Browse Forums General Discussion Re: Deck and Pergola Permit Confusion 2Dec 17, 2019 5:59 am 3in1 Supadiverta. Rainwater Harvesting Best Practice using syphonic drainage. Cleaner Neater Smarter Cheaper Supa Gutter Pumper. A low cost syphonic eaves gutter overflow solution. Re: Deck and Pergola Permit Confusion 3Dec 17, 2019 6:46 am Foremost Building Expert in Australia,assisting with building problems/disputes, building stage inspections,pre-contract review advice for peace of mind 200 blogs http://www.buildingexpert.net.au/blog Re: Deck and Pergola Permit Confusion 5Dec 17, 2019 9:47 pm building-expert Pergolas under certain conditions may be exempt from building permit, decks too. You cannot roof it without a permit but you may have shade cloth. If you don't need a permit then you don't need a registered builder but you should for your protection simply because those that are not registered either have no required skill or have been de registered for misconduct. However a good framing carpenter should do the job for you. For exempt structures check schedule 8 of the Building Regulations Thanks for the info. I will check out schedule 8 of the Building Regulations. Re: Deck and Pergola Permit Confusion 6Dec 18, 2019 4:39 am 13Jack SaveH2O Have you contacted the council? Yes we did. The person who talked to us wasn't that enthusiastic to go in to detail and explain everything. He simply said that we need a permit for both pergola and the deck, without even asking about the size of it or any other detail. So we are planning to talk to someone over an appointment to get a better idea. So you’ve spoken to council and they said you need a permit, but you’re here asking people not from the council if you need a permit. Wow. Re: Deck and Pergola Permit Confusion 7Dec 18, 2019 1:07 pm You need to log onto your councils website and look for exempt development. It will give you a list of things you can and can't do without a DA. In our neck of the woods you can build a timber deck without a DA as long as it is less than 25 sq m and no part of it is higher than 900mm from natural ground level. The moment you want to put any sort of roof over it - pergola or otherwise you need a DA. Your councils requirements may differ. Stewie Re: Deck and Pergola Permit Confusion 8Dec 19, 2019 7:47 am You have to make distinction between town planning permit and a building permit Exempt structures under building regulations may still require planning permit You need to talk to planning dept in the council Foremost Building Expert in Australia,assisting with building problems/disputes, building stage inspections,pre-contract review advice for peace of mind 200 blogs http://www.buildingexpert.net.au/blog Re: Deck and Pergola Permit Confusion 10Dec 15, 2020 10:17 am Hi there, I was just browsing the forum and I saw your queries. I will try to explain with simple words. 1. What is exactly Pergola? Can't it have any kind of roof material at all to protect from sun and rain? A: Pergola means it does not have a roof cover, just timber beams running every so often. 2. Do we need a permit for a pergola? A: Up to a certain square metre area you don't need a permit. Your local council's website should have exactly the numbers mentioned somewhere. 3. What are the exemption to build a pergola without a permit? A: As above, there are exemptions mostly based on the size of the structure. 4. Can the pergola attached to the back wall of our house or to the roof with steel brackets/bolts /etc. A: Yes, it can be done either way. Freestanding or attached to the house 5. Do we need a permit for a deck? A: It depends on the size and height. There is also something called site permeability where you can only cover a certain amount of your site with hard surfaces for drainage purposes, timber decks are usually not included in this category since the gaps are allowing the water to flow into the soil but you can double-check with your council just to be sure. 6. What are the exemption to build a deck without a permit? A: As above 7. Can we build a deck on a concrete slab without a permit? A: As explained in Question 5, you must be aware of the site permeability requirements as concrete prevents water to be absorbed into the soil. 8. Do we need a permit for a concrete slab too? A: The same as in Questions 5. 9. Do we need a licensed builder to build a deck/pergola? A: If the works are up to a certain amount (I think $10K) you don't need to. 10. Will we need a permit to build a small deck and steps for front entry too? A: If you build all the above, you will include this to the permit anyway. The steps need to comply with certain design rules. 11. What is a building permit and planning permit? A: Planning permit has to do with how your project effects the surrounding environment based on aesthetics and functionality and a building permit is a permission to build and has to do with how safe your construction method is and if it complies with all the relevant standards. 12. Do we need both or not? A: It depends on what of the above you are building. Every case is different and the council will determine if a planning permit is required or not. Re: Deck and Pergola Permit Confusion 11Jun 23, 2021 1:41 pm oramadesign Hi there, I was just browsing the forum and I saw your queries. I will try to explain with simple words. 1. What is exactly Pergola? Can't it have any kind of roof material at all to protect from sun and rain? A: Pergola means it does not have a roof cover, just timber beams running every so often. 2. Do we need a permit for a pergola? A: Up to a certain square metre area you don't need a permit. Your local council's website should have exactly the numbers mentioned somewhere. 3. What are the exemption to build a pergola without a permit? A: As above, there are exemptions mostly based on the size of the structure. 4. Can the pergola attached to the back wall of our house or to the roof with steel brackets/bolts /etc. A: Yes, it can be done either way. Freestanding or attached to the house 5. Do we need a permit for a deck? A: It depends on the size and height. There is also something called site permeability where you can only cover a certain amount of your site with hard surfaces for drainage purposes, timber decks are usually not included in this category since the gaps are allowing the water to flow into the soil but you can double-check with your council just to be sure. 6. What are the exemption to build a deck without a permit? A: As above 7. Can we build a deck on a concrete slab without a permit? A: As explained in Question 5, you must be aware of the site permeability requirements as concrete prevents water to be absorbed into the soil. 8. Do we need a permit for a concrete slab too? A: The same as in Questions 5. 9. Do we need a licensed builder to build a deck/pergola? A: If the works are up to a certain amount (I think $10K) you don't need to. 10. Will we need a permit to build a small deck and steps for front entry too? A: If you build all the above, you will include this to the permit anyway. The steps need to comply with certain design rules. 11. What is a building permit and planning permit? A: Planning permit has to do with how your project effects the surrounding environment based on aesthetics and functionality and a building permit is a permission to build and has to do with how safe your construction method is and if it complies with all the relevant standards. 12. Do we need both or not? A: It depends on what of the above you are building. Every case is different and the council will determine if a planning permit is required or not. i can not for the life of me find any online written details of height and size exceptions for decks in victoria. (same as the original question) Does anyone have this. the VBA also only states permit required for anything classed as a deck. I have just spoken to my local council and all they said was they don't make rules or exceptions and I need to follow whatever the VBA says. Cheers Re: Deck and Pergola Permit Confusion 12Jun 23, 2021 4:31 pm Jarbz oramadesign Hi there, I was just browsing the forum and I saw your queries. I will try to explain with simple words. 1. What is exactly Pergola? Can't it have any kind of roof material at all to protect from sun and rain? A: Pergola means it does not have a roof cover, just timber beams running every so often. 2. Do we need a permit for a pergola? A: Up to a certain square metre area you don't need a permit. Your local council's website should have exactly the numbers mentioned somewhere. 3. What are the exemption to build a pergola without a permit? A: As above, there are exemptions mostly based on the size of the structure. 4. Can the pergola attached to the back wall of our house or to the roof with steel brackets/bolts /etc. A: Yes, it can be done either way. Freestanding or attached to the house 5. Do we need a permit for a deck? A: It depends on the size and height. There is also something called site permeability where you can only cover a certain amount of your site with hard surfaces for drainage purposes, timber decks are usually not included in this category since the gaps are allowing the water to flow into the soil but you can double-check with your council just to be sure. 6. What are the exemption to build a deck without a permit? A: As above 7. Can we build a deck on a concrete slab without a permit? A: As explained in Question 5, you must be aware of the site permeability requirements as concrete prevents water to be absorbed into the soil. 8. Do we need a permit for a concrete slab too? A: The same as in Questions 5. 9. Do we need a licensed builder to build a deck/pergola? A: If the works are up to a certain amount (I think $10K) you don't need to. 10. Will we need a permit to build a small deck and steps for front entry too? A: If you build all the above, you will include this to the permit anyway. The steps need to comply with certain design rules. 11. What is a building permit and planning permit? A: Planning permit has to do with how your project effects the surrounding environment based on aesthetics and functionality and a building permit is a permission to build and has to do with how safe your construction method is and if it complies with all the relevant standards. 12. Do we need both or not? A: It depends on what of the above you are building. Every case is different and the council will determine if a planning permit is required or not. i can not for the life of me find any online written details of height and size exceptions for decks in victoria. (same as the original question) Does anyone have this. the VBA also only states permit required for anything classed as a deck. I have just spoken to my local council and all they said was they don't make rules or exceptions and I need to follow whatever the VBA says. Cheers Check building regulations schedule of exemptions, if exempt you won't need a building permit but you may still require council planning permit. Your council should give you accurate advice for free, or else talk to a Private Building Surveyor Foremost Building Expert in Australia,assisting with building problems/disputes, building stage inspections,pre-contract review advice for peace of mind 200 blogs http://www.buildingexpert.net.au/blog Re: Deck and Pergola Permit Confusion 14Jun 23, 2021 4:51 pm google victorian building regulations then go to the schedule of exempts buildings Foremost Building Expert in Australia,assisting with building problems/disputes, building stage inspections,pre-contract review advice for peace of mind 200 blogs http://www.buildingexpert.net.au/blog Hi All, see above image. The required setback from the rear boundary in my case is 5m, as you can see the shape of the site and location of the boundary is slightly… 0 8431 Looking to start the journey of becoming an owner builder in SA. 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