Wahroonga · Ku-ring-gai
Laundry renovations in Wahroonga.
In a lot of these houses the laundry is a lean-to tacked onto the back, or a room under the house you reach by external stairs. Bringing it inside is the job we get asked about most.
NSW contractor licence 397801C · Ku-ring-gai Council area · About 6 minutes from our Hornsby showroom
Houses — 74.5% of Wahroonga
The laundry that was added later.
Wahroonga has the highest proportion of freestanding houses in the district, much of it built before a laundry was considered part of the house. What was added afterwards is usually uninsulated, and often outside.
Uninsulated and freezing
A lean-to laundry has single-skin walls and no ceiling insulation. In July nobody wants to be in there, so nobody is.
Bringing it inside needs a waste
The relocation is a drainage question first. Where the sewer line runs decides which internal room can become the laundry.
Or bring the lean-to up to standard
Insulate, line, waterproof and heat it properly. Often cheaper than relocating and it keeps the room's useful size.
External stairs are the real problem
Carrying a full basket down steps is what makes an under-house laundry unusable as people get older.
Wahroonga by the numbers
4,311
separate houses in Wahroonga
38.4%
owned outright — long-term households
Median age 44
the oldest profile in the district
2.9
people per household
Units — 19.6% of Wahroonga
In an apartment it is the opposite problem.
1,135 flats and apartments here. Nothing about lean-tos or external stairs applies — the constraint is getting moisture out of a sealed internal cupboard.
Already inside, already warm
None of the lean-to problem exists in an apartment. The laundry is a cupboard, and the issue is ventilation instead.
Condenser dryer, no penetration
Ducting to outside air crosses common property. A heat pump machine avoids the approval question entirely.
Written scope for the committee
Small job, same process. Waterproofing and floor penetrations still need owners corporation consent.
Credentials
Licensed to relocate a wet area.
NSW contractor licence
397801C
Renova Holdings Pty Ltd
Director and builder
99764S
Alireza Kamalzadeh
Accessible work
NDIS and aged care
Step-free laundries built properly
HBCF eligibility
To 15 Oct 2028
icare NSW
Dwelling, tenure and age figures from the ABS 2021 Census QuickStats for Wahroonga (SAL14103). Relocating a wet area involves plumbing work that must be carried out by a licensed plumber. Verify licences on the NSW Government public register.
Wahroonga questions
Moving it, or fixing it.
Can the laundry be moved inside the house?
It depends on where the sewer line runs. A laundry needs a waste with adequate fall plus hot and cold supply, so the practical question is which internal room sits close enough to existing drainage. On a house with subfloor access this is often achievable; on a slab it usually is not worth the cost.
Is it cheaper to fix the lean-to instead?
Frequently, yes. Insulating, lining, waterproofing and adding heating to an existing external laundry costs a fraction of relocating drainage, and you keep a full-size room rather than squeezing into a cupboard. We will price both so you can compare rather than assume.
Our laundry is under the house down external steps. Options?
With a median age of 44 and 38.4% of homes owned outright, this comes up a lot here — people intend to stay and the stairs get harder. Options are relocating to an internal room if drainage allows, or building a covered step-free path. We would look at both before recommending one.
Do we need approval to move a laundry?
Internal work that does not alter structure is generally exempt development in NSW, so usually no planning approval. The plumbing must be done by a licensed plumber and notified. If the relocation involves structural change or an external alteration on a heritage-affected property, that changes and we would flag it.
How disruptive is it?
A laundry renovated in place is one to two weeks. A relocation runs longer because two rooms are affected and drainage is being altered. Either way it is the least disruptive wet area in the house, which is why it is often worth doing alongside a bathroom.
Where is your laundry now?
Inside, in a lean-to, or under the house? The answer changes the whole conversation.
