A dark, old switchboard backing? Leave it alone
WorkSafe Victoria lists switchboards and their backing as a typical place to find asbestos, and the Victorian Government's Asbestos Hub says a home built or renovated before 1990 likely contains some. Don't drill, cut or scrape around an old board. Mention it when you book, because electricians generally aren't licensed to remove asbestos and a licensed removalist may be needed first.
Sunshine's houses and network
A company town first
In 1904 H.V. McKay bought about 160 hectares for worker housing beside his implement works. The Harvester Works and the McKay Memorial Gardens are on the Victorian Heritage Register.
Interwar bungalows
Between the wars, most houses went up on medium to large blocks as double-fronted homes or bungalows.
The post-war boom
Building picked up from about 1948. In 1951 the municipality added 1,200 houses to its stock of about 5,000, built by cooperatives, the Housing Commission and building societies.
Plenty of rentals
40.4% of occupied homes were rented in 2021, so the 2-yearly rental electrical check touches a lot of Sunshine houses.
Two networks meet here
Powercor lists Sunshine and Sunshine East zone substations, and Jemena runs a Braybrook zone substation next door. Your bill names your distributor: Powercor's fault line is 13 24 12 and Jemena's is 131 626.
Why the board comes first in an older Sunshine house
A 1920s or 1950s board was built for a few lights and a radio, not a heat pump, an induction cooktop and a car charger. If yours still has fuses you pull out, it also predates safety switches.
An upgrade swaps the fuses for circuit breakers and adds safety switches (RCDs, which cut power in a fraction of a second if current leaks to earth). In a rental they're not optional: power outlets and lighting circuits have needed them since 29 March 2023.
If it were our house
We'd have the switchboard looked at before buying any big new appliance. Book an electrician who replaces old boards often, mention any dark backing board when you call, and ask for the Certificate of Electrical Safety once the job's done.
Want a specialist to sort it?
Tell us the job and your postcode. We match the licence-checked local electrician who does this kind of work, and they call you. No ring-around, and your number goes to them alone.