Fire dampers containing asbestos

Actually, fire dampers make total sense: They prevent smoke and fire from spreading through ventilation ducts by closing automatically, thus preventing fires from spreading to adjacent fire compartments. 

However, asbestos, a harmful substance, was used in fire dampers in buildings until 1989.

Asbestos can cause significant health risks and damage and is considered a proven carcinogen if it remains unknown in buildings and is released through ventilation ducts, for example.

In fire dampers, asbestos was used in the damper blade, various components and, particularly frequently, in stop seals made of a foam material containing asbestos. These seals tend to decay over the years and thus represent a hazard. In addition, asbestos-containing fire protection panels have been installed to clad or encase the fire damper. 

In the past, there were no special safety precautions for asbestos-containing fire dampers when maintenance or renovation was required, provided no signs of wear occurred and the fire dampers were installed in accordance with the legal requirements of the time (see Asbestos Guideline). 

This guideline no longer applies since the LASI regulation of the state ministers status 2018, which regulates the handling of all pollutants.

 of fire dampers containing asbestos

The new LASI regulation 2018 requires that fire dampers containing asbestos must be inspected in accordance with the manufacturer's specifications at least 1x per year or even monthly, depending on the degree of contamination, in compliance with the Hazardous Substances Ordinance. 

Consequently, very high costs are incurred for obsolete and polluted fire dampers.

In the long run, a refurbishment of the asbestos-containing fire dampers is indispensable for economic and health reasons.

Refurbishment of fire dampers containing asbestos

Remediation may only be carried out by officially approved specialist companies (in accordance with GefStoffV Annex I Number 2.4 Paragraph 4) for ASI work on weakly bound asbestos. The specialist company must provide evidence of its expertise in accordance with Annex 3 of TRGS 519 and implement protective measures in accordance with Section 14 of TRGS 519. CWS Fire Safety has this expertise.

We test and refurbishe fire dampers containing asbestos

CWS Fire Safety GmbH offers you an all-round carefree package for the refurbishment of your fire dampers. 

In doing so, the protection of people is our top priority. On the one hand, our specialists are equipped with personal protective equipment, and on the other hand, the working environment is sealed off by black areas. Special extraction equipment ensures that pollutants cannot escape at any time. At the same time, we take care of the professional disposal in the course of the pollutant cleanup.

 

1. On-site inspection: Review of building documents and on-site inspection to identify the sources of danger in all rooms of the building in question. 
2. Asbestos sampling and laboratory analysis: on-site sampling followed by laboratory analysis.  
3. Careful Planning: Determination of exact health and legal standards (including cost estimate) for contaminant remediation and disposal. 
4. Remediation and disposal: Registration and execution of the remediation work under all necessary safety precautions according to TRGS 519.