Lower North Shore · AS 3660.1
Barriers installed to AS 3660.1 for new homes, duplexes and rebuilds around Cremorne Junction and Sydney Harbour National Park, postcode 2090, in the North Sydney Council area.
Quick answer
Under the National Construction Code, Cremorne's duplexes, rebuilds and new homes need a termite management system, since North Sydney Council sits in a termite-prone area. The work follows AS 3660.1 and wraps up before the pour. What the certifier needs before granting the Occupation Certificate is a durable notice for the meter box and a completed installation certificate.
Termite barriers in Cremorne
Cremorne runs between Military Road and Willoughby Bay in the North Sydney Council area, about 5 km north of the CBD, with housing that mixes Federation and California bungalow homes with townhouses, duplexes and a substantial share of apartments. Cremorne Junction, on Military Road, is the local centre, home to a supermarket, restaurants, shops, a high-rise hotel and the 1935 Art Deco Hayden Orpheum Picture Palace, and ferries run from nearby Cremorne Point. With little vacant land left this close to the harbour, new building activity is almost entirely knockdown rebuilds of older houses, duplex splits and small apartment or townhouse infill rather than anything approaching a new estate.
The spread of housing types across Cremorne means the ground conditions a barrier has to deal with change from street to street. Bungalows and Federation houses with timber floors and roof spaces sit alongside streets sloping toward Willoughby Bay, where bushland edges and damp ground are common, and apartment buildings bring shared services and multiple penetrations on the one slab. A rebuild replacing an older bungalow is often on a block that has carried gardens and timber close to the soil for the better part of a century, which is exactly the kind of ground that lets a subterranean termite colony establish before a new slab is ever poured. We plan the barrier around each property's own conditions rather than a single Cremorne-wide approach.
Reviewed by Ismail, founder · Lower North Shore coverage · Updated September 2026 · More Lower North Shore suburbs
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Local conditions
Three things shape how we detail a termite barrier on a Cremorne site.
Streets sloping down toward Willoughby Bay run close to bushland pockets and Sydney Harbour National Park, giving termites a route from established bush into garden beds and new construction. Blocks on this side of the suburb get a full perimeter rather than a partial strip.
Federation and California bungalow houses being replaced often sit on blocks that have carried timber floors, verandahs and mature gardens for decades. Whatever has taken hold in that soil over the years does not disappear when the old house comes down, so the under-slab work gets the same care as the perimeter itself.
Development around Cremorne Junction is mostly small-scale infill, apartments and duplex splits rather than large sites. Each of these still needs its own collar count and installation certificate under AS 3660.1, sized to the number of dwellings sharing the one slab.
What we install here
We work on Cremorne knockdown rebuilds, duplex splits and small apartment or townhouse infill sites, since there is very little vacant land left this close to the harbour. Waffle pod and raft slabs suit the flatter blocks near Military Road, while suspended floors and extra piers are more common on the streets sloping toward Willoughby Bay. Collars go in on every pipe penetration before the pour, and on multi-dwelling sites we size the perimeter and certificate to the full building rather than a single unit.
Local knowledge
Sydney Harbour National Park, about 0.7 km away, and Winnie Street Laneway Reserve, about 0.2 km away, are the closest bushland pockets to many Cremorne rebuild sites, and both can hold termite activity that moves into nearby gardens. Cremorne Junction, with its shops and the Hayden Orpheum Picture Palace, marks the commercial centre of the suburb but has little bearing on barrier work itself. For bungalow and Federation house rebuilds, we always check the sub-floor, roof void and any timber touching soil before finalising the barrier plan.
North Sydney Council certifies Cremorne building work. Before it will issue an Occupation Certificate, the certifier wants proof of the work: a durable notice inside the meter box, and an installation certificate covering the products used, the protected areas and the installer. Where a duplex or apartment infill shares one slab, that certificate has to record every dwelling on it, which we compile from the approved plans and hand over with product details and maintenance advice.
Cremorne at a glance
| Suburb | Cremorne, NSW 2090 |
|---|---|
| District | Lower North Shore |
| Distance from Sydney CBD | 5.0 km north |
| Certifying council | North Sydney Council |
| Standard applied | AS 3660.1 termite management systems |
| Installed | Before the slab pour, then staged through the build |
| Documents supplied | Installation certificate and durable notice |
| Typical builds covered | New homes, knockdown rebuilds, granny flats, duplexes, townhouses |
Systems we install
Every photo below is from one of our own Sydney jobs. We look at your slab design, site and budget, then recommend a system or a combination.
01A termite-resistant sheet laid over the whole prepared footprint before concreting, so termites can't come up through the slab anywhere.
02A sealed collar on every pipe, conduit and service that passes through the slab. These gaps are the most common hidden way in.
03Protection at the slab edge and into the wall cavity, which stops termites building hidden tunnels up the outside of the slab.
04An APVMA-registered termiticide zone in the soil, with an optional pipe network under paving so it can be recharged later without digging.
05Barriers for bearers, piers and raised timber floors on sloping or elevated blocks, where there's no slab to protect.
06Detailing for sandstone cuts, block retaining walls, step-downs and cut-and-fill sites, which are common across Sydney.
Why during construction
A retrofit can only treat around a finished house. A pre-construction system protects the parts nobody will ever be able to reach again.
A barrier put in during the build costs a fraction of a post-construction system, and far less than repairing termite damage.
New houses (Class 1) and outbuildings (Class 10) with termite-susceptible framing need a compliant termite management system.
Pipe penetrations and slab joints can only be fully protected while they're still open, before the concrete goes in.
An under-slab system covers ground that no treatment from outside the finished house can ever reach.
Your certifier needs the certificate and durable notice before issuing the Occupation Certificate. We supply both together.
Documented, compliant protection gives buyers, building inspectors and lenders confidence when the home is sold.
Installation stages
A termite barrier isn't a single visit. Each part goes in when the site is ready for it, and we fit around your plumber, concreter and bricklayer.
Send your plans and slab details. We recommend a system and give you one fixed price that covers every stage.
Collars go on every service once the plumber has set out, then the membrane or soil treatment is installed across the prepared site.
Perimeter and cavity protection is fitted as the brickwork or cladding goes up, so there's no unprotected gap at the slab edge.
Where it's specified, the chemical perimeter or reticulation system is completed around the building before paths and gardens go in.
A durable notice goes in the meter box, and the installation certificate goes to your builder and certifier.
The owner gets simple care instructions and an inspection schedule so the system keeps doing its job for years.
Compare systems
Both can meet AS 3660.1. The best choice depends on your slab type, what surrounds the house and how much ongoing upkeep the owner wants.
Physical protection
Entry-point protection
Soil protection
Top-up protection
Most of the Sydney builds we work on use a combination: physical collars on every penetration plus a physical or chemical perimeter.
For builders & developers
Builders, developers and owner-builders get a fixed quote from plans, a technician who turns up when the site is ready, and paperwork that never holds up sign-off.
Consistent pricing across lots, one point of contact and a full document set for every dwelling.
Missing durable notices and unclear install records are a common reason Occupation Certificates get held up. We hand everything over together so your certifier has it all in one go.
Paperwork
A complete document set for the builder, the certifier and every future owner of the property.
A permanent notice in the meter box showing the system, install date, installer, any chemical's life expectancy and inspection advice.
For: certifier, owner, future owners
Written confirmation of the system and products used, the areas protected and our licence details.
For: builder, certifier, owner
Details of the physical system or termiticide installed, including safety data sheets for any chemicals.
For: builder, owner
How to keep the system working, plus the recommended inspection frequency under AS 3660.2.
For: homeowner
From real jobs
Photos from our own Sydney sites, not stock images. Tap any photo to see it larger.
Membrane barrier across a large residential slab
Barrier work on a Sydney Harbour site
Installation through sandstone excavation
Perimeter barrier and sleeves on a new slab
Waffle pod formwork with collared penetrations
Membrane detailed against a retaining wall
Membrane sealed around a column
Protected slab edge with collar in place
Collared penetrations before the pour
Perimeter barrier on a completed slab edge
Pipe penetrations sealed into the membrane
Collars fixed through mesh before concreting
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Pricing
Every build is different, so we don't guess. We price from your plans and give you one fixed written quote. Quoting is free.
After handover
A barrier only works while it stays intact and visible. Pass these on to the owner.
Free fixed quote
Tell us about your build and get a clear, fixed price, fast. We usually reply within 30 minutes during business hours.
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Cremorne questions
Still unsure? Call and talk it through with a licensed technician.
+61 450 515 215Generally one certificate can cover both dwellings where they share a single slab and barrier system, provided it clearly records the products used and the areas protected for each half. We prepare the documentation to match how North Sydney Council's certifier wants the split recorded before the Occupation Certificate is issued.
These streets run closer to bushland pockets and Sydney Harbour National Park, which can carry established termite activity into nearby gardens. Blocks here get the full treatment around the entire perimeter, not a token strip at the front, and we pay closer attention to sub-floor ventilation given the damper ground on that side of the suburb.
If the bungalow is being demolished and replaced, the new home gets a standard AS 3660.1 system regardless of the site's age. If it is a renovation rather than a full rebuild, we assess the existing sub-floor and roof void first, since decades of timber floors and garden beds close to the house can mean more thorough soil treatment is needed than on a newer block.
In most cases, yes. The National Construction Code requires a termite management system for new houses and outbuildings in termite-prone areas where the primary building elements can be damaged by termites. Sydney is termite-prone, so the system is installed to AS 3660.1 and your certifier asks for the installation certificate and durable notice before the Occupation Certificate is issued.
It depends on slab area, perimeter length, the number of pipe penetrations, the system chosen, site complexity and how many visits the build needs. Send us the plans and we return one fixed written quote covering every stage. Quoting is free.
Nearby
Same crew, same staging and the same certifier-ready paperwork, right across the Lower North Shore.
Service areas
From the Eastern Suburbs and Inner West to the Hills, the Shire and the western growth corridors. Every suburb has its own page with the local ground conditions, the council that certifies the work and the questions builders there ask us.
Slab pour coming up?
Send us your plans today for a fixed quote, or call and talk to a licensed technician about your site.
