Is this asbestos?

TeaPea75

This brown board is on the side of the chimney breast in the kitchen:



It's hidden by a kitchen cabinet and tiled up to where the cabinet starts. You can see it from the outside too, the chimney is plastered for about 6inches and then the board starts, it's painted white:



Is it asbestos? If so what should I do?

Thank you!

lg13mza

it is impossible to tell by sight. How old is the house?

TeaPea75

It was built in 1910 I think. Is this a usual sort of place for a dark brown asbestos board/sheet?

paddyrg

Gosh so much paint in those pics it's hard to tell. But that paint means it's encased, so as long as you get the sheets away without breaking them there's no big issue. You can also use dilute PVA in a spray pump or dabbed on with a sponge.

missbiggles1

Leave it where it is - it's when you start removing asbestos that you get problems.

TeaPea75

Thanks everyone, that sounds reassuring. Do I need to worry that my Dad tiled on top of it? If I leave it should I box it in somehow? The brown bit isn't painted and is in the void between the kitchen cabinet and wall so should I seal it in? I'm not confident about removingt it whole as the cabinet is only a few inches away from it and a bit of wood is covering the gap between the wall and the cabinet, so I don't know if it's attached to the sheet or not.

Ebe_Scrooge

TeaPea75 wrote: »

Do I need to worry that my Dad tiled on top of it?

No, not at all. As previous posters have said, it's perfectly safe as long as it's intact. The problems arise when it breaks, releasing dust and fibres, which then get inhaled.

TeaPea75

BIG relief, thank you.