asbestos in isolators

[700mb]

hey its my first post on hear, im a 21 year old electrician just finished my nvq level 3 and looking forward to jib grading

started on a new job this week, its a rip out on a old office block thats geting turned in to flats. there is a switch room that the feeds for eatch floor. all the cables have been pulled out and im going to start on pulling the switch gear out tomorrow.

the problem is the asbestos in the old isolators and a big contactor. whats the best method of dealing with removing this crap other than getting asbestos removal contractor in or refusing to go near the stuff.

 

[RF Lighting]

Thats all you can do really. If it is a big site then chances are they will be mega H&S keen. In reality, providing you do not disturb the asbestos (I'm assuming asbestos flash pads in ceramic fuse holders) then there will be very little risk, and if you can leave the fuses in the holders then even better, but you still need to dispose of the stuff properly.

 

[JohnD]

whiskery old asbestos does tend to shed fibres. I'm thinking of those woven fabric pads.

Round here we used to have a lot of asbestosis, but after the shipyard workers died (from working with it), and their wives died (from washing their overalls) and their children died (from sitting on dad's knee while he scratched his head) and the people who lived near the yards died (from wind-borne fibres) and the neighbours died (from fibres escaping from washing on the line) we have very few cases now.

You might be lucky but I wouldn't touch it with a bargepole.

 

[700mb]

yes there asbestos flash pads in fuse holders. the contactor looks like its mostly asbestos as well il take a photo tomoro but it will be geting taken out tomoro either way.

not to sure on how to dispose of the stuff im sure my boss will just say throw it in the skip

 

[JohnD]

Grrrrrrrrr.

 

[JohnD]

At the very least buy yourself a mask or respirator, and cover your hair and clothes so you don't carry the fibres with you.

Wipe up dust with a damp sponge and put it in a poly bag so it doesn't dry up and release fibres.

 

[ricicle]

Mix up a little PVA and water into a spray bottle.Spray this onto any small amounts of asbestos you might need to disturb.This goes a long way to keeping all the fibres together and not airborne.

 

[700mb]

think i might give that a try ricle then screw the covers up and use a disc cutter to remove the unistut that they are fixed to. thanks

 

[Cremeegg]

As previous posters have said - this is very likely to be old and whiskery asbestos. PVC spray is great for damping down and sealing short term - or a can of hair lacquer. Spray it and cut the isolator out whole; double bag it and dispose of as asbestos waste. Disposal may cost but done this way the asbestos isn't being disturbed as it's within a much larger item.

Treat with care - too many have died from repeated low level exposure - sparkies especially.

 

[RF Lighting]

For those who don't know what they're looking for:

 

[Cremeegg]

Great picture as usual - where did you find one that clean?

 

[RF Lighting]

Same place as all these

The bin store next door has been torched by smackheads a few years back and there is plenty of smoke damage in the top half of the switchroom. Good quality MEM isolators seal up quite well to keep their innards like this over 20 years after they were installed

 

[EdwardCurrent]

Hello,

If we are to uphold our standards here then surely the thing to do is ;

Tell your boss that asbestos is present and you are not permitted to disturb or dispose of it yourself. It is his responsibility to do so.

Maybe it doesn't or wont out work that way, but why take any risks ??

Is it worth it ??


Ed.

 

[Pensdown]

I have to agree with the other posts. We have a "don't touch" policy because some people are susceptible to just one fibre (unlike passive smoking) which would spoil their retirement. Unless you know that you're not that person it's not worth the risk. As RF has said, if it's a CDM project there will be a process in the Health & Safety File for dealing with all asbestos products and you should follow it.

And don't just assume your boss will just tell you to throw it away, he probably won't.

 

[700mb]

we took the switch gear out yesterday and went for brake, while we were having some food some gipsiys came on to site and nicked a load of scrap steel and about 10 of the isolators.

does that count as safe removal?