It has been estimated that asbestos fibres have been used in over 3000 products, ranging from insulation lagging to brake linings. Below is a selection of applications that may contain asbestos fibres.

Please do not worry unduly about exposure to these items. Since asbestos product manufacture has been banned, it is important to remember that modern versions of the items below will NOT contain asbestos.

Adhesives and thermal taping compounds
Cement products (pipes, roofing, walls, siding, sheets)
Chalkboards
Construction Mastics (floor, tile, carpet, ceiling tile, etc.)
Cooling towers
Electrical equipment (ducts, panel partitions, cloth, insulations)
Fire doors, curtains, blankets and other fireproofing materials
High temperature gaskets
Household heat resistant items (ironing board covers, oven gloves, etc)
Insulation (spray-applied, blown-in; electrical wiring, boiler, breaching, pipe, HVAC duct, etc insulations)
Laboratory equipment (hoods, table tops, gloves, etc)
Lift equipment (panels, brake shoes)
Packing materials
Plaster (acoustical, decorative)
Roofing material (shingles, felt, cement)
Textured paints / coatings
Tiles (floor, ceiling, panels, sheet flooring, flooring backing)
Thermal paper products
Vehicular break pads

It is important to remember that even if your property contains asbestos containing materials, their mere presence is NOT hazardous. The danger occurs if they become damaged and release their potentially harmful (ie. blue or brown asbestos) fibres. The best course of action is often to leave asbestos materials that are in good order untouched; indeed, the HSE are very clear on this point.

Should you have cause to think you are being exposed to asbestos fibres, however, Asbestos Watchdog UK (http://www.asbestoswatchdog.co.uk) will allay any concerns and give you all the advice you need to manage the asbestos containing materials in question.

On March 13th, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) published new research showing that potential risks from asbestos-containing textured coatings (such as Artex) are much lower than previously thought. This new research is being used to support the proposal that working with such coatings should no longer require a special license.

After receiving advice from Asbestos Watchdog on asbestos-containing textured coatings, the HSE commissioned the Health and Safety Laboratories (HSL) to explore the matter further. Coatings were found to contain only small amounts of asbestos, bound so tightly in a matrix that the fibres could not readily be released; any risk from these was comparable to asbestos cement products, which currently do not require a license to remove.

For full press details please see the following links:

http://asbestos-cawr2002.blogspot.com/2006/03/householders-could-be-saved-20-billion.html
http://www.hse.gov.uk/press/2006/e06027.htm