Ceiling Space Decontamination

Ceiling space decontamination is the controlled removal of everything that has settled in a roof or ceiling space over the life of a building. Lead dust from old paint, soot from when the place was heated by fire, rodent and bird waste, and decades of degraded insulation.

We work in the space under full containment, vacuum it out with H class equipment, bag and remove the old insulation, and leave the space clean enough to be signed off by an occupational hygienist.

We do this more often than people expect. Schools, heritage buildings, government sites, commercial refurbishments and high end homes in Sydney, Brisbane and along the East Coast. Anywhere built before the 1970s is a candidate, and most people only find out when a trade goes up there for something else.

Request a callback

Takes 30 seconds. We call you back, usually same day.

What is actually up there

Lead dust. Paint used on ceilings, roof structures and vents before lead was phased out breaks down into fine dust that settles in the ceiling space and stays there. Disturb it and it travels. Lead is a cumulative poison and children are the most at risk, which is exactly why this comes up so often in schools and family homes.

Old insulation. Loose fill, batts, and in older buildings things nobody would use today. It traps everything else that has landed on it, and it is usually the single dirtiest item in the space.

Soot and combustion residue. Common in older terraces and country properties where the building was heated by open fire for decades.

Rodent and bird waste. A biological hazard in its own right, and the reason a lot of ceiling spaces smell the way they do.

Asbestos fibre. Not always, but often enough that we test rather than assume. If it is present, it changes the whole job and it is handled under our asbestos licences as licensed removal work, not as a clean.

How we do it

We look first. Someone goes up, takes photos, and where it is warranted we have samples taken and analysed. You get told what is in the space before anyone quotes a removal.

Containment. The ceiling space is isolated from the rooms below. Access points are sealed, plastic goes down, and where the risk warrants it we run negative air so nothing migrates into occupied areas.

Vacuum. H class vacuums with HEPA filtration, worked systematically across the space rather than just around the hatch. This is the part that gets skipped by people doing it cheaply, and it is the part that matters.

Insulation out. Bagged in the space, sealed, and taken down through the containment rather than carried through the house in armfuls.

Clean and clear. Final vacuum, surfaces wiped where required, and the space inspected. Where a hygienist is engaged, they inspect and issue a clearance certificate before the containment comes down.

Waste off site. Classified, transported and disposed of properly, with the dockets to prove it.

Hygienic supervision, and when you need it

On a school, a government building, a workplace, or anywhere with a duty of care to people who will be back in the room afterwards, an independent occupational hygienist should be involved. They set the control levels, monitor the air, and issue the clearance at the end.

We work to the hygienist rather than around them. If you do not have one, we can arrange one. The certificate at the end is what protects you, and it is worth far more than the few hundred dollars it costs.

On a private home with nobody in residence, the job can sometimes be run without full monitoring. We will tell you honestly which side of that line your job sits on.

Where this comes up most

Schools. Old buildings, young lungs, and a maintenance team that has usually just discovered the problem while running new cabling. Work is normally done in holidays or out of hours and we are set up for that.

Heritage buildings. Lead paint is almost a given. The constraint is that you cannot damage the fabric getting the contamination out.

Luxury homes. Usually found during a renovation, often in the better older suburbs, and usually urgent because the family wants to move back in.

Commercial refurbishment. Ceiling space cleaned before new services go in, so the new ductwork is not installed into a dirty void.

Defence and secure sites are handled by Perfect Contracting rather than by us, and we will hand you across if that is what you have.

Frequently asked

Do we have to move out? For most residential jobs, not necessarily, but it depends on what is up there and how the containment sits. We will tell you before you book anything.

How long does it take? A standard house ceiling space is usually one to two days. A school building or a large commercial space is scoped properly, because guessing helps nobody.

Will you replace the insulation? We remove. Reinsulating is a separate trade and we are happy to leave the space ready for them.

What if you find asbestos? Work stops, you are told, and it is priced and carried out as licensed asbestos removal. We hold the licences, so it does not mean finding a new contractor.

Do we get paperwork? Yes. Photos before and after, waste dockets, and the hygienist clearance where one is engaged.

Not sure what is in your ceiling space

Most people ring us because a sparky or an air conditioning installer has come down out of the manhole and told them they are not going back up. That is a reasonable place to start.

Tell us the building, roughly when it was built and what prompted the call. We will tell you whether it needs testing, a clean, or nothing at all.

Sydney 02 7908 4944. Brisbane and South East Queensland 07 2145 6581.