Ferntree Gully Concrete

The estates that shaped Ferntree Gully

Ferntree Gully became accessible when the railway line from Ringwood arrived in 1889, the same year the Shire of Fern Tree Gully was proclaimed. The biggest change came after the Second World War:

• Mountain Gate Estate was officially opened on 17 October 1959 and marketed as the "town of a thousand homes", complete with a car-oriented shopping centre and parkland.
• Johnson Park and Fairhills were both established by Stockdale & Leggo in 1959 and mostly built on during the 1960s, roughly between Blind Creek, Burwood Highway, McMahons Road and Scoresby Road.
• Kent Park followed in the late 1960s, when Hooker-Rex Estates bought 44 hectares for a new housing estate.

Many homes in these estates are now more than half a century old. That doesn't mean every driveway is failing, but it does mean a lot of original concrete paths, driveways and patios are reaching the end of their useful life (our inference from the build dates).

Shed slabs on foothill blocks

Shed slabs are one of the most common backyard concrete jobs in suburbs like Ferntree Gully, and foothill blocks add a few challenges:

• Levelling a sloping site: a shed needs a dead-level slab, so on a sloping yard we cut into the high side, build up the low side, or both. Often a small retaining wall or edge beam holds the pad. Retaining walls →
• Thickened edges: the slab perimeter is usually thickened to carry wall loads and resist edge cracking.
• Hold-down bolts and set-downs: we set the slab to your shed kit's footprint and allow for the bolt pattern or a set-down at roller doors so water stays out.
• Access: backyard slabs are often behind the house. Line pumping saves barrowing up and down slopes.
• Drainage around the pad: water running downhill towards the shed needs to be diverted around it.

Shed slabs → · Concrete pumping →

Driveways, steps and paths

Other common jobs across the suburb include:

• Driveway replacement for original 1960s driveways that have cracked or lifted. Driveway replacement →
• Front steps and garden stairs, useful wherever the front door sits above or below the street. Concrete steps and stairs →
• Side paths replacing uneven pavers or gravel. Paths and footpaths →
• Resurfacing where the slab is solid but the surface is worn. Concrete resurfacing →

Street trees and your crossover: Knox's rules

Ferntree Gully is in the City of Knox, and Wikipedia notes the suburb has many eucalyptus trees. Trees matter when planning a crossover. Knox's guideline for new vehicle crossings requires a crossing to be 3 metres clear of street trees and 1 metre from other assets such as pits, poles and hydrants. Knox's minimum crossing width is 2.8 metres.

To build or change a crossing, you need a Knox Road Opening Permit, because the work involves excavating in the road reserve. Your application needs a site plan showing street trees, pits, kerb, drains and other nearby assets. That plan is what council uses to check the clearances. If your home is on a collector or link road, a traffic management plan is also required. A council officer inspects the site before the permit is issued, and Knox says approved permits are emailed within five business days.

If a street tree sits close to where you'd like a new or wider crossing, it's worth having that conversation before you commit to a garage or driveway layout. Knox road reserve works · Vehicle crossovers →

Tree roots and older concrete

Established trees and older concrete often don't mix well. Roots can lift and crack paths and driveways over the years. When we replace a root-damaged section, we look at why it failed. Sometimes the answer is a root barrier (subject to the tree's health and any council tree rules), a thicker, better-reinforced slab, or a different path alignment. We won't damage protected or council trees to make a job easier.

Bushfire-prone edges

Wikipedia notes that Ferntree Gully is in a high fire risk area close to the national park, while most of the suburb is considered low risk. If your property is near the park boundary, check with Knox or your building surveyor whether any bushfire controls apply to new work. Concrete paths and hardstands are non-combustible, which some owners prefer close to the house.

Soil and ground

We haven't found a published, suburb-specific soil source for Ferntree Gully, so we don't make claims about local soil types. What research across Melbourne does show is wide variation in soil reactivity, even within the same soil type. We follow the site classification and engineering for structural slabs, and on foothill sites we pay particular attention to subgrade preparation and drainage.

Around Ferntree Gully

The historic Ferntree Gully Village around Station Street, Alpine Street and Forest Road is the original township, alongside the railway station on the Belgrave line. Mountain Gate Shopping Centre sits at Ferntree Gully Road and Burwood Highway. Ambleside Homestead, built in the 1890s on Olivebank Road, houses the Knox Historical Society. The heritage-protected old shire offices stand at Selman Avenue and Burwood Highway. The Knox Festival is held at the library and community centre, and the famous 1000 Steps walk starts just over the boundary in Upper Ferntree Gully.