How To Identify Asbestos Roof Tiles

Cut the tile carefully and place it in a plastic container.

How to identify asbestos roof tiles.

The cost of testing a small sample is reasonable. Take the sample to an asbestos testing laboratory. If the tile has less than 1 percent asbestos then the results are negative. This sample needs to be assessed under a microscope which uses polarised light.

Sampling asbestos containing roof tiles. How to be 100 sure if your roof tiles contain asbestos. Try cleaning the tile with soap and water and if the discoloration or oil doesn t seem to come off it may be because it s a tile that contains asphalt and asbestos. Place it in a self sealing polythene bag.

Their width can range from 12 to 48 inches and are very simple to identify since asbestos fibers can be seen on the grained sections of the material. Place this in a second self sealing polythene bag. Asphalt can degrade over time and cause the tiles to appear grimy or have spots of discoloration. Find an inconspicuous area in the roofing and mark a square inch of tile.

Arrange for it to be tested by an ukas accredited asbestos testing laboratory. The asbestos fibers inside slates can only be released when they are broken and this roofing material does not necessarily require removal although many people choose to do it. Identification here can usually be visually identified by the presence of small fibers that is the asbestos roofing material on the end grain or any broken section of the product. To be certain whether a roof tile contains asbestos a sample needs to be analysed by a professional.

If the results show the sample contains less than 1 asbestos the results are deemed negative. Their color ranges between grey light green peachy orange and even purple.