Asbestos was traditionally used as the defacto roofing material thanks to its durability, impressive insulation and ability to fortify the roof. There are some health concerns related to asbestos roofing that has led to a reduced usage of the material. Home owners often elect to do away with asbestos roofing in their houses but what is the safe procedure of doing it? Let us look at some important pointers that could help:
Step 1: Is it asbestos?
The first step is establishing whether you really have asbestos on your roof. An easy way is checking on the siding for asbestos marking. If you are not sure how to check for the marking, contacting the manufacturer might also help. You could also contact a reliable Perth roofing company to help you with this. The importance of working with a qualified contractor is they can help you establish whether it is safe to remove the asbestos or just do a repair. This decision is usually determined by the local building code.
Step 2: Inspect to determine the damage
Roofing or cement siding using asbestos is not necessarily hazardous as long as the roof is still in good condition. For a roof to be completely safe, it needs to be non-friable or to put it more precisely, it should not be easily damaged by hand pressure. If you cannot establish who the licensed manufacturer, you can also ask a licensed contracting company to help you inspect how safe the roof is. The contractor should inspect the ceiling for any fibre batts that might easily expose you to asbestos chippings.If the asbestos has deteriorated too much, then it should be repaired, covered or completely removed
Step 3: Removing the asbestos
It is worth noting that even non-friable asbestos will eventually become friable due to exposure to the elements. It is a good idea to avoid drilling, sawing, sanding or cutting of the asbestos material as it could release asbestos fibres in the air. Inhaling of these fibres from the air could result in serious health conditions including lung cancer, mesothelioma and numerous respiratory conditions. .
From the legal standpoint, it is perfectly okay to remove asbestos from your house. However, you might be required to register your asbestos removal with an asbestos register. When removing the asbestos, it is a good idea to put a plastic clothe around it to ensure you have collected all asbestos fibres and chippings. Ensure you are wearing proper protective clothing including a respirator with P100 cartridge filters. Most people assume that dust masks will do just fine but they are not effective when dealing with asbestos.
Take extra precaution when climbing the roof to avoid any unnecessary mishaps. As an extra precaution, wear some disposable clothes and get rid of them as soon as you are done with the roofing job. To avoid the asbestos fibres from flying in the air, you can wet the roof with some drops of water. As you may have noticed, removing asbestos safely from your roof is quite a complex process and it is therefore better to hire a licenced company to handle the job for you.