Dust in DIY activities

Occasional DIY activities are unlikely to expose people to high dust levels for a sufficient period of time to have an adverse health effect. However, reducing dust as much as possible during DIY works is a sensible precaution.

It is known that the inhalation of dust, including dust containing crystalline silica, regularly over many years can lead to lung diseases.

As a matter of fact, most construction products (e.g. tiles, bricks, mortar) contain crystalline silica. Crystalline silica, whose most common form is sand, is a naturally occurring mineral and a vital ingredient in many products we use every day, including almost all types of material extracted from the earth’s crust, which are raw materials for construction products.

In everyday consumer contexts, crystalline silica does not pose a health risk.

Silica dust poses a risk only to those working without the appropriate precautions. The very fine dust does not travel in high concentrations beyond the immediate environment of the industrial processes and disperses quickly in the open air.

There exist simple measures to avoid dust generation, and by preventing dust, we also prevent exposure to crystalline silica dust.

This website provides good practice advice for consumers exposed to dust during DIY activities to minimise it as much as possible through very simple measures.

The guidance addresses typical dusty tasks in a generic approach, it doesn’t address how to
use/apply the products, for which the manufacturer’s instructions must be followed.