Sutton Housing Partnership -

Asbestos has been widely used in the past to provide heat resistance and insulation within buildings. This leaflet addresses concerns and questions about asbestos in your home. It answers the following:

• What is asbestos?
• Why was asbestos used?
• Should I worry about asbestos?
• Where might it be found?
• How can I improve my home safely?
• How can I safely dispose of asbestos waste?
• Some Do’s and Don’ts
• Who should I contact for more information?

What is asbestos?
It is a natural substance found and mined from rock throughout the world. It formed around the same time as coal, oil and natural gas.

Why was asbestos used?
Asbestos fibres are strong; they are resistant to heat and chemicals. It is these properties that led to asbestos being used in a range of building materials, often as fireproofing.

Should I worry about asbestos?
Asbestos poses no risk to health unless it is damaged or disturbed and releases dust and fibres into the air. If your home is less than 25 years old, it is unlikely to contain asbestos. Houses and flats built and refurbished between 1930 and 1980 are likely to contain materials made from asbestos. If your home is over 75 years old, it may contain
asbestos. Asbestos was also used in some household products (such
as oven gloves and ironing boards) but its use decreased greatly from the mid 1980’s and has been banned in most products since 1993.
Because asbestos was used so widely, there are low levels of fibres in the air everywhere. It is only when there is an increase in the release of asbestos fibres that the risk to health increases.

Where might it be found?
The most common locations of asbestos are:

• Asbestos cement garage or shed wall panels or roof coverings
• Asbestos cement drainpipes
• Asbestos cement or insulation board soffits, infill panels and partitions
• Asbestos cement bath panels
• Asbestos insulation boarding behind kitchen unit doors
• Asbestos boarding in service ducts or pipe work boxing
• Decorative Artex or textured coatings and paints applied to walls and ceilings
• Plastic floor tiles and cushion flooring
• Fire doors

These materials are not dangerous as long as they are in good condition. We have taken steps to make sure that tenants, members of the public, council employees and our contractors are protected from exposure to asbestos dust. We may take action if asbestos is found in your home, depending on the type, location and condition of the asbestos. Before we take action we will inspect the property.
We may take samples to find out whether asbestos is present. If asbestos is found but there is no damage to it we may leave it alone and monitor it. In some cases, we may take action to secure or seal the asbestos to prevent any dust or fibres from escaping into the atmosphere. Or, we may decide that we need to remove the asbestos – we will tell you how this will take place.

Where you mey find Asbestos

How can I improve my home safely?
If you have asbestos materials in your home, extra care should be taken when doing any DIY.

• DO NOT attempt any work involving sprayed asbestos, asbestos lagging or asbestos insulating boards. A licensed contractor MUST undertake work involving these materials. If you do any DIY work involving asbestos materials, take the following precautions:
• DO - Keep other people away from the area of work.
• DO - Protect the area around where you are working with disposable plastic sheets.
• DO - Wear protective clothing such as overalls (preferably disposable ones), with a hood; wear disposable gloves.
• DO - Keep asbestos materials damp to avoid producing dust – use a plant sprayer to spray the surfaces to be worked on. Try to avoid soaking the area as this will make cleaning up more difficult.
• DO - Try to work outside. Avoid working overhead.
• DO - Use hand tools rather than power tools to keep the dust produced to a minimum.
• DO NOT - Breath in asbestos dust – wear a disposable mask (marked ‘CE’ to EN 149 with FFP2 particulate filters is recommended).
• DO NOT - drill, cut or disturb asbestos unless absolutely necessary covering over existing decorations rather than attempting to remove them. Some types of asbestos materials are very soft and can release
large numbers of fibres if rubbed or scraped.
• DO NOT - use a domestic vacuum cleaner to clear up the dust. Hire an industrial vacuum cleaner that conforms to BS 5415 (Type H).
• DO - Clean up and then remove the overalls carefully to avoid raising any dust that may have collected in the fabric, when you have finished work. If the overalls are disposable, double bag them and clearly mark the bag with “ASBESTOS WASTE”. Wash non disposable overalls immediately, separate from other items of laundry, in a washing machine.
• DO - Wash hands and face thoroughly.

How can I safely dispose of asbestos materials?
• Wet small amounts of asbestos waste and double seal it in strong plastic bags. These should be sealed tightly and clearly marked “ASBESTOS WASTE”.
• DO NOT break up asbestos cement sheets. These do not need to be sealed in bags, but should be wrapped in polythene or similar sheeting. Seal the edges with tape.
• DO NOT put asbestos waste in the wheelie bins as general waste. If you have removed asbestos from your home yourself, it will need to be disposed of separately from your normal household waste.
• Tenants are able to dispose of asbestos waste free of charge – please contact Customer Services on free phone 0800 195 5552 for details.

Some Do’s and Don’ts
• DON’T panic if you think you may have asbestos in your home. It is only a risk to health if it is damaged or disturbed.
• DON’T drill, sand, saw or disturb materials that contain asbestos.
• DON’T try to remove large areas of asbestos materials – they need to be removed by a specialist contractor.
• DO treat asbestos with respect.
• DO seek advice if you think you have a problem with asbestos in your home.

If you have any queries regarding Asbestos, please
contact Customer Services on free phone: 0800 195 5552 8am to 5pm, Monday to Friday
or e-mail: customerservices@suttonhousingpartnership.org.uk

Link to London Borough of Sutton website

Sutton Housing Partnership Limited - Registered Office: Sutton Gate 1 Carshalton Road Sutton Surrey SM1 4LE

e-mail:customerservices@suttonhousingpartnership.org.uk - Freephone: 0800 195 5552 - Fax: 0208 915 2238

registered in England and Wales - Registered No. 05589014

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