- Asbestos removal
- Paint, seal or replace?
Can you paint an asbestos roof?
Only if nobody cleans it first. That rules out most paint jobs.
The Asbestos Abatement Regulations, 2020 allow painting without surface preparation, and they ban cleaning or preparing asbestos cement outright. Here is what that means for painting, sealing, living under the roof, and when replacing it makes more sense. When replacing does make more sense, asbestos roof removal and replacement is priced per m², with the quote on screen.
Decided it has to go instead? Send the address on WhatsApp for an estimate in minutes, or check what removal costs in Gauteng and get a fixed quote.
Yes, but only in a way that needs no cleaning, scraping, sanding or pressure-washing first. Regulation 24(b) says no person may clean or prepare the surfaces of asbestos cement materials, so the prep step every paint job normally starts with is the step the law bans.
Painting also changes nothing about what the roof is. It is still asbestos cement: it still cannot carry solar panels, it still belongs on a workplace asbestos inventory, and it still has to come off under the same rules when it fails.
What the 2020 regulations allow on an asbestos roof
The regulations sort asbestos work into three types, and list a set of things nobody may do. This is how they apply to a roof.
| Job on the roof | Who may do it |
|---|---|
| Painting with no surface preparationType 1 asbestos work: must not release fibres | No registration; 7 days' written notice to the Department |
| Removing less than 10 m²Type 1, and not repeated on the same site within six months | No registration; 7 days' written notice to the Department |
| Repairing or encapsulating (sealing) the sheetsType 2 asbestos work, done without surface preparation | Type 2 registered contractor |
| Removing the roofType 2 asbestos work for asbestos cement | Type 2 registered contractor |
| Cleaning or preparing the surfaceScrubbing, wire-brushing, sanding, pressure-washing: regulation 24(b) | Nobody |
| Cutting, grinding or drilling with power toolsAngle grinders or any fast-moving equipment: regulation 24(f) | Nobody |
| Reusing or reinstalling old sheetsSelling, donating, reusing, recycling: regulation 24(a) | Nobody |
If the roof is leaking rather than just faded, the rules shift: sealing or repairing is type 2 work. What you may legally do about a leaking asbestos roof.
Source: Asbestos Abatement Regulations, 2020, published by the Department of Employment and Labour. The regulations bind employers and self-employed people, which includes any painter or roofer you pay to do the work.
How do you clean an asbestos roof before painting?
You don't. Regulation 24(b) of the Asbestos Abatement Regulations, 2020 says no person may clean or prepare the surfaces of asbestos cement materials, so pressure-washing, scrubbing, wire-brushing, sanding and scraping off lichen are all out, whoever does them. Regulation 24(e) also bans using compressed air to remove asbestos dust from any surface.
That leaves one legal way to paint: straight onto the sheets as they are. The regulations class painting asbestos cement “in a manner that does not require surface preparation and does not cause the release of asbestos fibres” as type 1 asbestos work. If a painter's quote starts with a wash or a prep line, that line is the part the law bans.
Type 1 work needs no registration, but it is not paperwork-free. Regulation 10(1) says no employer, self-employed person or asbestos client (the person the work is done for) may carry out type 1 asbestos work unless the Department of Employment and Labour's Chief Director: Provincial Operations has been told in writing where the work will be done, with contact details, at least seven days before it starts.
If the roof is too dirty or weathered for paint to hold without cleaning, the remaining options are encapsulation by a type 2 registered contractor, which the regulations also require to be done without surface preparation, or asbestos roof removal by a registered contractor and a new roof. You can measure your roof from above with the roof size calculator and check what removal costs per square metre in Gauteng before you decide.
Can you paint the inside of an asbestos roof?
Yes, under the same rules as the outside. The regulations draw no line between the top and the underside of the sheets: painting asbestos cement without surface preparation is type 1 work on either side, and cleaning or preparing it is banned on either side. This is the question for garages, carports, outbuildings and stoeps where the sheets are open from below.
Indoors, the dust matters more because it stays in the room. The regulations define asbestos dust as airborne or settled dust that contains, or is likely to contain, asbestos fibres. Leave any dust or debris under the sheets alone rather than sweeping or blowing it off: regulation 24(e) bans compressed air, and regulation 24(h) bans vacuuming asbestos dust with anything less than equipment that filters at least 99 per cent of particles one micrometre in size.
Don't fix lights, hooks or brackets through the sheets: regulation 24(f) bans power drills and any other fast-moving equipment on asbestos-containing material, and any hole breaks the sheet and releases fibres. And if you want to paint the inside because the sheets are cracked, stained by leaks or sagging, paint will not fix that. Repair is type 2 work; see what you may legally do about a leaking asbestos roof.
Source: Asbestos Abatement Regulations, 2020 (GN R1196, Government Gazette 43893), regulation 1 (definitions of asbestos dust and type 1 and type 2 asbestos work), regulation 10(1) and regulation 24(b), (e), (f) and (h).
Paint, seal or replace?
Three options, and what each one actually changes.
Paint it
Allowed only without any prep, which is hard to do well on an old, dirty roof: paint makers want a clean, sound surface, and on asbestos cement the cleaning is the banned part. It changes the colour, not the material. Solar stays off the table.
Seal it
Encapsulation is type 2 work for a registered contractor. It can hold a sound roof together for longer, but the sheets are still asbestos, still have to be listed where the building is a workplace, and still have to come off under the full rules when they fail.
Replace it
The only option that ends the problem. Strip and dispose runs R150 to R250 per m² in Gauteng, and a new steel roof starts at R500 per m². After a replacement the roof can carry solar, and the roof stops being an asbestos question when you sell.
Can you live in a house with an asbestos roof?
Yes, while the roof is intact and left alone. The National Institute for Occupational Health puts it plainly: the significant health risk comes when asbestos-containing materials are disturbed in an uncontrolled way, the fibres get into the air and people breathe them in. The diseases linked to asbestos, asbestosis, mesothelioma and lung cancer, typically appear decades after exposure, which is why prevention matters more than reassurance.
What turns a low-risk roof into a real one:
- Damage. Cracked, broken or crumbling sheets, hail damage and badly weathered edges.
- Cleaning. Pressure-washing, scrubbing or wire-brushing, which the regulations ban for exactly this reason.
- Drilling and cutting. Fixing a satellite dish or a geyser bracket with a power drill is banned on asbestos cement.
- Walking on it. Asbestos-cement sheets are brittle: a foot through the roof is a fall and a fibre release at once.
If the roof shows any of those, have it looked at before it gets worse. Not sure it is asbestos? Start with the visual checks.
This page explains the rules as published and is not legal advice. The regulations are enforced by the Department of Employment and Labour.
Questions people ask about painting and living under an asbestos roof
How do you clean an asbestos roof before painting?
You don't. Regulation 24(b) of the Asbestos Abatement Regulations, 2020 bans anyone from cleaning or preparing the surfaces of asbestos cement, and regulation 24(e) bans using compressed air to remove asbestos dust. The only legal way to paint is straight onto the sheets with no preparation, which is type 1 asbestos work.
Can you paint the inside of an asbestos roof?
Yes, under the same rules as the outside: no cleaning or preparation of the sheets and no power drilling. Leave any dust or debris under the sheets alone: regulation 24(e) bans blowing it off with compressed air, and regulation 24(h) bans vacuuming asbestos dust with anything less than equipment that filters at least 99 per cent of particles one micrometre in size.
Can I pressure-wash my asbestos roof before painting it?
No. Regulation 24(b) of the Asbestos Abatement Regulations, 2020 says no person may clean or prepare the surfaces of asbestos cement materials, and the National Institute for Occupational Health warns against abrasive materials and high-pressure water on these roofs because they release fibres.
Do I need a registered contractor to paint an asbestos roof?
Not for plain painting that needs no surface preparation and releases no fibres, which the regulations class as type 1 asbestos work. Before type 1 work starts, the painter or you, as the person the work is done for, must give the Department of Employment and Labour at least seven days' written notice (regulation 10(1)). Repairing or encapsulating asbestos cement is type 2 work and needs a type 2 registered asbestos contractor.
Can I put solar panels on an asbestos roof once it is painted?
No. Painting does not change what the sheets are made of, and the Department of Employment and Labour's instruction of 9 November 2022 bars installing panels on asbestos roofs. The roof has to be replaced first.
Is it safe to live in a house with an asbestos roof?
An intact, undisturbed asbestos-cement roof is a low risk. The National Institute for Occupational Health says the significant health risk comes when asbestos-containing materials are disturbed in an uncontrolled way and the fibres are breathed in. Cracked, crumbling or hail-damaged sheets should be assessed.
Can I drill into an asbestos roof to fix a leak or mount something?
Not with power tools. Regulation 24(f) bans using electrical power tools such as angle grinders, or any other fast-moving equipment, to cut, grind or drill asbestos-containing material.
Can I reuse old asbestos sheets on a carport or shed?
No. Regulation 24(a) bans selling, donating, reusing, reinstalling or recycling any asbestos or asbestos-containing material. Removed sheets go to a licensed landfill with a disposal certificate.
You may paint an asbestos roof in South Africa only if nobody cleans or prepares the surface first, because regulation 24 of the Asbestos Abatement Regulations, 2020 bans that preparation. Painting without preparation, inside or out, is type 1 work, and the painter or you, as the person the work is done for, must give the Department of Employment and Labour seven days' written notice first (regulation 10(1)). Sealing, encapsulating or repairing the sheets needs a registered contractor. Most paint jobs fail without cleaning, which is why replacement is often the better spend.
Ready to replace it instead?
Send the address or a photo on WhatsApp, or call. An estimate in minutes during business hours, then a fixed quote, itemised line by line, after a site visit.