Asbestos Awareness for Tradies: Stop, Check and Protect Yourself

A message for all trades

Electricians, builders, plumbers, roofers, painters, flooring installers and maintenance workers can all come across asbestos during ordinary work. The risk is not limited to asbestos removalists or large demolition sites.

This article does not seek to blame any person, employer or industry. Work practices, training and knowledge have changed over time. The practical lesson today is that tradespeople should be given enough information to recognise possible asbestos and know when to stop work and ask for help.

Where tradies may find asbestos

Buildings constructed or renovated before 2000 may contain asbestos. It cannot be reliably identified just by looking at it, so the building age, location of the material and planned work should all be considered before disturbance.

• Electrical switchboards, meter boards and backing panels
• Soffits, eaves, wall cladding and fibre-cement sheets
• Vinyl flooring, backing and some adhesives
• Roofing, decramastic roof coatings and old roof debris
• Textured ceilings, wall linings and service-duct panels
• Pipe lagging, insulation and asbestos-contaminated dust

Small jobs can still create exposure

A short task such as drilling a hole, cutting a sheet, lifting old flooring or chasing a cable can disturb asbestos fibres. The amount of work may look small, but that does not make an unidentified material safe.

Asbestos-related disease can take decades to develop. Mesothelioma is a serious cancer associated with asbestos exposure. This long delay is one reason a worker may not immediately connect an exposure earlier in their career with illness later in life.

Use a simple stop-and-check approach

Before starting work in an older building, ask whether an asbestos survey, register or laboratory report is available. Check that it covers the exact area and material you will disturb. A general statement that a property is clear is not enough if hidden linings, switchboards or later additions were outside the inspection scope.

• Stop before drilling, cutting, sanding or breaking suspect material
• Keep other people away from the immediate area
• Do not sweep, use a household vacuum or take dusty clothing home
• Tell the person controlling the workplace or property
• Arrange assessment or representative sampling by a competent person
• If material has already been disturbed, stop work and obtain specialist advice before cleaning up

What asbestos awareness training should cover

Awareness training is not removal training and does not authorise a tradie to remove asbestos. Its purpose is to help workers recognise situations where asbestos may be present, understand why exposure matters and follow the correct stop-work and reporting process.

• Common asbestos-containing materials for the worker's trade
• Buildings and work activities where asbestos may be encountered
• How to read an asbestos register or survey report
• Why ordinary masks and uncontrolled power tools are not a solution
• What to do when unexpected material or dust is discovered
• Who to contact and how the work can restart safely

Businesses can plan before sending workers to site

Employers and contracting businesses can include an asbestos question in job planning for older properties. Ask the client for available records, make the work scope clear and ensure workers have authority to stop if the information does not match what they find.

Property owners and main contractors can help by providing relevant asbestos information before work starts and coordinating any survey, sampling or removal needed. Clear information protects everyone and can prevent delays and unexpected costs.

How PropertyHelp can help

PropertyHelp provides asbestos surveys, controlled sampling and licensed Class B removal of suitable non-friable asbestos materials across Auckland and Waikato. We work with electricians, roofers, builders, property managers and homeowners to identify suspect materials before other trades disturb them.

If the material is friable, contaminated with significant asbestos dust or otherwise outside Class B scope, the work must be referred to an appropriately licensed Class A removalist or specialist.