The house we want to buy 'may' have asbestos

beckstrous

Hi guys,
I am looking for some advice, please. My husband and I are looking to buy our second house and have found a bungalow in a perfect location that we've pretty much fallen in love with. Our offer was accepted about a month ago, and we have a mortgage offer too. The survey has just come back and it's pretty much okay (as in there's nothing terribly dreadful!), apart from one thing which is worrying me.
Some of the rooms have artex ceilings and the survey says "with regard to artex, this material occasionally incorporates an element of asbestos fibres and thus ideally should not be cut or damaged without previously taking further advice".
Elsewhere in the report it says (in the section about thermal insulation): "Asbestos materials were sometimes used in houses of this age. Whilst we did not find any of this material it is possible that it may exist in areas which were hidden from view. If any asbestos is found subsequently you should be aware that it would require removal by a specialist".
I don't know if this is just the surveyor covering their back but I would under no circumstances want any risk to our health...
As I said, we do love the house and have already invested about £1000 in it (survey and mortgage fees etc), but I want to make sure it is safe. It was built in the 1930s. We're in the Surrey area...
I would be very grateful for any advice on the right questions to ask either my solicitor or the vendor.
Thank you

Anew

I would guess that a further investment from a specialist to carry out an extended survey would be your best option. Better safe than sorry, if they find any traces you can factor in costs for removal, if they find none then there's your peace of mind.

No idea on costs, but a couple of hundred quid either way has got to be worth it....

violettasomerset

Asbestos is not a risk while it is in good condition with no damage. If it is damanged so that the fibres can get airborne then you may need to worry more, but if it isn't damaged then it won't be a problem for your health. If you did want to make any changes, then depending on what type of asbestos it was, you might need to get a specialist to remove it, but if it is small intact pieces you could take it to the tip yourself (wrap it and put it in the designated bin). If you needed to drill into the ceilings (e.g. to put new lights up) you might want to be careful.

We were told we might have asbestos in our garage roof and loft (lid to the water tank) but we weren't worried by it, as they are in good condition. the plumber wasn't bothered about it either when we had the tank removed.

See if you can find out from the present owners when the artex was put up, that might give you some idea of whether it was likely to include it. Your council might have more information too, or be able to offer a testing service.

keith969

Asbestos in a house like that is only going to be a health risk if you start disturbing it. So as they say, if you started sanding your artex ceilings it would be worth getting proper advice first.

I'd be more worried about the health risks from lead paint, which was used until the 40's or 50's.