Excavate down into the ground to get additional head height for a Queenslander

Discussion in 'Renovation & Home Improvement' started by Kai41314, 22nd Sep, 2015.

Join Australia's most dynamic and respected property investment community
Page 1 of 2
  1. Kai41314

    Kai41314 Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    21st Jun, 2015
    Posts:
    134
    Location:
    Melbourne
    I read an article from Cherie Barber about the options of raising a Queendlander to legal height.

    She mentioned an interesting option which is to excavate down into the ground to get additional head height. My property has a 2.2m height so it might be worthwhile to consider this option.

    Has anyone tried this approach? How much would it cost for about 100m2?
     
    Last edited: 22nd Sep, 2015
    Kai41314, 22nd Sep, 2015
    #1
  2. montoya

    montoya Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    18th Jun, 2015
    Posts:
    65
    Location:
    Sydney
    Wouldn't you have issues with flooding? Presumably queenslanders are in areas where the houses needed to be raised for such reasons.
    How does it compare with the cost to raise instead?
     
    montoya, 22nd Sep, 2015
    #2
    Joynz and Truly Exotic like this.
  3. Truly Exotic

    Truly Exotic Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    21st Aug, 2015
    Posts:
    1,034
    Location:
    16.4944° S, 151.7364° W
    it would depend on whether it is flooded, or it could have been the "in" thing at the time to do highsets,

    but if it works, then id say go for it!!
     
    Truly Exotic, 22nd Sep, 2015
    #3
  4. Biz

    Biz Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    18th Jun, 2015
    Posts:
    2,517
    Location:
    Investard county
    Not at all. It's just the style of house built around the time. Some are flood affected and some are not.
     
    Biz, 22nd Sep, 2015
    #4
  5. wylie

    wylie Moderator Staff Member

    Joined:
    18th Jun, 2015
    Posts:
    14,020
    Location:
    Brisbane
    Our house was head height to the dirt, but we wanted to build under so had to raise or excavate. We chose to excavate enough to install a slab. That should have been cheaper than raising, however, we hit rock and needed a rock breaker, so in the end, it cost us about as much as if we had raised.

    We had to hold back soil (high at front, single level at the back) so this was a cost we had to have either way.
     
    wylie, 22nd Sep, 2015
    #5
  6. Bran

    Bran Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    20th Jun, 2015
    Posts:
    3,626
    Location:
    At work
    Yep. My place is excavated under. It has kept the overall façade original, and the extension is entirely invisible and unexpected from the front.
     
    Bran, 22nd Sep, 2015
    #6
  7. Kai41314

    Kai41314 Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    21st Jun, 2015
    Posts:
    134
    Location:
    Melbourne
    How much did it cost eventually? Is it possible to find out if there are any rocks underground before the work started?

     
    Kai41314, 22nd Sep, 2015
    #7
  8. Kai41314

    Kai41314 Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    21st Jun, 2015
    Posts:
    134
    Location:
    Melbourne
    So are you happy with the outcome? How much did it cost and who was the builder?

     
    Kai41314, 22nd Sep, 2015
    #8
  9. Bran

    Bran Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    20th Jun, 2015
    Posts:
    3,626
    Location:
    At work
    Excavation often preferred, and cheaper than lifting to my knowledge. About 60-70k but mostly DYI over time so hard to say exactly.
     
    Bran, 22nd Sep, 2015
    #9
    Kai41314 likes this.
  10. wylie

    wylie Moderator Staff Member

    Joined:
    18th Jun, 2015
    Posts:
    14,020
    Location:
    Brisbane
    From memory we paid about $16K for the rock breaker, but that could be wrong because it was a long time ago. I do recall the builder coming upstairs to ask me whether we wanted to stop two thirds back instead of continuing to smash through the rock. We stood in my kitchen and as the rock breaker was doing its slow thunk, thunk, thunk, the builder was matching it with "one hundred, two hundred, three hundred". He was about right too :eek:

    We could have stopped then, at a 1.5 car garage (tandem) and have a cramped downstairs, or keep on going and follow the plans. We thought about it for a minute and said "keep on going".
     
    wylie, 22nd Sep, 2015
    #10
  11. Sonamic

    Sonamic Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    18th Jun, 2015
    Posts:
    1,340
    Location:
    Sunny QLD
    Not all Qlders flood. Not all of Brisbane/ Qld is a flood zone. Please don't assume, like many Southerners do, that because a house is on stilts or in Qld it automatically means flood danger. Granted some actually are, but a high percentage are not. They are raised for ventilation under the house to relieve some of the Qld heat and as a bonus can also be built on sloping ground. Hope that helps. :D
     
    Sonamic, 22nd Sep, 2015
    #11
    bob shovel and wylie like this.
  12. Graeme

    Graeme Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    26th Jul, 2015
    Posts:
    874
    Location:
    Benalla
    One advantage of going down is that your extension is semi earth-sheltered, and should stay at a more consistent temperature year round.

    Just don't get carried away and build an Iceberg House...

    [​IMG]
     
    Graeme, 22nd Sep, 2015
    #12
    Kael likes this.
  13. Kael

    Kael Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    18th Jun, 2015
    Posts:
    282
    Location:
    Sydney, NSW
    But it looks so epic!
     
    Kael, 24th Sep, 2015
    #13
  14. SouthBoy

    SouthBoy Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    20th Aug, 2015
    Posts:
    255
    Location:
    Ozland
    Bran, the link below says you need to have interior floors raised above the exterior ground. Did you have a issue here? Also have you had any issues with dampness in the base of the walls?

    http://www.abis.com.au/blog/building-under-highset-homes.

    1) Has the floor been raised so that it is a minimum of 150mm above the exterior finished ground level? If this is not done the area is likely to flood during heavy rain.

    2) Has the floor and the base of the walls had a moisture barrier installed. If this is not done the area may be affected by conditions of dampness which promote the development of mould and timber pests such as fungal decay and termites.
     
    SouthBoy, 24th Sep, 2015
    #14
  15. bob shovel

    bob shovel Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    18th Jun, 2015
    Posts:
    6,935
    Location:
    Lower Blue Mountains
    Yes, grab a shovel

    I had a genius engineer from council come up with an idea to dig down for clearance... Genius didn't think that would just create a swimming pool underneath! Does depend on the site.

    And is Cherie dabbling outside the realm of "paint everything "

    Also with your height you'll need 200mm approx plus you'll need more to pour a slab under so there's another 200mm ish
     
    bob shovel, 24th Sep, 2015
    #15
  16. headsonbeds

    headsonbeds Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    20th Jun, 2015
    Posts:
    155
    Location:
    Brisbane
    I've done a few and would always raise. You've still got to re stump either way and that means you'll need the house raisers anyway it only takes a couple of hours to raise a metre. Excavation is expensive and fill can be hard to get rid of. Also your ORG ,plumbing overflow, needs to be 100mm below floor level. As for flooding being the reason Queenslanders are on stumps - what are you guys smoking!!! Some of the most beautiful hill tops homes are on stumps.
     
    headsonbeds, 24th Sep, 2015
    #16
  17. RPI

    RPI SDA Provider, Town Planner, Former Property Lawyer

    Joined:
    18th Jun, 2015
    Posts:
    2,025
    Location:
    Brisbane
    Agree on the raise. Not only raise some, raise to 9.5m above natural ground level. Then don't put in a slab, put in a suspended floor. Cheaper plumbing, electrics and if you happen to need new plumbing or electrics in the future then it is significantly cheaper. Also much cheaper if there are termite issues later on.
    Another bonus is in any heavy rain event water just runs under the house
     
    RPI, 24th Sep, 2015
    #17
  18. Kai41314

    Kai41314 Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    21st Jun, 2015
    Posts:
    134
    Location:
    Melbourne
    What is cost of putting in a suspended floor?


     
    Kai41314, 24th Sep, 2015
    #18
  19. RPI

    RPI SDA Provider, Town Planner, Former Property Lawyer

    Joined:
    18th Jun, 2015
    Posts:
    2,025
    Location:
    Brisbane
    A lot less then a slab
     
    RPI, 30th Sep, 2015
    #19
    Kai41314 likes this.
  20. Julz

    Julz New Member

    Joined:
    22nd Jul, 2017
    Posts:
    1
    Location:
    Cairns
    hi
    Ive just read your post regarding raising queenslander to obtain legal height.

    I am currently looking at a property which is built in but not legal. Are you able to give me some indication of cost as per photos attached. Just roughly

    this property would be a good buy
    If raising wasnt too expensive.

    The actual address if you could take a look online is : 138 martyn st , parramatta park qld 4870
    On www.realestate.com.au
    Thanks

    J
     

    Attached Files:

    Julz, 22nd Jul, 2017
    #20
Page 1 of 2