Your building is about to undergo waterproofing remediation. Your first thought might be months of noise, restricted access, and a building site where your home used to be. The reality is more controlled than that — but only if your contractor stages it properly.
This page explains the full process — what happens at each stage, what residents will experience, and what your committee should expect from mobilisation through to handover. Written so you can forward it to owners before works begin.
A waterproofing remediation project on an occupied strata building follows a predictable sequence. Here’s what happens from the day your committee approves the work through to handover.
Before any tools hit site, your strata manager receives a pre-start pack — project timeline, contact details for the site supervisor, and a resident notification letter. This goes to every affected unit owner and tenant at least two weeks before mobilisation. The letter explains what’s happening, when, and who to contact if there’s an issue.
Scaffolding or edge protection goes up. Common areas and access paths are protected with hoarding, drop sheets, and signage. If balconies are being waterproofed, furniture is either relocated by residents beforehand or moved and protected by the crew. The building stays operational — lifts, fire stairs, and main entries remain accessible throughout.
Tiles, screed, and the existing failed membrane are removed back to the structural substrate. This is the noisiest phase — typically 2–3 days per balcony. Once stripped, the substrate is inspected for cracks, falls, and drainage issues. Any structural defects found at this stage are documented and reported to the engineer before proceeding.
Cracks are chased out and repaired. Falls are corrected so water drains to the outlet — not pools against the door threshold. Drainage components are replaced if needed. The substrate must be structurally sound and correctly graded before any membrane goes down. This step is where most failed waterproofing jobs cut corners.
A sheet membrane system is installed to the engineer’s specification — typically a torch-on or peel-and-stick system compliant with AS 4654.2. Critical details: upturns at walls (minimum 150mm above finished floor level), sealed penetrations at every pipe and drain, and lapped joints with no gaps. The membrane is flood-tested before tiling to confirm it’s watertight.
Once the membrane passes flood testing, new screed and tiles are installed. Sealant joints are completed at all wall-to-floor junctions. The balcony or wet area is handed back to the resident with a QA checklist, photos of the membrane before it was covered, and a written warranty. Your strata manager receives the full compliance documentation pack.
Waterproofing works on an occupied building are disruptive — there’s no way around that. But disruption can be managed, staged, and communicated so residents know exactly what’s coming and when.
Each balcony is out of action for 3–4 weeks during active works (strip-back, repair, membrane, tiling). We stage balconies in groups — typically 2–4 at a time — so most residents retain access until their turn. You’ll get at least two weeks’ notice before your balcony is scheduled.
The loudest phase is demolition (tile and screed removal) — typically 2–3 days per balcony. Standard hours are 7am–5pm Monday to Friday. No weekend work unless the project timeline requires it, and residents are notified in advance. After demolition, the remaining work (membrane, tiling) is significantly quieter.
Demolition generates dust. We use dust barriers, extraction fans, and daily clean-up to contain it. Common areas are protected with hoarding and drop sheets. If dust is entering your unit through doors or windows near the work zone, tell the site supervisor immediately — we’ll adjust the containment.
Your strata manager receives weekly progress reports with photos and an updated timeline. If anything changes — a delay, an additional defect found during strip-back, a schedule adjustment — it’s reported before the end of that week. Residents can contact the site supervisor directly for day-to-day questions.
It’s like renovating a restaurant without closing it. The kitchen keeps running, guests keep dining, but the back section is behind hoarding getting rebuilt. Every night the doors still open. The work happens around the service — not instead of it.
That’s how waterproofing works on an occupied building. Residents stay in their apartments. The building stays operational. But one section at a time goes behind the barriers, gets fixed properly, and comes back better than it was.
Every waterproofing project is different, but here are the ranges your committee should expect when budgeting and planning.
A single balcony takes 3–4 weeks from strip-back to handover. A building with 10–20 balconies, staged in groups of 2–4, typically runs 4–6 months. Rooftop waterproofing on a mid-rise building is usually 6–8 weeks. Timeline depends on access, weather sensitivity of the membrane system, and how many areas need concurrent work.
The biggest cost variables are: number of balconies or wet areas, condition of the substrate (more cracks = more repair), membrane system specified by the engineer, and tile selection. A single balcony waterproofing project typically starts from $15,000–$25,000. A full building program across 10–20 balconies ranges from $250,000–$600,000 depending on scope and building access requirements.
Put it in perspective: if a single unit in your building is worth $800K–$2M, and water ingress is actively damaging the slab, the ceiling below, and the common property — a properly specified waterproofing remediation protects millions in combined property value. The cost of not fixing it compounds every time it rains.
We’ve inherited waterproofing projects where the previous contractor applied a liquid membrane over existing tiles without stripping back. The membrane failed within 18 months. The owners corporation paid for the original work, then paid again to strip everything back (including the first contractor’s membrane), then paid a third time to do it properly. Three invoices for one balcony — because the first contractor skipped the process this page describes.
Start with a conversation. We’ll visit your building, assess the situation, and give you a clear path forward — free, no obligation.
Call us on 0410 515 509 or fill in the form on our waterproofing page. We’ll tell you whether you need an engineer first or whether we can assess your building directly.
No obligation. We respond within 24 hours.