Coolum Beach, by the facts
Built on a 1920s estate
Land in the Mt Coolum Beach Estate went to auction in December 1923, a month after the cane tramway extension to Coolum opened.
Family-sized houses
At the 2021 Census, 69.5% of homes were separate houses; 44.3% had three bedrooms and 30.9% had four or more.
Owners and renters
33.5% of homes were owned outright, 33.4% with a mortgage and 28.7% rented. The suburb grew from 8,497 people in 2016 to 9,152 in 2021.
Network load
In 2008 the Queensland Government said a new Energex substation at Peregian would take load off the Coolum substation, helping about 5,000 homes and businesses.
Fire next door
The 2019 fires threatened Peregian Springs, Peregian Breeze, Peregian Beach and Weyba Downs, just north of Coolum.
Backup power, done safely
A portable generator is fine for running a fridge on an extension lead. What isn't fine is plugging a generator into a power point to feed the house: it can push power back up the line and kill someone working on it.
If you want the generator to run the house circuits, an electrician can fit an inlet and a changeover switch, so the house is cut off from the grid whenever the generator is running.
A home battery set up for backup is the quieter option. In Queensland, new solar and battery inverter systems of 10 kVA or more need a generation signalling device so Energex can switch them off briefly in an energy emergency, and Energex's basic connection caps inverter capacity at 10 kVA per phase.
Smoke alarms in a bigger family home
By 1 January 2027, Queensland homes need interconnected photoelectric alarms in every bedroom, in hallways joining bedrooms to the rest of the house, and on every storey. In a three or four-bedroom house that adds up quickly, so booking early makes sense.
If you're on the edge of the bush, linked alarms matter more than ever: when one sounds, they all sound, wherever the kids are sleeping.
What we'd do in Coolum
We'd decide before the next fire or storm season whether we want backup power, then have it wired properly, either a generator inlet with a changeover switch or a battery set up for backup. We'd ask the same electrician to fit the interconnected smoke alarms on that visit.
Want a specialist to sort it?
Tell us the job and your postcode. We match the licence-checked local electrician who does this kind of work, and they call you. No ring-around, and your number goes to them alone.