AsbestosRoofing.co.uk

Many asbestos cement roofs have GRP (Glass Reinforced Plastic) roof lights set in to them which match the corrugated shape of the roof sheet profile.

Over time, these roof lights get covered with moss, just like the roof sheets, and unless they are regularly cleaned, will soon become ingrained with dirt, reducing their effectiveness.

The roof lights are designed to bring light into  the area beneath and are very common on industrial buildings and warehouse premises.

Poorly maintained roof lights will eventually degrade with age and the top gel coating will wear away naturally after years of exposure to ultra violet rays from the sun. In some cases, it is possible to reapply a gel coat to the affected roof lights, but by the time the problem is identified, it’s probably too late to repair them and they will ultimately need replacing.

As moss grows on the roof and roof lights, birds will peck away at it and this continuing action often leads to small holes developing in the GRP panels, which of course, leads to rainwater leaks and further deterioration.

Luckily, replacing roof lights on asbestos roofs is not a particularly difficult job and can be carried out by any competent roofer. There is no need to use a licensed asbestos contractor for this type of minor work.

However, the normal health and safety precautions will need to be in place, as falls through roof lights on asbestos roofs are extremely common.

The benefits of changing degraded roof lights are that you will see an enormous difference  in the amount of light that is let into the building. We have worked with clients who since changing their roof lights, have been able to significantly reduce their lighting bills because they haven’t needed to have lights switched on throughout the day as they did previously.

Given the cost of the health and safety equipment, which has to be paid for anyway, we recommend that the roof is cleaned and perhaps coated or treated with an fungicide at the same time, since this makes the exercise a lot more cost effective.

Coating systems are discussed on this page, but in short they can extend the life of an asbestos roof considerably and the better ones can completely eliminate roof leaks, even in cases where there are existing cracks oin the asbestos cement roof panels.

Changing the roof lights and coating an asbestos roof is often the cheapest way out of problems with this type of roof.

The roof lights are removed by cropping the bolts that fix them to the asbestos cement roof panels. The old roof light is then removed and discarded. The new panel is slid into place beneath the roof sheet immediately above and then overlaps the panel immediately beneath.

A layer of sealant is applied to the asbestos cement panels to ensure that water cannot enter from below. New roof bolts are then affixed to the roof light.

If you would like to learn more about this, or would like to arrange for a roof survey which would provide you with budget costings and alternative options, please call David Carter on 0121 711 7110 between 8:30am and 5:30pm Monday to Friday.