The main issue with it is if there's a lot of fibres loose (so if you have lagging - insulation- it can be a big problem).
We also have asbestos board in a couple of rooms upstairs as a kind of plasterboard, the utility roof and the garage and shed rooves. All are definitely asbestos- quite often you can see ac marked on them (asbestos cement), or at least they were in our case.
The garage we're leaving for now as we're not doing anything in there, the shed is being left for the time being as it's dilapidated anyway and the bedrooms we're sealing and putting plasterboard over. We'll then inform any future buyers about its presence for health and safety so that they don't drill into it etc and disperse lots of dust.
Our local council where we presently live will remove asbestos for a charge, but the council we're relocating to won't. However, if it's bagged etc then some refuse tips will take it for a charge (find your nearest one and contact them). You can pay companies to remove it, but dependent on where you are it can be quite pricey as it has to be transported to an asbestos disposal site (in our case Swindon, over 100 miles away).
The HSE has lots of useful info, including a hierarchy indicating whether the work is notifiable or regulated or not. In some cases, you may need to let building control know that you're doing it.
The basics of the hierarchy are:
Non notifiable, Non regulated
Notifiable, Non regulated
Notifiable, Regulated
The bottom two you can do yourself if you take the appropriate precautions. Again, the HSE site has infosheets telling you how to dress and what PPE you need. There are also limits depending on how long you are likely to be working with it.
We removed the utility roof yesterday. I did the majority of it by myself last week in terms of grinding the bolts and readying it, but due to the roof height I wasn't comfortable trying to lift the boards and manoeuvre them without dropping them and then spreading dust everywhere.
I got the protective suits from home bargains for 99p. I checked they were the right category beforehand. The masks, boot covers and asbestos disposal bags I bought from eBay.
You do need to do some research, and you do need to be careful and competent but it's not rocket science. Ultimately though, it depends on whether it needs repairing/ removing, what type of asbestos it is and whether you're even allowed to do the work.. If you're not, and it has to come off, call in the professionals but be aware it's likely to cost a pretty penny. All I will say, is that I wouldn't be inclined to go with someone who says they'll do it for cheaper (on the sly type of job) because you will need to have a disposal certificate and as the homeowner, your daughter would ultimately be responsible for wherever it ended up.
Good luck
Bel
