Pool removal in Brisbane: We remove concrete and fibreglass pools and take the spoil away
- Licensed demolition contractor, concrete and fibreglass pools
- Full removal or partial removal, we tell you which and why
- Compact plant through a standard gate, or hand demolition
- We take the spoil away, backfill and compact the hole properly
- We walk the site before we price it
Getting rid of a swimming pool is demolition work, not landscaping. The pool shell is reinforced concrete sitting in a hole, usually in a backyard with no machine access, often with a house on one side and a fence you are not allowed to touch on the other.
We are a licensed demolition contractor. We remove concrete and fibreglass pools across Brisbane, the Gold Coast and the Sunshine Coast, take the spoil away, backfill and compact the hole properly, and leave you with ground you can actually use.
The first thing to sort out is whether you want a full removal or a partial removal. That single decision changes the price, the paperwork, and what you are allowed to build on that ground afterwards. It is the first thing we will ask you.
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Full removal or partial removal, and why it matters later
There are two ways to get rid of a pool, and people are often quoted one without being told the other exists.
Partial removal. The top section of the shell is broken out and dropped into the hole, holes are punched through the base so water drains instead of sitting, and the void is backfilled and compacted. It is quicker and it is cheaper. The catch is that the ground is now classified as filled ground. Most councils will not let you build a habitable structure over it without engineering, and you are required to disclose it when you sell.
Full removal. The entire shell comes out, base included, along with the steel and the plumbing. The hole is backfilled in layers and compacted so it can be certified. It costs more and it takes longer, but the land goes back to being land. If there is any chance of an extension, a granny flat or a subdivision over that footprint, this is the one you want.
If you are not sure, we will tell you what we would do in your position. The extra cost of a full removal is almost always less than the cost of ripping out a partial fill in five years time because an engineer will not certify it.
Getting a machine into a backyard
Access is what makes pool removal awkward, and it is the part most quotes get wrong. A standard excavator does not fit down the side of a terrace or through a gate.
We work through it in a few ways depending on the site. Compact plant that fits through a standard gate opening. Robotic demolition machines, which are electric, run on a remote, produce no exhaust and are small enough to get into places an operator in a cab cannot. Craning plant over the house where there is genuinely no other way in. And hand demolition where the access is too tight for anything else.
We will walk the site before we price it. What we are looking at is gate widths, overhead wires, the condition of the driveway and whether it will carry a truck, where the spoil can be stockpiled, and whether your neighbour is going to be a problem. That walk is what stops a variation later.
How the job actually runs
Roughly, in this order.
We disconnect and make safe the pool plumbing and any electrical to the pump and lights. The water goes, discharged the way the council requires rather than straight into the stormwater. Any coping, tiling and surrounds that are coming out come out first.
Then the shell. On a full removal, the walls and base are broken up and the reinforcement is cut out and separated for recycling. On a partial, only the top section comes out and the base gets drainage holes punched through it.
Spoil goes out by truck to a licensed facility, with the concrete and steel separated so most of it gets recycled rather than landfilled. Clean fill comes back in and goes down in layers, each one compacted, not just tipped in and levelled. If the ground needs to be certified, that is when the geotechnical testing happens.
We clean up and leave the yard at a level you can work with. If you want it turfed or paved after, we will tell you who does that.
Council, and what you need on paper
This varies by council and we will not pretend otherwise, so we check yours before we start rather than guessing.
What is generally true: removing a pool usually needs approval of some kind, the pool fencing has to stay compliant right up until the pool is gone, and the pool has to come off the register once it is removed. If the ground is going to be built on, the compaction needs to be tested and certified by a geotechnical engineer, and that has to be planned in rather than remembered afterwards.
We deal with the approval side as part of the job. You should not have to become an expert in your own council to get a hole in the ground filled in.
Frequently asked
Can you get to a pool with no side access? Usually yes. That is what the compact and robotic plant is for, and craning over the house is a normal solution, not an exotic one. We will tell you on the site walk.
Will the driveway survive it? We assess it before we bring trucks in and we protect it where it needs protecting. If we think it will crack, we will say so before, not after.
Do I have to be there? No. Plenty of our work happens while people are at work.
What about the fibreglass ones? Different job, often easier. The shell can sometimes come out in one piece if there is access for it.
Is asbestos a problem? Not usually in the pool itself, but it turns up in old sheds, fences and garage walls that are in the way. We hold the licences to deal with it properly if it appears, which means the job does not stop.
Talk to someone who has actually priced one
Tell us the address and what you are trying to end up with. We will tell you straight whether it is a full removal or a partial, what access you have got, and what it will cost. No obligation.
Call 07 2145 6581 or fill in the form at the top of the page and we will call you back. We cover Brisbane, Logan, Ipswich, the Gold Coast and the Sunshine Coast.
Perfect Stripout & Demolition acknowledges the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as Traditional Custodians of the country on which we live and work. We pay our respects to the Traditional Custodians and Elders past, present and future, and honour their connection to the land and ongoing contribution to society.