Information for householders and renovators
Materials containing asbestos were used in many homes before they were banned from use in Queensland in 1990.
Asbestos was typically used in fibro roofs, walls and soffits. In many houses fibro was also used internally for wet areas such as kitchens, bathrooms and laundries. Asbestos cement can also be found in flat sheets, profiled sheets, corrugated sheets, shingles, compressed sheets, rigid board insulation and building products such as pipes and guttering.
Second hand materials or products containing asbestos can also have been installed or used after asbestos was banned and may be found in newer homes.
An extensive list of examples of asbestos-containing materials is available in Appendix A of the asbestos management code (non-Queensland Government link).
It is often very difficult to identify the presence of asbestos by sight. The only way to be certain is to have a sample of the material analysed by a laboratory.
Sampling of anything you suspect may contain asbestos is itself hazardous and should only be done by a competent person, and analysed only in accredited laboratories.
More information on identifying asbestos and where this can be done is available from the National Association of Testing Authorities (NATA) (non-Queensland Government link).
Householders and renovators can manage the risks of asbestos by:
- being aware of what asbestos is and where it can be found
- having suspect materials tested (by a competent person) or by treating suspect materials as if they contain asbestos
- being aware of the responsibilities of clients (which can include householders and renovators) and the responsibilities of asbestos removalists under the asbestos removal code
- ensuring that work removing any amount of friable asbestos is done by a certified asbestos removalist (holding either a current licence for asbestos removal work issued between 1 February 2002 and 31 December 2005 or an 'A' class licence for asbestos removal work issued from 1 January 2006)
- ensuring that from 1 July 2006 removal of 10m2 or more of bonded asbestos is done by a certified removalist (holder of a ‘B’ class licence)
- ensuring that removal of less than 10m2 of bonded asbestos is done as described in the asbestos removal code
- ensuring that any work done with bonded asbestos is done as described in the asbestos management code.
More on removing asbestos
More on working safely with asbestos
Last updated April 21, 2006