Underpinning on the Sunshine Coast
Underpinning extends existing footings down to ground that will actually carry the load. It is the answer when the problem is beneath the footing rather than in the stump above it — subsidence, washout, or a footing that was never deep enough for the ground it sits on.
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What underpinning on the Sunshine Coast actually involves
Restumping replaces what sits on the footing. Underpinning fixes the footing itself, extending it down to a stratum that will bear the load. You need it when the ground beneath has moved, been scoured out, or was never adequate — and the tell is usually that the same corner keeps dropping after it has already been adjusted or restumped once. It is engineered work: the design comes from a structural engineer, not a rule of thumb, and QBCC lists site classification among the work that needs a licence at any value.
When underpinning is the right call
Council's building-approval page lists underpinning of any building or structure as needing a development building work permit, with no size threshold, which is the difference from restumping's more-than-20% line. QBCC's Foundation work (piling and anchors) licence class lists constructing underpinning in its scope, so ask which class your contractor holds. The right sequence is diagnosis before method: an engineer establishing what the ground is doing, then a QBCC-licensed contractor executing to that design.
The Bureau of Meteorology brochure for the Maroochy and Mooloolah rivers describes flash flooding from many small creeks in the hinterland and longer-duration flooding on the flat coastal plain. Both can leave a footing sitting on ground that has changed, and which of them did what to the ground under your footing is the engineer's question, not a rule of thumb.
House restumping and raising costs and rules check
Underpinning on the Sunshine Coast — common questions
How is underpinning different from restumping?
Restumping replaces the posts between the footing and the house. Underpinning goes below, extending the footing to competent ground. New stumps on footings that are themselves failing will move again.
How is underpinning approved?
Council lists underpinning of any building or structure as needing a development building work permit, and says a private building certifier can help with the application. The licence side is separate: QBCC's Foundation work (piling and anchors) class covers constructing underpinning, and QBCC requires a licence for site classification at any value.
Do I need an engineer?
Yes. Underpinning is designed by a structural engineer and executed by a QBCC-licensed contractor. A quote offered without an engineering assessment behind it is pricing a guess.
Underpinning by suburb
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