I have spent hours trying to find information on how to best drill through asbestos cement relatively safely. There is so much information about the dangers of asbestos and asbestos cement and the often exaggerated risks, but few posts (or information on the internet) on how to actually do it if you really need to drill into asbestos cement panels indoors. We are going to install a used pellet boiler in the old boiler room, and since the plumber basically considers asbestos cement and asbestos completely harmless, I would prefer to do the jobs myself in somewhat controlled conditions.
So, that said. How should I best go about drilling holes for water pipes through asbestos cement panels in the ceiling to avoid dust? What type of drill/hole saw? Above the asbestos cement is wooden planks. It is not possible to remove the asbestos cement panels.
Between the kitchen floor and the boiler room ceiling, there is some kind of insulation that looks like some sort of glass wool. You can see it sticking out behind the gray cardboard/fabric. Is it glass wool or is it unfortunately some sort of asbestos insulation? I probably need to go through this material with the water pipe.
Dust is probably hard to avoid. Whether you are drilling, sanding, or sawing. I would probably have taken a vacuum that you can place with the suction part outside the house. Wearing a mask. And then vacuuming at the same time as I drilled. To make sure the dust goes out of the house. And then when I've finished drilling and attached everything you were going to attach. I would paint the spot where the fibers in the asbestos plate were opened to bind it together and prevent any more fibers from being released.
The best option is probably to rent a vacuum cleaner with the right filter for asbestos dust, it doesn't cost much while you'll have to discard your own vacuum cleaner if you plan to do it your way.
It looks like glass wool in the picture, you should also handle this material with a certain degree of caution.
It's quite far to outdoors, so it's probably difficult to blow out the dust (besides, according to Pherra, the vacuum cleaner would go to hell). But renting a vac if such are available might be wise. Is it a regular industrial vacuum with a HEPA3 filter? I have a half-mask with a P3 filter (or if it's called PS3), approved for asbestos, which I always wear for dusty jobs. Do you think it's otherwise possible to wet it somehow, drill through tape, or something similar to make it less complicated? How does the plumber do it? Shouldn't be entirely uncommon.
It's quite far to the outdoors, so it's probably difficult to blow out the dust (besides, according to Pherra, the vacuum cleaner would be ruined). But renting a suction device if such things exist might be sensible. Is it a regular industrial vacuum cleaner with a HEPA3 filter? I have a half mask with a P3 filter (or whatever it's called PS3), in any case approved for asbestos, which I always wear for dusty jobs. Do you think it's possible to wet in some way, drill through tape, or similar to not make it so complicated? How does the plumber do it? It shouldn't be entirely uncommon.
A plumber does not do such jobs if he's serious!!!!, then he will say that it must be decontaminated/opened correctly with a trained asbestos remover. And if the customer wants to do it themselves (which they are allowed to do), the customer should be able to demonstrate an air test and certificate that the decontamination was performed according to applicable regulations to the craftsman.
and since the plumber basically considers eternit and asbestos to be completely harmless, I would prefer to do the work myself under somewhat controlled conditions.
A plumber is almost never an asbestos specialist, and if your plumber were the exception, he wouldn't have said that, so don't trust your plumber
I seem to have heard somewhere that an employer/craftsman is allowed to drill holes in asbestos-containing material on three occasions within a year if the total time for the work does not exceed one hour.
Maybe it's a myth?
It states there in the Afs about the three occasions in paragraph 11 that no permit is needed.
And in the comments at the end, it says:
"The total working time for drilling holes also includes preparatory work at the site, handling of asbestos-containing waste, and cleaning of the work area afterward. By person-hour is meant the amount of work that can be performed by one person in one hour (60 minutes), or the equivalent, e.g., by two people for 30 minutes each or by four people for 15 minutes each. Even if a permit is not required for the work itself, other regulations in the provisions must be followed."
So it's not just a matter of going ahead because it's infrequent work.
It is entirely possible to drill through asbestos cement without spreading dust. You can spray the intended drill hole with something like shaving foam, tape a piece of duct tape over the foam, and cut a large enough hole in the tape so that the drill fits without the tape sticking to the drill. Prepare the same setup on the other side of the panel you intend to drill through. Then drill. Remove the tape and wipe away the foam and dispose of it as contaminated waste.
The lather tip was smart! Haven't heard of it before. A bit difficult to reach the other side though, for instance, if there are tiles on the ceiling.
Sharp tools that cut large chips dust less than dull ones. That might also be good to consider.
Unfortunately, one can assume that when tiles, pipes, or insulation were once placed, it was done without regard to risk. In all houses that have or have had asbestos-based materials, one can surely assume that in every board joint, nook, or crevice there are asbestos fibers hidden.
Thanks for the shaving foam tip and the insights about glass wool! Now the first step is to remove the glass wool, and if that goes well, I've discovered that it might be possible to drill without doing it in the asbestos. A small asbestos plate next to the existing holes is screwed, and maybe it can be drilled diagonally up to the right place from there. But now there are two options! Thanks for that!
