Strip Out Demolition
Internal strip-out demolition for renovations — walls, floors, fixtures and fit-out removed down to a clean shell, ready for your trades.
Learn more →Which walls can be removed?
Almost any internal wall — the question is never can it come out but what has to happen first. Non-structural stud partitions come out quickly once confirmed as non-load-bearing. Load-bearing walls, stud or brick, come out only after an engineer or builder has specified the beam and posts that take over the load, with temporary propping carrying the roof while the swap happens. The removal itself is the easy half; the discipline is in the checking, propping and sequencing around it.
This matters more in Perth than almost anywhere in Australia, because so much of the housing stock is double brick right through — internal walls included. The 1960s–80s brick-and-tile homes filling Morley, Belmont, Midland and half the metro area routinely have masonry where east-coast homes would have plasterboard on studs.
How is a double brick wall removed?
Deliberately, from the top down. After services in the wall are isolated and rerouted by your electrician and plumber, the wall is cut free from the ceiling line and abutting walls — a demolition saw with dust suppression gives a clean junction instead of torn plaster — then taken down in courses or cut panels. The rubble is barrowed out over floor protection: a typical 4 m × 2.7 m double brick wall is in the order of 2 tonnes of brick and render, which is why the skip bin position gets planned before the first cut.
Where the wall is load-bearing, temporary props (acrow props on load-spreading plates) carry the structure while the masonry comes out, and the builder installs the engineered beam before props come down. On those jobs the demolition is staged around the builder's program — one crew stripping, one structure going in, no gap where the roof is relying on luck.
It is worth knowing where WA law draws its line: under the WHS (General) Regulations 2022, work on load-bearing structure is "demolition work", and WorkSafe WA licensing applies to demolition of structures 2 metres or higher that are not single-storey dwellings. We ask the contractors we work with to hold the relevant WorkSafe WA licences and public liability cover — ask to see them before work starts.
What happens where the wall used to be?
An honest scar, made ready for the finishing trades. Removing a wall always leaves evidence: a strip of bare slab where the wall sat, plaster junctions at ceiling and side walls, and often a step in floor levels between rooms that were tiled and carpeted separately. The strip out finishes with those junctions cut clean and square, the slab strip cleared of mortar, and the debris gone — so the plasterer, renderer and floor layer are patching neat edges, not demolition damage. If the floor on both sides is being replaced anyway, pairing the wall removal with floor and tile removal in the same visit hides the scar completely.
What does internal wall removal cost in Perth?
Stud partitions are the cheap end; double brick costs more (weight, cutting, cartage); load-bearing walls cost the most because engineering, permits and propping join the job. The demolition component is quoted fixed and in writing after a site look — typical Perth ranges are on the Pricing page. Budget separately for the engineer and builder on structural jobs; those are their trades, not ours.
One wall between kitchen and dining, or every partition in the house? A single opening is a stand-alone job; a full reconfiguration runs better as a complete strip out demolition with one program and one bin strategy. Call (08) 6171 2654 and describe the wall — brick or stud, and what is on the other side.
More services
Explore our other services
Bathroom Demolition
Full bathroom strip-out — tiles, tubs, vanities and fixtures removed and cleared, ready for the reno to start.
Learn more →Kitchen Demolition
Cabinetry, benchtops, splashbacks and appliances stripped out and removed, leaving a clear space for the new kitchen fit-out.
Learn more →Office Strip Outs
Commercial office strip-outs — partitions, ceilings, flooring and fit-out cleared for lease make-good or refurbishment.
Learn more →Floor and Tile Removal
Removal of tiles, timber, carpet and underlay down to the slab or subfloor, swept and ready for the next finish.
Learn more →
FAQs
Frequently asked questions
How do I know if my wall is load-bearing?
You do not guess — someone qualified confirms it. Clues like a wall running perpendicular to the roof framing, sitting under a beam, or being double brick when others are stud suggest load-bearing, but Perth homes mix construction eras enough that clues are not proof. Before any structural wall comes out, a builder or structural engineer confirms what the wall carries and specifies the beam and supports that replace it. Non-structural partitions, once confirmed, can simply be removed.
Do I need council approval to remove an internal wall in WA?
For a non-structural partition, generally no. For a load-bearing wall, the alteration usually requires a building permit through your local government under the Building Act 2011 (WA), supported by an engineer's details for the new beam. Requirements and fees differ between Perth councils, so confirm with yours before committing to dates — and see our Permits page for how the process runs. Strata approval is a separate hurdle for apartments and villas, even for some non-structural walls.
How much mess does removing a double brick wall make?
Plenty, but it is contained mess when done properly. A 4 metre double brick internal wall is roughly 2 tonnes of material, cut into panels or taken down course by course, barrowed out over floor protection to the skip. Dust barriers seal the work area, cutting is done with dust suppression, and the slab is left swept with the wall gone to floor level — or to just below finished floor level where the new flooring runs through. The neighbours will hear it for a day; your house should not wear it for a month.
Free, no-obligation