Asbestos Audits warns home renovators about asbestos in floor coverings
Announcement posted by Asbestos Audits Queensland 15 Dec 2012
Asbestos Audits Queensland has warned home renovators about the significant danger of asbestos in floor coverings, in its new book, Identifying Asbestos in your Home. The book, which has received government funding, seeks to help homeowners and renovators understand and locate asbestos used in the construction of their homes.
According to author Brian Sketcher, who is also the General Manager of Asbestos Audits Queensland, floor coverings in houses built before 1990 are likely to contain asbestos and are in fact one of the most hazardous sources of asbestos.
“Asbestos was used in all sorts of floor coverings prior to 1990, including vinyl floor tiles, the fibrous felt beneath vinyl floor sheeting, and the adhesive/grout used to fix vinyl or vinyl tiles to a surface. Not many people know asbestos was used in their floors, making it all the more dangerous,” says Brian Sketcher.
The book Identifying Asbestos in Your Home provides numerous pictures of asbestos flooring to help renovators understand and identify the different uses of asbestos in flooring.
Depending on how asbestos is used in the floor coverings, it can be relatively stable, reducing the risk of exposure. However, potential health risks arise quickly when maintenance or renovation work is performed on floor coverings that contain asbestos – for example, high speed grinding or sanding. This is likely to release the asbestos fibres, causing them to become airborne.
“Unfortunately, the recent popularity
of home renovation TV shows has promoted the idea of self-renovators
ripping their vinyl floor coverings themselves, and sanding their
floors. The vinyl usually tears, leaving the asbestos attached to
the floor. When sanded, it becomes airborne in the dust, which is
extremely dangerous,” says Brian Sketcher.
Homeowners who wish to remove old flooring are advised to first get a sample analysed for asbestos, before commencing work.
Identifying Asbestos in your Home is available in both hardcover edition ($29.95) and eBook ($9.95) from the Asbestos Audits Queensland website.