 

[SparkySy]

Can you isolate and cut off the cables without removing the fuses and disturbing the flash pads?
Then re-terminate them in the new dis board or do you need the space they occupy?
Then get a removal company in.
In the past, an old spark I used to work with would isolate then wet the inside of the fuse box to keep the dust down, cut the wires at the top of the fuse, shut the lid tape over the holes for the cables and crow bar the assembly off the wall!

 

[oscar21]

Is this really what the world has come to, you have maybe come across a minute amount of compound that may or may not kill you in the next 50-60 years so call the bomb squad, yet 2 years ago you were all lining up to say please please please jab me with the clot shot.

Rip it out and put it in the wheelie bin FFS.

 

[Rockingit]

I would say that if the entire unit is being replaced anyway then just leave the pads in situ undisturbed, disconnect/chop cables and take the whole thing off the wall intact, straight in the skip.

 

[timhoward]

If you can get the front off without disturbing the fuses I do exactly what @Rockingit said.

If you can’t I hold a bag over the whole lot while removing the fuses and sometimes the pads fall out into the bag, then get the front off, put the fuses back, then as before.

I’m sure when I first started I was given the task of fitting some missing pads in a board. No ppe gloves or mask, I just got handed them and I put them in!
I suspect the actual risks are low enough that taking a bit of care is adequate in this case.

 

[westward10]

Low risk or not it is hazardous waste and to hook it into a skip for someone else to discover is wholly irresponsible.

 

[pc1966]

Can you isolate and cut off the cables without removing the fuses and disturbing the flash pads?
Then re-terminate them in the new dis board or do you need the space they occupy?

If it comes to me doing it then that is exactly what I will do!

Realistically the space is needed for the new board, but power off for a day is not going to be much of an issue and tolerable daylight if the main garage doors can be left open, etc.

The existing cables, that really ought to be replaced completely, are somewhat short so taking 150mm trunking up to the top of where things used to be would allow some by-steps changes as needed. I could tolerate a day putting in a new 3P board and doing basic checks to get that side to a far safer position, but I can't rewire the lot as it would take days and access platforms, etc.

They are getting a local sparky in next week for look at pricing a rewire, they are going to attempt an ECIR I believe but if they do complete that it will be an impressive list of FI, C1, and C2s I think! I have passed on what I have discovered to my friend and she in turn can inform the sparky to allow a bit less time pondering the impressive WTF-ness of the whole installation.

Then get a removal company in.
In the past, an old spark I used to work with would isolate then wet the inside of the fuse box to keep the dust down, cut the wires at the top of the fuse, shut the lid tape over the holes for the cables and crow bar the assembly off the wall!

That seems like a reasonable plan, as nothing needs to be salvaged from it. The site has been a garage so I suspect anyone swabbing and testing for signs of asbestos will find traces all over the place from decades old clutch and brake pads

 

[nicebutdim]

Low risk or not it is hazardous waste and to hook it into a skip for someone else to discover is wholly irresponsible.

Given how much electricians moan about other trades, you'd expect we might show a bit of courtesy to skip hire companies and not ignore the terms of their contract by dumping hazardous waste in this manner.

 

[Vortigern]

I removed a corrugated asbestos roof from my kitchen extension and took it to the council dump. It cost me £10 per sheet. Double wrapped in 120 gauge plastic and sealed with gorilla tape. Wet down the panels prior to working on them and so on. Maybe your local council would allow the owner in her car to take it down to them? There are very plentiful details on the local council site and gov.uk detailing the means and ways of dealing with asbestos.