Boom and line pumps matched to steep foothill streets and flat grid blocks, sent from Mareeba on our regular Cairns run.
A house slab on a street climbing the Mt Whitfield foothills and a back-yard pour behind a Queenslander on the flat grid below are both Edge Hill jobs, and they rarely suit the same pump. On the steep side the truck works from the street with outrigger timbers cut in level, and tall canopy trees may decide between a boom and a line pump. On the flat streets, side setbacks of 1 to 3 metres usually mean concrete goes over the roof or along the side of the house. We run 31m, 28m and 20m boom pumps plus line pumping from our Mareeba base. Send photos of your street and pour area and we will match the pump before you book.
Whether the job is an extension to an older timber house or a slab on a hillside lot, two questions commonly come up before a pump is booked: can it reach the pour, and where will the truck stand? In Edge Hill, the answer depends on which part of the suburb the site is in. Cairns Regional Council's neighbourhood character study splits Edge Hill into a very steep precinct at the foot of Mt Whitfield, a flat to gently rolling precinct where tall palms often rise above the houses, and a flat grid of inter-war and post-war Queenslanders. Around seven in ten Edge Hill dwellings are separate houses, so many pours here are likely to go in beside or behind a home that is already standing. Below we explain how we approach each site type, what we ask before booking and which guides help you prepare.
In the Edge Hill 1 precinct, council describes the topography as very steep, with steep driveways to car storage, large irregular lots and very established rainforest gardens with tall canopy trees. A pump truck should not be set up on a steep driveway, so on these blocks we normally plan to work from the street, although the exact set-up spot depends on the site. Queensland's Concrete pumping Code of Practice 2019, the approved code under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011, says outrigger timbers on sloping ground must be cut into the ground and set level rather than laid on the slope, because the outrigger feet can slide off. Our own site-preparation guidance says the same and asks for firm, undisturbed ground, not a soft verge or fresh fill. Cutting pads in level takes time and space, so we ask for the distance from the kerb to the pour before booking. Our 31m boom has the longest reach in the fleet, with 23.5 m of net reach from the front of the truck. Where canopy trees block a boom's path, a line pump running hose along the ground may be the better choice. Some hillside lots also sit in the CairnsPlan 2016 Hillslopes overlay, where a dwelling house needs approval if, among other limits, the land is steeper than 1 in 6 (16.6%), and approval conditions can include geotechnical certification. A 2008 council report described one elevated Edge Hill parcel with slopes mostly between 1 in 6 and 1 in 3, which shows how steep the upper suburb can get. The overlay applies only to mapped lots and we are not planners, so check your lot with council or your builder; any engineering conditions on a slab or retaining wall can shape how pour day runs. The Edge Hill 3 precinct is a different job: flat grid streets, low-set and high-set Queenslanders, many enclosed underneath, and side setbacks of only 1 to 3 metres. A barrow or concrete truck rarely fits down the side, so concrete for a rear slab or an under-house enclosure goes over the roof by boom or along the side by line pump. In our experience, booming over an existing house is a common request in established Cairns suburbs. Here the limit is usually street space. The Code says short legging (partly extended outriggers) should be avoided wherever practicable, so the truck needs room for its outriggers fully out. Clearing cars from the kerb on pour day helps, and overhead lines matter too: the boom must stay at least 3 m from powerlines up to 132 kV.
On steep Edge Hill foothill streets where the truck stays at the kerb, the 31m boom's 23.5 m net reach from the truck front is the figure we check against your kerb-to-pour distance.
See our pumpsWhere tall palms or canopy trees cover the yard, or a flat-grid Queenslander leaves only 1 to 3 m down the side, a line pump can carry concrete along the ground to the pour.
Line or boom?Around seven in ten Edge Hill dwellings are separate houses, so many smaller pours go in behind a home that is already there, often reached over the roof or down a narrow side.
Residential pumpingFar Northern Concrete Pumping is a locally owned business based in Mareeba, and Cairns suburbs are covered as part of a regular Cairns run rather than from a Cairns depot. The business has operated since 2014, in line with an ABN active from 14 April 2014 as a family partnership. Separately, the site states more than 15 years in the industry. The fleet includes 31m, 28m and 20m boom pumps plus line pumping, so the pump can be matched to a steep street or a tight flat-grid block. Queensland requires concrete placing boom operators to hold a high risk work licence, and the business states its operators are high-risk licensed and work in line with strict safety regulations. Our site-preparation guide asks for firm, undisturbed ground, room for the outriggers fully extended, and timbers cut in level on slopes rather than laid on the slope. Separately, WorkSafe Queensland's Concrete pumping Code of Practice 2019 says workers and the boom should stay at least 3 m from overhead powerlines up to 132 kV. We do not publish prices; each quote reflects pump size, time on site and travel from Mareeba.
Before you book an Edge Hill pour, send us photos of the street, the slope, any trees or palms over the pour area and any overhead lines, plus the distance from the kerb to the pour. We will confirm which boom or line pump suits the site and where it can set up. Pumps travel from our Mareeba base, so book ahead, especially for January to March when Cairns averages about 16 rain days a month. Call 0413 345 977 or use the form below.
Usually on the street, as a steep driveway is not a suitable set-up spot. On a slope the operator cuts the outrigger timbers into the ground so they sit level, as the Queensland Code requires. Send photos of the street and slope, plus the kerb-to-pour distance, and we will confirm the set-up before booking.
Sometimes. It depends on the height and spread of the canopy compared with the boom's path. Where a boom cannot clear the trees, a line pump running hose along the ground is often the alternative. Photos of the trees from the street help us decide.
Only mapped lots are in the CairnsPlan 2016 Hillslopes overlay, so check your own lot with council or your builder; we are not planners. Where it applies, approval conditions can include geotechnical certification, which may affect footings, retaining walls and how the pour is staged.
With side setbacks of 1 to 3 metres common on Edge Hill's flat grid streets, we either boom over the roof from the street or run a line pump along the side. Tell us the roof height, the side gap and any overhead lines and we will recommend one.
You can pour in the wet, but plan for it. Cairns Aero averages over 400 mm of rain in each of January, February and March, against 26.5 mm in August. If it has rained we recheck the set-up area the day before, and our rain guide explains when not to place concrete.
We do not publish prices. A quote depends on pump size, time on site, travel from our Mareeba base and any minimum charge, so site details and photos help us quote accurately.
In Queensland, operators of concrete placing booms must hold the high risk work licence to operate a concrete placing boom. The business states its operators are high-risk licensed and work in line with strict safety regulations.
