Asbestos in old switchboards and meter boards: what owners should know

For much of the twentieth century, asbestos was valued in electrical work for the same reasons as everywhere else: it doesn't burn and it insulates. WorkSafe Victoria's workplace guidance lists electrical switchboards and their backing boards as a typical location for asbestos-containing materials, and says to be aware of them particularly in buildings constructed or renovated before the late 1980s.

Its examples go beyond the backing panel. WorkSafe lists fuse blankets and ceramic fuses in switchboards, and pitch-based electrical switchboards, naming the Zelemite, Ausbestos and Lebah brands. On an older meter board, that can mean the panel itself, the ceramic fuse carriers and the small fuse blankets inside them.

That describes a lot of houses in Melbourne's west. The Hobsons Bay Planning Scheme ties the growth of Newport and Spotswood to the Federation and Interwar periods, and post-war growth to Altona and Laverton, and Yarraville's heritage precinct is mostly Victorian and Edwardian cottages. Many still have an early meter board on an outside wall.

Older meter and switchboard panels come in a few types. Some are timber. Some are a flat grey or off-white fibre sheet. Others are a dark brown or black, shiny, bitumen-like material, which is usually what people mean by a pitch or 'Zelemite' board. A maker's name is sometimes printed on the face or the back.

None of that tells you for certain what's in it. Some fibre sheets contain asbestos and some don't, and dark panels vary too. Only laboratory analysis of a sample confirms it, and taking a sample is itself a disturbance best left to someone trained to do it. Until you know, treat the panel as if it does contain asbestos.

Condition matters as much as type. A firm, intact panel behind a closed meter box door is a very different thing from one that's cracked, crumbling at the edges, scorched around a fuse or shedding dust into the bottom of the box.

Asbestos is dangerous when fibres get into the air and are breathed in. An undisturbed panel releases little. Drilling a hole for a new cable, screwing a device to it, sanding paint off, brushing out spider webs or blowing dust away with compressed air can all release fibres right where you're standing.

That rules out a lot of well-meant jobs: hanging a new device on the old panel, fixing a light bracket through it, painting it or vacuuming the base of the meter box. If dust or fragments have already fallen into the box, don't sweep them out. Keep the door shut and get advice.

It also means small changes to an old board aren't always small. Adding a breaker or safety switch can involve drilling the panel, so the board should be assessed before anything is quoted that means fixing to it.

WorkSafe Victoria's asbestos compliance code says a licensed asbestos removalist may be needed if an electrical mounting board has deteriorated or asbestos-contaminated dust or debris is present. That's the line between a panel that can be worked around carefully and one that needs specialist handling.

Signs of deterioration include cracks, crumbling or broken edges, water damage, and dust or fragments at the bottom of the box. Scorch marks around a fuse are doubly concerning, because they point to a connection running hot as well. Close the door, keep children away and have it assessed.

Keep the meter box door shut and in good repair. A broken or missing door lets weather in to break the panel down faster and lets children reach it. Powercor lists a defective meter box among customer installation defects, which are the customer's to fix.

Replacing an old meter board or switchboard is planned around the panel. The electrician assesses the board and the panel's condition and works out how the circuits can move to a new enclosure without breaking the old panel up. Where the panel has deteriorated or dust is present, removal is arranged with a licensed asbestos removalist before work starts.

WorkSafe's code says that if an asbestos-containing mounting panel has to be removed, it must be replaced with non-asbestos material. In practice the new meter panel and switchboard go into a modern enclosure, and the old panel is handled and disposed of as asbestos waste, not thrown in a skip.

The meter usually belongs to the network, so the distributor, or someone it authorises, removes and refits it. Energy Safe Victoria lists the main switchboard and meter box among prescribed work, which a Licensed Electrical Inspector has to inspect, and says power can't go back onto a new main switchboard until that inspection is done.

A quote for work on an old board should say how the panel will be handled. If it doesn't, ask. The answers tell you whether the job has been thought through.

If you rent, the board and the decision about it belong to the rental provider. Since 29 March 2023, Victorian rentals have had to have modern switchboards with circuit breakers and safety switches, and Consumer Affairs Victoria notes that with older fuse boards the electrician may have to replace the whole switchboard.

If you're buying a home built or renovated before the late 1980s, assume the meter board could contain asbestos until someone tells you otherwise, and allow for a board replacement in your plans. Energy Safe Victoria says that when buying a home built before the 1980s, it's imperative to have the wiring checked before moving in, and the board is part of that check.

Renovations are when boards most often get disturbed: new kitchen circuits, solar needing a spot for its switch, recladding that moves the meter box. Raise the board early in the planning, so it's dealt with once and properly rather than drilled into by whichever trade gets to it first.