The Link Between Hardiplank and Asbestos
New Zealand has an aging housing stock. While that means we can enjoy stunning character features in our abodes, it also means we need to be wary of asbestos. Homes built before the year 2000 may contain asbestos and in the places you least expect.
Though, one of the more common places people tends to discover it is in their house cladding. Unfortunately, there is a strong link between Hardiplank and asbestos. Even today, this once-popular building material is present in thousands of properties across New Zealand.
What is Hardiplank?
Even though Hardiplank is the common name they call a building material, it’s not quite that straightforward. It’s not the name of a material type but, instead, the material type brand.
Hardiplank is a form of Hardie board, which is a fibre cement siding product brought to the market by James Hardie Building Products. This company was one of the most successful manufacturers of it, and it became a popular option for homeowners from around the 1950s.
People thought it was the best thing since sliced bread. This one magical material could take on the appearance of cedar shingles, wooden clapboards, or stucco. It was also easy to maintain, wouldn’t melt, wouldn’t light on fire easily, and was affordable.
In brochures for Hardiplank, it was described as being “rot-proof, white ant and borer proof, fireproof, dimensionally stable under extremes of heat and cold, cannot split or warp, handles and works like timber (nail it, saw it), and has a practicability all of its own.”
But there’s just one catch. It contains asbestos.
James Hardie Products That Contain Asbestos
Asbestos cement sheets were a popular product in the 1950s, with many homeowners shoving bricks and wood to the side in favour of this innovative product. However, when it was discovered that asbestos was hazardous to your health, James Hardie Building Products stopped producing it.
Fortunately, homes built after 1985 are unlikely to contain any of these James Hardie asbestos-containing Hardiplank building products:
Smooth
Wood Grain
Cross Cut
Rusticated
Old Style
Weatherboard
How to Identify Asbestos Hardiplank
Asbestos cement sheets, including those produced by James Hardie Building Products all those years ago, do tend to stand out. However, the only way to truly identify whether they contain asbestos is with asbestos testing from a reputable asbestos removal company.
In saying that, at a glance, this product has a few standout features. It tends to be a flat, smooth, fibre cement sheet with a flat panel appearance. Given its affordability and convenience, many homeowners have come across it as a flat sheet simply nailed to the outside of homes, garages, and sheds to form the structure’s outer cladding.
This hard, brittle material was usually grey or white and had nail heads positioned on the outside of the sheet, rather than indented into the cladding’s surface, as you would see with wood or other materials.
Some people may also notice that moulded asbestos cement cover strips or battens were used to cover the gaps between the sheets.
Hardiplank cladding tended to be used for the exterior cladding of residential single and medium-density homes. It also wasn’t uncommon for it to be used later during home renovations and additions.
What to Do About Hardiplank Cladding
It can be scary for some homeowners to find out their home’s cladding is riddled with asbestos. Just as it would have been quite daunting to realise your roofing contained asbestos, too. Fortunately, there are plenty of things you can do when you’ve found out that your property features Hardiplank.
The most important thing to do first is to confirm its presence. Request an asbestos test from a certified, reputable company. They can take a small sample of the Hardiplank material and identify that it does, in fact, contain asbestos.
From there, they can advise on the next best step. While removal is the most obvious way of dealing with Hardiplank, it’s not always necessary or recommended. If it’s in good condition, your chosen asbestos expert may recommend continued maintenance to ensure it stays that way.
However, if there is a small amount of damage, they might recommend a commercial sealant product to reduce the risk of any asbestos fibres being released into the air. Both solvent-based and water-based coatings may be suitable. These can be clear or pigmented.
If your Hardiplank cladding is beyond repair and posing a health and safety risk in its current state, removal may be your best choice.
As required by the Health and Safety at Work (Asbestos) Regulations 2016, only a licensed asbestos removalist can remove friable asbestos.
What Are You Going to Do?
We are learning all the time. Products we believe are the greatest invention can later be found not to be. That’s the reality of ever-changing technology and research. If your home currently features Hardiplank materials, there’s only one thing left to do: call an asbestos removal expert. They can be your guiding light through this stressful time.