Asbestos Meter Boards in Geelong Homes: What to Know Before a Switchboard Upgrade
Of all the places asbestos hides in an older Geelong home, the electrical meter board is one of the most overlooked. It sits on the outside wall or in a cupboard, nobody thinks about it for decades, and then a solar installation, a battery, an EV charger or a safety switch upgrade means it has to come off the wall. That is exactly when the question of what it is made of starts to matter.
This guide explains why older meter boards are a common asbestos item, how to tell whether yours is a concern, and how removal fits around the electrical work.
Why meter boards contain asbestos
For much of the twentieth century, the panel that meters, fuses and switches were mounted on was commonly made from a compressed asbestos-containing sheet. It was cheap, rigid, easy to drill and, most importantly, resistant to heat and electrical arcing, which made it an obvious choice for a switchboard. Some older ceramic fuse holders also contain small asbestos arc pads.
Homes built or rewired before the late 1980s are the ones to suspect. That covers a large share of the housing across Geelong, from post-war fibro homes in Corio, Norlane, Bell Park and Whittington to older weatherboards and brick homes in Newtown, Belmont and Highton. Many have had new meters fitted over the years while the original panel stayed.
How to tell if yours might be asbestos
You cannot confirm asbestos by looking. A dark brown or black, smooth, hard board, often with a slightly mottled or fibrous edge, is typical of the era, but modern replacement panels can look similar. If the house is old enough and the board has never been fully replaced, treat it as likely to contain asbestos until a test says otherwise.
What matters is condition. An intact board that is left alone is generally low risk. The risk comes when it is drilled for new equipment, cut, broken off the wall or has its edges crumbling from age and weather. Boards mounted outside, exposed to decades of Geelong wind and rain, are more likely to be weathered and brittle.
Never drill, sand or break a suspect board to see what it is made of. If you need to know, have a sample taken. Our Asbestos Testing and Identification service can sample a meter board, usually alongside other suspect materials in the same visit, and the result from a NATA-accredited laboratory tells you whether it contains asbestos and whether it is bonded or friable. Our guide to asbestos testing in Geelong explains how sampling works.
Why upgrades are bringing them out now
A lot of Geelong homes are adding rooftop solar, batteries, EV chargers, induction cooktops and heat pumps, and many are upgrading old fuse boards to modern circuit breakers and safety switches at the same time. Much of this work needs space and changes on the board, and an old asbestos panel is often not suitable to drill and add to. The usual answer is to replace the board entirely.
That means the asbestos question needs answering before the electrician starts. If it comes up mid-job, work stops and everyone waits on a test result.
Who does what
A meter board replacement involves two kinds of work that need to be coordinated: electrical and asbestos.
The electrical side must be done by a licensed electrician. The supply has to be isolated safely, and the meter itself belongs to the electricity distributor, which in the Geelong region is Powercor. Your electrician will arrange whatever is needed with the distributor and the retailer for the meter to be removed and refitted. This is not something a homeowner can do themselves, whatever the asbestos rules say.
The asbestos side depends on the amount and condition of the material. A single meter board is well under the 10 square metre threshold above which non-friable asbestos removal must be done by a licensed removalist in Victoria, and some electricians are trained and equipped to remove one under the correct safe work practices. Others prefer to bring in an asbestos removalist so the board is removed intact, wrapped and disposed of correctly before they fit the new one. If the board is badly deteriorated and crumbling, it may need to be treated as friable, which is Class A work with tighter controls. Our article on Class A versus Class B asbestos licences explains the difference.
What a safe removal looks like
Whoever does it, the principles are the same. The area is isolated and people kept away. The board is wetted or otherwise suppressed to control dust, and fixings are removed so the panel comes off whole rather than being broken or levered off in pieces. It is never cut with power tools. The board and any debris are wrapped in heavy plastic, labelled, and the area below is cleaned with wet wiping or a suitable vacuum, never swept.
The wrapped waste cannot go in a skip or the household bin. It has to go to an EPA-licensed landfill with the correct documentation, and our EPA-Compliant Disposal and Clearance Certificates service can take care of that and give you the paperwork to keep with the property records.
Bundle it with other asbestos work
A meter board is a small item, so it often makes sense to deal with it alongside the eaves, wet-area linings or an old fibro shed if you are renovating anyway. Our Pre-Demolition and Pre-Renovation Strip-Out service is designed to clear asbestos ahead of your trades in one visit.
If it has already been disturbed
If a meter board has already been drilled, cracked or broken off the wall, stop work, keep people away, do not sweep up the dust, and get it tested. Our guide to finding asbestos mid-renovation sets out the steps. Then talk to us about removal and disposal so your electrician can get back to work.
Planning solar, a battery or a switchboard upgrade in Geelong or on the Bellarine? Book a test for the meter board before the installer arrives, and we will give you a clear answer and a written quote for removal if it is needed. Always confirm current requirements with WorkSafe Victoria and EPA Victoria.