Restumping Bendigo
Reactive clay above. Old mine workings below. Before we quote a single stump, we work out which one is moving your house.
Thousands of Bendigo’s gold-era cottages still sit on their original 1800s timber stumps. We get under the floor first, tell you what’s actually moving, then price it fixed and in writing.
Signs your Bendigo home needs restumping
Failing stumps rarely announce themselves. They show up as small annoyances you learn to live with — until the cracks stop closing. If you’re noticing any of these in an older Bendigo home, the subfloor is worth a look:
- Sloping or uneven floors — a marble that rolls, or furniture that won’t sit level.
- Bouncy or springy floorboards — movement underfoot as you walk across a room.
- Doors and windows that stick — frames pulled out of square as the floor drops beneath them.
- Stair-step cracks in brickwork or plaster — diagonal cracking that follows the mortar joints.
- Gaps opening at the skirting boards — the floor moving away from the wall, or the wall away from the floor.
- A musty smell under the house — poor subfloor ventilation, which is what rots timber stumps in the first place.
One of these on its own might be nothing. Two or three together, in a house built before 1970, usually means the stumps are going.
Why Bendigo ground is different
Most restumping companies will tell you timber stumps rot. True everywhere. What’s specific to Bendigo is what those stumps are standing on — and it’s unlike anywhere else in the state.
You may be living over a mine
The Bendigo goldfield contains 37 separate gold-bearing quartz reefs across an area roughly 16 kilometres by 4 kilometres. More than 5,000 registered gold mines were sunk inside it. At least 140 shafts went deeper than 300 metres, 67 deeper than 600, and eleven passed 1,000 metres — the largest concentration of deep shafts anywhere in the world.
That 16 by 4 kilometre area is not a historical curiosity out past the town limits. It is residential Bendigo. Long Gully, Golden Square, Ironbark, California Gully, Quarry Hill and Eaglehawk all sit inside it, and the reef lines run at an angle to the street grid rather than politely around it — the Deborah, Sheepshead and Garden Gully reefs all pass beneath established Golden Square streets.
Mine subsidence is an official site classification here
Under AS 2870, most Australian residential sites are classified by how reactive the clay is — Class A through E. There’s one further category, Class P, for problem sites where the ground simply can’t be relied on to carry load evenly. Mine subsidence is one of the conditions that triggers it, and Victorian building guidance names Bendigo specifically as a place where it applies.
A Class P site means standard footing design doesn’t. It means specific engineering, and it means a restumping job that ignores what’s below is treating a symptom.
And reactive clay on top of all that
Central Victorian reactive clay runs through Bendigo’s established suburbs and its newer estates alike. It swells when wet, shrinks when dry, and lifts and drops the ground through every season. In a stumped house that shows up as floors that move a little each year. In a slab-on-ground home out at Maiden Gully or Strathfieldsaye it shows up as cracking — and that’s an underpinning problem, not a restumping one.
Why that matters for your quote
Rotten stumps, ground subsidence over old workings, and seasonal clay movement all produce sloping floors and cracked walls. They look identical from inside the house. They are not the same problem, they don’t cost the same to fix, and replacing stumps won’t help if what’s actually moving is the ground under them.
That’s why we get under the house before we price anything. We’ve written up the full picture here if you want to understand what’s happening beneath your home.
Restumping, reblocking or underpinning — which do you need?
Restumping
Replacing the stumps under a suspended timber floor. If your house sits up off the ground and the stumps have rotted, cracked or sunk, this is the job. Old timber goes out, new concrete or galvanised steel goes in, and the floor comes back to level.
Reblocking
The same work under a different name — Victorians use both, and plenty of people use them interchangeably. If you’ve been quoted for one and told you need the other, you’re almost certainly talking about the same job.
Underpinning
A different thing entirely. Underpinning strengthens or deepens the actual footings, and it’s what you need when the ground has moved rather than the stumps failing. It’s the answer for slab-on-ground homes and for houses over disturbed or undermined ground. It costs more, and it needs engineering.
Levelling and relevelling
Bringing a floor back to level without replacing everything — sometimes on its own, sometimes as part of a restump. Worth asking about, because it’s occasionally all a house needs.
You don’t need to work out which one you’re after before you call. That’s our job, and it’s the first thing the inspection settles.
How the Job actually runs
Subfloor Inspection
We inspect beneath the house or inside the crawl space, checking every stump, bearer and joist, along with the ventilation and condition of the ground.
Diagnosis
We determine whether the problem is caused by damaged stumps, ground movement or a combination of both. Difficult sites may also require an engineer’s assessment.
Fixed Written Quote
Your written quote clearly outlines the stump count, materials, permit requirements, engineering costs and the making-good work included.
Building Permit
Restumping is structural building work in Victoria. The required building permit and registered building surveyor are organised as part of the process.
Jacking and Levelling
The house is carefully lifted in controlled stages to avoid placing unnecessary stress on the frame before it is progressively brought back to level.
Stumps Replaced
Failed stumps are removed and replaced with concrete or galvanised steel stumps installed into properly excavated footings suited to the site conditions.
Sign-Off and Making Good
The work is inspected by the building surveyor. Any included plaster cracking or disturbed finishes are then attended to before the job is completed.
What restumping costs in Bendigo
Nobody in this industry publishes prices, which leaves homeowners ringing around for quotes with no idea what a fair number looks like. Here’s what the work actually costs in central Victoria in 2026.
- Per stump, supplied and installed: roughly $280–$550, before permits and engineering. Tight subfloor access, deeper footings and premium stumps push it up.
- A full house restump: commonly $12,000–$30,000 including the building permit and engineering.
- Partial restumping — just the failed section — costs proportionally less, and it’s often the right call.
- Underpinning: $15,000–$40,000+, typically $1,200–$2,500 per pier, because it involves excavation and engineered design.
Five things move the number: stump count (the single biggest factor), subfloor clearance and access — a low, tight subfloor is slow work — stump material, ground conditions and footing depth, and whether you’re doing the whole house or one section.
Two things to be wary of when you compare quotes. Be sceptical of any price given without someone physically getting under your house — the stump count and the access are the price, and neither can be assessed from the kerb. And be careful with hourly-rate pricing, which can climb well past the estimate once work starts. We quote fixed.
Our full cost guide breaks down every variable, including what permits and engineering typically add.
If Restumping Isn't the Answer
Underpinning
A different thing entirely. Underpinning strengthens or deepens the actual footings, for when the ground has moved rather than the stumps failing. The answer for slab-on-ground homes and houses over disturbed or undermined ground.
Levelling & Relevelling
Bringing a floor back to level without replacing everything — sometimes on its own, sometimes as part of a restump. Occasionally it’s all a house needs.
Jack & Pack
Packing and adjusting sound existing stumps to bring the floor back to level, instead of replacing the lot. Far cheaper than a full restump — and if your stumps are structurally fine and have just settled, it may be all you need.
Subfloor Repairs & Ventilation
Rotted bearers and joists, damaged floorboards, and the subfloor ventilation that caused the problem in the first place. Replacing stumps without fixing poor ventilation just restarts the clock.
Where we work in Bendigo
Bendigo’s suburbs fall into three distinct eras, and the era decides the job.
Gold-era suburbs — original timber stumps
Houses from the 1850s to about 1910, mostly timber workers’ cottages, and the ones most likely to still be sitting on their first set of stumps. This is the bulk of our work: Long Gully, Golden Square, Quarry Hill, Ironbark, California Gully, Eaglehawk, Kangaroo Flat, White Hills and Specimen Hill.
Post-war suburbs — second-generation stumps
Built from the 1950s through the 1970s. Some on stumps, some on early slabs. The stumps here are newer but many are now at the end of their service life: Flora Hill, Kennington, North Bendigo and Bendigo East.
Newer estates — slab on ground
Maiden Gully, Epsom, Strathdale, Junortoun, Strathfieldsaye, Huntly, Jackass Flat and Marong are largely slab-on-ground. There are no stumps to replace in these homes — but reactive clay still cracks slabs out here, and that’s underpinning and slab repair rather than restumping.
We also work the surrounding goldfields towns — Castlemaine, Maldon, Kyneton, Heathcote, Elmore, Rochester and Echuca — where the housing stock and the ground tell the same story.
Why homeowners
choose us
We diagnose before we quote
Somebody gets under your house first. You’ll be told whether it’s the stumps, the ground, or both — and if the answer is “this doesn’t need doing yet”, you’ll be told that too.
We know what’s under Bendigo
Gold-era stumps, old workings, Class P sites and reactive clay. Foundation work here isn’t the same as foundation work in the suburbs of Melbourne, and it shouldn’t be quoted as if it is.
We publish our prices
The ranges shown on our website are real. You can budget before you speak to anyone, including us.
Same-day response
Send an enquiry and you’ll hear back the same day — not in a few days’ time.
FAQ
Do I need a building permit to restump my house?
Yes. Restumping is structural work, and in Victoria it requires a building permit and inspection by a registered building surveyor. Engineering is required where the ground conditions call for it — which on Class P or undermined sites is often. We handle the permit as part of the job.
Can I stay in the house while it's done?
Usually, yes. The work happens under the floor, and most people live upstairs through it. You’ll need to expect noise, some vibration, and plaster cracking that gets made good afterwards. If your particular job needs you out, we’ll say so at the quote rather than on the day.
How long does restumping take?
Five to eight working days for most houses, depending on stump count and access. Permits and engineering add lead time before work starts, so allow several weeks from quote to first day on site.
Timber, concrete or steel stumps?
Concrete is the standard and what most jobs use. Galvanised steel and adjustable steel stumps cost a little more and allow future relevelling without digging. Timber is cheapest and shortest-lived, which is precisely why you’re reading this page. We’ll match the material to your subfloor and your budget.
Is restumping covered by insurance?
Generally not. Age-related stump deterioration is treated as wear and tear, which home insurance excludes. Sudden damage from a specific insured event can be different — worth checking your policy, but don’t count on it.
Does restumping add value to my home?
It removes a problem rather than adding a feature — but level floors and a clean building surveyor sign-off take a major red flag off the table for buyers and building inspectors. A lot of owners restump specifically to stop the price being chipped at negotiation.
My house is over an old mine shaft. Can it still be restumped?
Usually, but it needs engineering rather than a standard footing design, and the assessment matters more than the stumps. This is exactly the situation where a Class P classification applies, and where a quote given without an inspection is worthless.
Book a subfloor inspection
If your floors are sloping, your doors are sticking, or the cracks in your walls have stopped closing up, get someone under the house before you get a price. We’ll tell you what’s actually moving, whether it needs doing now, and what it costs — fixed, in writing.