25 Jun Asbestos within air conditioning

Asbestos within air conditioning

Asbestos within air conditioning, air conditioning systems and duct work within buildings & homes can contain asbestos whereby exposure to friable and respirable fibres may occur unknowingly. The first tell-tale sign may be white dust which may contain visible fibres at work or at home. Other hidden asbestos may not be found until disturbance by air conditioning tradesman through upgrades and refurbishments, an asbestos assessor will identify that there may be potential for asbestos to be contained within the air conditioning system.

Asbestos within duct tape

Construction tape ( Duct Tape ) that contained asbestos according to some sources, as much as 80% was usually duct tape used to seal the joints of heating conduits and air conditioning ducts in air conditioning ducted systems. Unlike the silvery-gray duct tape that is used to repair virtually everything these days, asbestos duct tape was usually white. The use of asbestos in duct tape was gradually phased out during the 1980s. However, these materials may still be present in thousands of older homes and buildings constructed prior to that time.

Asbestos Inspections

An asbestos inspection of the building or home should be undertaken with the asbestos register present and available for all people within a building and those tradesman including air conditioning consultants being able to have access to this information. Even today, such building products may still legally contain up to 1% asbestos fiber. Friable (crumbling) duct adhesive should be encapsulated (sealed) or removed by a qualified professional.

Asbestos management plan

Heating ventilation & air conditioning systems are notorious for asbestos exposure due to the many ACMs (Asbestos-Containing Materials) used in this aspect of building construction. Where asbestos is found within the building, an asbestos management plan should outline emergency procedures, what to do and who to contact, along with a risk assessment, asbestos air monitoring plan and asbestos sampling procedures.

For your building, pest, strata, asbestos, mould, ventilation, drainage, safe house inspection requirements call Sarah at East Coast Building Inspections 0422 081 023 servicing Wollongong, Shoalhaven, Southern Highlands, Ulladulla, Sutherland & Eurobodalla