Decking in Joondalup
Northern Decking Co builds and restores decks in Joondalup, the regional centre of the City of Joondalup. Much of the work is replacing the original deck on a 1980s or 1990s home or adding a compact deck to a townhouse courtyard, in hardwood or composite. The contractor quotes free after seeing the site.
- Postcode
- 6027
- Council
- City of Joondalup
- Coastal lot rules
- Not usually
- Last reviewed
- September 2026
Decks that suit Joondalup homes
Joondalup grew into the city of the north from the late 1980s, and its housing tells that story. The suburban streets between Moore Drive and Burns Beach Road, and the small estates along Lakeside Drive, are mostly single-storey brick and tile homes from the late 1980s and 1990s on standard lots. Closer to the city centre the mix shifts to townhouses and apartments. Decking work in Joondalup splits along the same line.
The thirty-year-old deck
A house built in 1990 with a timber deck has a deck that is now well past its first life. The signs are boards that give underfoot, screw or nail heads standing proud, a bounce in the middle, and grey timber that has not seen oil in years. Often the frame is still good, because the sand under Joondalup drains and treated pine bearers hold up, and the job is a re-board: new merbau or spotted gum, pre-drilled and face-screwed with stainless screws, or composite on the existing frame with extra joists to bring the centres in. Where the frame has gone, the contractor says so and quotes a new deck.
Extending a paved alfresco
Many 1990s Joondalup homes have a paved or concrete patio under a pergola rather than a deck. A low deck laid over or beside it, level with the sliding door sill, turns a step down onto hot paving into a room. Under 500 mm above natural ground, in the City of Joondalup, that deck does not need planning approval on a single house, which keeps the project simple.
Courtyard decks for townhouses
The townhouses and grouped dwellings around the city centre have small courtyards where a deck makes the whole space usable. These are low, tight jobs: a compact frame on stumps, boards run to make the yard read longer, a picture-frame border so no cut ends show, and often composite because nobody wants to oil a courtyard. The strata by-laws may add an approval step; the council rules are the same as for a house.
Lake, not ocean
Joondalup is an inland suburb bounded by Lake Joondalup to the east, not by the coast, so the salt-air detailing that coastal suburbs need is not the default here. Hot-dipped galvanised fixings are the minimum and stainless is still a good choice on a deck that will be hosed and walked on for decades. The contractor will recommend the level of hardware that fits the spot.
What to know before you build in Joondalup
City of Joondalup
- Building permit requirements depend on the deck. Confirm with the City of Joondalup on 9400 4000 before work starts.
- For a single house or grouped dwelling, development (planning) approval is not required for decking 500 mm or less above natural ground level.
- Decking over 500 mm can avoid planning approval if it meets the R-Code setbacks for the lot's density.
- A deck within 7.5 m of a side or rear boundary needs a privacy screen at least 1.6 m high.
The ground
Coastal sand, as across most of the corridor. There is no suburb-specific ground record for Joondalup, and the first footing hole confirms what the contractor expects.
Bushfire map
Check your lot on the DFES Map of Bush Fire Prone Areas. If it is inside a mapped area the deck is built to the BAL requirements of AS 3959. We do not say here whether Joondalup is or is not bushfire prone, because the map runs through suburbs and is revised.
How it goes in
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Footings
Stumps go into footings in the sand. Some sites in the far north hit limestone close to the surface and need core drilling.
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Joists
Joists go across the bearers at the centres the board maker specifies, typically 450 mm for hardwood and tighter for composite.
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Boards
Boards are laid from the house out with an even gap, fixed with screws or hidden clips.
Questions from Joondalup
Can you replace the old deck on my 1990s Joondalup home?
Yes. The contractor checks the frame first. If the bearers and joists are sound, the deck is re-boarded in hardwood or composite with stainless fixings. If the frame has rot or termite damage, it is replaced, because patching boards over a bad frame wastes your money.
Do I need council approval for a deck in Joondalup?
For a single house or grouped dwelling in the City of Joondalup, planning approval is not required for decking 500 mm or less above natural ground level. Decking over 500 mm can avoid planning approval if it meets the R-Code setbacks. Building permit requirements depend on the deck, so confirm with the City on 9400 4000.
Can a deck go in a townhouse courtyard in the Joondalup city centre?
Usually, as a low deck. Grouped dwellings follow the same 500 mm rule for planning approval in the City of Joondalup, and a strata scheme may have its own approval step, so check the by-laws before the contractor starts.
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