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Timber faced asbestos cement sheeting

Description

AC sheeting with actual timber or imitation timber veneer on one face.

Used as an aesthetic enhancement for interior areas. Promoted as fire retardant, and so recommended for use around fireplaces.

Also used for counter-front facades in public reception office areas, halls, spandrels and interior walls and partitions.

Wunderlich Duraveneer was advertised as being faced with actual Queensland walnut and maple timbers.

Asbestos Products Limited produced Armac, described as easily mistaken for highly polished expensive timber.  Likely an imitation timber and advertised as available in a range of wood grains.  Armac may have been manufactured in an identical manner to a laminated AC sheeting for wet areas (Artyle), which was a Tilux-type of product.

Brands/products
  • Armac
  • Duraveneer
Years of production/use

1930s – 1940s

Residential uses
  • Interior facades, fireplaces – older residences built or renovated up until late 1940s
Industrial uses
  • Older commercial offices, council buildings, banks, public facing areas – built or renovated up until late 1940s
Be aware

Actual woodgrain veneers may require core sampling or partial deconstruction to identify AC sheeting.

Imitation stone on asbestos cement sheeting

Description

AC sheeting with a thin manufactured façade adhered to surface with appearance of stone. Façade composition has similar structure to imitation bricks – Likely a plastic composition.

Designed for exterior walling. AC sheet was Wunderlich Durabestos.

Tor-ite Stone has the appearance of cut sandstone blocks with grout lines.

Wonga Stone, aka Wonga board, has the appearance of shaped stones laid with grout.

Stoneboard was a non-ACM product with a Burnieboard backing also produced by PBS, designed for interior use. Had an identical appearance to the Tor-ite Stone product.

Fire-Bak was another product marketed as Firebak Stoneboard. No Images located.

Printed instructions and information are likely to be adhered to the reverse side of the AC sheet.

Brands/products

  • Tor-ite Stone

  • Wonga Stone

  • Plywood & Builders Supply (PBS)
  • Fire-Bak
  • Stoneboard (non-ACM)
Years of production/use

PBS product: 1963 to early 1970s

 

Similar product from other manufacturers may have been produced later.

Residential uses
  •       Interior feature walls, exterior facades, BBQ areas, patios, exterior cladding over existing AC sheeting, brick or timber. 
Industrial uses
  •       Motels, public buildings, clubs, shops churches,
    sales rooms 
Be aware

The Tor-ite product could easily be used for interiors, particularly around heating structures such as fireplace facades. Although the Stoneboard was designed for this use, the AC sheeting may have been favoured by DIY installers.

Retailers advertised all three products for interior and exterior use.

 

Tor-ite and Stoneboard may be easily mistaken for each other

Asbestos cement louvres

Description

Louvres to allow air flow into structure. May be moulded AC fixed into place (horizontal or vertical) with gutter bolts and no hinged movement, moulded AC for fitting into adjustable (hinged) frames, or adapted AC sheeting cut and placed into hinged frames that allows open and closing.

Years of production/use

Prior to 1990

Brands/products
  • Fibrolite
  • Durabestos
  • Any AC sheeting
Residential uses
  • Window systems in tropical locations
  • Attached car ports, garages, screening
Industrial uses
  • Ventilation installed within for flat walling on warehouses, plant structures
  • Ventilation for HVAC cooling towers
Be aware

Environmental damage to exposed flat surfaces

Asbestos cement corner and angle mouldings

Description

Designed for vertical use, but may also have been applied horizontally or on pitched roofs.

Corner right angles for external and internal application of sheeting for flat wall sheeting and panels of different aesthetic design (refer planks and moulded panels).

Some barge moulding for roof edges was also used for vertical corner angles.

Brands/products
  • Fibrolite
  • Durabestos
  • Tasbestos
Years of production/use

Prior to 1990

Residential uses
  • Houses, sheds, garages, fences
  • Internal walls and ceilings subject to structural requirements
Industrial uses
  • Factories, warehouses, community buildings, schools and offices
Be aware

External positioning may have been more subject to damage by environmental forces over time.

Asbestos cement ventilators

Description

Moulded vent, sitting external to, or plastered into wall or ceiling sheet.

May be rectangular or round, in shape. May be a sheet adjacent to and covering insect mesh.

Internal and external use.

Years of production/use

Prior to 1990

Brands/products
  • Asbestolite
  • Durabestos
  • Fibrolite
  • Fibrock
Residential uses
  • Houses
Industrial uses
  • Offices, government and public buildings
  • Community buildings, churches
Be aware

Damaged vents may leave debris behind wall or in duct space if installed as point of entry for air duct. 

May have identical appearance to plaster cast vents.

Asbestos cement architraves and window components

Description

Moulded AC fittings for around windows and architraves (interior and exterior) to allow structured fit with AC corrugated sheeting used for walls. Mainly designed for exterior.

  1. Door and window head
  2. Windowsill
  3. Vertical window stile
  4. Windowsill stop-end – spigoted
  5. Door and window head stop-end – spigoted

Jointing coverstrips were also used for this function.

Spigoted sections and stop-ends produced.

Brands/products
  • Fibrolite
  • Asbestolite
  • Durabestos
  • Tasbestos
Years of production/use

Prior to 1990

Residential uses

Houses, garages, sheds

Industrial uses

Offices, community and government buildings and all industrial building applications

Be aware

Damaged or weathered product may have exposed fibres or be easily crumbled.

Bituminous felt washers were often used with the screws for fixing.

Hardie’s 1961 instructions:

For 1 and 2 – Fixings:  4” roofing screws or 4” roofing bolts, together with round galvanised iron washers and bituminous felt washers, fixed through moulding into window girt.

For 3, 4 and 5 – Fixings:  3½” roofing screws or 3½” roofing bolts, together with round galvanised iron washers and bituminous felt washers, fixed through moulding into window trimmers.

Asbestos cement imitation wall tile sheets

Description

Moulded AC sheeting for interiors as a cheaper alternative to ceramic tiles. 

Marketed as having a waterproof backing.

Supplied in natural AC colour and designed for painting, enamelling or lacquering by installer.

James Hardie produced Velotile in 3 colours that required no painting, and plain for painting.

Usually installed with metal angles and jointing strips. Manufacturer recommended AC cover strips for joints.

Does not appear to have gained a foothold in the market like Tilux-type smooth sheeting.

Brands/products
  • Duratile
  • Velotile
Years of production/use

1930-40s

Residential uses

Bathrooms, kitchens, toilets

Industrial uses

Communal changerooms, toilets

Be aware

Long term water ingress may soften ACM, leading to damage and exposed fibres.

Likelihood of installation in buildings up to mid-20th Century.

Laminated asbestos cement sheeting for interior wet areas

Description

AC sheet with plastic or enamel coating to provide smooth surface over patterned appearance in choice of colours. Patterns depicted included ‘marble’, ‘spatter’, ‘woven’ and flowers. Images below depict some manufacturer pattern/colour ranges.

Tilux branded laminated skirting and moulded cover strips were also marketed around 1940s in patterned colours, to match sheeting.

Manufacturers advertised that only basic cleaning applications were necessary. Some made it known that wax cleaners will deteriorate the patterned surface.

Some patterns faded over time through wear and tear which may hinder visual recognition.

Brands/products
  • Tilux
  • De Luxe Fibrock
  • Duradec
  • Artyle
  • Durachrome
Years of production/use

1929 to early 1980s

Residential uses
  • Home bathrooms, toilets, older kitchens and laundries
Industrial uses
  • Early marketing was also for restaurants, hospitals, surgeries and shop fronts.
  • Office bathrooms and change rooms
Be aware

Exposed fibres at damaged sheet edges that have come away from aluminium or PVC jointing strips/angles, or around tapware.

Colours and patterns sold to Australian market

James Hardie 1929 – 1983 – following colour/pattern ranges varied from time to time

Tilux (1929 – 1940s)

Tilux (1950s) (matching skirting/cover strips supplied)

New Tilux (1959 – 1970s)

Tilux Weave (1963 – 1970s)

Tilux (Late 1960s – 1980s)

Tilux vanity (1960s)

Wunderlich Ltd 1929-late 1970s

Durachrome (1930s)

Duradec (1957 – 1960s)

Colours: Pink, Grey, Green, Buff, Blue, Black

Images required

New Duradec (1965 – unknown)

New Duradec (1968 – late 1970s)

Note: actual colours may vary to catalogue images above. Note difference between 1968/1970 catalogues

Asbestos Products Ltd – up to 1944

Artyle – Manufactured as wallboard sheets and marketed as having a two-tone glazed and rimpled surface with an asbestos base.

Armac – No image held – imitation timber surface – refer Timber faced asbestos cement sheeting.

CSR

De Luxe Fibrock 1950s-1960s

Colour names: Dalmation, Autumn, Pink, Blue, Green, Cream

Note similarity to above pattern of Artyle previous production patterns

Durasteel – Steel faced asbestos cement sandwich panel

Description

Perforated steel sheets on both faces with an AC sheet inner core. May be referenced as Durasteel laminate.

Imported product from Durasteel Ltd (UK), produced since 1934. The use of AC is said to have ceased in 1978 and replaced with a fibre cement sheet.

In 1980 the manufacturer was taken over and renamed Cape Durasteel Limited. Product sold under this name is non-ACM.

Uses include fire door outer panelling, as fire break panels above doorway architraves, as protective structural layer around high voltage electrical units.

May also have been used to achieve dual fire and security rating, due to steel reinforcing.

May be painted.

Brands/products
  • Durasteel Ltd
Years of production/use

Early 1930s to 1978

Residential uses
  • Personal secure areas, panic rooms.
Industrial uses
  • Doors and other panelling for secure storage (walk-in safes), plant rooms and other fire-prone areas.
  • Military secure locations.
  • Electricity surface distribution substation equipment. 
Be aware

Painted panels may not allow visual identification of the inner AC core.

Modular homes with asbestos cement sheeting

Description

Modular (kit) homes marketed from mid 1970s-1980s by franchises throughout Australia and South Pacific. Generally known in Australia as Logan Homes. Panelling manufactured by Hardie’s.

An early version of prefabricated expanded polystyrene sandwich (EPS) panelling was a key element of the modular system (refer image 8), used for walls and ceilings.

Ceiling panels were solid sandwich panels of AC sheeting with a polystyrene core. Wall panels were AC sheeting attached to metal frames requiring polystyrene batts to be inserted.

Later designs from the mid-1980s saw the AC sheeting layers replaced with non-ACM fibre cement sheeting.

Marketed as a quick and cheaper housing alternative, which was cyclone proof, able to be constructed by a ‘handyman’ in weeks. Attractive to buyers in cyclone-subjected locations.

Diagram at image 8 is from published James Cook Cyclone Structural Testing Station report:
Testing a Logan Unit House Designed for 63m/s Winds – 1984. 

Both AC sheeting and fibre cement sheeting are referenced in this report as located in the structure tested.

Brands/products
  • Logan Modular Homes
  • Logan Unit Homes
  • Pacific Modular
  • Marlin Modular
Years of production/use

1970s to early 1980s (ACM risk).

Advertising in March 1984 stated that about 14 Logan Homes were being built every day. Around half at this time, were in Queensland.

Residential uses

Housing

Industrial uses

Community buildings, mine site accommodation and field offices

Be aware

Some cases of mixed panelling (AC and non-ACM) supplied within kits appears to have occurred in mid-1980s. Multiple sampling may be required during asbestos surveys.

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