Certain safety precautions should be taken by the person that collects the samples of bulk materials for asbestos analysis to prevent exposure to airborne fibres which may prove positive for asbestos.
The following precautions are recommended for the safe handling of bulk samples for asbestos analysis:
- Samples should preferably be collected in areas that are unoccupied or not in use at the time of sampling.
- Where more than one sample is collected, the sampler should wear, at least, a FFP2 respirator. Where only one sample is taken and respiratory protective equipment is not available, the sampler should avoid creating or breathing dust through careful sampling practices.
- A small zip-lock bag that is clean and dry should be used to contain the sample.
- The surface to be sampled should be sprayed with a small quantity of soapy water using a trigger spray bottle.
- By holding the zip-lock bag underneath the material to be sampled, a small piece of about 2 tablespoons (20 to 50 g) should be taken using a sharp object. Only hand tools should be used to collect samples to avoid creating dust.
- Different sampling techniques should be used dependant on the material sampled:
- Fibre cement materials should be sampled by breaking off a small piece of material in an inconspicuous location using a set of pliers.
- Insulation material should be sampled in such a way to ensure that any paint, plaster or any other protective coating is penetrated and that both layers of the material is sampled. Insulation material may consist out of an outer plaster and inner layer that should be sampled separately. The two samples should be placed in separate zip-lock bags and care should be taken to avoid contaminating the one sample with the other.
- Once the sample is taken, the sample bag should be tightly closed and the outside of the bag wiped down using a damp cloth to remove any dust that may have adhered to it during sampling.
- The sample bag should be properly labelled, identifying the client name, sample number and date on which the sample was taken.
- All samples should be enclosed in a large zip-lock bag along with an itemized list of the samples and delivered by courier or by hand to Ergosaf for asbestos analysis along with the Bulk Asbestos Sampling Submission Form.
For assistance with the above sampling instructions, please email us at ergosaf@lexisnexis.co.za or phone our office on Tel: +27(0)11 803-7314.
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