The age of the house is the first clue. The Government of Western Australia says homes built in the state before the mid 1980s very probably contain asbestos products, and homes built between the mid 1980s and 1990 are likely to. HealthyWA puts it in one line: a home built before 1990 likely has asbestos in some of its building products.
General informationGeneral information from WA’s published guidance and regulations, not advice about any renovation. WorkSafe WA says a competent person with the right training and experience can tell whether asbestos is present in a home.
Asbestos safety
The national Asbestos and Silica Safety and Eradication Agency says it is “not recommended that you handle or remove asbestos yourself”, and in Western Australia the law sets a limit: WorkSafe WA says a homeowner may take out up to 10 square metres of non-friable material from their own home, and must follow strict safety steps in doing it. The national agency adds that a professional makes the job easier, safer and often cheaper. Its rule for the waste: it goes only to a landfill site licensed to take it, and a household rubbish bin can bring a fine.
No safe level of exposure to asbestos exists, WorkSafe WA says. It reserves friable asbestos in any amount, and non-friable asbestos over 10 m², for a licensed asbestos removalist only, and tells homeowners in WA that the waste has to be handled safely, moved properly and delivered to a licensed asbestos disposal facility.
WA’s health advice and the national agency warn against some methods. HealthyWA says high-pressure water and air cannot be used on asbestos products. The national agency warns against cleaning an asbestos cement roof, or any asbestos material, with high-pressure water or anything abrasive, scrubbing and sanding included. For its own state’s homeowners, Queensland’s government asbestos site lists “Saw, sand, scrape or drill holes in asbestos materials” among things not to do.
What the build date suggests
| When it was built | What the source says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Before the mid 1980s | Highly likely to contain asbestos products. | Government of Western Australia |
| Mid 1980s to 1990 | Likely to contain asbestos products. | Government of Western Australia |
| Before 1990 | Flat or corrugated cement sheeting from a building of that age is to be treated as asbestos, if in doubt, until it is shown not to be, and other building products may contain it too. | HealthyWA, on fire-damaged asbestos |
| 1990 or later | WorkSafe’s workplace code of practice notes that newer buildings may still contain recycled or stockpiled materials with asbestos in them. | WorkSafe WA |
For testing, HealthyWA points to the National Association of Testing Authorities, which lists the accredited laboratories that analyse samples for asbestos. A buyer or renter of a pre-1990 house can have the building inspector look for asbestos-containing materials and record them in the report, WorkSafe says.
Behind the linings: the inside of the house
HealthyWA’s list of where asbestos is found inside a home names six places.
- Wall and ceiling panels, especially in kitchens, bathrooms, toilets and laundries.
- Vinyl floor tiles.
- The backing of linoleum flooring.
- The backing behind wall tiles and splashbacks.
- Insulation in stoves, domestic heaters and roof cavities, and around hot water pipes.
- Textured paint, the popcorn ceiling.
Two of those deserve a second look. HealthyWA says the paper backing on linoleum and the textured coatings on older ceilings may contain white asbestos, and that this backing can carry more asbestos fibre than asbestos cement does, more loosely bound and more dangerous. Its strong recommendation for material that is badly damaged, soft or crumbly in the hand is a Class A licensed removal contractor, at any quantity.
What WA law lets an owner do with asbestos cement
HealthyWA sums up the law in three uses. By law, it says, asbestos can only be:
Supplied to someone else to dispose of
Under the environmental regulations.
Repaired or maintained
HealthyWA says a competent tradesperson is best for the work.
Removed in small amounts
For safe disposal.
From the Health (Asbestos) Regulations 1992, as at 29 September 2020
The Regulations behind that summary are more particular, in the copy published as at 29 September 2020. Using an asbestos cement product is an offence under regulation 7(1) unless the person is maintaining or repairing it, removing it to dispose of it under the controlled waste regulations, or has the Chief Health Officer’s prior written approval. One more exception matters in a renovation: a structure, fences included, may be taken apart to work on, under or near it and put back within a reasonable time, so long as the sheets that go back were part of it before and are stable and undamaged. Asbestos cement that was already part of a structure when the Regulations began, and has stayed in the same position since, is outside regulation 7(1). The penalty printed for regulation 7(1) is a fine of $10 000.
Selling or supplying an asbestos cement product is an offence under regulation 6, with a fine of $10 000 printed, and HealthyWA says plainly that asbestos cement products cannot be sold. The exceptions in regulation 6 explain why a house can still change hands: the rule does not catch asbestos cement that is part of a fixture on land when the land is transferred, or part of a dwelling-house that is sold while it is not substantially dismantled. It also allows supply to someone for disposal under the controlled waste regulations.
Moving a house built with asbestos cement
Relocating a whole house has its own regulation, 7A, in the same copy as at 29 September 2020. A dwelling-house built wholly or partly with asbestos cement may be moved in no more than three sections, without the asbestos cement part being substantially dismantled. The Chief Health Officer may approve more sections in writing, with or without conditions, where the house cannot be moved safely otherwise. Cutting or deliberately breaking asbestos cement to move such a house is an offence. An outbuilding that is not an integral part of the house’s structure is not part of the dwelling-house for this rule.
Who may then take the material off, and how much an owner may remove, is in the guide to who may remove asbestos from a WA home. The current text of every regulation quoted here is on the Western Australian Legislation website.