Melbourne house riddled with asbestos razed in suspicious fire

A vacant house has been destroyed in a suspicious blaze in Melbourne's east early today.

The single-storey weatherboard house on Boronia Road, Vermont was well alight when fire crews arrived just before 3.30am.

Fortunately for fire crews the house was located on a large piece of land with no other homes nearby.

It had been vacant for some time with windows boarded-up and both electricity and gas disconnected.

Firefighters took almost one hour to bring the blaze under control, with special precautions needed due to the presence of asbestos.

Very little of the house remains, the damage bill estimated to be $200,000.

Additional reporting by AAP.