Asbestos alert!

[Axtman]

This is the rear panel of the Peavey Artist that I am working on. I assume the white cardboard looking stuff is asbestos. If so what should I do?

[glebert]

Don't see a picture. I've never seen asbestos like material on any Peavey amps. I'm guessing it is some sort of mold.

[Axtman]

The picture shows up clearly on my post. I will repost it.

[Axtman]

I too have NEVER seen asbestos on amps. Foil and sheet metal heat protectors yes but not asbestos.

[glebert]

That does look a bit asbestosy. Certainly not factory.

Not to be an old-timey "back in my day" guy but I wonder if the fear of asbestos in small quantities is overblown (especially if PPE is used). Isn't it still in brake pads? People work on those all the time and those will have dust all over the place.

[Mick Bailey]

I emailed Peavey in the USA and in the UK over this to ask them to confirm or not whether it's asbestos. It's the only time I never had a reply to a question, despite a number of attempts. It isn't glass fibre, and I've dealt with ceramic fibre quite a lot. I am fairly sure it is asbestos. The only was to establish whether it is for certain is to buy a test kit and have it microscopically and chemically analyzed. After that amp repair in the link, I got another Peavey Mace with the same material, then I stopped dead taking in any Peavey tube amps from the 70s and early 80s. Asbestos was not banned here until 1999. Apart from the obvious panel material, the air movement from the speaker causes particles to accumulate with the dust in the back of the amp. I had a call a few years back from a customer with a Peavey who'd taken the back off to change tubes on an amp he'd bought and found the same issue and wanted me to take it on. No thanks.

Any activity is likely to disturb fibres. If it's a customer amp, you need to advise them of the situation. Where you take it from there is down to local legislation, but over here there's a defined procedure by the Government's Health and Safety Executive which mandates how such things are dealt with, regardless of the size and scale of the suspicious material.

https://music-electronics-forum.com/...tronics/37528-

[mozz]

Spray clear over it and forget about it.

[Chuck H]

Asbestos is bad, yes. But it's not an explosive or anything. It's still in many incidental places. I'd put on a mask (we all have those on hand now) and rubber gloves, take the panel outside and pull the staples, vacuum the panel and set it aside. Now throw away the suspected pad, the gloves and the mask and vacuum yourself. Staple a piece of aluminum on there where the pad use to be. Maybe add a little rubberized caulk or adhesive to keep it from rattling.

In truth I would probably be a little cavalier about all the precautionary stuff. Just posting it in an effort to be responsible.

This has been addressed here before too.

https://music-electronics-forum.com/...tronics/37528-

[glebert]

I would probably do similar to Chuck suggested, but maybe add a wet paper towel and cover the parts of the asbestos other than the staple I am pulling to keep dust and fibers down.

[Chuck H]

I would probably do similar to Chuck suggested, but maybe add a wet paper towel and cover the parts of the asbestos other than the staple I am pulling to keep dust and fibers down.

Ah! Good idea. Or maybe just mist it with a spray bottle.

You know, we probably all went to class every day of our childhood in rooms with crispy, old asbestos laden t-bar ceiling tiles. I remember the asbestos Bunsen burner plates in science class. As a painter I have probably scraped and removed hundreds of square yards of asbestos laden acoustic ceiling (popcorn) texture. And I'm sure there are plenty here that have had incidental occupational exposure like this. The world was already aware of the asbestos problem by the time I was removing ceiling texture so I was donning a disposable paper suit with a hood and rubber gloves taped at the sleeves. Dust mask and eye protection, etc. And the texture gets damped down just prior to removal to soften it and help control dust. But it's still A LOT of exposure.

I've read that there were three basic types of fiber produced and only one is linked with asbestosis. But don't quote me on that, do your own research.

My point is that you probably don't need to call haz-mat to manage that back panel

[Tom Phillips]

I too have NEVER seen asbestos on amps. Foil and sheet metal heat protectors yes but not asbestos.

It's common to find on original Fender tweed amps. Reference the attached photo of a 1959 5E3 Deluxe rear panel.

[Axtman]

I work in the construction/design industry. It is my personal believe that asbestos is harmful but that the dangers are a bit exaggerated. Most of the incidents I know where people died of Mesothelioma the people have worked around friable (dusty) environments and were usually smokers. I have heard that the tar in cigarettes helps bind the fibers to the lungs.

Again, I am not a doctor and believe people should err on the side of caution when dealing with it. So, I am going to take the panel outside and spray it down with water until it is completely saturated. Then with gloves and mask I am going to carefully remove the staples and material. Then double bag the material and wipe down the panel with a wet cloth.

I looked it up and asbestos was banned in 1989 in the US. Asbestos was a "miracle fiber" and used to be in everything. In construction it is commonly found in insulation, floor tiles and even mastic adhesive. Instead of disturbing floor tiles many times they will just be encapsulated with a fluid applied compound.

I'm not sure why Peavey would put that stuff on the back panel. I know ouput tubes get hot but it's not like they have an open flame!

[Tom Phillips]

...I'm not sure why Peavey would put that stuff on the back panel. I know output tubes get hot but it's not like they have an open flame!

I think there is a fair chance that the Peavey sample you have is not stock. I agree that it is unnecessary to add an asbestos heat shield on the back panels.

[Marshtech]

A friend of mine picked up a pair of old Kalamazoo Model 1 and Model II amps. Each of them had asbestos strips on the inside edges of the combo. I stapled aluminum foil over top in an attempt to avoid disturbing fibres. There's not a lot of clearance when pulling the chassis out. At the time I posted on one of these amp forums to alert people who service amps.

[tedmich]

asbestos actually contains the TONE, mesothelioma is a small price to pay!
Kidding seal that shit up and dont disturb!