Frequently Asked Questions
Raise My House is a small, enthusiastic and reputable company with a strong ‘client focus’
Below you will find some of the answers to the most common questions we encounter.
1 How much does it cost to raise a house in Brisbane or Ipswich?
This is a question best answered by calling and speaking with Alycia at Raise My House. Alycia is a long term employee of Raise My House and her family has been in the house raising industry their whole life. Alycia’s very accustomed to assisting customers and builders with their initial house raising enquiries with pricing and the process for raising a house and preparing the site. We welcome a phone call, Alycia will be able to view the property on Google Maps and then based on the size will be able to provide some indicative costings and the next steps to getting started.
2 How much does it cost to raise and slide a house in Brisbane & Ipswich?
The price to slide a house is often more economical than having to pay or wait for Brisbane or Ipswich City Council relaxations to setbacks and relaxations. The cost to slide a house 1m could be as little as $1500 extra on the overall quote. Quite often this is required to bring houses off zero boundaries to enable access on both sides. For more extensive moves on the block, we’re able to use a truck and trailer providing we’re able to gain access to the house from the street. By using a truck to move a house on the block it sometimes can be more efficient if it’s got to go a long distance.
3 What is structural steel and why is it important to a Brisbane & Ipswich house raising project?
Structural steel is the steel that is installed as part of the house raising project and is designed by an engineer as part of the working design drawings. The steel creates the spans necessary to open up the space beneath the house to provide the new rooms and areas that you need and require. Once you have these plans completed Raise My House will be able to provide you with a firm quote for works. Our price always includes, raising, structural steel and of course the restump to hold up the house. If you don’t have drawings then that’s okay. Raise My House are more than able to assist you in getting started. We only recommend a company that’s accustomed to this type of Brisbane & Ipswich building design and Brisbane & Ipswich engineering design. It’s particularly important in using a Brisbane & Ipswich building design company and Brisbane & Ipswich engineer, because they understand the Queenslander requirements.
4 Do I need plans to raise and restump a house in Brisbane City Council Region?
Yes you do. All Brisbane house raising and restumping work requires a Building Approval as a minimum requirement in Brisbane. Brisbane Certifiers will be able to assist you with this, but for the best Brisbane Certifiers for both northside Brisbane and southside Brisbane please contact us to discuss your project and we’ll recommend a suitable one for you. Each job is different and some Certifiers are more suitable than others. For example there are particular certifiers that won’t deal with Owner Builders at all. And there are others that specialise in working for Owner Builders.
5 Do I need plans to raise and restump a house in Ipswich City Council Region?
Yes you do. All Ipswich house raising and restumping work requires a Building Approval as a minimum requirement in Ipswich. Ipswich Certifiers will be able to assist you with this, but for the best Ipswich Certifiers please contact us to discuss your project and we’ll recommend a suitable one for you. Each job is different and some Certifiers are more suitable than others. For example there are particular certifiers that won’t deal with Owner Builders at all. And there are others that specialise in working for Owner Builders.
6How long does it take to return a written quote?
Up to Seven working days providing that we have Working Drawing and Engineering. It’s also very useful to provide us with the soil test. We do look at the soil test a point of discussion around what to expect once the holes are bored. Our experience with dealing with the Earth is invaluable in informing the client prior to work commencement.
7 What are our lead times?
Generally our lead times are 2 weeks from the point in time that we are awarded the work. This does change, but generally we’re able to keep our lead times to around this amount.
8 What’s the number one cause for delay in house raising work?
Energex are our biggest delay in getting started, namely due to their tardiness in disconnecting the power from the house. This is required for all house raising Brisbane & Ipswich projects and any contractor that tells you different is putting you at risk physically and financially. The best way to avoid this delay is to deal directly with a temporary pole company to arrange the disconnect for you. They will even liaise directly with Energex on your behalf. If you’re a builder the Temporary Pole company should liaise with the homeowners and Energex on your behalf. Please contact us for a recommendation on who to use for Brisbane & Ipswich temporary power poles.
9Gas Disconnection prior to house raising?
Many of the older suburbs of Brisbane & Ipswich have the gas metre in the property or under the house. This presents an obvious and potentially dangerous problem for house raising. Raise My House has a very good working relationship with APA Group. These are the owners of the gas infrastructure throughout Brisbane and Ipswich. They are very proactive in disconnecting the services ahead of time. However, you’re unable to go to APA directly. You’re best to contact Raise My House to discuss this process and allow us to assist you prior to your works commencing. It’s important to note that you can not raise a house with the gas metre under or adjacent to a Brisbane & Ipswich house raising project due to the earthworks and machinery proximity to the metre.
10 How do we account for the earthworks, dumping fees and drilling of holes?
Raise My House works on over 100 house raising projects each year in and around Brisbane & Ipswich. Whether we’re working on brisbane northside or southside and even Ipswich we’ll be able to arrange a suitable Earthwork combination for the job. Where possible Raise My House will also assist in sourcing free dump sites for you or your clients. We’ll arrange and supervise the works. If you have existing relationships with operators then that is fine also, we’re more than happy to work with them as well. It should be noted though that the operators that we use are under house digout specialists and very accustomed to tight access sites, as well as working with temporary structures over head.
11What is our process for house raising?
At Raise My House we always install the structural steel work for the job first. Then the house is lifted. By doing it this way it adds some structural integrity to the house before it’s thrown into the air. Once lifted to the required height, we’ll coordinate with the Earthworks operators to have the old concrete and stumps removed. The holes are bored and then inspected by the engineer that designed the job. Once inspected the steel columns are hung and backfilled with concrete. In the coming day or two the house is lowered onto the columns welded into position and the house raising gear removed. Every job is slightly different and there are clever techniques that we’ve adopted to allow your house raise and restump job to run smoothly.
12 How do we maintain quality control?
In consultation with the builder we sign off at specific stages. This is similar to the way a window company would get you to sign off on the window dimensions. We do the same with the location of the columns and the position and height of the house. The time and stress that this saves by involving the builder/foreman at the key points of the process, allows for a smooth transition between the trades. The intent of this is not to pass the burden of responsibility onto the builder, but instead ensuring the builder maintains control at the key points.
13 Does the house crack inside whe raising a Brisbane or Ipswich timber Queenslander?
There is always movement when raising a house regardless of the care or technique used to raise the house. In some cases the movement will be noticeable and in other cases the movement will not be noticeable at all. Issues tend to arise when there has already been renovations conducted upstairs. New kitchens and new bathrooms that have been added prior to the house being raised can be cause for concern.
14 How do we reduce movement to floor if required to maintain existing bathrooms and kitchens?
In the first instant it’s best to discuss this question with Raise My House prior to the commencement of your planning process. This way we can explain, in detail the pros and cons of raising a house. We can also work with the engineers and Brisbane & Ipswich building designers to maintain a relative level of structural integrity beneath the areas that need to be maintained. Raise My House have a number of options and techniques available to our customers that will significantly reduce risk and exposure to upper floor damage.
15 Does the house raising system that is used impact on the damage to the upper floor?
It has come to our attention that some house raising companies, like to spruik their method of raising as being better for reducing the impact on the house when raised. Raise My House can raise your house in whatever method you prefer, but it should be noted that we do not believe that one is any better than the other. Instead we maintain that the process and care is the most important factor, not the types of jacking systems being used.
16 Does re-leveling a Brisbane or Ipswich House cause cracking?
When re-leveling a Brisbane home the results are often much improved window and door functioning and in some cases closing of gaps and cracks that have appeared. However, in some cases this is not applicable due to renovations or changes made to the house after the house was built. Sometimes these changes are often made while the house is out of level, so be relevelling the house can result in more damage and cracking. It should be noted that this is less common, but if you know that your house has been renovated in recent years and you suspect that it wasn’t re-levelled as part of that work then more than likely it will be difficult to relevel now without causing some damage. Please contact us to arrange a free quote for more information.
17 Why is my house wobbling or shaking?