removing tiles from fibro walls

i am wanting to remove the wall tiles from around the bathtub to replace them with new ones, im pretty sure the walls are fibro and i wanted to know how i go about removing them safely from fibro walls, do i need to wear special stuff eg. face mask, gloves, clothing etc? and if the tiles come off with pieces of the wall how do i go about patching a fibro wall up? hope someone can help with this problem, i want to be safe while working with these fibro walls, my hubby is hopeless and knows nothing lol thanks in advance....

I guess first make sure what you are dealing with.
Make sure it is only cement sheet, not asbestos sheeting. Obviously the latter requires specialist treatment.

I agree with murray. Check and make sure it is not Asbestos. If it is you will need to get certified people who are equipped to do this kind of work. You cannot remove it yourself if it is Asbestos. There are strict laws in place as to how it has to be removed and disposed of and has to be done by licensed contractors.
If it is indeed cement sheeting, then I would suggest that you use a mask. Good luck.

thanks guys, do you know who i would get to tell me if it is asbestos or not? or is there a way that i can tell if it is asbestos myself? thanks

http://www.nsw.gov.au/fibro/

To help with the dust wet it down.
David

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Originally Posted by shenmon

thanks guys, do you know who i would get to tell me if it is asbestos or not? or is there a way that i can tell if it is asbestos myself? thanks

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How long has it been in place?
Check with your health dept, folk there should know how likely it is to be asbestos. before 70s, certainly. during 70s, quite likely. I don't know when it was phased out though.

Google can find good instructions for dealing with it. Handling it in quantity requires a licence. It also requires proper disposal in sealed, labelled bags - probably two sealed bags.

Shaving cream is good for keeping dust down. Power tools are forbidden.

It will be very expensive to deal with it if it is Asbestos. Another alternative is to tile over the existing tiles. This can be done quite easily and is satisfactory. I have seen areas that have been "tiled over" and you can't pick it if its done carefully. In fact, I have had my own house floor re tiled this way. The mess involved and the dust etc involved in removing the old tiles was not worth the expense or effort. You need to etch the existing tiles before tiling over them. Some tradesmen an other people will say not to tile over existing tiles but I have seen it done and done it myself without any problems.