Whats this?

[KevB]

Hi guys

Does anybody know what this is..

I drove past a big pile of it the other day. It was laying near three large metal shipping/storage containers and had been ripped out of the inside of the roof of one of them. Is it Styrofoam insulation with some sort of water/vapourproof coating?

If so, do you guys think it would be any good for insulating my shed walls and floor?

 

[No skills]

I think they use ISO foam of some sort for the refrigerated boxes, don't think they add anything other than the insulation in the cavity.

Fwiw

 

[galleywood]

Be careful in case it has an asbestos content.

 

[KevB]

Be careful in case it has an asbestos content.

Yeah this is what I've been worried about. I picked that little piece up and brought it home with me. My little girl was in the back of the car as well. I took a few pics of it and threw it in the bin.

Do you think if it was asbestos it would have done my little girl any harm in the 5 minutes she was in the car with me?

 

[jimmy_s]

Be careful in case it has an asbestos content.

Do you think if it was asbestos it would have done my little girl any harm in the 5 minutes she was in the car with me?

even if there was asbestos in the material its unlikely to cause any harm - you have to breathe in the fibres. If its foam its unlikely to have any asbestos content.

 

[TFrench]

Looks like urethane foam insulation to me. Definitely not asbestos - it was banned so long ago there really isn't that much left any more (in insulation form). Plus it was used on hot stuff so you'll be fine with it being a fridge box.

 

[shed9]

Shipping containers are generally spray insulated and this is clearly sheet material. I doubt it is asbestos however, if you don't know it's provenance I'd stay clear of it.

Also, the location may give some idea of its toxicity, i.e. dumped or professionally stripped, etc.

 

[shed9]

Looks like urethane foam insulation to me. Definitely not asbestos - it was banned so long ago there really isn't that much left any more (in insulation form). Plus it was used on hot stuff so you'll be fine with it being a fridge box.

You'd be surprised how much is still used. Most commercial buildings these days have entries in their Asbestos registers. That said, I agree that this is highly likely to be non asbestos.

 

[NazNomad]

I does look like a PIR foam.

If you're looking to insulate a shed, I'd get some sheets of Celotex.

 

[stuartpaul]

Looks like urethane foam insulation to me. Definitely not asbestos - it was banned so long ago there really isn't that much left any more (in insulation form). Plus it was used on hot stuff so you'll be fine with it being a fridge box.

You'd be surprised how much is still used. Most commercial buildings these days have entries in their Asbestos registers. That said, I agree that this is highly likely to be non asbestos.

You're right I would! - it's been illegal to import or use asbestos based products for many years now so the 'used' comment is inapproriate to say the least.

Yes there is still quite a lot of it around in many buildings but generally in things like floor tiles, toilet cisterns and of course fire insulation. It has to be well managed and is generally only removed when it's either 'broken' or in the way of refurb work.

Highly, highly, highly unlikely the pictured material as any asbestos content.

 

[Jelly]

Be careful in case it has an asbestos content.

Yeah this is what I've been worried about. I picked that little piece up and brought it home with me. My little girl was in the back of the car as well. I took a few pics of it and threw it in the bin.

Do you think if it was asbestos it would have done my little girl any harm in the 5 minutes she was in the car with me?

I'd be shocked if that's asbestos bearing...

Asbestos is horrid stuff, don't get me wrong... But, in the bonded forms still prevalent today it's comparatively harmless, the woven or spun pipe-lagging of yesteryear was a lot more likely to cause a noticeable effect with a short exposure, and realistically even that required aa critical mass of material to be inhaled almost always through sustained exposure.

Moreover, did you let her play with it or crumble it up and blow the dust all about the car? I doubt you would have done either, and without that exposure to dust the risk to your little girl is essentially nil even if it is asbestos.

 

[shed9]

You'd be surprised how much is still used. Most commercial buildings these days have entries in their Asbestos registers. That said, I agree that this is highly likely to be non asbestos.

You're right I would! - it's been illegal to import or use asbestos based products for many years now so the 'used' comment is inapproriate to say the least.

I've seen Asbestos entries in respective registers in new builds in the last ten years. This is based on building products, so this is new products and materials in the fabric of the build.

 

[stuartpaul]

You'd be surprised how much is still used. Most commercial buildings these days have entries in their Asbestos registers. That said, I agree that this is highly likely to be non asbestos.

You're right I would! - it's been illegal to import or use asbestos based products for many years now so the 'used' comment is inapproriate to say the least.

I've seen Asbestos entries in respective registers in new builds in the last ten years. This is based on building products, so this is new products and materials in the fabric of the build.

Asbestos was 'formally' banned in November 1999 so if it has been used in new build since that time someone has seriously screwed up. Many builders/designers stopped using it way before then.

What I have found from experience (I was trained as an asbestos surveyor among other things) was a laziness by some who would 'suggest' that some materials might contain asbestos. It is particularly prevalent when it is difficult or impossible to get a laboratory sample as that is the only way to be 100% certain that something doesn't contain asbestos. Hence the register entries as a form of backside covering due to potential litigation issues later down the line.

 

[No skills]

Shipping containers are generally spray insulated and this is clearly sheet material.

Not always the case. Also when you inject expanding foam insulation in between two sheets of even spaced metal you quite often end up with a flat bit of insulation in between :wink:

I can't comment on the asbestos content as I have no knowledge of that, from OP it sounds like some body is stripping an insulated fridge box for repair or scrap. If it's repair then the foam needs to come out for a good weld and the void will be filled with a portable foam kit afterwards, if it's scrap then generally speaking the scrappys don't want loads of insulation filled steel and aluminium sandwiches hence somebody ripping it out.

 

[KevB]

Thanks for the replies guys

It definitely looked like it was put in as a sheet rather than sprayed in and taking a sheet form.

If there was a sure way of knowing whether it was safe, i'd definitely use it in the floor. I can't take that risk though, to protect my daughter (and anybody else) from any nasties. Frustrating as there's loads of it and i'm sure it is safe to use, but I don't know this for sure.

I may pop back over there sometime and ask the guys in the nearby factories if they know anything about the containers and who owns them.

 

[KevB]

Hi guys

Well I still haven't managed to find any waste insulation anywhere yet :roll: There's a few house build sites near where I work and I was wondering whether anyone knows if these types of housing estates use kingspan type insulation in their builds?

I've been keeping a good eye out (maybe too much ha) whilst out driving and although I've found several skips here and there, they haven't contained any insulation. I also emailed the skip hire/waste removal company O'briens asking if they had any waste offcuts laying around..probably not surprisingly I received no reply (hammer) :mrgreen:

I'm pretty sure there must be skips, sites and yards full of this stuff, it's knowing where to look for it that may be the problem..?

 

[TFrench]

All you'll find in skips is rubbish offcuts I'd have thought. We take all our big offcuts back to the yard to go out on other jobs. Apparently there's a kingspan seconds shop on ebay which may be of some use?

 

[bugbear]

Hi guys

Does anybody know what this is..

It's part of a traditional Jaywick fishing boat.

BugBear

 

[KevB]

Hi guys

Does anybody know what this is..

It's part of a traditional Jaywick fishing boat.

BugBear

Hmm that's strange as I did see a small boat of some sort behind the shipping containers. Though, this definitely came out of the container roof. Maybe they are ripping it out for the boat?

Is it safe to use as insulation or does it have any nasties in it?

 

[KevB]

All you'll find in skips is rubbish offcuts I'd have thought. We take all our big offcuts back to the yard to go out on other jobs. Apparently there's a kingspan seconds shop on ebay which may be of some use?

Ok thanks for that, I'll take a look. Any size offcuts will do me really, as I don't mind piecing it all in. Free is the key :mrgreen: though I don't mind paying a small fee I guess :roll: haha.