Asbestos is a substance whose exposure is detrimental to human health. In Sydney, this naturally occurring substance is present in many homes constructed between the 1950s and 1980s. Sydney residents are thus at a considerable risk of developing diseases associated with asbestos exposure. That’s why any builder here demands an Asbestos Clearance Certificate before handling a specific site. If your property has traces of this substance, it’s best to search for professional Asbestos Removal in Sydney that carries out the removal process according to the Safe Work Australia Code of Practice, 2011. Read on to know why exposure to this substance is ruinous for your health and where you can find it.
What Is Asbestos and Where Is It Present?
Asbestos is a set of six mineral fibres having fire and chemical-resistant properties. Because of these properties, they were extensively utilized in the manufacturing and building industry. It is a fibrous crystal. Billions of microscopic fibrils make up every one of this mineral’s fibres. If asbestos products are tampered with, people in its proximity are vulnerable to inhaling airborne fibres. It results in asbestos exposure.
Numerous products have asbestos in them. Some of the common ones are joint and patching compound, electrical wire casings, millboard, adhesives and floor tiles. What’s striking is that even an ordinary redbrick house in Sydney that dates before 1987 can contain Asbestos. You can find it on the kitchen wall cladding, in the fibro cement sheets on your shed walls and in your drainage.
What Makes Asbestos Harmful for Health
This substance turns harmful when its fibres become airborne. When a person inhales its fibres unknowingly, they embed in the tissue. It causes scarring over an extended period. It results in various health issues like lung cancer, pleural disorders, malignant mesothelioma, and asbestosis.
You might not experience any symptoms of asbestos exposure for as long as a decade. However, studies reveal that conditions like mesothelioma develop fully in around four decades. In Sydney, 85 per cent of mesothelioma patients are men. In fact, from the years following 2003, 600 malignant mesothelioma cases have been found in this part of Australia.
How to Manage Asbestos in Your Home?
Home improvements in a house with asbestos materials can cause many health concerns. This harmful mineral poses a health risk in the following cases:
- You renovate your home without discovering whether it contains asbestos or not.
- You don’t contact asbestos removal professionals to safely remove it.
- You work with material containing asbestos without having any specialist training in it.
- You work with materials containing Asbestos without protective equipment.
Some things that you can do to minimize the risk are:
- Know where this mineral can be on your premises.
- Connect with a professional asbestos removalist before deciding to go ahead with significant home renovations.
- Plan to minimize the likelihood of disturbing and releasing the harmful fibres of the mineral.
Significant Products That Have Asbestos
This mineral was commonly utilized in various products from the early 1900s. But you can come across various products today too that get produced with low levels of asbestos. These include construction materials, automotive components, and insulation. Workers who regularly perform maintenance tasks on equipment and machinery are at a huge risk of asbestos exposure. Firefighters are also prone to it.
When you don’t disturb products with this harmful substance, you’ll not be at risk of immediate danger. But if you plan to buy a property or house in Sydney, you need to be very careful. Contact a reliable and affordable service providing Asbestos Removal in Sydney whose experts can deal with asbestos-related jobs of varying complexities. You will gain the peace of mind of living in a home devoid of health concerns.