Most exposed aggregate in the established east is not poured on bare ground. It replaces something: a 1970s driveway cracked along the middle, pavers that have spread and sunk into trip hazards, or asphalt that has gone soft at the edges. Replacement is its own job, priced as one number, because the difference between a replacement that lasts and one that repeats the failure is what happens after the old surface comes out.
Why the old surface failed matters
A slab cracked down the centre on reactive clay, common across the east, failed because of what was under it, not what was in it. Breaking out the old surface exposes the actual ground, and the base gets corrected before anything is poured: soft spots out, compacted base material in where the ground needs it, drainage falls set properly. Then the new surface is built to the same specification as any new pour, steel on chairs, minimum 25 MPa mix, controlled wash-off, sealed after cure.
Concrete, pavers and asphalt out
Each comes out differently and the quote reflects it: reinforced concrete is broken and lifted, pavers are stripped and their bedding sand removed rather than poured over, and asphalt is peeled back to formation. All of it is tipped legitimately and itemised in the written quote rather than appearing as a variation on the day.
The crossover comes too
A replacement is the natural moment to fix a scraping or cracked crossover, and most eastern councils require a vehicle crossing permit for the work regardless. The permit is identified with the quote, and the crossover is rebuilt to the council’s standard drawing as part of the job. The areas page covers each council’s process.
One price, honestly built
$165 to $220 per m² including removal, supplied, laid, washed and sealed. Choose the stone the same way every new surface here is chosen, from samples viewed wet and dry on site, price your metres in the calculator, and compare the whole job against the cost guide. If your existing surface is exposed aggregate that has simply gone dull, read the resealing page first, because the cheaper job is sometimes the right one.
Where we pour removal and replacement
Balwyn North, Bentleigh, Blackburn, Box Hill, Brighton, Camberwell, Doncaster, Glen Waverley, Hampton, Mentone, Mount Waverley, Templestowe and nearby: where we work.