An Illawarra house built before the late 1980s may contain asbestos, and a renovation is the point at which it gets disturbed. SafeWork NSW lists flooring, kitchens, bathrooms, roofs, ceilings and walls as the usual places, and says there is no known safe minimum level of exposure. Working out what is in the house before the work starts is cheaper and safer than finding out with a hammer in your hand.
Where does asbestos show up in a renovation?
Most of what turns up is bonded asbestos cement sheeting, which SafeWork NSW says was commonly used in building materials from the 1940s to the late 1980s. In an older Illawarra house that usually means fibro wall and eave lining, the sheet behind old bathroom tiles, the backing on a meter board, and sometimes vinyl floor tiles and the glue under them.
That puts it in the rooms people renovate first. Kitchens, bathrooms and laundries all have wall linings and wet-area sheeting, and an old floor covering often sits over another one. Our knockdown rebuild process post treats anything from the early nineties or older as asbestos until a report says otherwise, and the same rule is a sensible starting point for a renovation.
What is the difference between friable and non-friable asbestos?
Friable asbestos is in powder form or can be crumbled or reduced to powder by hand pressure when dry. Non-friable asbestos, also called bonded, has its fibres held in a bonding compound. Fibro sheeting is the common example of the second kind.
The difference matters because the licensing rules follow it. Bonded sheeting that is intact is the lower risk, and it becomes a hazard when it is cut, drilled, broken or sanded. Friable material is the more dangerous of the two and has the stricter rule.
Can I remove asbestos myself in NSW?
For a small amount of bonded material, yes. A licence is not required to remove non-friable asbestos if the total area does not exceed 10 square metres, and before starting you must read and follow the Code of Practice on how to safely remove asbestos. Any amount of friable asbestos needs a licensed removalist, and so does more than 10 square metres of non-friable material.
SafeWork NSW recommends using a licensed asbestos professional to assess or remove any amount, and we would not talk an owner out of that advice. The detail is on the SafeWork NSW asbestos page, which also covers testing and finding a licensed professional.
How does asbestos change the price and the program?
It adds a line to the budget and, on a larger job, a step to the program. Removal and disposal is its own cost, separate from the kitchen or bathroom work itself, and it depends on how much material there is and what type. Our kitchen renovation cost in NSW post lists asbestos found once the old kitchen comes out as one of the common reasons a budget moves, and the home renovation cost in the Illawarra post makes the same point about older homes.
The order of events decides how much that costs you. If the material is identified before the proposal is written, the removal goes into a fixed price and the program allows for it. If it appears halfway through demolition, work stops in that area until it is dealt with, and the figure is whatever it turns out to be. That is the practical reason to test early.
What to do before the walls come open
Four steps cover most houses, and all of them can happen before a quote is signed.
- Work out the age of the house and which parts have been altered. Original fibro sheets and later linings over the top of them both matter.
- Have suspect materials sampled and tested by a licensed professional rather than judging them by eye.
- Ask your builder how suspected material is handled in the proposal, and who removes it.
- Keep dry sanding, scraping and power-tool work off any material until you have a result.
We price renovations as a fixed-price proposal after seeing the house, which is the right moment to raise any material you are unsure about. Our home renovations page explains how we run a job, and how long a renovation takes covers where a removal step fits in the sequence. Call 0434 037 851 or use the contact page to book a look at the house.
Common questions
- Does my older house have asbestos?
- It may. SafeWork NSW says a home or building built before the late 1980s may contain asbestos, and it was commonly used in flooring, kitchens, bathrooms, roofs, ceilings and walls. The only way to know for a particular material is to have a sample tested, so treat suspect sheeting and old flooring as asbestos until a result says otherwise.
- Can I remove asbestos myself in NSW?
- A licence is not required to remove up to 10 square metres of non-friable (bonded) asbestos in total, but you must follow the Code of Practice on safely removing asbestos. Any amount of friable asbestos, and any non-friable asbestos over 10 square metres, needs a licensed removalist. SafeWork NSW recommends using a licensed professional for any amount.
- What is the difference between friable and non-friable asbestos?
- Friable asbestos is in powder form or can be crumbled or reduced to powder by hand pressure when dry. Non-friable (bonded) asbestos has its fibres held in a bonding compound, which is the form of asbestos cement sheeting. Friable material carries the higher risk and has the stricter licensing rule.
- How does asbestos affect the cost of a renovation?
- Removal and disposal is a separate cost that sits outside the normal renovation scope, and the amount depends on how much material there is and which type. Finding it before work starts lets it go into a fixed-price proposal. Finding it halfway through a demolition stops the job while it is dealt with.
Want a hand with this at your place? Get a free quote or call 0434 037 851.