Demolition
Houses, unit blocks, shops, factories and service stations, under a licensed demolisher.
Areas we serve · Newcastle and Lake Macquarie
Demolition in Newcastle and Lake Macquarie
Newcastle, the lake suburbs and Maitland. Post-industrial land, dense older housing and contaminated ground handled as part of the job rather than as a surprise.
- Demolition licence AD214737, SafeWork NSW
- Demolition, asbestos, clearing, excavation and cartage together
- 6 Newcastle and Lake Macquarie suburbs, each with its own page
0456 220 552
or send the site details
Get a quote in Newcastle and Lake Macquarie
Tell us the suburb and what is on the site. We will arrange a time to look.
What we do in Newcastle and Lake Macquarie
Five service groups, one contract
Most jobs need more than one of these. Quoted together they share a mobilisation, a programme and one set of truck movements instead of three contractors waiting on each other.
Asbestos Services
Identification, removal by licensed asbestos removalists, independent clearance and disposal.
Site Clearing & Land Remediation
Structures, trees, stumps, vegetation and contaminated ground off the block.
Excavation
Site cut, footings, basements, pools and rock, with the spoil carted.
Haulage & Waste
Truck and dog and tipper hire, material delivery, and demolition waste recycling.
Suburbs
6 suburbs, each with its own page
What changes between them is the housing stock, the access and what the ground turns out to be once the first metre is off.
Newcastle
A long industrial history close to dense older housing, which makes contaminated ground and unknown fill real considerations.
Charlestown
Established post-war housing on sloping blocks, with redevelopment pressure around the centre.
Merewether
Older coastal housing on tight blocks, weathered by the exposure and almost all of it pre 1990.
Warners Bay
Lakefront and lakeside blocks with low lying ground in parts, which affects excavation and fill.
Belmont
Older lakeside stock with a lot of original fibro, on blocks where access varies street by street.
Maitland
Inland flood plain stock, where flood affected land and older timber and fibro housing shape most scopes.
The ground and the site
What actually decides the price here
We do not have a published geological record we are willing to assert for every block in Newcastle and Lake Macquarie, so this page does not pretend to one. What does shape the work here is observable, and it is the same list every time:
- Industrial and post-industrial land. Newcastle has a long industrial history, which makes contaminated ground and fill of unknown origin a real consideration rather than a theoretical one.
- Older housing stock across the lake suburbs. Charlestown, Warners Bay and Belmont carry a lot of pre 1990 construction, so hazardous materials surveys are routine.
- Mine subsidence districts in parts of the area. Which is a planning and engineering matter that affects what can be built and how, and it is worth confirming before a design is fixed.
- Lakefront and low lying ground. Which affects drainage, excavation and what can be used as fill.
A geotechnical report, where one exists, settles the ground question for a particular property far better than any regional statement can.
Digging here
Four conditions, and each one is dug differently
The geology named here is the published regional record. What any particular block is made of has to be found by looking at it.
Topsoil and unknown fill
On former industrial land this is the first real question, because what is in the fill determines the destination and much of the price.
- How it comes out
- Tested and classified before it moves rather than after. Mixing it with clean material does not reclassify it.
- What does it
- Excavator working to a control plan, lined trucks where the classification requires it.
Contaminated ground
A live possibility rather than a remote one here, and it is a specialist disposal question rather than a digging one.
- How it comes out
- Delineated, excavated, removed to a facility licensed to receive that classification, then validated.
- What does it
- Excavator under a control plan, with remediation able to sit on the same contract.
Stiffer natural ground
Below the fill. What it is varies across the area, so the method is set by what the dig actually finds.
- How it comes out
- Dug with a toothed bucket, reassessed as it goes down.
- What does it
- Midi to large excavator with a toothed bucket.
Rock and hard layers
Where they appear, and they are priced separately from earthworks for the same reason everywhere else.
- How it comes out
- Hammered and priced by the cubic metre at an agreed rate.
- What does it
- Large excavator with a hydraulic hammer.
Newcastle and Lake Macquarie
What shapes the work around here
The northern end of the corridor, covering Newcastle, Lake Macquarie and Maitland.
| What it is | Why it matters on the job |
|---|---|
| Industrial and post-industrial land. | Newcastle has a long industrial history, which makes contaminated ground and fill of unknown origin a real consideration rather than a theoretical one. |
| Older housing stock across the lake suburbs. | Charlestown, Warners Bay and Belmont carry a lot of pre 1990 construction, so hazardous materials surveys are routine. |
| Mine subsidence districts in parts of the area. | Which is a planning and engineering matter that affects what can be built and how, and it is worth confirming before a design is fixed. |
| Lakefront and low lying ground. | Which affects drainage, excavation and what can be used as fill. |
| Maitland sits inland on the flood plain. | A different set of constraints again from the coastal and lake suburbs. |
We work the whole corridor
Wollongong through Greater Sydney and the Central Coast to Newcastle. Western Sydney and the Northern Beaches are where we are most often.
Newcastle and Lake Macquarie questions
What people here ask us first
How do you handle ground that might be contaminated?
It is tested and classified before it moves, then taken to a facility licensed to receive that classification. On former industrial land around Newcastle this is a normal part of the job rather than an exception, and remediation can be quoted on the same contract.
Does mine subsidence affect what you can do?
Parts of the area sit in mine subsidence districts, which is a planning and engineering matter affecting what can be built and how. It is worth confirming for a particular property before a design is fixed.
Do you work around the lake as well as in Newcastle itself?
Yes. Charlestown, Warners Bay, Belmont and the surrounding suburbs are part of the same coverage, along with Maitland inland.
What has to happen before a demolition can start?
A hazardous materials survey, removal and clearance of anything the survey finds, written confirmation that water, sewer, gas, electricity and telecommunications are disconnected, and the approval in place. The structure is the last part, not the first.
Is the slab and the footings included?
Only if that is what the new build needs. Sometimes a slab stays and is built over and sometimes it all comes out, and it is worth settling with the builder before the quote rather than afterwards.
Is Max licensed for the asbestos removal itself?
Max holds the demolition licence, AD214737. The asbestos removal is carried out by licensed asbestos removalists, and the air monitoring and clearance by an independent licensed assessor. The whole pathway is managed as one job so you are not coordinating three contractors.
Newcastle and Lake Macquarie
Tell us the suburb and what is on the site
Send the address and a photograph or two and we will tell you what the job actually involves. The northern end of the corridor, covering Newcastle, Lake Macquarie and Maitland.
- Demolition, asbestos management, excavation and cartage quoted together
- 6 Newcastle and Lake Macquarie suburbs covered, each with its own page
- Builders, developers and homeowners all welcome
Prefer to talk
0456 220 552
Special demolition offer
Get your free demolition quote
Demolition and removal services from $15,999*. Tell us about your project and we'll help you understand the costs.
*Starting price applies to eligible demolition and removal projects only. Final pricing depends on structure size, materials, site access, location, waste disposal requirements, hazardous materials and any necessary approvals. A final quote will be provided following project assessment.