What You Need to Do Before You Decide to Renovate Any Existing Farm Buildings
If you've just bought a farm and are assessing all your assets, you may be taking a close look at the outhouses and buildings. You may want to carry out some repairs or modifications or, in some cases, replace them with more modern structures. However, you will first need to assess exactly what you're dealing with and whether you need to account for any potentially hazardous materials during the work.
The Prevalence of Asbestos in Farm Buildings
In previous decades, contractors often used asbestos when creating farm structures like this. In fact, you might find this toxic material in the panelling, gutters, downpipes, soffits, and fascias. However, you are more likely to find asbestos in the cement roof sheeting, as this would represent a very cost-effective and easy material to work with when building structures of this scale.
Working out Whether to Proceed
If you leave asbestos in place and do not disturb it, you may not have anything to worry about. However, the moment that you consider any renovations, you will certainly need to bring in experts to see what you're dealing with. Asbestos fibres can be released into the air when you attempt to remove those sheets or panels. As this would create a hazard for any people in the vicinity, removal work can only be carried out by experts.
Be Wary of Existing Damage
As you assess what you're working with, look for any signs of existing damage. While you may not be able to determine whether any asbestos has now been exposed, you should assume this to be the case pending further investigation. It may be possible to repair that section without any wholesale disruption elsewhere. After all, this can sometimes be cheaper, but each case will need to be assessed on its own merits.
Need to Take Action
Still, you may need to take action if the damaged area is likely to degrade. As this could certainly make your asbestos problem worse, you may be forced to take action to avoid any larger and more costly challenges in the long term.
How to Proceed
If an inspection reveals that asbestos is present in the majority of that structure, it may be more cost-effective for you to leave it as is or demolish the structure entirely. However, that is a question that may only be answered when you have brought in the experts to assess the scale.
Call asbestos removal professionals to learn more.