I not too long ago moved into a brand new house. The kitchen worktops are quartz – primarily pretend marble – which initially is not to my style.
However extra concerningly, quartz has now been reported to trigger well being issues in kitchen fitters who’ve dealt with it.
Re-doing the kitchen is not a precedence so I used to be planning to alter the worktops in a few years’ time.
However given these issues ought to I have a look at doing it sooner? I’ve seen that individuals are calling for the fabric to be banned, which it already has been in Australia.
Wouldn’t it be tough to discover a tradesperson keen to take away it? I think about it will be tough to eliminate.
Involved: A reader needs to know if protected to get her quartz kitchen worktop, pictured, eliminated
Jane Denton, of That is Cash, replies: Quartz is synthetic stone, also called engineered or reconstituted stone.
Quartz kitchen worktops have turn into widespread within the final twenty years or so due to their sturdiness and look.
They’re usually made out of 90 per cent floor quartz and 10 per cent resins and pigments.
Whereas being processed into its closing worktop type, it has been reported that the stone releases dangerous particles of high-quality silica mud into the air.
As soon as inhaled into the lungs, the particles can construct up, inflicting inner scarring and irritation of the lungs, referred to as silicosis.
In July 2024, Australia banned the use, provide and manufacture of engineered stone.
In accordance with studies, circumstances of synthetic stone silicosis have been reported in varied elements of the globe since 2010. Instances in Britain have additionally now been recognized.
A report printed within the Thorax medical journal in August 2024 referred to as Synthetic stone silicosis: a UK case collection, mentioned: ‘UK circumstances are prone to enhance, with pressing motion wanted to establish circumstances and implement rules.’
I’ve requested a medical knowledgeable and a trades knowledgeable for his or her ideas in your query.
Repair Radio host Clive Holland says quartz worktops could be eliminated safely with the right tools
Repair Radio host and residential enchancment knowledgeable Clive Holland, says: Quartz worktops could be hazardous to employees on account of their excessive ranges of crystalline silica, which might result in silicosis – a lethal and incurable lung illness.
Nevertheless, as soon as put in, these surfaces pose no risk until disturbed by re-cutting, drilling, or related actions.
A skilled skilled can safely take away a quartz worktop if correct precautions and protecting tools are used.
Alternatively, the worktop could be left in place and lined with marble or granite overlays.
Granite overlays, specifically, are a wonderful alternative for kitchens and loos.
They’re sturdy, resistant to wreck and spills, and simple to take care of. This methodology ensures that the quartz worktop stays sealed beneath, eliminating any potential danger from silica publicity.
This strategy not solely enhances the looks of the area, but additionally gives a sensible and protected answer.
By choosing overlays, owners can get pleasure from the advantages of a sturdy, trendy floor with out the hazards related to disturbing quartz.
It’s a sensible and efficient choice for each security and performance.
Dr Johanna Feary, an knowledgeable in lung illness, says eradicating a quartz worktop will launch little or no mud
Dr Johanna Feary, a guide in occupational lung illness at Royal Brompton Hospital, says: Quartz worktops are identified by many alternative names however they’re principally all types of engineered or ‘synthetic’ stone made out of crushed rocks combined along with resins and pigments to supply the specified end. They’re extremely sensible, resilient and enticing supplies.
Nevertheless, a key characteristic is that they will comprise very excessive ranges, over 90 per cent, of silica in contrast with, for instance, marble which incorporates virtually no silica. Which means when the quartz worktops are lower or polished the mud that’s produced incorporates very excessive ranges of silica.
If sufficient precautions usually are not taken to guard employees from this mud then they may breathe in excessive quantities of silica mud. If somebody repeatedly breathes in silica mud it will probably result in silicosis.
That is an incurable and infrequently progressive illness which causes hardening of the lungs.
At first it causes no signs so folks don’t realise there could also be an issue.
If it progresses, signs of breathlessness, cough and feeling drained might develop. The very first thing folks typically remark is that they really feel extra in need of breath than they used to, doing issues like climbing stairs, going for a brisk stroll or kicking a soccer round with their kids. Over time this will progress so they’re in need of breath strolling slowly or having a shower.
In silicosis, on account of these worktops, it’s an unusually younger group of people who find themselves affected with a mean age of simply 34 years-old.
Evidently all of them labored for firms the place the precautions to guard employees from mud weren’t satisfactory. Sadly the UK noticed the primary dying this 12 months in a person who was simply 28 years outdated.
The danger is just to tradespeople slicing and sharpening the stone and that is virtually all carried out in workshops.
As soon as the worktops are put in there is no such thing as a danger to the house owner. Disposing of it’s going to launch little or no mud so this ought to be easy when you do determine to switch it.
