Mr Fluffy homeowners raise money to help families demolish houses

Head of the Asbestos Safety and Eradication Agency Peter Tighe told the gathering that asbestos was a scourge that must be removed from the community. His call this year for demolition changed the ACT government's thinking, but he reassured families that exposure was "not the end of the world".

"It's very selective and if you live in one of these houses hopefully you will get through this process without any drama at all," he said.

Chief Minister Katy Gallagher again defended her actions, telling the group that it was not until the Downer house demolition last year that it became clear the houses were not safe.

Now, she was focused on a "long-lasting permanent solution", and "we can't get distracted from that", she said.

Spokesperson for the Fluffy Owners and Residents Action Group Brianna Heseltine said the fundraiser, For Renewal, would help demolish homes in Queanbeyan.

"We plan to liberate Queanbeyan one family at a time from this heartbreak," she said.

Cate Walker moved to Canberra 15 years ago, when she looked at 41 homes before choosing one in Watson, a home where she had brought up her three children, the oldest now 20.

They had had sleepovers with friends, and she had hosted community groups in the home where asbestos contamination has now been found in her children's cupboards and in the bathroom. She felt let down in that she never knew of the risks, despite her caution with asbestos – a caution that extended to having bonded asbestos sheeting removed by licensed removalists.

Ms Walker said she was worried, but pushing health fears aside. "I'm determined not to let the health concerns come to the fore of my mind," she said.

Daughter Hannah, 20, said the most confronting moment was when a Worksafe worker turned up in a Hazmat suit to seal cornices in the house where she had lived for 14 years. Her mother is now checking weekly for cracks and filling them.

Phil remembers putting his head into the ceiling of his Pearce home when he bought it in 1983, and being happy to find it insulated. A decade later, he had discovered the nature of that insulation during the removal. After that, he had believed the house safe, to the extent that he and a friend had excavated underneath for a wine cellar.

He had kept all the paperwork, and said it had been reassuring, from an early release after the clean-up pronouncing the homes safe. It wasn't until 2014 that homeowners were told fibres were likely to remain, and now they had discovered contamination in the tops of wardrobes.

"There was never anything that suggested to us that we ought to move," he said.

Helen bought her Chapman home in 1987 and also lived through the clean-up. She had brought up two children in the house, her teenage son had earned pocket money excavating under for a storage area, and until a month ago the door to the subfloor had sat open. She could recall no urgency or concern in any letters. Now, fibres had been discovered in her kitchen and living areas, and she won't allow visitors or her children in the home.

"I'm absolutely mortified that I might have put at risk everyone that I have cooked for and entertained in my kitchen for the last 25 years," she said.

Helen said she had fought to save her home when it caught fire during the 2003 fires.

"If I had realised that that this was not a safe house to be in I would not have saved it, I would have let it burn."

Neither Helen nor Phil wanted their last names used.