Asbestos Roof Removal - Enhancing Your Home Safety

Asbestos has been used in the manufacture of various materials for a very long time. Houses which were built before 1990 are likely to have asbestos since it was very popular in construction. The material was well liked because it is fire resistant, strong and can be used for insulation.

Asbestos in the home is likely to be found in cement sheeting used on floors, walls, and ceilings. It can also be found in corrugated roof and wall sheeting. If you discover that the material in your roof contains asbestos, you should contact a removalist to carry out safe asbestos roof removal from your home.

Asbestos In Roofs

Asbestos was a popular choice for making roofing materials because it is not only resistant to fire but is also a good insulator which are qualities that are required in roofing material. A variety of roofing material including cement roofing, roofing shingles, and roofing felt all had a percentage of asbestos. However, due to the health risks that are associated with asbestos, the manufacture of these products was stopped.

As long as your home was build before the '90s, it is possible that your roof is made from the asbestos material. You should, therefore, ensure that you do not disturb the asbestos in any way. You can decide to have the material tested to check whether it contains asbestos. This can be done by contacting a laboratory which will test the material and give you the results. You can then contact a removalist to conduct asbestos roof removal safely from your premises.

Asbestos Risks

Asbestos can cause a health risk once the fibers are released into the air and breathed in. The fibers get into the lining of the lungs and remain there for your whole life. There are several factors that determine whether the fibers breathed in will lead to a respiratory disease. The time that has elapsed since you were first exposed to asbestos fibers and how long you were exposed can affect whether you will get sick.

Other factors include the type of fibers you were exposed to and parallel exposure to smoke from tobacco. Asbestos-related diseases include asbestosis, lung cancer, pleural plaques, and mesothelioma.

Roof Removal

Roofs that are made from asbestos cement sheeting usually become fragile with time and can easily crumble. Any asbestos roof removal should, therefore, be carried out in a way that takes care of the risk of falling. Workers should be given footwear that has a good grip and the use of water should be properly managed. When removing the anchoring bolts and screws from the roofing sheets, an oxy torch should be used to ensure that the sheets are not damaged and fibers are not released.

Angle grinders should be avoided as they have the potential of damaging the sheets and releasing fibers. Walking on the roof to remove the sheets should be a last resort. If this has to be done, the roof should be sprayed with a PVA solution and allowed to dry before taking down the sheets. The methods used to lower the sheets should minimize the production of dust. They can be lowered using scaffolds, scissor lifts or even by hand if it is over a short distance.

Comments? Questions? Email Here

© HowtoAdvice.com

How to Advice .com