Patios and decking in Mandurah
The part of a Mandurah backyard that makes it usable in summer. Sized and oriented for where the afternoon sun actually comes from, not just for the space available.
- Starts from
- starting price to confirm
- Time on site
- typical timeframe to confirm
- Covers
- Patios, timber and composite decking
- Warranty
- warranty terms to confirm
About patios & decking
Orientation matters more than size
The most common regret with an outdoor area is not that it is too small — it is that it is unusable between two and six on a summer afternoon. West-facing outdoor areas take the full afternoon sun coming off the coast, and they need materially more cover than a north-facing area of the same footprint.
It is worth standing in the space at the time of day you actually intend to use it before deciding how big it should be and how much of it should be covered. A smaller, properly shaded area gets used every week. A large, exposed one gets used in October and April.
Patio or deck
A patio — a covered area over a paved or concrete surface — is the straightforward answer where the ground is close to the level of the house threshold. It is solid underfoot, needs essentially no maintenance, and takes furniture well.
Decking earns its place on a sloping site or where the area steps down from a doorway, because it can be built out level on posts instead of requiring a large amount of fill or excavation. It also sits warmer and softer underfoot than paving and suits a smaller entertaining area or a spot under trees where paving would be constantly covered in leaf litter.
Timber or composite
Timber decking is the traditional choice and it looks it, but near the coast it is a maintenance commitment. Salt air, driving rain and full sun work on any exterior timber, and a deck has a great many exposed edges and fixings. Choose the right species, finish it properly, and expect to re-oil it on a cycle rather than once.
Composite decking removes that maintenance almost entirely at a higher up-front cost. It does not need oiling, it does not splinter, and it holds its colour. It does get hotter than timber in direct sun, which comes back to orientation, and it does not have the character of real timber. Both are legitimate choices; the question is honestly whether you will keep up the maintenance.
What goes under and around it
A patio roof needs footings, and on sand those footings need to be sized properly — a roof structure catches wind, and the uplift on it in a storm is real. This is not a place to economise.
Around the edges, the same drainage logic applies as anywhere else: a new covered area sheds water somewhere, and that somewhere should not be against the house wall or into a neighbour's yard. Gutters, downpipes and where they discharge are part of the job rather than an afterthought.
What you get
Included as standard
- Footings sized for the structure and the ground
- Frame, roofing or decking boards, and fixings
- Falls and water discharge planned away from the house
- Site left clean and offcuts taken away
Not included
- Council approval or building permit fees where required
- Electrical work — lighting, fans and power points
- The paving or slab beneath a patio, quoted separately
- Ongoing oiling and maintenance of timber decking
Any of these can be quoted alongside the job — they are listed so the quote does not surprise you, not because we cannot do them.
Patios & decking we have done
PlaceholderBefore and after pairs from real patios & decking jobs go here, captioned with the suburb and the scope. Every service page needs at least one pair — if a job has no photographs, it was not documented on site, which is a process to fix rather than a section to remove.
Before — photograph to be supplied
After — photograph to be supplied
What affects the cost
Size and span are the starting point, and span matters disproportionately — a wide area with no intermediate posts needs a heavier structure than the same area with a post in the middle.
Material choice is the next big one: timber versus composite decking is a real gap, and roofing material and style change the figure considerably. Height above ground affects a deck, since a raised deck needs more substructure and may need balustrade.
Then the site itself. Footings into sand versus limestone, access for materials, whether the ground has to be levelled first, and whether a permit is required all feed in. Electrical work is a separate trade and a separate line.
How it works
You get in touch
Tell us what needs doing — a photo helps more than a paragraph. We come back to you within response time to confirm.
We measure it up
We come to the property, walk the job with you and measure properly. The measure is cost and obligation to confirm.
You get it in writing
An itemised written quote — materials, labour and removal priced separately, so you can see what you are paying for. It holds for number of days to confirm.
We book it in and do it
We agree a date, turn up on it, and take the mess with us when we go. The site is left clean.
Common questions
Do I need council approval for a patio?
Frequently yes for a fixed roofed structure, and it varies between the City of Mandurah, the Shire of Murray and the City of Rockingham. We will tell you at the measure whether we think your job needs approval so it is factored in from the start rather than discovered halfway.
Timber or composite decking?
Timber looks and feels like timber and needs re-oiling on a cycle, which near the coast is a real commitment. Composite costs more up front and needs essentially nothing after, but runs hotter in direct sun. The honest question is whether you will keep up the maintenance.
How much cover do I need?
More than you think if the area faces west. The afternoon sun off the coast is the thing that decides whether an outdoor area gets used, so stand in the space at three in the afternoon in summer before settling on the size and the amount of roof.
Can you build a deck on a sloping yard?
Yes, and a slope is often exactly where a deck makes more sense than paving — it can be built out level on posts rather than needing a large amount of fill or excavation.
Can you do the paving under the patio as well?
Yes, and doing both together means the levels, the falls and the footings are all planned once rather than worked around afterwards.
We also do
Paving or a patio going in? The fence it runs up to and the reticulation and lawn around it are the same crew and the same schedule — which is what stops one trade digging up another one's finished work.
Fencing & Gates
Colorbond, pool, aluminium slat, tubular and PVC fencing, plus gates from a single side gate to a full automated entry. Removal of the old fence included, across Mandurah and Peel.
Landscaping
Lawn and artificial grass, reticulation and repairs, garden maintenance, clean-ups, mulching and planting — across Mandurah, Peel and north to Rockingham.
Tell us what needs doing.
A written, itemised quote after we have measured the job — not a number guessed over the phone.