Concreting on Phillip Island

Island homes and holiday houses

Phillip Island combines permanent residents in Cowes and the townships with a large number of holiday homes. Both need durable, low-maintenance concrete.

Varied ground

Sandy soils near beaches contrast with heavier soils inland on the island. We test each site.

Salt and wind

Concrete across the island faces salt spray; we plan mixes, curing and sealing for it.

Cowes and the island townships

Phillip Island's main town is Cowes, on the sheltered northern shore facing Western Port. Smaller townships include Rhyll, Ventnor, Newhaven, Surf Beach, Sunderland Bay and Smiths Beach. The island is famous for the penguin parade and the motorcycle grand prix circuit, and draws huge numbers of visitors over summer.

Holiday homes and permanent residents

A large share of island homes are holiday houses, while Cowes and the townships also have a growing permanent population. Both want concrete that is low maintenance and stands up to salt, sand and wind.

Ground across the island

Sandy soils are common near beaches, especially on the southern coast. Inland, parts of the island have heavier soils. We test and prepare each site accordingly.

Access and timing

Peak tourist periods, including the grand prix and summer holidays, bring heavy traffic over the San Remo bridge. We schedule deliveries and pours to avoid these where possible.

A typical Phillip Island job

A typical job is a pale exposed aggregate driveway and boat parking pad at a Cowes holiday home, with a sealed outdoor shower area and paths, finished before the summer rental season.

Island crossovers

Crossovers on the island need a Bass Coast Shire permit like anywhere else in the shire, and we handle the application.

Getting a quote on the island

Send photos and the address; we will arrange a visit and send an itemised written quote.

How we build driveways and slabs in Phillip Island

Bass Coast ground, weather and council rules

Wonthaggi sits where the coastal dunes of the Bunurong coast meet the clay country rising toward the Strzelecki foothills. Near the beaches at Cape Paterson, Inverloch and Kilcunda the ground is often pale sand that drains fast but moves if it is not confined and compacted. Inland, around North Wonthaggi, Dalyston and the farms, heavy clay swells in a wet winter and cracks open in a dry February. Parts of the old coal-mining town also carry fill, ash and brick rubble from a century of building. Add salt spray, sea mist and strong south-westerly winds, and concrete here needs a properly designed base, the right mix and careful curing. Each job gets a test hole, and the base is designed around the layers it shows.

Driveways, paths and patios within your own boundary usually need no permit. Any new or altered crossover across the nature strip, footpath or kerb needs a vehicle-crossing permit from Bass Coast Shire Council, which covers Wonthaggi, Inverloch, Phillip Island, San Remo and every town we work in. Accesses onto the Bass Highway or other main roads also involve the state road authority. House slabs, larger sheds and some coastal works need a building surveyor and engineering. We spell out whatever applies in your quote.

What a Wonthaggi Concreting quote shows

Our quotes are broken into the parts of the job rather than a single total. You will see the measured area, demolition and tip fees for any old concrete, pavers or gravel, how deep we excavate, the rock base specification and compaction method, slab thickness and reinforcement, the surface finish or pebble blend, the joint plan, drains and stormwater connections, edges and steps, sealing, and the council vehicle-crossing permit where one is needed. If a concrete pump, a long wheelbarrow run, traffic control on the Bass Highway or protection for a neighbour's driveway is required, it is listed on its own line.

This site deliberately carries no square-metre pricing. On the Bass Coast the same size driveway can sit on clean dune sand in Cape Paterson, wet grey clay in North Wonthaggi or old mine fill in South Dudley, and each needs different groundwork. A price published online would be wrong for most readers, so we prefer to look at your block and quote what it actually needs.