The neighbor is tearing down an asbestos cement roof!

[frityreldarn]

The thing is that it's his obligation not to harm others. He can harm himself as much as he wants but he should make sure not to harm others. Just like I don't drive 100km/h past a kindergarten.

In this particular case, maybe he's done as best as he could and the risk is minimal. But I would have liked him to inform us about his plans. That's what I would do if, for example, I were to fell a tree 5 meters from his house.

What's done is done

I think he's done incredibly much better than most by lifting the pallet as high as possible, gently taking them loose, letting them slide down to the pallet. Your comparison with felling a tree 5 meters from the house, yes, if it's a novice felling the tree, one can demand they notify beforehand. Here it feels like a comparison with someone who works as a tree-feller who before felling has fastened 3 wires so it can't fall over the neighbor's house.

 

[Stuff]

The point is that it is his duty not to harm others. He can harm himself as much as he wants, but he should make sure not to harm others. In the same way that I don't drive 100km/h past a kindergarten.

In this particular case, maybe he has done the best he could and the risk is minimal. But I would have liked him to inform us of his plans. That's what I would do if, for example, I was going to cut down a tree 5 meters from his house.

What's done is done

You are entitled to your opinion. I would also have talked to the neighbor if I were going to cut down a tree 5 m from his house, but I would never think to inform neighbors 80 m away if I'm going to take down an asbestos roof. I see that as an unreasonable/unnecessary effort.

 

[framtand84]

Wow, what threads you've created TS, 15 of them about asbestos and eternit in various stages of panic. Seriously, calm down, you can't live your life with asbestos anxiety every time you hang a picture.

 

[Stuff]

My goodness, what threads you have created TS, 15 of them about asbestos and eternit in various stages of panic. So calm down, you can't live your life like that, having asbestos anxiety every time you're going to hang a picture.

I agree! Think about your blood pressure TS. Also, remember that adults often transfer their fears to their children.

 

[Zigge_81]

Good answer! This is what I'm looking for. Facts from (albeit via intermediaries) professionals in a similar situation.

Hi, I have worked as an asbestos remover for 12 years and the threshold for needing protection we've had is about 10 meters from the breaking point of the eternite.

 

[Demmpa]

I would do that if, for example, I were to fell a tree 5 meters from his house.

How tall/short is the tree?

A tree that is, for example, 10m tall can easily damage parts of the neighbor's house if the tree happens to fall the wrong way.

There is a bit (very big) difference between felling a tree five meters from the neighbor's house and removing asbestos cement tiles from a roof 80 meters from the neighbor's house.

 

[greenhouse]

Hi, I have worked as an asbestos removal specialist for 12 years and the boundary for having protection we have had is about 10 meters from the break point of the eternit

Interesting answer! Thanks

 

[badmthrfckr]

No, no person has died because they ate 1kg of sugar in 1978, absolutely right. But to relate it to your pet peeve of relevance, it is completely irrelevant and not something anyone in this thread has claimed. I could bet my entire monthly salary that every person in this thread - both those who mentioned sugar and those who did not - understands that the comparison is about how your child's sugar intake over their lifetime is more harmful than both the asbestos exposure that the neighbor subjected your child to and the "natural" exposure during the child's lifetime combined. You are probably the only person who, for some reason, chooses not to interpret it that way. So yes, the comparison with sugar intake is highly relevant. Several other comparisons as well. Sugar IS not good for us, not in the amounts we consume. And it's not just the teeth that suffer, it's the whole body. But don't take my word for it, find out the facts for yourself. Maybe by starting a thread on a suitable online forum...?

LOL!

"The neighbor works from home as a baker because of Corona and now it smells like vanilla and/or powdered sugar but also cinnamon from the ventilation."

 

[Staffans2000]

Hi, I have worked as an asbestos remover for 12 years and the limit for having protection we've had is about 10 meters from the breaking point of the eternit

If the original poster lived right next to the neighbor. How would you have screened off the roof?

 

[Bernt_Karlsson]

Your son's health is constantly at risk. Read the contents of the food he eats, and you'll see. He also rides in cars, is near water, stairs, etc. The dangers are everywhere. However, the old man is an exception. Because there is no danger there. So, stop worrying about ghosts, and enjoy the nice weather instead. Staffan

No barriers and no water. We clean a lot of roofs and we follow the rules. There are no risks for outsiders who don't work with it daily. Very few fibers are released, if at all, depending on the condition. Outdoors is not a danger, but indoors it's a different story...as someone wrote, you get more dirt in your lungs from road dust than from the asbestos...

Disturbing to read this, you are not following the rules:

Read here: https://www.av.se/produktion-industri-och-logistik/asbest/privatpersoners-hantering-av-asbest/

 

[GRS]

Hello and thank you for the quick responses. I also think that 80 meters should create a lot of air per asbestos fiber, so to speak.

That sounds promising. But comparing asbestos to baby food or a gravel road is just directly incorrect and uninformed. As far as I know, baby food is legal, and so is a gravel road. Asbestos is banned because it causes serious illnesses for those who inhale it (to varying degrees). The 74-year-old man won't die from it, but my son and I are young enough to potentially suffer from the consequences in 20 years. However, I understand the thought that there are other risks besides asbestos. Living near a heavily trafficked road is also likely very bad for the lungs, as is smoking and riding a motorcycle at 300 km/h.

Unfortunately, fibers and dust are so small that they can't be seen. It would be interesting to hear opinions from someone who does asbestos removal or someone who has dismantled eternit themselves. Everything, of course, depends on the concentration in the air, which in turn depends on how much is released when handling asbestos. THAT fibers are released is 100% certain since some of the sheets have broken.

Hello
I understand your concern, but as several have pointed out before, you don't need to be particularly worried. Asbestos is released from eternit when you saw/drill or sand it; very small amounts come when a roofing sheet is broken. It's definitely an advantage to spray water to prevent dusting. I noticed someone mentioned the gravel road as a risk, and it's true, quartzite dust from gravel roads is absolutely not something to play with as it can cause silicosis. That's why salt is applied to gravel roads in the summer. I would keep your son away from the garden until the neighbor is done, mainly for his sake, but I wouldn't be worried. I only work with remediation and handling of environmentally hazardous materials, and there are significantly more dangerous substances around us than a bit of asbestos.

 

[GRS]

Distressing to read this, you are not following the rules:

Read here: [link]

Companies: https://www.av.se/find_v2/_click?_t...r/asbest-foreskrifter-afs2006-1.pdf?hl=Asbest

 

[MagHam]

Ten pages of posts that I summarize in two sentences:
- Asbestos is dangerous. I had an uncle who worked in plumbing and died from mesothelioma that spread throughout his body, so I know.
- If you have a paranoid fear, that's not healthy either. In this case, the tiles are being taken down fairly carefully, at a distance, with the wind blowing away.
Just take it easy and focus on something more fun.

 

[Eriksgatan]

As I said, nothing to worry about.
...
The groups where a link between asbestos and a certain type of cancer has been found, have worked in asbestos factories and similar settings. They have been sawing asbestos, embedded in a mist of asbestos fibers all working day, year in and year out. Completely without protective equipment. In that group, there has been very high mortality from asbestos-related diseases.

The reason you want to be cautious even with low doses is that theoretically, you can get cancer from a single asbestos fiber. But the probability is so low that you'd have to search for the case across the entire total humanity that has ever lived on Earth and will live here until the sun collapses. So one should avoid grinding down asbestos in the garden compost shredder, even though you probably wouldn't get sick from that either.

But it was such a heck of a coincidence that my father died from a single asbestos fiber then, so no one in the whole world ever needs to worry anymore. He was 57 years old. He had never even seen an asbestos factory but worked as a plumber. A well-documented case that I know was used in teaching about lung cancer for a long time, both X-rays and specimens from his lung. You should probably stop making up "your own facts" when it comes to things that can harm other people's health. Therefore, I myself refrain from trying to assess the risks with the roof that the OP is asking about.

 

[Pin]

The point is that it's his responsibility not to harm others. He can harm himself as much as he wants, but he should make sure not to harm others. Just like I don't drive 100km/h past a kindergarten.

In this particular case, maybe he has done the best he could and the risk is minimal. But I would have liked him to inform us about his plans. That's what I would do if I were, for example, about to fell a tree 5 meters from his house.

What's done is done

I think the neighbor handled this well. To put it in perspective, did you yourself inform your neighbor when you suspected asbestos in the carpet you were tearing out or when you were worried that the trimmer might cause problems near your fiber cement facade? Or the boiler room or the tile or the board in the barn?
If the neighbor were more worried than you are (to the same degree that you are more worried than I am), he might think you needed to do that.
Probably not. This is what I and others in the thread are trying to convey.