Artex Explained: Does My Textured Ceiling Contain Asbestos?

The Essentials

Artex is a brand name, but people often use it to describe any textured, swirly or popcorn-style finish on ceilings and walls. From the 1960s to the mid-1980s, white asbestos (chrysotile) was often mixed into the coating to make the finish stronger and less likely to crack.

Is It Dangerous?

The short answer is no, as long as you leave it alone. Asbestos only becomes a health risk if it is disturbed and tiny fibres get into the air, where they can be breathed in.

• It is safe if the ceiling is in good condition, has been painted, and is not disturbed.
• It becomes dangerous if you sand, drill or scrape the ceiling to flatten it. Doing this releases dust that contains asbestos fibres.

How Do I Know If Mine Has It?

You cannot tell whether a textured coating contains asbestos just by looking. Even a professional surveyor cannot be completely certain by eye alone.

• Check when your house was built or renovated. If it was between 1960 and 1990, there is a chance it has asbestos.
• The only way to know for certain is to have a small sample tested in a laboratory.

Asbestos Testing

The only way to know for sure whether asbestos is present is to have a sample taken and analysed under a polarised light microscope (PLM) at a UKAS-accredited laboratory.

Can You Leave Artex in Place?

If it is undamaged, Artex can be left in place safely. As with all asbestos-containing products, the danger occurs when it is damaged, whether by design or by accident. If you sand or drill into it, the coating will release asbestos fibres into the air.

The HSE’s Asbestos Essentials task sheets, covering safe practice for non-licensed work such as this, are a useful further reference: HSE Asbestos Essentials.

Areas Covered