Asbestos Assessing
What is Asbestos?
Asbestos is a naturally-occurring fibrous silicate mineral. It was considered a versatile product, because it is able to withstand heat, erosion and decay and has fire and water resistant properties.
It becomes a health risk when asbestos fibres are released into the air and breathed in.
Non-Friable asbestos is any material (other than friable asbestos) that contains asbestos. Non- friable asbestos cannot be crumbled, pulverised or reduced to a powder by hand pressure when dry.
Common uses for non-friable asbestos in buildings include: flat (fibro), corrugated or compressed asbestos cement sheets; water, drainage and flue pipes; and floor tiles.
If fire, hail, or direct activities such as water blasting and drilling damages bonded asbestos, it may become friable asbestos material.
Asbestos in building
Approximately one third of all homes built in Australia
contain asbestos products.
As a general rule, if your house was built before the mid-1980s, it is highly likely that it would have some asbestos containing materials. If your house was built between the mid-1980s and 1990, it is likely that it would have asbestos containing materials.
f your house was built after 1990, it is unlikely that it would have asbestos containing materials.
The use of ACMs in the home has been extensive and there are many areas in the home where ACMs can be found including (but not limited to):
• Roof sheeting and capping
• Guttering
• Gables, eaves/soffitswater pipes and flues
• Wall sheeting (flat or a weatherboard style
• Vinyl sheet flooring
• Carpet and tile underlays
• Zelemite backing boards to the switchboards
• Flexible building boards
• Imitation brick cladding
• Fencing
• Carports and sheds
• Waterproof membrane
• Telecommunications pits
• Some window putty
• Expansion joints
• Packing under beams
• Concrete formwork
Dangers
• You must observe safety precautions when removing or working with asbestos, otherwise you risk exposing yourself and your family to long-term health risks
• There is no safe level of exposure to asbestos fibres!
• If asbestos is disturbed it can release dangerous fine particles of dust containing asbestos fibres
• Breathing in dust containing asbestos fibres can cause asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma
• Mesothelioma is a cancer which most often occurs in the lining of the lung. There is no cure
• The rates of malignant mesothelioma (an incurable cancer) are expected to rise from 2012 to 2020
• The risk of contracting asbestos related diseases increases with the number of fibres inhaled and the length of time that you inhaled asbestos fibres (number of years exposed)
• The risk of lung cancer from inhaling asbestos fibres is greatly increased if you smoke
• Symptoms of asbestos dust related diseases do not usually appear until about 20 to 30 years after the first exposure to asbestos
• The average time between exposure and developing mesothelioma is about 45 years
Asbestos testing/sampling
Renovating a house can be quite stressful sometimes, moreover when your house has asbestos within it. Most Australian buildings built before 1980 are highly likely to have asbestos. Therefore, if your house was built before this year, you need to check for the presence of asbestos before conducting any renovation work. Even a little mistake can lead to serious problems including health issues, criminal charges and fines.
If you are thinking of doing an asbestos testing work yourself, take care to wear the appropriate protective wear and follow the correct removal testing procedures. The government does not recommend a DIY attempt to handle asbestos materials. Asbestos mishandling can cause further contamination, it is recommended to leave sample testing to the professionals. Our team can take samples in safe and controlled manner to stop any exposure or contamination.
Asbestos services
Clearance inspections
An asbestos clearance certificate is required if more than 10m² of asbestos containing material (ACM) is removed in N.S.W – A clearance inspection must also be carried out by a recognised and licensed asbestos assessor or competent person.
A clearance inspection entails a visual inspection of the asbestos removal work areas if the asbestos containing material is deemed non friable to verify that the removal was carried out according to the code of practice. To support this assessment though not mandatory for non- friable asbestos, the monitoring of airborne fibre clearance is for the purpose of ensuring that the exposure of airborne fibre content within the workplace is below the expected exposure standard. After inspection, a clearance certificate will be issued to ascertain that the asbestos removal work area is now safe for re-occupancy.
Within the period of the asbestos clearance inspection being carried out, proper signage supported with barricades must secure the premises in order to bar unauthorised persons from gaining entrance to the vicinity. This safety precaution is maintained until the clearance inspection is concluded and a clearance certificate has been issued.
Contact us for more information
Air monitoring
Breathe Safe Consulting offers exceptional air monitoring services to its clients by collecting particles drawn through a filter to collect airborne particles. After this, we deliver the filters to an NATA Accredited lab where they examine the filter under a microscope in order to calculate its fibre concentration.
Some of the air monitoring services we offer to our customers are:
Background Air Sampling
Here, we place sampling devices strategically to establish the pre-existing fibre in the air prior to any activity. This is done to ensure a proper analysis and to avoid a distorted record of the asbestos fibres.
Leak Testing
We carry out a leak testing to ensure that there are no respirable airborne fibres released. We strictly adhere to safety standards and this test is usually carried out when there are other occupants around the workplace.
Personal Exposure Monitoring
Although we engage in this for quite a number of reasons, it is usually adopted to guarantee the safety of workers during the removal of asbestos. We ensure that all safety methods for asbestos removal are strictly adhered to as well as ascertaining the quality of masks and other safety wears.
Clearance Site Certification for Reoccupation
Before you bring in your employees to work on the premises, an Air Monitoring certificate is required to ensure that you can reoccupy the premises.
Reassurance Sampling
We carry out a Reassurance Sampling in order to ascertain that the level of fibre concentrations is at a safe level.
Asbestos management plans
The details in our report include: General site and survey information, Bulk analysis report / table, Details of the laboratory, Dates when bulk analysis was carried out, Names and signatures of analysts, Material assessments and required algorithm information, Survey company information, Surveyors information, The name and address of the location surveyed, Date of the report, Date of the survey, The purpose, aims and objectives of the survey, A description of the areas included in the survey, Survey method used, Any variations or deviations from the method, Exclusions and inaccessible areas.
Asbestos sampling
Following the consistent awareness of the hazardous nature of asbestos, the need for asbestos testing, monitoring, and compliance with regulatory demands is crucial. At Breathe Safe Consulting, we help our clients achieve their obligations by offering a comprehensive asbestos testing service. This includes identification of bulk materials, monitoring fibre, and building surveys.
We ensure that all asbestos testing is in concordance with national and international regulations & standards. From isolation to the identification, and quantification of your materials, we take absolute responsibility of providing these services exceptionally.
At Breathe Safe Consulting, we conduct asbestos testing as a service for commercial, residential properties, and also for marine vessels. Whatever your needs are, we provide comprehensive results in formats that are most suitable to your needs.
Soil testing and classifications
Asbestos can quite easily end up in soil and underground, and this becomes dangerous when renovations, excavations and digging occurs, disturbing potentially dangerous materials.
Asbestos gets into the soil usually through past demolition or construction carried out before the dangers of asbestos were known and health and safety regulations were put in place. So, if you are planning on demolishing a building which has sat on land occupied since the 1920’s, you should conduct some asbestos soil testing.
Breathe Safe Consulting will visit your site and assess key areas where asbestos may have been spread. We then safely protect ourselves using industry standard practices and PPE whilst we collect soil samples to send off to the lab for testing. Should there be asbestos or asbestos fibres present in the soil, we will work with you on developing an asbestos management plan.
Asbestos Register reports
We provide a detailed and reliable register which contains the entire known or suspected asbestos-containing materials including a meticulous risk-based assessment of the premises and the condition of all materials. The asbestos register provides the contractors working on a site with the information of where they are likely going to come in contact with asbestos – so that they can take the necessary precautions.
The asbestos register contains information such as Location, Extent, Condition, Accessibility, Friability, and Risk assessment in order to help you:
• Fulfil your obligations as a contractor or as the caretaker of the premises,
• Fulfil your health and safety requirements as well as protecting workers/occupiers from hazardous materials.
• Fulfil legal requirements.
Asbestos identification report
We provide a detailed and reliable identification which contains the entire known or suspected asbestos-containing material that has been sampled including the condition of all materials sampled and location. The asbestos identification is great for new home buyers and landlords to be able understand where and if there is any Asbestos containing materials onsite.
Asbestos Consulting
Before commencing any renovation or demolition work, it is best to have an inspection for any possible asbestos on your property. This is the best way to protect your investments and interests and ensure the health of your family is not impacted in any way. An asbestos consultant can provide insight and advice when conducting a thorough visual inspection and if nessecary will take asbestos samples to be tested. This is best done before renovation or demolition work to ensure compliance with any state legislation.
