Home renovations Brisbane: Couple who saved bargain ‘meth lab’ from ruin
What would you do if your newly purchased dream home turned out to be a meth lab?
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A couple who bought a 1950s property in one of Australia’s most sought-after suburbs were shocked to discover their new dream home was in fact a well-known meth lab and that drug dealers had been using the kids’ bedroom to cook in.
It was a seismic shock to their life plans but has led them on an incredible renovation journey.
Tessa and Richard Grosvenor bought the house in Morningside, in Brisbane’s inner east, for just under $500,000 four years ago and thought they had landed the bargain of a lifetime. But they soon discovered there was a reason the property had come so cheap.
“We moved in and we started noticing little things,” says Tessa.
“There was tape and staples in every single one of the windows. Every one … They had clearly been blacked out with something.
“There were strange nasty stains on the ceilings. And the paint colours were very odd. They were fluorescent.”
Still, Tessa and Richard were excited about their new house and to meet the neighbours too. When they did, however, they quickly discovered the house had a very chequered history.
“We introduced ourselves to our neighbours and they said they were so happy to see a family move in given the previous tenants were drug dealers and drug cooks,” says Tessa.
“We learned they were cooking meth in the bedroom our sons were sleeping in. Our hearts just sank. We were horrified. We were living in this toxic house.”
Tessa was distraught about the impact toxic fumes and chemical residue could have on the health of her family. She immediately hopped online and began researching ‘How to clean a meth lab’ and quickly discovered an entire industry built around that exact task.
“There are specialist companies that come to your property and do a deep clean specifically to remove traces of toxins from meth ingredients,” says Tessa.
“I couldn’t believe it. And I really wanted it done, but they were super expensive.”
So Tessa and Richard decided they would tackle the task themselves. First they ordered a do-it-yourself testing kit ,which came through the post.
According to a 2019 report as many as one in two homes swabbed turned up postive results for the deadly drugs. Authorities shut down around 1000 meth labs a year in Australia, with government estimates the actually number operating is 10 times that.
“It was like something out of CSI,” says Tessa.
“We mixed it up and then we swabbed all over the house testing everything from floorboards to skirting boards to window sills for meth residue … and every single test came back positive.”
The results were so upsetting the couple toyed with the idea of moving out of the blue chip suburbs in Brisbane’s Morningside. But after doing more research they decided they would clean the house from top to bottom themselves and stick it out.
“We just decided to put up with it,” says Tessa.
“We cleaned, we repainted, we re-sheeted. And now we’re so glad we did.
We love this house so much. She has a history that we can talk about. Even though it’s not a glowing history it’s still history and she has lived to tell it. It would have been a terrible shame to knock her down.”
STRANGE NEW HOME BEGINNINGS
When Tessa and Richard Grosvenor arrived at the open home of a neglected Brisbane property in 2017 they could barely get in the door due to the crowd.
But, something odd was happening. Yes, there were lots of couples heading into the property, but they were almost immediately heading straight back out.
“When we came to the open home people were walking in and out,” says Tessa. “They were doing very quick U-turns.”
When Tessa, 37, and Richard, 48, went inside they soon understood why. The home was in a terrible state, both inside and out.
“It was horrendous,” says Tessa. “There were fluoro yellow and royal blue walls, and stains on the ceiling. It looked like a clandestine drug house.”
Richard, however, could see that the property had potential. Tessa was not so sure.
“He said it was good value, however I thought it was absolutely disgusting,” says Tessa.
Eventually though Richard was able to convince his wife to take the plunge. The couple paid just under $500,000 for the 1950s post-war home. Even Tessa will admit that despite its dilapidated condition, the home was a steal.
HOMEBUILDER GRANT, THE BOOST WE NEEDED
Once they owned the home it was time to make decisions.
Tessa and Richard weren’t sure if they should knock down the home, which was set on a 405 sqm block and start again or renovate. Eventually they decided to lift the house and build rooms underneath.
“We didn’t have the budget to complete a large-scale reno so we sat on it for a bit,” says Tessa.
“When we heard about the HomeBuilder Grant, that gave us the budget we needed to commence the renovation in January this year.”
The couple engaged an engineer to complete structural drawings and then added the drawings they had done themselves into one package.
Renovating is well and truly under way and so far it is going to plan. The laundry has been combined with a second bathroom in order to save space.
They decided on Dulux White on White for the VJ panelled walls and a grey tile throughout.
The laundry is two-tone with Laminex’s French Navy colour for the lower cupboards and Polar White for the upper areas.
“When it came to designing the bedrooms we chose half-height VJs in White on White half way up the walls, then matched it with British Paints’ Kara Sea above,” says Tessa.
“It’s a very high contrast.”
The one-time two-bedder is now a four-bedder, with a separate lounge which could be used as another bedroom, she says.
On the lower floor, which was created when the original house was raised, there are three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a laundry and a secondary living space for sons Henry, 11, and Darcy, 10.
POST-WAR HOMES IN VOGUE
Tessa says since buying the Morningside property, post-war homes have become more desirable.
“That’s why we should retain Brisbane’s history, because what looks shabby now might become desirable in a few years,” she says.
“Even though they might not be perfectly straight, the timbers they used back then were all hardwood and very high quality. That’s why we’ve retained the hardwood flooring in this house.
“This home has character. It was dilapidated and no one loved it. The quality of materials used to build the original house were good, and we didn’t want to add that to landfill.”
Tessa says it was important to engage a builder who enjoyed tinkering and respected the vintage of older houses, rather than the old ‘knockdown and rebuild’ types.
“It’s more expensive but it’s worthwhile retaining what little heritage features are left,” she says.
Benjamin Gall, of Australian Heritage Specialists, says homes from post-war periods are currently highly sought-after.
Post-war hot spots include Morningside, Cannon Hill, Chermside, Ashgrove, Kenmore and Chapel Hill, says Benjamin.
“Well-built, solid homes that have a certain architectural style are quite in fashion,” he says.
SHOCK HOME RENOVATION FIND
As the renovation works were under way, Richard found a machete in the backyard. “That’s something we didn’t expect,” says Tessa.
She chuckles when she talks about the “junkie house” and the jelly bean print on the half broken plastic toilet seat in one of the bathrooms.
“There’s been more than a few interesting finds here,” says Tessa.
She says their builder knew they wanted to save as much money as possible.
“When I suggested we remove the balcony ourselves he said it would save us a couple of thousand dollars,” says Tessa.
“So I advertised it on Facebook Marketplace and three people fell through to come and remove it. In the end, a lovely young carpenter who shared the same values as us came to remove it all by hand for his own home.
“This happened the weekend before the house was lifted.
“It was very stressful and I didn’t think he’d be able to deconstruct it in time.”
But once again Tessa and Richard got lucky and things fell into place.
“It went down on the Sunday night and was jacked up on the Tuesday,” she says.
“The first few people were keen as mustard and even gave us a box of beer to ‘hold’ it.”
THE RENOVATION BUG
“I have the reno bug and miss all the tradies buzzing around every day,” says Tessa.
“Our sparky says we should open a coffee shop.”
And Tessa has picked up a few tips along the way and recommends renovating upstairs before downstairs.
“During the lifting process the house tilts from side to side and can crack tiles, walls, ceilings and move window and door frames,” she says.
“Lucky for us stage two of our renovation (kitchen, living, dining and office) happens later in the year, so we don’t have to be concerned.”
Tessa says their end goal is to have a completed house and garden to enjoy for many years.
HOME RENOVATION TIPS
Painting
A good lick of paint is an easy way to refresh your interiors.
New flooring
Consider floating timber flooring. It can give your home a much needed cosmetic overhaul, especially if you have worn carpets or tired timber underfoot.
Resurface tiles
Replacing tiles can get messy, noisy and a little expensive, which is why you should look at tile resurfacing to give your wall surfaces a new lease on life.
Install blinds
Especially if you have old curtains or your existing window coverings are tired and sagging.
Source: hipages.com.au
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Originally published as Home renovations Brisbane: Couple who saved bargain ‘meth lab’ from ruin
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