Could this be asbestos? Ceiling boards

[mickk]

Simpo Two said:

you should have your entire house encased in concrete.

And then send it away to be tested.

[Little Lofty]

Surveyor needs to go back to school or specsavers if he thought that was lath and plaster. It's blatantly obvious it's been overboarded with some type of sheet material, it may well be covering a badly cracked lath and plaster ceiling though. I've seen it done with hardboard and insulation/pin board. It does look like it could contain asbestos so will have to be tested at some point.

[Mercury00]

dirkgently said:

Don`t use a vacuum unless it has a hepa filter, you will just end up with a contaminated room and vacuum cleaner.
OP, The sample you have should be big enough for a lab to test.

How am I supposed to get it off my carpets?? I'm just going to have to burn my house down, aren't I?

I have a few of those circle pieces that I cut out, in case the testers do need a bigger bit.

[roofer]

Simpo Two said:

I misunderstood the severity of this situation. You can never be too careful these days so it's best to be 100% safe. After due consideration and taking into account all the above comments, you should have your entire house encased in concrete.

[andy43]

It's not expensive to get it tested - stop what you're doing and get it done.
They only need a small piece - 5mm is enough - double bag in poly bags and tape closed.
Mop the floor if you need to clear up, keep everything wet - helps keep any dust down.
I got two samples tested recently - £65 the pair. Well worth it for piece of mind.

[Mercury00]

I've arranged a test, they're sending some stuff out to bag up the pieces littering my house.

The ceiling tiles aren't covering anything like damaged lath and plaster, as suggested above. I was working in the loft yesterday feeding wires, it's just the 6mm sheet nailed to the joists.

[Mercury00]

The exact wording of the surveyor's report is "The ceilings are made of a mixture of older plaster supported on thin wooden strips(called 'lath and plaster') and modern plasterboard". That isn't my understanding of lath and plaster.

[dirkgently]

Mercury00 said:

dirkgently said:

Don`t use a vacuum unless it has a hepa filter, you will just end up with a contaminated room and vacuum cleaner.
OP, The sample you have should be big enough for a lab to test.

How am I supposed to get it off my carpets?? I'm just going to have to burn my house down, aren't I?

You could, but you will still be left with the asbestos.

[silvagod]

That surveyor needs to go back to school then.

THIS is Lath and Plaster

[Mercury00]

That's what I thought. The thin wooden strips on my ceiling are only there to cover the joins, they don't support the boards at all, the boards are nailed to the joists. I'd have thought that was obvious considering the nail heads are clearly visible.

[guindilias]

dirkgently said:

You could, but you will still be left with the asbestos.

But if he burns the house down, the asbestos won't burn - so he can be SURE that it was asbestos. Isn't that what insurance companies do these days? If they don't, they should.

[roofer]

The real problem, if it is AIB, it will need removing under controlled conditions, and is notifiable to HSE. Removal co will put a 14 day notification in, full tented removal.

That's if you go the correct route...

[EireEng]

If it does turn out to be asbestos then surely you could go after the surveyor for the difference between the price you paid & the lower price you would have paid had his survey been accurate (i.e. the cost of removal & replacement with plasterboard?)

[SAB888]

Even if it is asbestos, it does not have to be removed. There are HSE guidelines for best practice if you do need to drill into them.

[Mercury00]

I've just heard back that it is asbestos. I'm just wondering if there's any comeback against the surveyor saying it was lath and plaster, I paid top whack for the house.

[Tom_C76]

Mercury00 said:

I've just heard back that it is asbestos. I'm just wondering if there's any comeback against the surveyor saying it was lath and plaster, I paid top whack for the house.

Depends on the conditions of appointment of the surveyor.

[joshcowin]

Left where it is it isn't a problem, when you start drilling and cutting (like you have been) then its a problem.

If you are going to replace the ceiling then I would contact the surveyor and seek a resolution.

Did you pay 'top whack' for the survey or just the basic?

[Mercury00]

I got the middle-tier survey, so he went up into the loft and could see both sides of the ceiling board. The test results said the asbestos was chrysotile, and that I can remove it myself providing I don't cut it. I suppose there's no point worrying about it now that I've already cut it.

[Little Lofty]

It's not the same surveyor that missed the timber roof is it

[Mercury00]

Timber roof? I had rotten floor joists and the floor collapsed, that was another surveyor doing an independent damp surveyor. They must all be fking useless.