Realising that asbestos is everywhere - is it safe to do any DIY?

[elsmandino]

I have become quite aware of asbestos, recently, and having done quite a lot of research, have realised that it seems to be everywhere.

I had no idea it was in artex and vinyl.

I am now staring to think back of past DIY jobs that I have done in the past - putting up shelves, drilling a new outlet for a tumbledryer etc.

Essentially, I cannot see how anyone can risk doing any DIY without the risk of uncovering something nasty.

What is the best way to educate yourself about all the risks?

Should I look up every single job I intend to do on the net first?

At the moment, I don't fancy doing anything at all, due to all all the scary crap on the net.

 

[EddieM]

I have become quite aware of asbestos, recently, and having done quite a lot of research, have realised that it seems to be everywhere.

I had no idea it was in artex and vinyl.

I am now staring to think back of past DIY jobs that I have done in the past - putting up shelves, drilling a new outlet for a tumbledryer etc.

Essentially, I cannot see how anyone can risk doing any DIY without the risk of uncovering something nasty.

What is the best way to educate yourself about all the risks?

Should I look up every single job I intend to do on the net first?

At the moment, I don't fancy doing anything at all, due to all all the scary crap on the net.

Scary crap on the internet pretty much sums it up.

There is little to no asbestos risk doing the vast majority of DIY jobs.

 

[Deleted member 174758]

The UKATA Asbestos Awareness Course (CBT on the net, generally about £30) is what trades working on larger builds (where the building is prior to 2000) are required to do every 12 months. A householder wishing to inform themselves about asbestos, where to find it and the risks associated with it might do worse than to take the course on-line and also to peruse the UKATA (UK Asbestos Training Association) and HSE (search for "asbestos in the home") web sites for further information. As a DIYer you are far less likely overall to be exposed to major volumes of asbestos than I am as a tradesman, but by educating yourself you should be better placed to.identify potential areas of risk

 

[johnny2007]

God knows how many ceilings with artex i pulled down wearing just a 3m mask....
And how many I drilled through...
Surely it's not healthy but I don't think that one single exposure to asbestos whilst drilling a hole inevitably causes cancer.
All cases I know of have worked with asbestos at length in gone years without proper protection.
Scaremongering is rife now and anyone saying that you'll die if you breath one single fibre is a scammer.

 

[Deleted member 174758]

Two sides to this - in the 1970s I installed copious quantities of Asbestolux fireboarding, often going home covered in white dust from head to toe. We didn't wear masks most if the time, and although I do now have a small amount (<5%) of scarring on the lungs my health is otherwise good. A decorator pal of mine who had never cut or installed or otherwise worked with asbestos in his life died in his late 50s of mesothelioma - probably as a result of dusting off artex walls and ceilings over decades

What is certain is that the level of risk for a tradesperson is far, far higher

 

[SFK]

As a DIYer your highest risk of death is likely to be from falling off ladder. Not asbestos related illness.
SFK

 

[scbk]

Don't forget, exhaust fumes are carcinogenic, that will kill you before the asbestos!