What Asbestos Is & Where It’s Found

What is asbestos?

• AA treated form of fibreglass
• BA synthetic plastic used to strengthen cement
• CA group of naturally occurring fibrous minerals✓
• DA man-made insulating foam developed in the 1960s

Answer: Asbestos is a set of naturally occurring silicate minerals that split into very fine, strong fibres. It was mined, not manufactured — which is why it appears in so many different products.

Which three types of asbestos were most widely used in UK buildings?

• ACrocidolite, cellulose and mineral wool
• BChrysotile, amosite and crocidolite✓
• CAmosite, gypsum and vermiculite
• DChrysotile, silica and fibreglass

Answer: Chrysotile (white), amosite (brown) and crocidolite (blue) are the three commercially used types. Silica, gypsum, vermiculite and mineral wool are different materials entirely.

Which colour is commonly associated with crocidolite asbestos?

• AWhite
• BBrown
• CBlue✓
• DGreen

Answer: Crocidolite is commonly called blue asbestos, amosite brown and chrysotile white. The colour names are historical: you cannot identify asbestos type by looking at an installed material.

When was the use and import of white (chrysotile) asbestos finally banned in the UK?

• A2012
• B1999✓
• C1985
• D1975

Answer: Blue and brown asbestos were banned in 1985; white asbestos followed on 24 November 1999. CAR 2012 is the regulation controlling work with asbestos already in place, not the ban date.

Blue and brown asbestos were banned in the UK in which year?

• A1992
• B1999
• C1985✓
• D2000

Answer: Crocidolite (blue) and amosite (brown) were banned in 1985, fourteen years before white asbestos. Both remain in many buildings put up before those dates.

A building may contain asbestos if it was built or refurbished before which year?

• A1985
• B1990
• C2012
• D2000✓

Answer: The 2000 cut-off is the practical rule of thumb, because the final ban took effect in late 1999 and stock in hand continued to be installed. Any pre-2000 building should be presumed to contain asbestos until proven otherwise.

Why was asbestos used so widely in construction?

• AStrong, cheap and resistant to heat and fire✓
• BIt is transparent and improves natural light
• CIt is a natural waterproof adhesive
• DIt sets harder than concrete

Answer: Asbestos combined fire resistance, thermal and acoustic insulation, tensile strength and low cost — a genuinely useful set of properties, which is why it ended up in thousands of products.

In which part of a building would you most expect to find sprayed asbestos coating?

• AOn structural steelwork✓
• BInside double-glazed window units
• CUnder floor tiles as an adhesive
• DIn plastic waste pipes

Answer: Sprayed coatings ("limpet") were applied to steel beams and columns for fire protection. They are among the highest-risk asbestos materials because the fibres are loosely bound.

Which of these is a common asbestos-containing product found in older domestic properties?

• ACopper central heating pipework
• BModern plasterboard partition walls
• CUPVC window frames
• DCement sheets on a garage roof✓

Answer: Asbestos cement was very common for garage and shed roofs, guttering and downpipes. UPVC, copper pipe and modern plasterboard do not contain asbestos.

Asbestos insulating board (AIB) was typically used for which purpose?

• AFire protection and ceiling tiles✓
• BExternal glazing panels
• CLoad-bearing structural beams
• DDamp-proof membranes below ground

Answer: AIB was used for fireproofing, ceiling tiles, partitions, soffits and panels. It is more easily damaged than asbestos cement, so it releases fibres more readily.

Which statement about asbestos fibres is correct?

• AThey are heavy and settle within seconds
• BThey can always be smelled before they are inhaled
• CThey are too small to see with the naked eye when airborne✓
• DThey are visible as a fine blue dust in normal light

Answer: Respirable asbestos fibres are microscopic, odourless and can stay airborne for hours. You cannot tell by sight or smell whether the air around you is contaminated.

Which is the only reliable way to confirm whether a material contains asbestos?

• AJudging by how old the building is
• BLaboratory analysis by an accredited lab✓
• CChecking the colour of the material
• DTapping it to hear whether it sounds hollow

Answer: Only laboratory analysis can confirm asbestos. Age and colour give clues but never proof — which is why unidentified material in a pre-2000 building must be presumed to contain asbestos.

Textured decorative coatings such as "Artex" applied before 2000 may contain which type of asbestos?

• ANo asbestos of any type
• BChrysotile (white)✓
• CCrocidolite (blue) only
• DAmosite (brown) only

Answer: Textured coatings typically contain a small percentage of chrysotile. The fibre content is low and well bound, but sanding or dry-scraping them still releases fibres and is not permitted.

Which of these is NOT one of the six regulated types of asbestos?

• AVermiculite✓
• BAnthophyllite
• CTremolite
• DActinolite

Answer: The six regulated types are chrysotile, amosite, crocidolite, tremolite, actinolite and anthophyllite. Vermiculite is a different mineral, though some deposits were contaminated with asbestos.