When do you need a building setout?
Before anything is built in a fixed position on the block:
- the slab or footings for a new home or extension
- retaining walls
- a pool
In the usual order, the contour survey comes first, for the design. Then come the approvals and the building permit, the boundary re-peg, and finally the setout, straight after the re-peg and before the slab or footings.
What do you get from a building setout?
The marks on site. There is no plan or report: you supply the plan, and we put it on the ground. Depending on the job, we mark:
- Corner pegs at the points your setout plan shows.
- Offset pegs, a set distance from the corners.
How does a building setout work?
- Ask for a quote and send your setout plan. Fill in the online form with the property details and your contact details, then email the setout plan to quotes@cottage.com.au. The plan shows where each peg goes and the dimensions to it; check it matches your approved plans before you send it. We do not quote over the phone.
- Get a written quote within 48 hours.
- We set out the site. Once you accept, a surveyor visits and places the marks. Most surveys are done within about two weeks of booking.
- Keep the marks clear. Keep machinery, bins and spoil away from the pegs until the work they mark is in.
What else do people ask about setouts?
Do I need a re-peg before a setout?
Yes. A Licensed Surveyor is legally required to re-establish the boundaries before setting out a building on the lot, and that is what a re-peg does. Booked together, the two usually mean one visit to site. Our guide Re-peg or setout? explains the difference.
Who draws the setout plan?
Your designer, architect or builder. We work from their plan, so send the final version that matches your approvals, not an early draft.
What are offset pegs for?
Corner pegs are often lost when the ground is dug out for footings or a pool. Offset pegs sit a set distance away from the work, so they survive, and your builder measures back from them to find the corners.
What if a peg is knocked out?
Don't put it back by eye. Tell your builder, and call us if it needs replacing.
Do you set out commercial buildings?
Yes. Our commercial team sets out civil works, carparks and buildings floor by floor, before and after each concrete pour. See commercial and engineering surveys.
Areas: We work across all of Perth, north to Guilderton, east to Northam and Brookton, and through the South West as far as Bridgetown and Augusta. See South West surveys.