KONG BUILD PTY LTD

Residential construction. Extensions. Renovations. Custom homes.

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Heritage preserved. Modernity engineered.

We engineer the space your home was meant to have.

Kong Build Pty Ltd takes on the residential work that has to be engineered before it can be built: structural rear extensions, second-storey additions and full-scale transformations of houses worth keeping. We resolve the steel, the slab and the junction with the old roof on paper first. Then we build it to the drawing.

[ Contact us -> ] See the finished spaces
A two-storey black box addition glowing at dusk behind a mature gum tree, its glazed ground floor open to the lawn.
X 0000 / Y 0000
Fig. 01 / Reference image. Rear box addition at dusk: black steel, timber soffit, full-height glazing.
DWGA-001TitleGeneral arrangementScale1:100 @ A1RevC Scroll to assemble ↓

How a rear extension goes together, in five stages

Isometric model of a house and its new rear extension A pitched-roof weatherboard house at the front of the lot. As you scroll, the old rear lean-to is removed, a concrete slab slides in, steel portal frames and timber stud walls drop into place, charred timber cladding and sliding glass close the envelope, and a pergola extends over a bluestone deck.

DWGA-003TitleCapability scheduleItems04

Four kinds of work, one structural standard.

Open a row to read its structural scope. Every job on this schedule is priced from engineered drawings, never from a square-metre rate.

  • Open-plan box additions, structural steel cantilevers and the engineering of the threshold where inside meets outside.

    Structural scope

    • Steel portal frames that clear the rear wall of columns
    • Engineered slabs tied into the existing footing line
    • Flush sills between living room and deck
    • Junction with the old roof detailed before demolition
    See a rear extension

  • Load-bearing re-engineering, seamless roofline transitions and master retreat volumes set above the house you already own.

    Structural scope

    • Existing footings and walls tested, then re-engineered for the new floor
    • Roofline transitions set out so new work reads as original
    • Stair position resolved before the frame is ordered
    • Staged so the ground floor stays weathertight

  • Internal wall removals, RSJ steel beam insertions, and wet-area and kitchen architectural joinery.

    Structural scope

    • Load-bearing walls removed on engineered steel
    • Beams concealed in the ceiling line where the structure allows
    • Wet areas rebuilt from the substrate up
    • Joinery set out from site-measured drawings
    See an open-plan room

  • Turnkey architectural residences built from the footing up, for sites where the old house has given all it can.

    Structural scope

    • Demolition, site cut and footings under one contract
    • Frame, envelope and fit-out by one site team
    • The architect's documents priced line by line
    • Handover with a full set of as-built drawings
DWGA-004TitleReference projectsTypes04ImagesReference only

Reference projects, the scale we build at.

Four reference projects from other studios, chosen to show the scale and structure of the work we take on. Tell us which one is closest to yours.

Reference image: a timber-clad ground floor with a black upper volume cantilevering beside a tall gum tree, opening to a covered deck and lawn.

REF-01 / Rear cantilever

The cantilevered living wing

A new living wing that cantilevers past a mature tree, so its root zone is never cut.

Scope
Rear box extension + renovation
Structural system
Exposed steel + charred timber
Suits
Deep lots with a tree worth keeping

Illustration / an existing cottage against a rear addition, two reference houses

Drag the section line, or use the arrow keys

Reference addition: a timber and black-clad wing wrapping a courtyard lawn around a gum tree.
Reference existing house: a white weatherboard cottage with a front verandah under autumn trees.
ExistingAddition

REF-02 / Upper-storey box

The steel box over the old house

A black steel box set over a retained ground floor, carried on portal frames threaded through the old ceiling.

Scope
Second-storey addition
Structural system
Steel portals over retained masonry
Suits
Tight lots with no room to go back
Reference image: a long black upper-storey box with tall slot windows lit from inside, floating over a pale ground floor at dusk.
Reference image: a timber-screened addition with a pitched upper roof, set behind a black boundary wall.

REF-03 / Heritage addition

The addition behind a protected front

A timber-screened stair and living room, set where they cannot be seen from the footpath.

Scope
Rear addition, heritage overlay
Structural system
Timber frame + hardwood screen
Suits
Streets under a heritage overlay
Reference image: looking out through black steel-framed sliding doors to a courtyard pool and a timber-battened wall.

REF-04 / Courtyard pavilion

The pavilion around a court

A single-storey pavilion wrapped around a pool court, glazed on three sides in steel-framed sliders.

Scope
Ground extension + courtyard
Structural system
Steel-framed glazing + concrete slab
Suits
Wide lots that want one level

Structure is the means. Step inside the finished rooms.

The steel disappears behind plaster. What you live with is the kitchen, the bathroom and the light on the floorboards. See the finish level we build to.

[ Open finished spaces -> ]
R-01 R-02 R-03 R-04 R-05
DWGA-005TitleThe Kong Build methodStages05 Station 00 / 05

Five stages. No surprises.

Building stress comes from not knowing: what it will cost, what is behind the wall, who is turning up on Monday. Each stage of the method removes one unknown before the next stage starts.

Keep scrolling ->

Stage 01 / 05

Site & structural feasibility

Before anyone draws anything, we measure the house you have: footings, roof load paths, drainage, overlays and setbacks. You learn what the site will carry before you pay for a design.

You receive
Feasibility report and a budget range
Unknown removed
Designing something the site cannot hold

Stage 02 / 05

Architectural & engineering coordination

Your architect, the structural engineer and our site supervisor work from one set of drawings. Steel sizes, slab levels and joinery set-outs are resolved on paper, where a change costs a pencil line.

You receive
One coordinated drawing set
Unknown removed
Variations caused by drawings that disagree

Stage 03 / 05

Fixed-price contract & permits

Every line is priced against the coordinated set. Provisional sums are listed, explained and kept to the items that cannot be known until the ground is open. We lodge the building permit and manage the surveyor.

You receive
Signed contract, permit, construction programme
Unknown removed
Open-ended pricing

Stage 04 / 05

Precision on-site execution

One supervisor from set-out to handover. Hold points at slab, frame, lock-up and waterproofing are inspected and photographed before the next trade starts.

You receive
A weekly site report with photographs
Unknown removed
Not knowing what happened on site this week

Stage 05 / 05

Handover & structural warranty

Handover is a walk-through against the drawings, not a set of keys in an envelope. As-built documents, certificates and the structural warranty arrive together in one folder.

You receive
Final certificate, as-builts, warranty schedule
Unknown removed
Chasing a builder after the last payment

Stage 01 starts with a site measure.

[ Contact us -> ]
DWGA-006TitleContact

Contact us.

Write whatever you like about the job: what you want to build, what is there now, when you would like to start. Attach a plan, a sketch or a photo if you have one. We reply to the email or phone number you give us.

Office
5/440 Elizabeth St, Melbourne VIC 3000

One file, up to 10 MB. A plan, a sketch or a photo.

Your message goes to Kong Build's inbox through FormSubmit, a form delivery service, after a quick spam check.

<- Back to the structure

Structure is the means. The rooms are the point.

Steel, slab and stud work vanish behind plaster and paint. What stays is how the house feels at seven in the morning: warm timber underfoot, joinery that closes properly, light reaching the back of the room. These five illustrative rooms show the finish level we build to.

DWGA-007TitleFinished spacesScheduleR-01 to R-05ImagesIllustrative
A flat-roofed weatherboard extension at the back of a tiled-roof cottage, its sliding doors open to a timber deck and lawn in late afternoon light.

R-01

Rear extension and deck

A flat-roofed living room added to the back of a weatherboard cottage. The new floor sits level with the old one, and the deck runs out from the sill without a step.

Cladding
Painted weatherboard, matched to the existing house
Roof
Low-pitch metal deck with a concealed gutter
Opening
Sliding glass doors in a dark frame
Deck
Hardwood boards, two steps down to lawn
A warm white kitchen with Shaker cabinets, a timber benchtop and peninsula, and a window over the sink.

R-02

Kitchen

The room most renovations are really about. Shaker fronts, a timber benchtop you can sand back in ten years, and a window over the sink.

Joinery
Shaker-profile cabinetry, painted
Benchtop
Solid timber, oiled
Splashback
White subway tile
Floor
Timber boards, clear finish
An open-plan dining and living room joined through a wide squared opening, with timber floors and glazed doors to the garden.

R-03

Open-plan living

One wall removed, one beam inserted. A squared opening between dining and living is what a load-bearing wall leaves behind when the beam that replaces it is hidden in the bulkhead.

Structure
Steel beam in the bulkhead over the opening
Floor
Existing boards, repaired and refinished
Doors
Timber-framed glazed doors to the garden
Walls
Plaster, repaired and painted
A bathroom with a wall-hung timber vanity, grey stacked wall tiles, matte black tapware and a frameless glass shower screen.

R-04

Bathroom

Rebuilt from the substrate: new falls, new membrane, then tile. A wall-hung vanity keeps the floor clear and the room easy to clean.

Wet seal
Full membrane under the tile
Tile
Stacked vertical wall tile, large-format floor
Vanity
Wall-hung timber with a stone top
Fittings
Matte black tapware, frameless screen
A small office reception with a timber-fronted counter, concealed lighting under wall cabinets and a meeting table by the window.

R-05

Workplace fit-out

The same joinery discipline, applied to a small office: a timber-fronted reception counter, concealed lighting and a meeting corner by the window.

Joinery
Timber veneer counter with a stone top
Lighting
Concealed LED under the wall cabinets
Floor
Carpet tile
Screen
Timber batten partition

Find out what your house can carry.

[ Contact us -> ] <- Back to the structure