It can be a homeowner’s worst nightmare – you come home and find out that asbestos has been hidden deep between the walls of your house, probably for at least a decade. For those unfamiliar, asbestos is a particular fibre that’s small, but can be deadly. It’s durable and resistant to all sorts of extraneous factors including fire and chemical reactions. It’s prevalent in today’s society, because it was such a common building material in the 80s and 90s.

Even if your newer home wasn’t constructed with it, many of the other buildings around you may have been. The reason it’s such a four-letter word for many is that it plays a big role in mesothelioma. Mesothelioma is a deadly and rare cancer which can root itself in your heart, in your abdomen or in your lungs. Even though we’ve discussed asbestos at length in posts in the past, it bears reminding how easy a multi-point checklist can be when you’re trying to eradicate this major problem.

1. Know your environment. A surprising one in three homes in Australia is impacted by asbestos.
2. Know when your home was built. The magic year is 1987, so if your home was built before that, there’s probably some abatement that needs to be done.
3. Back away from the DIY. Though it might seem like the smart answer right off of the bat, chances are that the headache and the price tag attached, are not worth it.
4. Prepare yourself. We’re talking gear, hats, masks that protect you from the asbestos. Make sure that you’re totally covered if you’re even in the vicinity of an impacted area.
5. Budget accordingly. It’s not cheap, but it’s worth it. This is not one of those projects that you can afford to skimp on. Left unattended, asbestos can have serious effects on your health, and the price tag associated there can be much more devastating.
6. Time to call in the experts. Now you know that you’re diving into an affected area, you want to ensure that you’re supported by someone who knows what they’re doing. Do your research and read up on referrals. The last thing you want to do is bring in the experts and find out that they don’t have quite as much knowledge as you may have thought.
7. Watch them do their thing. It’s time to step back and leave this work to the professionals. But that doesn’t mean you can’t be educated in their process or the materials that they use. As you know, Restumping Melbourne and the team are firm believers that you should be properly equipped with the know-how and knowledge to take care of things on your own. Whether you want to or not, that’s another question. There are a couple of methods that they’ll leverage including frying.

None of this should scare you. We live in an age where these services are easy to render and professionals are easy to find. Questions? Comments? Give us a shout. The Restumping Melbourne team would love to hear from you.