7 Common Asbestos Materials I Find in Older NZ Homes
Could Asbestos Be Hiding in Your Home?
If your home was built or renovated before 2000, asbestos-containing materials may be present — and some of them aren’t where you’d expect.
Many New Zealand homeowners associate asbestos with obvious materials such as old roofing or exterior cladding. But asbestos can also be hidden beneath flooring, behind wall linings, above ceilings and within areas that haven’t been disturbed for decades.
The important thing to remember is that asbestos generally presents the greatest risk when asbestos-containing materials are damaged, deteriorating or disturbed during renovation, demolition or maintenance work.
Before you start pulling an older home apart, here are 7 places asbestos could be hiding.
1. Vinyl Flooring and Backing
Vinyl flooring is one of the most common suspect asbestos-containing materials I come across when inspecting older New Zealand homes.
Asbestos may be present within the vinyl itself, particularly older vinyl tiles, but one of the biggest concerns is the paper-like backing found on some older sheet vinyl flooring . This backing can contain a high percentage of asbestos and may be considerably more hazardous if it becomes damaged or disturbed.
Older vinyl is also frequently hidden beneath carpet, floating floors or newer layers of vinyl. A room can look completely renovated while an original asbestos-containing floor covering remains underneath.
This is particularly important before renovations, because lifting or removing newer flooring can unexpectedly expose the older material below.
Never assume an older floor is asbestos-free simply because the surface you can see is relatively new.
2. Soffits and Eaves
Fibre-cement soffit and eave linings are another asbestos-containing material I regularly encounter on older New Zealand homes.
They can remain painted, intact and in good condition for decades, which means homeowners may never give them much thought. Problems generally arise when maintenance or renovation work requires the material to be drilled, cut, broken or removed.
Installing exterior lighting, replacing sections of soffit, carrying out roof or gutter work, or building an extension can all result in these materials being disturbed.
It’s also important not to assume that every soffit around a house is the same. Extensions and alterations carried out at different times can mean some sections contain asbestos while others don’t .
If an older soffit or eave lining is going to be disturbed, it should be properly identified before work begins.
3. Textured Ceilings and Decorative Coatings
Textured ceilings and decorative coatings are another material I regularly sample in older New Zealand homes.
Some older textured coatings contain asbestos and can be found on ceilings and, occasionally, walls. They may have been painted over several times and can look like nothing more than an ordinary decorative finish.
These materials become particularly important during renovation work. Sanding, scraping, drilling, cutting or removing an asbestos-containing textured coating can disturb the material and potentially release asbestos fibres.
I’ve also found that different textured finishes within the same house shouldn’t automatically be assumed to be the same product, particularly where renovations or additions have occurred over the years.
If an older textured ceiling or decorative coating is going to be disturbed, have it assessed and tested before work begins.
4. Decramastic Roofing Tiles
Decramastic roofing tiles are commonly found on older New Zealand homes and are another material I regularly encounter during asbestos surveys.
These lightweight pressed-metal roofing tiles were typically coated with a textured stone-chip finish. Some older Decramastic roofing products used asbestos-containing bituminous material within the coating system , which means the asbestos isn’t necessarily obvious simply by looking at the roof.
The tiles may remain in place for decades and can easily be overlooked when planning renovation, reroofing or demolition work.
Because different roofing products and replacement tiles may have been installed at different times, the roof should be properly assessed rather than assuming all visually similar tiles are the same.
If an older Decramastic roof is going to be removed, repaired or otherwise disturbed, identifying whether asbestos is present should form part of the planning before work begins.
5. Exterior Fibre-Cement Cladding
Exterior fibre-cement cladding is one of the most recognisable asbestos-containing materials found on older New Zealand homes, and it’s something I regularly encounter during residential asbestos surveys.
Older asbestos-cement cladding came in a variety of profiles and finishes, including flat sheets, weatherboard-style products and textured panels. While an experienced assessor may recognise materials that are consistent with asbestos cement, you cannot reliably confirm asbestos content by appearance alone .
It’s also common for different parts of a house to have been reclad, extended or repaired at different times. Two sections of cladding may look very similar while being completely different products.
This becomes particularly important during renovations or demolition, when cladding may be drilled, cut, broken or removed.
If older fibre-cement cladding is going to be disturbed, it should be properly assessed and, where required, sampled before work begins.
6. Electrical Meter Boards and Backing Panels
Older electrical meter boards are one of the less obvious places I regularly find asbestos-containing materials in New Zealand homes.
Some older switchboards and meter installations use a hard black asbestos-containing backing board behind the electrical components. To most homeowners, it simply looks like part of the electrical installation and may have been sitting there unnoticed for decades.
These boards become particularly important when electrical upgrades, renovations or demolition work are planned. Drilling, cutting, breaking or removing an asbestos-containing backing panel can disturb the material.
Because the board is associated with live electrical equipment, it may also require coordination with a qualified electrician before it can be safely accessed or sampled.
An old black meter-board backing panel should never be assumed to be asbestos-free based on appearance alone.
7. Internal Fibre-Cement Linings
Asbestos-containing fibre-cement sheet wasn’t only used on the outside of older New Zealand homes. I also regularly encounter it as an internal lining material.
It is particularly common in areas where a durable or moisture-resistant lining was required, including bathrooms, laundries, toilets and around older fireplaces or heaters .
These sheets may have been painted, tiled over or incorporated into later renovations, making them difficult for a homeowner to distinguish from modern fibre-cement or other sheet materials.
Problems can arise during renovations when walls are drilled, cut or demolished, tiles are removed, or old fireplace and heating areas are stripped out.
If an older internal fibre-cement lining is going to be disturbed, don’t rely on appearance alone — have it properly assessed and tested where required.
These Are Only Seven of Many Asbestos-Containing Materials
The seven materials above are some of the asbestos-containing products I regularly encounter when inspecting older New Zealand homes — but they are by no means the only ones.
Just because your home doesn’t contain any of these seven materials does not mean it is asbestos-free.
Asbestos was used in thousands of different building products and applications. Depending on the age of the property, its construction and its renovation history, suspect materials can be found in many other areas of a home.
Every property is different, which is why identifying asbestos isn’t simply a matter of working through a short checklist of common products.
These seven are the regulars I see — not the complete list of places asbestos may be found.
Planning a Renovation or Demolition?
If you’re planning renovation or demolition work on an older New Zealand home, it’s important to identify potential asbestos-containing materials before they are disturbed .
Asbestos Safe Consultancy provides independent asbestos surveys, sampling and practical advice to help homeowners, builders and property professionals understand what materials are present and what needs to happen next.
A proper asbestos survey looks beyond the obvious materials and considers the areas that will actually be affected by the proposed work.
The best time to find asbestos is before the renovation finds it for you.
If you’re unsure whether your property should be inspected or tested, contact Asbestos Safe Consultancy for expert asbestos advice.