Asbestos in the ceilings

[LadyGAgain]

Buildings survey booked for next week however surveyor has also recommended an asbestos surveyor as house built in 1978 and has artex so he suspects asbestos. Says will be mega money to remove (£15k) if necessary.

Any advice?

TIA

We have a 1983 house asbestos was mentioned in the survey we have had bits tested( not the artex) all so far have come back negative . Most asbestos is safer left where it is . We have plastered over our artex ceilings as has everyone else on our street . Look at the HSE website lots of good advice on there .

Thank you! Will look now.

We have had lots of fun with asbestos (and not asbestos) in our house. The artex actually didn't contain asbestos. But we had some in some vinyl flooring, some in a loft bathroom ceiling and some in only part of our garage roof. Although we could have left it we got it removed. The small bathroom ceiling did not cost a huge amount, nor did the replastering. As Trumpet said, you can skim over the artex ceiling if your ceiling does contain asbestos but I think it would be wise to inform any subsequent owners, especially if they are doing any changes to lighting and the like. Also as a caveat, we had a ceiling fall down on us recently due to an old leak in the loft bathroom and the ceiling being old lathe and plaster. So personally, I would remove the asbestos to be extra sure. Get in the surveyor. Maybe twice if you buy the house and it is empty (as I recently found more potential hidden stuff 3 years after we had our initial survey) then surveyor can give you a price on removal. If you are rewiring, refurbishing etxlc, chances are you will have a plasterer in anyway to do the ceilings.

Good point about the ceilings falling down but ours would have been a whole house so a massive job . Someone I know had a ceiling fall down they found asbestos was really disruptive and then when they reinstated the ceiling they artexed it again !! They weren't best pleased

Snort. I assume it was an insurance job then!!

No a bad leak they were just hoping that they would at least get one nice smooth ceiling for all the upheaval but were told no the insurance company says they had to replace like with like !!

Yeah insurance is funny like that!! Bet the contractor sniggered at having to do the artex!

asbestos in place is not an issue - in reality asbestos dust has the same issues as diesel fumes and passive smoking (according to WHO). You can remove it yourself if you double bag and identify the waste - much cheaper than a specialist team. Very little danger in a 'one-off' situation with proper safeguards.