Advantages of fiber cement roof rehabilitation

For Prudencio, the best solution when it comes to asbestos, in most cases, is the rehabilitation of fiber cement roofing. This method brings countless benefits and advantages in relation to its removal and is, therefore, the safest choice.

Since fiber cement is a material of very low risk, or almost zero, various entities such as the General Direction of Health, point out the encapsulation as being the right decision to make. Learn the main advantages on this article and why you should avoid removing this type of material.

Prudêncio’s work – Before and After the fiber cement roofing rehabilitation works in Marvila

Prudêncio’s encapsulation solution

With the purpose always present in the development of innovative projects that combine the best strategy with solutions that promote environmental sustainability, it is a great satisfaction for Prudêncio to be recognized as a pioneer in the development of such solutions. The method of encapsulating fiber cement roofing containing asbestos is a true example of this. This solution avoids the risks inherent to their removal, that is, the release of fibers that constitute a risk to public health.

Encapsulation consists of confining asbestos with specific coatings and techniques. Our solution ensures that fiber cement is completely involved and protected from the causes that lead to its degradation: physical aggression, thermal amplitudes, rain and humidity. We analyze the type and use of these roofs and help in the whole decision process, from risk assessment, to checking the degree of degradation of the material and, consequently, we confirm if the exposure represents risk and what are the safest measures to follow.

National Innovation Agency approves Prudêncio Project

Prudêncio recently received the approval of its application to SIFIDE, a System Of Fiscal Incentives for Research and Business Development, for the project “Development of Fiber Cement Encapsulation System”.

The approval of this fiscal Incentive by the National Innovation Agency represents many victories for Prudence. Not only does it convey strength and motivation for a challenge that promises to solve several problems related to fiber cement, but it also expresses the confidence that Prudêncio’s fiber cement encapsulation system is the best for the environment, public health and efficiency in reconstruction.

Prudêncio’s work – Roof Rehabilitation in Fiber Cement of 9Zero9 Condominium Management

Advantages of the encapsulation solution

Health:

Asbestos or asbestos consists of a variety of six natural mineral fibers, extracted from rocks. The presence of asbestos in building materials represents a low risk to health if we confirm that the material is not friable (as in the case of fiber cement) and is in good condition. The risk most often occurs in a professional context when there is the inhalation of asbestos fibers that have been released into the air, especially in situations of direct contact with their extraction. These fibers can lodge in the lungs and the consequences arise only decades later.

Therefore, the method of encapsulation of Prudencio avoids the risks associated with their removal, transport and deposition through a careful and meticulous execution without releasing asbestos dust during these works.

Environment:

At Prudêncio, we work with some of the most ecological and sustainable solutions in the market. Taking advantage of the sustainability of the Koster membrane, our solution transforms a potentially dangerous coverage into a sustainable, environmentally friendly system.

In addition to a waste-free recovery that avoids the risks of removal, this solution allows the prevention of long-term environmental consequences, thereby avoiding landfill overload.

Efficiency:

The encapsulation solution also guarantees greater efficiency in terms of waterproofing and thermic isolation, the result of its continuity in terms of walls, gutters, staircase walls, and chimneys, which allows all the elements of the roof to be covered in a single layer of waterproofing.

Besides the quality, extreme longevity of the materials used, and improvement of the thermal behavior characteristics, our solution protects the fiber cement from all the causes that lead to its degradation, thus ensuring an increase in the useful life of the material.

Disadvantages of Removal

The removal of fiber cement containing asbestos is not, in most cases, advised. When removed, the fibers tend to free themselves more easily from the structure and, as a consequence, can reach a dispersal radius that puts at risk not only workers but the entire surrounding population.

In addition to the risks associated with an additional release of asbestos dust, the removal process is very complex and unsafe, costs are high and considerable downtime is required compared to the encapsulation solution.

Several entities argue that removal can further cause the release of fibers. The General Health Direction emphasizes that “as a general rule, the presence of asbestos in construction materials represents a low risk to health, as long as the material is in good condition, is not friable and is not subject to direct aggression”.

Additionally, the Ministry of Health warns that the removal “can release even more particles” and that, if the material is not degraded, “it is sometimes preferable to paint/varnish or encapsulate, rather than remove”, believing that in general “the material that is in good condition does not release asbestos fibers”.

The European Commission has launched a “Guide to good practices to prevent or mitigate the risks posed by asbestos at work involving (or likely to involve) asbestos, aimed at employers, workers, and labor inspectors. According to the guide, before any decision is taken on the measures to be implemented on asbestos-containing material, it must be “determined whether it is wiser to leave asbestos-containing materials” if they are “in satisfactory safety conditions and under proper control and management” or to provide for possible removal.

The National Association for the Conservation of Nature Quercus also highlights the fact that asbestos removal is not mandatory “unless it is found to be degraded and its exposure could be a risk, either in occupational health or environmental health situations”.

Prudêncio’s work – Before and After the fiber cement roofing rehabilitation works in Braga

Choose the best solution

Acknowledging that normally the best solution is not to remove the material containing asbestos and that it is in good condition, but to neutralize and rehabilitate it through the Prudence encapsulation method, the decision is easier and more conscious about the best procedure to guarantee safety, public health, and environmental protection.

Talk to us and clarify all your doubts. We make free budgets, without any commitment. Contact us!