The build standard

Standard

Work is carried out with reference to AS 3727.1, the Australian Standard for residential pavements, and at crossovers to the relevant council's nominated standard drawings: Sunshine Coast Council currently references IPWEA drawings RSD-100 and RSD-101 for urban crossovers and RS-056 for rural, and Noosa Shire references RS-049, RS-050 and RS-056. Where a council drawing and this page differ at the crossover, the council drawing governs. Concreting work valued over $3,300 requires a QBCC licence in Queensland, and the contractor behind this site holds one and is insured.

Preparation and base

The existing surface is removed and the area prepared to suit the ground: soft spots and organic material taken out, and compacted base material brought in where the site needs it. The coast's ground runs from beachside sand that drains fast but needs proper compaction to hinterland clay that moves between wet and dry seasons, so the base and the drainage do more for the life of a slab than any amount of extra concrete.

Membrane and reinforcement

A membrane is laid where the site requires it, and every slab is reinforced with steel mesh placed on chairs so the steel sits within the slab and can do its job.

Driveways

Typically 25 MPa concrete at around 100mm for passenger vehicles. A thicker slab with heavier mesh is quoted where caravans, boats or light trucks will use the driveway, and on shared multi-unit driveways.

Shed, garage and house slabs

Garden sheds with normal use are poured at 100mm with SL72 mesh. Garages, carports and workshops where vehicles, racking or machinery will sit are poured at 125mm with SL82 mesh, with thickened edges where the shed manufacturer's drawings require them, and rebates and hold-down points formed to the supplier's drawings. Slabs under dwellings, granny flats and extensions are poured to the project engineer's drawings and the building approval, with inspections coordinated where the approval requires them.

Paths

Paths are poured at 100mm minimum, the same slab thickness as a driveway, not the thin pour some quotes hide. Falls are set so water moves off the path and away from the building line.

Joints

Control joints are cut to direct any movement to planned lines, with isolation joints against the garage slab, house footings, pool coping and existing concrete where needed.

Drainage and fall

Every slab is set with a fall away from the dwelling, which matters in a region that gets its rain in summer bursts. Where the block falls towards the garage or the house, a grated strip drain is formed in and connected to the stormwater system. Pool surrounds fall away from the water to drainage that leads somewhere. The grade at a crossover is set so a standard passenger vehicle clears the change of level.

Crossovers

The section between the boundary and the road is built to the council's standard drawing. On the Sunshine Coast and in Noosa Shire, a standard crossover is self assessed against the council's checklist and needs no permit; a non standard crossover needs the council's written approval before work starts, and the council's application fee is not part of the quoted price.

Finish and cure

Broom, steel trowel, full depth oxide colour or exposed aggregate as quoted. As a guide: foot traffic after 24 hours, passenger vehicles after seven days, heavy vehicles after 28 days. Exposed aggregate is sealed after cure as agreed at quote, with sealers chosen for the setting, including wet edges around pools.

What this means for a quote

If a competing quote is materially cheaper, the difference is usually in the preparation, the mesh, or the thickness, none of which are visible once the concrete is poured. Ask for those three items in writing and compare them against this page, the rates guide and the calculator.