03Duncraig · 2025
Alfresco and outdoor kitchen
Gabled alfresco matched to the existing roof line, with a built-in kitchen, storage and limestone paving.
- Covered
- 42 m²
- On site
- 5 weeks
- Contract
- Fixed price, held
04What we build
Alfresco, outdoor kitchens and decking
Outdoor rooms built for a Perth summer and the wind that comes with it.
AWhy people ring
Perth lives outside for eight months of the year
An alfresco is the highest-use room most Perth families add, and it is the one most often built badly. Flat-roofed patios bolted to a fascia, posts sitting in the wrong place, a roof line that ignores the house entirely.
Then there is the wind. Coastal suburbs sit in a serious wind rating, and a structure that has not been engineered for it is a structure that will move.
BThe work
Built as part of the house, not attached to it
We design alfrescos to continue the existing roof line where the pitch allows it. A gabled or hipped extension of the main roof reads as original; a flat skillion tacked to the gutter does not, and it makes the house harder to sell.
Everything is engineered to the site's actual wind rating, with footings sized for it, not to a generic detail. In the coastal suburbs that is the difference between a structure that lasts and one that starts creaking in its third summer.
Outdoor kitchens get treated as real joinery: marine-grade carcasses, stone tops, proper gas and water rough-in, and a rangehood that vents outside rather than recirculating under a roof.
- 01Roof line matched
- Pitch, eave and material matched to the existing house, with tile or sheet selected against the original.
- 02Engineered for wind rating
- Site-specific engineering and footing design, certified for the actual wind region.
- 03Outdoor kitchen fit-out
- Marine-grade joinery, stone benchtops, gas and water rough-in, externally vented rangehood.
- 04Paving and levels
- Limestone or concrete, set to fall away from the house with drainage designed in.
- 05Power and lighting
- Weatherproof circuits, fans, downlights and outdoor GPOs installed by a licensed electrician.
- 06Approvals where required
- Building permit lodged for structures that need one, including setback and overshadowing checks.
How it runs
Five stages, and you know where you are in them.
Every alfresco and outdoor job runs the same way. The stage you are in, and what you get at the end of it, is written down before you sign anything.
- 01
Site visit
We look at the roof line, the fall of the land and where the sun actually sits in February. Free, and usually an hour.
- 02
Design and fixed price
Drawings, engineering and a fixed-price contract covering structure, paving, kitchen and electrical.
- 03
Approvals
Building permit lodged where the structure requires one. Two to six weeks depending on your local government.
- 04
Build
Typically four to six weeks on site, with the house kept liveable throughout.
- 05
Handover
Walk-through, clean, certificates and the six-month check booked in.
CCost
What an alfresco costs
Cost is driven by span, roof type and whether there is a kitchen in it. Matching an existing tile roof costs more than sheet, and it is almost always worth the difference.
A matched-roof alfresco generally starts around $45,000. Adding a built-in outdoor kitchen typically adds $25,000 to $60,000 depending on appliances and stone.
Indicative
From $45k
We price the structure, paving, kitchen and electrical as one contract so there is no gap between trades.
Proof
One we built, documented in full.
Duncraig, 2025. Suburb, time on site, whether the price held and whether the owners stayed in the house — the four things people actually check.
“Six months after handover they came back, went through everything and fixed two small things without being asked. We have not had that from a builder before.”
Questions
What people ask about alfresco and outdoor.
Do I need council approval for an alfresco?
Usually yes, because it is a roofed structure attached to the house. Setbacks, overshadowing and open-space requirements all apply. We lodge the building permit as part of the contract.
Can you match my existing roof tiles?
In most cases yes. Where a discontinued profile makes an exact match impossible we source second-hand tiles or, if that fails, recommend a deliberate contrast rather than a close-but-wrong tile.
How long does an alfresco take?
Four to six weeks on site once approvals are through, plus two to six weeks of permit time beforehand.
What wind rating do you build to?
Whatever the site actually is. Coastal Perth suburbs sit in a higher wind region than the eastern suburbs, and we have the engineering done against your address rather than applying a generic detail.
Can you do the paving and landscaping too?
Paving, drainage and levels are inside our contract. Planting and reticulation we leave to a landscaper, and we will happily hand over to one we have worked with.
We build across Inner north, Western suburbs, River south, Coastal north, Fremantle and around — see the full list on the service areas page.
The next step
Have us out to look at your alfresco and outdoor.
Free to have us out, about an hour on site, and you leave with a written summary of what is feasible and a realistic budget band.