Asbestos Cement

In asbestos cement products asbestos fibres are added to cement to form a very strong and resilient building material. Asbestos cement is also particularly useful because it can be moulded and thus used to create a range of products that include rainwater goods and profile roofing sheets.

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Asbestos cement usually contains the lower risk Chrysotile (white) asbestos fibres. That said it is often worth having a sample analysed to determine whether the higher risk Amosite (brown) or Crocidolite (blue) asbestos fibres are present.

Asbesto cement is hard to break or damage and will therefore rarely release any dangerous fibres unless sanded or broken and is generally regarded as a low risk material and can be removed by non-licensed contractors. If you intend to remove asbestos cement yourself  you should take adequate care to protect yourself by wearing disposable coveralls and suitable face masks (we recommend P3).

Asbestos cement roof sheets

Perhaps the best known asbestos containing material - asbestos cement roofing sheeting - can commonly be seen on shed and warehouse roofs in every town in the UK. The presence of asbestos is often indicated by mosses and algaes which grow on this natural mineral. Profiled asbestos cement roof sheeting's significant use can be put down to its ilght weight, durability, weather resistance and low cost. Its a testament to the material that it can still be seen on just about every industrial estate in the UK to this day.

There are still many millions of tonnes of asbestos cement roof sheets in-situ and that is likely to remain the case because this product poses little risk to the public unless badly damaged. If you do wish to remove it there are many commercial organisations that specialise in the removal of cement.

Asbestos cement guttering and asbestos cement pipes

Asbestos cement rainwater products (which include asbestos guttering and asbestos drainage pipes) were used extensively up until the 1990's. Asbestos cement is resistant to most acids and alkalis making it perfect for transporting rain water from your roof to your storm drain. Other asbestos cement goods also include asbestos water tanks,  asbestos conduits, asbestos window boxes and asbestos sewer pipes.

Asbestos flue pipes are also common because of its additional thermal resistance properties.

Asbestos cement board

Asbestos cement board was commonly used in properties built in the 50's and 60's when it was commonly used for panelling in studded partitions, ceilings, soffits and bathrooms.

Asbestos flashguards

A very common use of asbestos cement is as a flashguard, linings to electrical goods that protect the object from sparks and electrical current. These are very common in electrical switchgear, fuseboxes, fuses and transformers. As with all cement products the risk of fibre release is low unless the product is damaged.

Got a trade name? You can find a comprehensive list of asbestos trade names here.