Asbestos in ceiling?

[Beansbaked]

Hi, we live in a ex council house built late 1940-1950s. It has a coal shed/ toilet built on the side. The roof is flat, there’s no corrugated sheeting. The roofs been leaking and a huge part of the ceiling fell away It left behind what looked like a mortar mix and a metal grid. There was some visible white “hairs” about an inch long, almost like cat hair. The leak and the ceilings been fixed but since googling I’m wondering if it was likely to have contained asbestos in the mortar mix? I’m really worried as we did this ourselves as a diy project. I know it was a stupid idea.

[Conor]

Only way to know is to get a sample tested. Plenty of companies offering that service. May as well do it and know for next time. But if it's all now sealed / covered up, then there is no point going back in at this stage.

[Beansbaked]

Thank you, a builder came out last week and re boarded and plastered it. I’m worrying myself sick over it though I know there’s nothing that can be done

[Conor]

Unless you were face into it with a grinder, drill etc with dust flying everywhere, there's almost no risk.

[Beansbaked]

5 hours ago, Conor said:

Unless you were face into it with a grinder, drill etc with dust flying everywhere, there's almost no risk.

Thank you for your reply. Unfortunately once the first part fell away we used a hammer to break more away thinking it would be easier to fix with it all gone. No masks just 2 very silly people. Took about an hour and a half all together. There wasn’t a huge amount of dust in the room no where near what you would get drilling or grinding. It was quite gritty which made me call it a mortar but maybe I’ve even got that wrong 
 

[Stewpot]

I'd say for sure this is animal hair in the plaster undercoat. Probably a sand and lime mix, which would have been quite coarse. Horse hair was often added into old plaster and render mixes to stop it cracking. Sometimes other animal hair was used - cow, goat, dog or even llama, apparently. An inch long would be the ideal length.

 

[Beansbaked]

11 minutes ago, Stewpot said:

I'd say for sure this is animal hair in the plaster undercoat. Probably a sand and lime mix, which would have been quite coarse. Horse hair was often added into old plaster and render mixes to stop it cracking. Sometimes other animal hair was used - cow, goat, dog or even llama, apparently. An inch long would be the ideal length.

 

Thank you for your reply. Where the plaster/mortar or whatever it is split I could see the white hairs. They didn’t look clumped together like I would expect them to be they looked like single hairs which makes me think more it’s asbestos. 

[Stewpot]

The animal hair would be teased apart before adding to the mix. I don't think asbestos fibres are anything like that long - more like microns (thousandths of a millimeter), which is why they float about unseen in the air.

[Beansbaked]

40 minutes ago, Stewpot said:

The animal hair would be teased apart before adding to the mix. I don't think asbestos fibres are anything like that long - more like microns (thousandths of a millimeter), which is why they float about unseen in the air.

Thanks again for your reply. I also read about asbestos fibres being so small you couldn’t see them but in my search today I read it can be seen in the edges of plaster, which has send me completely spiralling about it. I feel sorry for my poor husband. I know without testing we can’t be sure but I was hoping people who work with this daily might be able to ease my worries a little. 
 

The identical house next door had this area made into a wet room about 10 years ago through the nhs and nothing was mentioned about asbestos that we know of. They would have had new lights put in I wonder if their builders would have found it or would they not have taken as much of the ceiling down as we did 

Edited yesterday at 19:26 by Beansbaked

[Stewpot]

https://asbestos-testing.org.uk/#Buy Now

 

Other options available elsewhere

[Beansbaked]

6 hours ago, Stewpot said:

The animal hair would be teased apart before adding to the mix. I don't think asbestos fibres are anything like that long - more like microns (thousandths of a millimeter), which is why they float about unseen in the air.

Thanks again for your reply. I also read about asbestos fibres being so small you couldn’t see them but in my search today I read it can be seen in the edges of plaster. I know without testing we can’t be sure but I was hoping people who work with this daily might be able to ease my worries a little. 
 

The identical house next door had this area made into a wet room about 10 years ago through the nhs and nothing was mentioned about asbestos that we know of. They would have had new lights put in I wonder if their builders would have found it or would they not have taken as much of the ceiling down as we did 

 

Edited 20 hours ago by Beansbaked

[Beansbaked]

5 hours ago, Stewpot said:

https://asbestos-testing.org.uk/#Buy Now

 

Other options available elsewhere

 Thank you 

[Redbeard]

22 hours ago, Beansbaked said:

Thank you, a builder came out last week and re boarded and plastered it. I’m worrying myself sick over it though I know there’s nothing that can be done

 

Cut out a small section having sprayed it with shaving foam*, then as the board comes away, spray liberally with water, take sample, send off, box up.

 

I, too, have never seen asbestos fibres as long hairs. I suspect you will find those are from an animal, but until you know it is unlikely to stop you worrying. I have been in this position. Expose a little of the offending material - ever-so-carefully, as explained - send off a sample and get clarity.

 

* The shaving foam is not as ridiculous as it sounds. HSE do, or at least used to (I have not checked lately) have it as a way of containing fibres, particularly for suspected asbestos cement soffits.

[Beansbaked]

1 hour ago, Redbeard said:

 

Cut out a small section having sprayed it with shaving foam*, then as the board comes away, spray liberally with water, take sample, send off, box up.

 

I, too, have never seen asbestos fibres as long hairs. I suspect you will find those are from an animal, but until you know it is unlikely to stop you worrying. I have been in this position. Expose a little of the offending material - ever-so-carefully, as explained - send off a sample and get clarity.

 

* The shaving foam is not as ridiculous as it sounds. HSE do, or at least used to (I have not checked lately) have it as a way of containing fibres, particularly for suspected asbestos cement soffits.

Thank you for your reply. I’m going to get a sample sent off. I’m so worried about it at least once I know I can deal with it either way 

[Redbeard]

30 minutes ago, Beansbaked said:

Thank you for your reply. I’m going to get a sample sent off. I’m so worried about it at least once I know I can deal with it either way 

 

Check the HSE guidance before you take the sample.

[Beansbaked]

54 minutes ago, Redbeard said:

 

Check the HSE guidance before you take the sample.

I will do, thank you. Have you come across it like this before? 

[Redbeard]

27 minutes ago, Beansbaked said:

Have you come across it like this before? 

 

Do you mean asbestos fibres as 'long hairs'? If so, no. I am not, definitely not, an asbestos expert; just someone who is unlucky enough to have encountered it quite often in the course of my work.

 

Don't forget the PPE when you take your sample!

Edited 8 hours ago by Redbeard

[saveasteading]

18 hours ago, Beansbaked said:

just 2 very silly people

Not at all.

As @Conorsays your exposure has been very low or zero.

 

And for an example, I was a professional in the industry for 20 years before I found out that most vinyl tiles had asbestos....and we have all walked over them.

 

1. I've not heard of this use in mortar.

2. It will have come out in lumps, and dust will be sand or cement. As you have seen the fibres you know they are big fibres, not dust. They are lijely yo be hemp or some such.

3. If there was any exposure it was then, and finished. Exposing it again isn't worthwhile.

 

Relax. 

[Beansbaked]

40 minutes ago, Redbeard said:

 

Do you mean asbestos fibres as 'long hairs'? If so, no. I am not, definitely not, an asbestos expert; just someone who is unlucky enough to have encountered it quite often in the course of my work.

 

Don't forget the PPE when you take your sample!

Sorry I meant have to come across it in mortar before? 

[Beansbaked]

25 minutes ago, saveasteading said:

Not at all.

As @Conorsays your exposure has been very low or zero.

 

And for an example, I was a professional in the industry for 20 years before I found out that most vinyl tiles had asbestos....and we have all walked over them.

 

1. I've not heard of this use in mortar.

2. It will have come out in lumps, and dust will be sand or cement. As you have seen the fibres you know they are big fibres, not dust. They are lijely yo be hemp or some such.

3. If there was any exposure it was then, and finished. Exposing it again isn't worthwhile.

 

Relax. 

Thank you for your reply. The area that we exposed was probably 4x6 so quite a lot. I was reading how tiny asbestos fibres are earlier (more research driving myself mad) so potentially there could have been millions

[saveasteading]

But you saw big fibres. If the fibres are there to hold mortar together then they were still doing that, not flying free.

 

The Internet will exaggerate the risk . The number of cases in construction is very low.

It's real, and you could better have wetted it and worn masks, but now relax.

 

A professional risk assessment would advise that the risk is small, now totally closed off, and ig wiuld be best not to expose it again unnecessarily. 

Not to be confused with someone who fancies the opportunity.

[Redbeard]

1 hour ago, Beansbaked said:

Sorry I meant have to come across it in mortar before? 

 

No. I have had a couple of situations where (I cannot remember quite why) I was a little suspicious, and had a sample tested to be on the safe side, but NADIS (no asbestos detected in sample) was the answer.

[saveasteading]

To give you more assurance.

I've worked with so called asbestos roofs a lot. They are actually 98% cement. The fibres are not visible. 

The only recognised risk is if drilling or grinding and you weren't doing that.

We  had HSE inspections and never the slightest telling off.

 

I've just looked online. Horsehair or flax look likeliest. Asbestos fibres would have been invisible.

The only worrying info is from businesses trying to worry you. Which it seems they have done.

 

So unless you are allergic to horsehair?

 

 

[Beansbaked]

1 hour ago, Redbeard said:

 

No. I have had a couple of situations where (I cannot remember quite why) I was a little suspicious, and had a sample tested to be on the safe side, but NADIS (no asbestos detected in sample) was the answer.

Thank you for your reassurance 

[Beansbaked]

22 minutes ago, saveasteading said:

To give you more assurance.

I've worked with so called asbestos roofs a lot. They are actually 98% cement. The fibres are not visible. 

The only recognised risk is if drilling or grinding and you weren't doing that.

We  had HSE inspections and never the slightest telling off.

 

I've just looked online. Horsehair or flax look likeliest. Asbestos fibres would have been invisible.

The only worrying info is from businesses trying to worry you. Which it seems they have done.

 

So unless you are allergic to horsehair?

 

 

Thank you for your replies. No allergies to horsehair thankfully just a silly lady who thinks she’s capable of more DIY than she really is!