Asbestos in the Home

Asbestos in the Home

What is asbestos? Asbestos is a natural mineral made up of many small fibres. There are three main types; blue, brown and white, all can be harmful. Asbestos has been used for many years in building materials and consumer goods. Materials that were used to resist heat often contain asbestos. If your home is more than 15 years old (1960's to 1980's), it is possible that it contains materials made from asbestos.

• I have an asbestos cement garage at my home and wish to remove it, can I take it down?

At the present time you do not have to employ a licensed asbestos removal contractor to remove asbestos cement sheets/asbestos cement pipe work, although there are still precautions when dealing with any asbestos material.

If you wish to remove asbestos cement sheeting from your property, you should follow the advice the HSE and ourselves have provided on asbestos in the home (opens in a new window) (PDF, 113KB). This advice is given in good faith to help minimise the risk involved in the removal of small quantities of low risk asbestos material and is not intended to be relied on as a safe system of work. Therefore the Council accepts no liability for any loss or damages caused.

• I recently had a burst pipe and it brought down an artex ceiling. I am worried it contains asbestos, what do I do?

The only way to know whether the artex contains asbestos, is to have a sample of the material taken and analysed. If you presume that it is likely to contain asbestos, then follow the steps provided to remove asbestos debris (opens in a new window) on the HSE website. There is a number of guidance notes available for you to follow on the clean up of asbestos.

• I have some asbestos cement sheets that I need to dispose of. Where and how can I get rid of these?

As a householder in the Harrogate District, you can dispose of asbestos cement sheets at the Stonefall
Amenity Site on Wetherby Road. You must, however, ensure that: