Jetty rebuild specialists in Runaway Bay.
Runaway Bay is among the oldest established canal estates on the Gold Coast - original 1970s-80s subdivision with timber jetties now 40-55 years old. Most original jetty stock here is at or beyond end-of-life: marine borer has hollowed the piles from the inside, decking has been patched multiple times, and the bearer-to-pile-cap interface is rotting through. About 85% of our Runaway Bay work is full rebuild.
The Runaway Bay jetty story.
40-55 year old jetty stock - marine borer attack endemic.
Runaway Bay was subdivided in the early 1970s as one of the Gold Coast’s first dedicated canal-residential estates. The original jetties were built with the spec of the day: untreated or low-pressure-treated hardwood piles, hardwood decking, galvanised steel hardware. Untreated hardwood piles in Gold Coast canal water have a marine-borer-limited service life of 15-25 years - meaning the ORIGINAL Runaway Bay jetty stock should structurally have failed two decades ago. The reason most haven’t fully collapsed is that owners have done partial repairs every 5-10 years to keep them going. By 2026, that patch-and-repair pattern is no longer economical - the pile network is too compromised for further repair, and rebuild on a fresh pile system is the correct call.
Pile-replacement-only rebuild - the budget option.
For Runaway Bay owners who don’t want a full premium rebuild, we offer a pile-replacement-only option: extract the old marine-borer-eaten piles, drive new H6 marine-grade CCA hardwood piles in the same footprint, retain (if salvageable) the existing bearers, stringers and decking. This is the cheapest structural rebuild path - ~$15K-$25K for a typical 4-pile single-span jetty - and buys 25-40 years of additional service life. Most Runaway Bay owners take this path rather than the full demolition rebuild.
Lower property values = repair-conscious budget.
Runaway Bay canal-frontage property values sit at $900K-$1.8m - significantly below Paradise Point ($2.5m-$5m) or Sovereign Islands ($5m+). Owners here are more cost-conscious and the right answer is usually a pragmatic repair-or-replace assessment rather than premium replacement. We’ll honestly assess if a $30K pile-replacement is the right call vs a $60K full rebuild for any given block - the answer depends on the bearer / decking condition, the owner’s 10-year hold horizon, and resale considerations.
Typical Runaway Bay jobs.
- Pile-replacement only (4-6 piles, existing deck retained): $15K-$28K
- Pile + bearer + decking rebuild on existing footprint: $25K-$45K
- Full demolition and new structural rebuild + new pontoon: $40K-$70K
- Salvage assessment + insurance documentation (when storm damage triggers claim): $800-$1,500
- Marine-borer-attack survey (residual life on each pile, recommend repair vs replace): $1,200-$2,000
Other service areas.
Free Runaway Bay on-site jetty quote.
Marine-borer probe on every pile. Pragmatic repair-vs-rebuild call. Pile-replacement-only option if structure is salvageable.