Today, we’re going to talk about the big no-no’s with asbestos. This is going to be a quick one and it’s just all about any of these things that you do, you can release asbestos fibers. And they’re so light, they will penetrate every part of your home. They’ll spread for ages, endangering people everywhere around you.

So,the number one no-no is do not ever, ever, ever cut asbestos with an angle grinder. We had a job about two years ago, where someone decided that they would cut asbestos with an angle grinder. We had to get specialists involved. Those people lost everything in their house. There was testing done by hygienists, from every corner of the house, and they found that the asbestos fibers were in the bedrooms, the lounge room, the kitchen, the rumpus room, the garage. The only safe thing to do was to… what we couldn’t decontaminate, we threw out. And the people in the house said, “You know what? We don’t want any of it. We don’t even want to have to wonder whether it is or not.” So that’s key, I can’t stress the importance of that.

Number two,you should never water blast any asbestos products. I know people have fences painted,the outside of their house, mold removal, and all that kind of stuff. High-pressure water blasting is a massive no-no. If you water blast asbestos roofs happen all the time, what that does is it erodes the surface, releases the shards and breaks down the fibers, and they just spread everywhere. Worst-case scenario, or not even worst-case scenario, typical standard procedure would be about 30-$40,000 cleanup if you water blast an asbestos roof. Big chunks of cement and asbestos just fly everywhere. It’s going to spray all over the neighbours, it’s going to go through your whole garden. Things like the garden will have to be ripped out, and the top 100 mils of soil and grass will come out. It’s a really big deal. That roof may have to be replaced if it can’t be encapsulated if it’s deemed too unsafe. So never water blast anything asbestos.

The other thing is don’t see it. Don’t go, “Oh, well, I’ve got this special fibro saw.” I guess you can buy the saws from Bunnings that’ll cut tiles and all that kind of stuff. So, I’m not saying that there are things that are out there that don’t exist, but you just can’t use them on asbestos. You definitely can’t cut it with a grinder, and definitely can’t water blast it, but you may be able to use a saw under controlled conditions if you’re trained and you’ve got the right equipment. But, a golden rule, do not see asbestos.

Another one that we see a lot is drilling into asbestos. We have equipment for that, it’s not a DIY thing. There are all these ridiculous things with shaving creams in coffee cups. And people are going to say,”Oh, that’s what we did.” But I can tell you what’s happened because we’ve tested it. We didn’t test it on asbestos sheeting, we tested it on just normal fibro. When you fill a cup with shaving cream and you put it against a wall and you drill, what happens is the first layer of dust that hits that shaving cream actually just forms a crust, and then all the other dust just hits up against it. So, when you pull the cup out, you have this dust. So just don’t. There’s a whole industry out there, including us, of people that are equipped to do that.

So, no water blasting, no cutting with grinders, no sawing of asbestos. And I’m going to put in there, and drilling holes. And I’m going to put in there, as well, no hole saws. Because someone’s going to go, “Oh, I’m not drilling, I’m putting in a hole saw.” A lot of electricians are fitting downlights into eaves. Okay, we see it alot. I was at a job yesterday where the electrician went with the 10 square meter rule and said, “It’s all right, I can drill these holes into your eaves, no worries, for your downlight, that’s great.” I spoke to the homeowner. She had no idea that her eaves could be asbestos. She said there was dust everywhere. The guy had it all over his face. It’s just massive, why? I don’t understand why anyone would risk it. We have equipment here at Coastal Asbestos, we can cut from 25 mils up to about 450 milround holes in asbestos sheeting. It’s specialised equipment. We’re trained, we’ve got all the gear, just call us. There’s no need for any electricians to be boring holes through asbestos eaves for downlights.

You’ve got two options. These are the only two options. Get someone who’s trained, professional, licensed and insured to do the work, or have the eaves removed. I guess there is option three, just don’t do it. So, I can’t stress the importance enough, all these things that we’re talking about turn something innate, that is just sitting there, into friable asbestos. And you don’t want to be messing around with friable asbestos. So that’s me, Jason from Coastal Asbestos. I hope you found that informative. If you like this video, there’s plenty more over on our YouTube channel:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2Y2tY

Today, we’re going to talk about something that gets me fired up. And I was on-site with a representative from Workplace Health and Safety Queensland, just yesterday on a site where somebody had decided that they were going to remove 10 square meters of asbestos because they didn’t need a ticket. Now in most states and territories in Australia, there is a 10 square meter rule. I’m just going to address the elephant in the room. I’m pretty sure in the ACT it doesn’t exist. Thank God. The people in Canberra want to look after themselves, and all the other states just think it’s okay to be reckless and let people risk themselves.

So, the legislation states you can remove 10 square meters of asbestos without a license. But it’s an inconvenient truth, as Al Gore highlighted to us, there is another part of that sentence. And that sentence, the complete sentence says, you can remove 10 square meters or less of asbestos without a license, but you must do it under controlled conditions. So, when your plumber, when your electrician, when your handyman comes around and he goes, “Oh, that’s all right. I can just take that off.” Now, there’s a red flag right there, because if you watch our video about insurance, go and watch it. They’re not insured for it. So, if something goes wrong, it’s all on you, and we’ve seen that happen. We had a job where there was a hundred-thousand-dollar loss because a handyman ripped up a floor. We’ve had another job where someone was getting some insurance work done and they did a make safe and screwed through some asbestos sheet and contaminated a whole house. That was about another hundred and something thousand dollars.

Now these individuals that were responsible for those mistakes just disappeared into the wind, okay? So this 10 square meter thing, as far as I’m concerned, should be banned. And if you work for Workplace Health and Safety and you have ever met me, that will be in the first two or three sentences that we talk about. So get it in your head, asbestos removal is only for trained, equipped, licensed and insured professionals. Letting any other person try and remove some asbestos, drill a hole on asbestos, just take a sheet off of asbestos, it’s just not on. If they think that they can do it safely, they are putting you in danger and your family in danger, because I can guarantee you, they can’t. I can guarantee you. They won’t have a HEPA vac. They have to have a HEPA vacuum cleaner. They have to have a properly face-fitted asbestos approved mask.

If they’ve got facial hair, that mask isn’t going to work, okay? So, when your tradesman comes in with his beard, and he’s just going to slap on a cheap paper mask, that’s not going to protect him from anything. That’s more fashion than anything. They’re probably good for COVID, but they are nowhere near good for asbestos. And unless they have an asbestos-related H class vacuum cleaner, it’ll have a badge this big with a big H and lines through it. So, there’s no hiding it. And nobody would peel the H class sticker off their vacuum cleaner. And it’s all about price. And it’s all about service. So, H class vacuum cleaners need to be returned to a reputable service person for DOP testing. In short, they check the filter to make sure it’s going to be done. That’s got to be done every 12 months.

These vacuum cleaners cost $2,000. Now I’m hoping you’re getting a picture in your head that your local tradesman isn’t going to have a $2,000 vacuum cleaner that he has to spend four or 500 bucks every year getting tested. He isn’t going to make sure that he’s got his face fit mask on him, that he has to have the face fit checked every 12 months if he gets a facial scar or he puts on or loses 20 kilos of weight. He probably doesn’t even know that. He probably doesn’t even know what grade filter has to go in the mask. So please, I implore you, do not let anybody ever remove, drill, nail, or break a piece of asbestos in your home or workplace that is not an asbestos removal professional. We’re everywhere. Get on the internet. We’re easy to find. A lot of us are passionate about what we do.

A lot of us are in this industry to keep people safe. And there’s nothing we hate more than some cowboy trying to save himself some money because he knows he can’t do it, but he’s going to do it anyway, and he’ll probably try and charge a bit and say, “Oh, I can make a little bit of money out of this.” It’s not legal. It’s not morally correct, and it’s downright reckless. That’s it.

So that’s it from me, Jason, from Coastal Asbestos. Sorry if I got a bit emotional there, but it just does my head in. Electricians are the only ones allowed to touch electricity. Gas guys are only allowed to touch gas and asbestos guys should be the only ones to touch asbestos. It’s just that simple. So, if you like this video, there’s plenty more over at our YouTube channel, Coastal Asbestos Removal. And that’s it from me today, Jason from Coastal Asbestos. I’ll see you later guys.

Today, we’re going to talk about asbestos roofing. This is near and dear to my heart because it’s pretty much how I got started in the industry. Back in the day, I’m a roof plumber by trade. The first time I ever encountered, asbestos on a job was doing asbestos roof removal and replacement with a new metal roof. Also, we used to do a lot of asbestos gutter removal and asbestos downpipe removal, but there’s more to it. I can start this video by saying one thing if you get from this video, one thing and one thing only asbestos roof removal, asbestos guttering removal, and asbestos downpipe removal is not in any way capable of being done by a DIY enthusiast. The two-story asbestos roof removal and replacement are one of the most dangerous activities you can undertake in the building construction industry. The amount of safety, knowledge, culture, and practices you have to have in place to be able to do it safely and successfully is just way out of the range of a DIY enthusiast.

Now asbestos roofing, there are about three main types. So, we have asbestos super six that everyone’s fairly familiar with. Then there’s the asbestos standard sheet. So, the standard looks a hell of a lot like corrugated iron, just normal corrugated iron, and then there are asbestos shingles. But they all have one thing in common, when they break down, them when they get to the age where they start to crack and break, they’re just not repairable. Over 25 years of experience, with roofing and dealing with asbestos, I can tell you now I’ve seen, I’ve heard, I’ve heard it all. I’ve seen it all and I’m not convinced that there’s any way to successfully repair a leaky asbestos roof, because one thing is important.

You only want one thing when you’re repairing a leak and that is to stop the leak. Now, if you start putting things over things, spraying things on things, all sorts of ideas that people come up with. It’s only ever going to be temporary, and it’s never going to be a fix. If you’re going to fix a roof leak, you want it to be permanent. So, let’s not worry about all these products and processes that claim to fix asbestos roof leaks. And there’s a number that’s important in this. This roof is 60-plus years old; they are way past so used by day. In Southeast Queensland, they’ve been subjected to hail, the sand, and wind, if they’ve been on the ocean front, there’s salt as well. These things are way past their day.

Nobody should be getting on an asbestos roof unless it’s been removed and replaced. So, at Coastal Asbestos here, we do not repair the asbestos roof. We remove them, that’s it.  I’ve seen people go through asbestos roof sheeting that’s old and brittle. Sometimes you can just stand on it and you can crack a sheet and if you’re going to take that risk and you crack the asbestos roof sheeting on somebody’s house and it creates a leak. You could be up for a whole new roof. So just please don’t do it. It is not worth it. Everything has a timeline and when the asbestos roofs are done, they’re done.

The important things to worry about with asbestos roofs are, that if you have a house with an asbestos roof, it is time to replace it. The best time is now to think about replacing it because it is going to let you down. In the worst-case scenario, if you’ve got an asbestos roof and it leaks, and you’re going to the asbestos ceiling, you are going to have asbestos fibres come through that roof cavity into your home. After all, the thing about asbestos roofs and roof spaces is they’re probably the most heavily contaminated parts of anybody’s house without a doubt because the house is made of timber and most houses are made of timber, nearly all the houses with asbestos cement are all timber. I’d be surprised, maybe a few industrial places shed that don’t. And when these houses move in the wind these sheets are rubbing together like that, and constantly releasing fibres into the ceiling cavity.

So, you don’t want to be crawling around on an asbestos roof. That’s why a lot of solar companies just won’t fit solar to an asbestos roof because it’s time to replace them. Now, a few important things that we get asked about asbestos roof removal. Okay, number one, this is crucial. The whole sealing cavity has to be cleaned out and vacuum and seal encapsulation spray. So if you’ve got cool n cozy, if you’ve just put bats in last week, I’m sorry, they’ve got a go. If you’ve got foil installation, it’s got to go. Cool and cozy, it’s a big problem. It doesn’t have asbestos in it, but because it’s been in the ceiling for that long, and that action of the sheets rubbing in it is now contaminated.

If you’ve got someone coming to your house, telling you they can leave the cool and cozy in, or they can leave the bats in or leave the insulation in, it’s not number one, it’s not to the code. So that makes it illegal and number two, what is the point of removing asbestos from your home, like a roof and leaving a heavily contaminated roof space. It just doesn’t make any sense to us.

So, you’ve got your super six roofs. You’ve got your standard asbestos roofing, and you’ve got the shingles. The shingles, just look like little bits of fibro and they are, they’re probably about 300 mm by 300 mm or whatever it was back in the day, 12 inches by 12 inches and, they just sort of overlap as well. Usually, there is plywood or something under them to support them. The big thing that’s in common, all asbestos roofs have is they’re out of date. They’re going to let you down and it can be catastrophic when they fail. And as a roofer, I can tell you the best time to get your asbestos roof replaced is now and in winter. Don’t wait as everybody else does for the hottest months of the year with storms rolling in every afternoon and go, we should get our roof fixed. You should get your roof fixed before storm season, not during storm season. It just creates all amount of habit, pain and anxiety.

So that’s it for me today. That’s an asbestos roof. That’s what you need to be aware of. You’re going to have guys working at heights, so they have to manage the risk of heights at all times. You’re going to make sure that cavity gets decontaminated. All that insulation, it’s got to go. It’s got to be encapsulated. And like all asbestos removal jobs over 10 square meters, it has to be inspected and a clearance certificate issued. So, if you like this video, there are plenty more of them over on our YouTube page. So just head over there now, that’s it for me for today. Jason, from coastal asbestos.

What should we be aware of? Well, the fact that asbestos creates so many diseases, we can listen through; there’s Mesothelioma, asbestosis, types of lung cancer, types of ovarian cancer, types of esophagus cancer, and it kicks off a lot of things because what the asbestos does is the minute fine particles, they get into the deepest part of your lungs and they get in there and your body just can’t eject them and they hook in, they’re going to create inflammation, which leads to cancers and other debilitating diseases that we spoke of before.

Now, the reason why this happens is because of the dust. Asbestos related diseases are dust related diseases, which makes them totally preventable, a hundred percent preventable, especially now with all the knowledge and all the PPE and the safety culture that we have within industry, it’s readily available, it’s quite cheap and there’s a lot of information on the internet on how to handle asbestos safely, how to transport it safely, where to dump it, you can put all sorts of control measures in place. Like one of our favourite pieces of equipment is we use a negative pressure unit (NPU). What that does is as we’re working, we can create an enclosure and hook up the negative pressure unit. Now, what that does is it changes the air in the work area, and it’ll draw all of the air out of the room while we’re working and pass it through a double HEPA filter that is 99.994 % efficient. This means there’s absolutely no risk of any asbestos fibers coming outside that work area. I love it. It’s not something that we are required to do under the act for the work that we do, but we believe it’s the gold standard for asbestos removal.

And we’re using it a lot more, it is simply the best way to protect you and your family from the dust that’s created from asbestos. Now that dust isn’t pure asbestos, asbestos sheeting and asbestos sheeting products are made of sand, cement, water, and asbestos fibers. When the sheets have broken, the dust from the sand and cement is released also, but also the asbestos. So, there’s no way to tell what you’re breathing in. The best thing is to make sure that you’re wearing PPE, that you make sure, if you can find someone who will use a negative pressure unit, even for a bathroom or a ceiling or any job in your home, it’s the best way to prevent it.

To recap on what we’ve spoken about today, asbestos-related diseases, Mesothelioma, asbestosis, lung cancers, larynx cancers, it’s turned up in ovarian cancers and some sort of kidney cancers as well. A lot of these diseases, there is no cure for, so as always in life, prevention is better than a cure. I can’t stress the importance enough of making sure that if you have any asbestos damage in your home, you call a professional immediately. Or if you’re going to have any asbestos removed in your home, you do not do it yourself and you get professionals involved. I just think it’s just above the scope and the capabilities of a DIY enthusiast. And that’s what they are. You should be enthusiastic about the work that you want to do in your house, but it shouldn’t lead to deadly consequences like asbestos-related diseases. So that’s it for me today. If you like this video, there’s plenty more over at our YouTube channel, Coastal Asbestos removal, and you can catch up on what’s going on with us on Facebook and Instagram.

How much does asbestos testing cost?

Asbestos testing can save you thousands of dollars and may very well save your life asbestos, if left alone and maintained safely, poses no threat to your health. Pre-purchase asbestos testing can save you from getting stuck with an asbestos money pit. Workplace Health and Safety states that “homes built before 1990 may contain asbestos”. And “One in three Australian homes may contain asbestos”. Asbestos has been used for thousands of years for all sorts of things, it could be moulded into shapes, woven into fabrics and asbestos was used in over 3000 products and in the 1920’s it was used in a broad form and made its way into Australian homes twenty years later in the 1240’s.

The basic ingredients of asbestos sheeting found in your home are sand, cement, water and asbestos shards. When mixed together, these ingredients made really strong and flexible water, a fire-resistant product that was lightweight, easy to use, chemically inert and electrically inert. Asbestos was known as the miracle mineral. When these sheets are cut, broken, sanded, water blasted or filed; the asbestos shards break into millions of asbestos fibres. These fibres are so small that they get into the deepest parts of your lungs and cause diseases like mesaphelemonia, asbestosis, and various other cancers with no cures.

Getting suspected asbestos sheeting tested is the only way to know 100% whether you have asbestos. The only way of testing for asbestos that is recognised Australia wide is in a NATA laboratory. This stands for National Accredited Testing Authority Laboratory. This system was developed and is regulated by the OPEC nations to ensure best laboratory practices are followed and a standard of testing procedures used to produce reliable results globally. You can rest assured it is the gold standard in testing for asbestos globally and ensures consistent, reliable results.

All that said, how much does asbestos testing cost?

Obviously, it varies from lab to lab and region to region and whether you DIY ( not recommended) or engage a professional to come to your home safely, harvest a sample and package it up and label it correctly for the high standards required by the NATA laboratory. The price can range from $60.00 to over $350.00 +GST. These prices may contain just one sample or multiple samples. If there are more samples of ten plus, we would negotiate a low rate on request for a total sample package. Contact our office today for a quote.

So what do you get for your money? 

Do it yourself asbestos testing (not recommended)

You can DIY this is the riskiest way and may end up the most expensive basically because, without experience and training, you may be harvesting building products that have never had asbestos used in their manufacture. You also may harvest a sample that is too big or too small for the lab to handle. You will have to spend time and money purchasing the right equipment, protective equipment, packaging materials and learn how to fill out the paperwork correctly so that you get the right paperwork back from the lab. There is a huge risk you may expose yourself to asbestos and contaminate your family home with the method you use to harvest the sample and how you leave the site of the sample once it has been harvested. You also have to hassle of driving the samples to the NATA laboratory yourself because it’s illegal to post asbestos in the mail.

Engaging a professional like Coastal Asbestos.

You get all the benefits of over twenty-five years of experience in the industry that can help you find out if you even have anything in your home that may contain asbestos. Over many years of experience working on thousands of jobs, we have learned that every job is different, and asbestos can be lurking anywhere; you would not believe the places asbestos turns up in family homes. We have complied an eighty-eight point checklist to train our technicians and where asbestos can be lurking in family homes and commercial buildings. We are constantly updating our database of asbestos locations; our skilled technicians can assess asbestos-containing materials for the likelihood of it being friable or non-friable and ensure there is no risk of contamination to the rest of the building.

Asbestos sampling is just like every part of the industry. There is no room for DIY enthusiasts. It’s just not safe. Call our office today. We are constantly traveling around our service area and can usually get there that day.

Asbestos testing is about knowing 100% weather you have Asbestos or not and if you do, knowing weather it is friable or non-friable it can be the difference in thousands of dollars in the costs of removal. This ultimate guide is designed to help you make an informed decision about whether asbestos testing is going to deliver the certainty you need.

Asbestos products have been in use in buildings since the 1800’s mainly for fire proofing in commercial buildings it wasn’t until the 1920’s when the first cement based asbestos products were manufactured in Australia and they found their way into housing construction in the 1940’s

Asbestos was commonly used in the building and construction industry until it’s total ban in 1985 and The Australian Government Department of Health recommends treating any building built before 1990 as suspicious because builders were running out stocks of asbestos sheeting well after the ban.

Asbestos can be lurking anywhere in these homes and with older homes that predate asbestos they quite often have had many renovations during the asbestos era. The good news is we can safely test for Asbestos in a NATA laboratory.

Asbestos testing requires the location and harvesting of a sample of suspected Asbestos. Without knowing the correct safe harvesting method, you can be putting yourself at risk, and many not harvest enough of a sample for testing. It’s definitely not recommended by Coastal Asbestos to attempt such a risky undertaking, especially when we have highly skilled technicians trained in the identification, harvesting and the correct documentation procedures required by the laboratory.

Asbestos testing FAQ

It sounds expensive do I really need it?

The prepurchase stage of buying a home is a great time to get some testing and an audit completed. Asbestos testing can save you from buying an asbestos money pit.

Is it important to get testing done before a renovation?

Most reputable builders will insist on asbestos testing before demo works are carried out because Asbestos can be lurking anywhere in older homes.

A lot of companies online are saying we can post them the results. Is this even legal?

No, it’s illegal to send Asbestos through the post. Australia post classifies Asbestos as a Class 9 Hazardous product, and it cannot be sent by mail. It’s illegal and reckless, and it puts everyone in the postal network at risk.

Can anybody test for Asbestos?

Absolutely not NATA laboratory testing is the only form of asbestos testing recognised in Queensland. All other methods, including handheld infrared analysers, are not recognised by Queensland Health, local councils, courts, reputable asbestos removal companies.

What’s NATA laboratory testing, and how do they test?

The two main methods of testing for Asbestos in A NATA laboratory are.

Polarised light microscopy (PLM)

Dispersion Staining (DS) techniques

NATA stands for National Association of Testing Authorities and has been the leading accreditation for over 70 years. It offers accreditation for many internationally recognised standards and the only way to know if your results have been tested in an accredited lab.

Can I do a sample myself?

There is no safe level of exposure of Asbestos, and untrained persons should never mess with Asbestos.

What can go wrong with asbestos testing?

When testing Asbestos, it’s required that a sample must be removed from a part of a building this often requires breaking the sheet and them sealing it , if you are reckless and damage some friable asbestos sheeting you can release millions of asbestos fibres into your home and if the sheet is not sealed properly after a sample is harvested this remains hazardous ,it’s definitely a job for trained professionals .

How do I get the information?

Because we only use NATA laboratories you will get a certificate of analysis e mailed to you it will show the location of the test and weather it is positive or negative, the type of Asbestos and information on whether it is friable or non-friable.

How long am I going to have to wait for my results?

We can get you same-day results if we can get to the laboratory by noon.

Why choose Coastal Asbestos?

Coastal Asbestos only uses NATA accredited laboratories and is the trusted name in Asbestos on the Gold Coast. Jason Spaull, our director, has over 25 years’ experience with asbestos removal and has been involved in thousands of asbestos removal projects. Coastal Asbestos have even won a Workplace health and safety excellence award and a Gold Coast Business excellence award.

We are the number one professional asbestos company on the Gold Coast that is proud of its track record for excellence. Our mission is to eradicate Asbestos-related disease in Australia. We do this by educating the public and always striving to improve our methods therefore we are the trusted name in Asbestos you have been looking for. We have a 4018 accredited Safety management system.

• We don’t illegally post samples!
• We are highly trained how to safely harvest samples.
• We don’t use unrecognised testing methods.
• We have over 25 years’ experience dealing with Asbestos.
• We have processed thousands of samples.
• We are a multi-award-winning business.
• We are accredited 4018 Safety management system.
• We will supply you with a laboratory certificate of analysis.
• We can give you quotes quickly because we are aware of your needs.