Asbestos sample and analysis

Asbestos analysis is an essential part of every renovation, demolition and repair project in properties built before 1994, because asbestos was used in Finnish building materials well into the 1990s and finding it can completely change a project's schedule and costs. The Onelab laboratory analyses asbestos samples in accordance with the ISO 22262-1 standard using a modern scanning electron microscope whose accuracy is sufficient to identify even very small asbestos fibres inside the material, and you will typically receive the results on the same day that your sample reaches our laboratory by post or courier. An asbestos analysis costs only €39.90 + VAT per sample, with no hidden costs, compulsory add-ons or rush fees, which makes the service equally suitable for private customers facing a renovation, for housing companies during a pipe renovation, for construction companies at the start of a contract and for asbestos surveyors in their daily work. We have designed the whole process to be so simple that anyone can order, send and read an analysis result without any previous experience of asbestos matters or laboratory sampling.

An asbestos sample is taken directly from the building material, and the sampling target can be, for example, vinyl flooring, pipe insulation, a ceiling board, a ceramic tile, mortar, putty, a façade panel, the insulation of an electric cable, a fire insulation board, a door frame seal, the insulation of a ventilation duct or even old floor paint, because asbestos was used in more than two hundred different construction products over several decades right up to the early 1990s, and its use was particularly common in public buildings, schools, hospitals, government offices and blocks of flats. In practice you carefully take a piece of material roughly the size of a matchbox, seal it carefully in an airtight minigrip bag to prevent dust from spreading, and send the bag to us in an ordinary envelope. In our laboratory we analyse the sample with a JEOL SEM-EDS electron microscope, which allows us to reliably distinguish all six of the most common asbestos types from one another: chrysotile or white asbestos, crocidolite or blue asbestos, amosite or brown asbestos, as well as anthophyllite, tremolite and actinolite, each of which requires its own safety and removal measures. The results are delivered to your email as a clear report intended for professional use, and that report is accepted by Finnish authorities, insurance companies, occupational safety inspectors and all contractors in every municipality in Finland, from Helsinki to Rovaniemi.

Why do those who need an asbestos analysis choose Onelab? We have analysed over 100,000 asbestos samples in recent years, and our accumulated experience combined with high-end equipment makes us one of the most trusted asbestos laboratories in Finland, yet our price is still the most affordable in the country, with no hidden costs or compulsory add-ons. Unlike many other laboratories, we do not charge extra for an urgent analysis: we process every sample on the day it arrives, without a separate surcharge or express option. We use a modern JEOL SEM-EDS electron microscope that identifies even small amounts of asbestos fibres, and the LIVE-EDS elemental analysis ensures that optical identification alone does not lead to a wrong result. We also offer air sample analyses for clearance measurements after asbestos removal work and for handing over the site, as well as investigations of harmful substances for PAH compounds, PCB compounds, heavy metals and other substances in building materials that are harmful to health. Our service covers the whole of Finland, from Helsinki, Espoo and Vantaa all the way to Oulu, Tampere, Turku, Jyväskylä, Lahti, Kuopio and Rovaniemi, so same-day analysis results are available no matter which municipality the sample is sent from. Order an asbestos sample on our website in under five minutes.