Asbestos cement pipe

Asbestos Pipe Relining in Perth

Asbestos pipe relining in Perth puts a new pipe inside an old asbestos cement sewer or stormwater line, so the relined length stays in the ground instead of being dug up and cut out. We check the line on camera first and tell you plainly where it can be lined and where it cannot.

We do not remove, test or certify asbestos

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Asbestos pipe relining in Perth starts on the truck: a technician pouring amber resin into a mixing tub to saturate the liner before it goes into the pipe.

Camera first

CCTV shows the pipe material and its condition before anything is quoted.

Relined length stays put

The liner cures inside the old pipe, so that length is not dug up or cut.

Clear about our limits

Removal is for a licensed asbestos removalist, not us.

Where it is found

Asbestos sewer pipe in older Perth homes

Asbestos cement, often called AC or fibro pipe, was widely laid for sewer and stormwater lines in Perth in the middle of last century. A lot of it is still in the ground under older homes, and much of it is now reaching the end of its working life.

Cracks along the pipe wall, which let water out and roots in.
Joints that have moved or opened as the sandy ground shifts.
A wall that has softened and thinned with age and flow.

The usual fix for a failed line is to dig it up and replace it. With asbestos cement, digging means breaking and cutting the old pipe to get it out, and that is the step you want to avoid where you can.

An asbestos cement line, relined in place

The old asbestos cement pipe stays in the ground. A liner goes in through an existing access point and cures against the inside of it, so the relined length is never exposed, broken or cut.

The fix

How relining leaves the asbestos pipe undisturbed

A CCTV drain inspection goes in from an existing access point and records the material and condition along the run. You get the recording.

Where the pipe still holds its shape, a resin-saturated liner goes in through the same access point, is pressed against the old wall and cures hard. The asbestos cement stays where it is as the outer shell. The flow runs inside the new liner, and the ground, paving and garden above the relined length are not opened up.

For the job on a house sewer, see sewer pipe relining. For roof and yard lines, see stormwater pipe relining. Each step is set out in how pipe relining works.

What we do not do

We do not remove, test or certify asbestos

We identify likely asbestos cement pipe on camera and reline it where the pipe allows. We do not remove asbestos, test it or issue clearance certificates.

If a section has collapsed, there is nothing left to line, and it has to come out.
If there is no usable access point, one may have to be dug, and that can mean cutting into the pipe.

In either case, Western Australia's workplace safety and asbestos rules apply to removing or cutting asbestos cement, and the work goes to a licensed asbestos removalist. WorkSafe WA and the WA Department of Health publish the current requirements. We tell you from the footage which sections are affected before any of it is planned.

If the line has already broken, our collapsed sewer pipe repair page covers what happens next.

Older Perth lines are not always asbestos cement. Clay fails at its joints and clay pipe relining closes them. Cast iron corrodes from the inside and cast iron pipe relining starts with cleaning it back to a sound wall.

What people ask us about asbestos pipe relining

Can asbestos cement pipe be relined?

Often, yes. If the pipe still holds its shape, a liner can be cured inside it and the asbestos cement stays in the ground around it. If a section has collapsed or broken apart, there is nothing left to line, and that section is a removal job. The camera run shows which you have.

Do you remove or test asbestos?

No. We do not remove, test or certify asbestos. We identify likely asbestos cement pipe on camera, tell you what we found, and reline where the pipe allows. If a section has to come out, that work is for a licensed asbestos removalist, and if you need the material confirmed, that is a job for a qualified asbestos assessor.

Is relining an asbestos pipe safer than digging it up?

Relining avoids digging up and cutting the relined length, which is the part of a dig-and-replace job that breaks asbestos cement apart. We do not make health or safety claims beyond that. For guidance on asbestos at home, the WA Department of Health is the place to start.

Is my sewer pipe asbestos?

You usually do not need to know before you call. Asbestos cement was widely used for sewer and stormwater pipe in Perth in the middle of last century, so older homes can have it. The CCTV inspection shows the pipe material along the run, and many older lines are a mix of materials where earlier repairs were done.

What happens to the asbestos pipe after relining?

It stays where it is, in the ground, as the outer shell around the new liner. The flow runs inside the liner, not against the old wall. If you sell the property later, you can tell the buyer the line was relined and hand over the camera footage.

Old asbestos cement line playing up?

Tell us where the property is and what the drain is doing. We will run the camera, show you the pipe, and tell you what can be relined in place.

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