Having your gutters and soffits changed - think again!!!

[bulleidboy]

This may make you laugh - not a lot
We decided to have our gutters, soffits and facia's replaced. The surveyor found asbestos in the soffits (common in pre-1980's housing) - therefore the gutter people would not touch it unless it was removed - simple job? Think again We now have scaffolding, first floor poly tunnels etc. The third picture shows the decontamination van - we are not going into the kebab business You go in one end dirty, and come out the other end clean. Hopefully, this part of the work will be finished on Friday, and the new soffits etc., will be fitted on Monday - will take a couple of days.
Just to conclude this happy story, the hot water tank in the airing cupboard sprang a leak last week, and the new tank cannot be fitted until next Monday - so no hot water except for the kettle - needless to say I am not a happy chappy at the moment.

IMG_1234 by Barry Clayton, on Flickr

IMG_1235 by Barry Clayton, on Flickr

IMG_1237 by Barry Clayton, on Flickr

[Walkingthedog]

Just think how nice it will look when it’s finished Barry.

[bulleidboy]

I hope it will Brian - we seem to have had white vans parked on the drive for weeks.

[Walkingthedog]

You’ll miss them when they’re gone.

[Steve M]

It’ll be nice when it’s finished - can you guess what it is yet?
For the best though Barry, asbestos is not to be messed with. Surprise to see it still used in a fairly recent build though.

[bulleidboy]

Hi Steve - the house was built in 1976/7. The roofline company had a piece of the soffits tested by a specialist laboratory and it came back positive for asbestos. We had our own test done, by a different lab. and the result was the same. Asbestos in the soffit mix is ok as long as you don't drill/cut holes in it, and breath in the dust. You could just paint it and it would be no problem at all. As we had a creeper, ground to gutter level around all four sides of the house, it left a "footprint" all over the facias and soffits, and these were impossible to remove, so that is why the soffits,facias and gutters are now being replaced. We have used a reputable company for the new double glazing and roofline, who took everything very seriously (which is correct), but it has cost a fortune to get the asbestos removed. At least we shall soon have a certificate to say the house is asbestos free.

[yelrow]

Hi, Barry, how many houses in the road are the same. As you say, be good selling point. Interesting to see how many surveyors on houses sold, picked that up.

[teedoubleudee]

Many people rely on the survey ordered by the mortgage lender which is only used as a way for them to value the property. I've always paid for a full structural independent survey which would have picked up on that sort of problem.

[yelrow]

Teed, that was the point i was making. As an ex Bank Manager, regularly involved in Mortgages, the surveyors we used, only carried small ladders, they would not have picked this up. The same guys, often carried out full structural surveys, with same ladders, which would not have reached. just saying.

[teedoubleudee]

Teed, that was the point i was making. As an ex Bank Manager, regularly involved in Mortgages, the surveyors we used, only carried small ladders, they would not have picked this up. The same guys, often carried out full structural surveys, with same ladders, which would not have reached. just saying.

Hi John, that's why I said to employ an independent structural engineer/surveyor. The previous owner of my current home told me the guy I employed was on site for over three hours and poked his nose and torch everywhere (its a bungalow). I got a detailed written report.