Asbestos in pre-2000 homes
Textured coating survives only on the bulkhead over the stairs, and the landing ceiling is skim. Why does the skimmed landing not sample that bulkhead?
The skimmed landing does not sample the bulkhead, because a new skim is not a test of the coating left beside it. Textured coating survives only on the bulkhead over the stairs. Buildings built or refurbished before 2000 can contain asbestos. A home survey does not sample it by looking. The skim shows the landing ceiling was given a new face. It does not identify, and it does not clear, the textured coating that remains on the bulkhead.
Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Written for buyers in England and Wales unless this answer says otherwise. No named surveyor has signed this page. It is general guidance, not a report on your house, and not legal advice.
What is the fuller explanation?
Skim is plaster spread over a surface. It can hide an older coating, or it can be a new ceiling in its own right. Either way it is a finish on the landing, not a sample taken from the bulkhead. The bulkhead still shows the textured coating the survey could see. Two different ceilings can have two different histories, even when they meet at a corner. Looking from the landing does not test the coating over the stairs.
Do not sand, scrape or break that textured coating. If you need to know what it is, a competent sampler has to take a sample and a laboratory has to report it, which the home survey has not done. Tell the solicitor the landing skim is not a clearance of the bulkhead. Keep decorations and any stair work away from the coating until that separate question is answered.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Did you record textured coating on the bulkhead as unsampled?
- Is the landing skim a different surface from that bulkhead?
- Did this visit stop at looking, with no sample taken?
What are the typical next steps?
- Keep the bulkhead coating separate from the skimmed landing.
- Do not sand, scrape or break the textured coating.
- Arrange a proper sample only if you need identification.
Costs vary with the building and with who you instruct. Where this page does not cite a published figure, ask the surveyor, a relevant specialist, or your solicitor for a written quote. Do not treat a forum average as the price.
Also asked about this
If the landing skim looks smooth, is the bulkhead clear?
No. A smooth landing describes the landing. The textured coating on the bulkhead was not sampled. A home survey does not identify asbestos by looking, and the skim is not a laboratory result. Buildings built or refurbished before 2000 can contain asbestos, and this coating was left untested.
Should the coating be painted to make it safe?
The survey has not called the coating safe or unsafe. Painting is not a sample, and it is not a clearance. Buildings built or refurbished before 2000 can contain asbestos, and this visit did not test the bulkhead. Do not treat paint as an answer.