Removal or encapsulation? Start with the condition, not the price
Most commercial building owners in Leeds usually only think about encapsulation when they’ve seen a quote for full asbestos roof removal and re-sheeting. The price tag is usually painful, and someone mentions encapsulation as the cheaper option. The cost difference is definitely real, but it’s the wrong place to start. The only thing that really matters first is whether the sheets are actually sound. We only encapsulate a roof that’s structurally fit to keep.
That’s why we always survey first. We get up on the roof, check the sheets, the laps, the fixings, the rooflights. Only then can we honestly say if sealing the roof is a proper option, or if removal is the only sensible answer.
Yorkshire’s 1960s to 80s sheds and farm buildings
Asbestos cement sheeting is everywhere you look in the older buildings around Leeds and the wider West Yorkshire area. Think post-war industrial units, big distribution sheds, workshop blocks, and a load of farm buildings in the surrounding countryside. It was the cheapest roof going for about three decades. Most of these roofs have now seen forty to sixty winters, and the usual problems are surface erosion, moss, brittle laps, shot fixings, and leaks around the rooflights.
None of that automatically writes off a roof. Intact asbestos cement keeps its fibres locked inside the cement. The real risk starts when it breaks, gets drilled, or is severely weathered. That’s exactly what a proper encapsulation programme is designed to stop.
Compliance under the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012
If you own or manage a non-domestic building, the duty to manage asbestos applies to you. The Regulations mean you have to find asbestos-containing materials, keep an eye on their condition, and have a written management plan. They don’t say you have to rip out good material. They say you have to manage it so it doesn’t harm anyone.
An encapsulated roof fits that duty perfectly. We seal the material, stop it getting worse, make it easier to inspect, and you get fresh paperwork for your asbestos register. For a lot of duty holders in Leeds, it’s the sensible and defensible choice.
What the work looks like
- We start with a condition survey and a written recommendation. No pricing before that.
- Controlled cleaning of the sheets. No uncontrolled jet washing or dry abrasion.
- Repairs to fixings and flashings, and we’ll replace any isolated sheets that have completely failed.
- A coating system specifically for asbestos cement. It seals the surface properly.
- You get all the records you need for your asbestos register and management plan.
Most of our encapsulation jobs happen while the building is still being used. There’s no big strip-out, no need for full-roof asbestos disposal, and far less risk than a re-sheet. That’s why it works well for busy units and farms that can’t just shut down.
When we will tell you to remove instead
Some roofs are just too far gone, and we’ll tell you straight. If the sheets are friable, delaminating, soft to walk on, or extensively cracked, a coating won’t make them safe. Sealing them would just hide a material that’s failing. In that situation, the right thing to do is full removal by a licensed asbestos contractor and a new roof. Our survey report will tell you that in plain English. We’d rather walk away from a job than coat a roof that should come off. If you’re facing this decision for a building in or around Leeds, get the survey done first. Let the roof tell us what it needs.
