Interior demolition · Monroe County
Interior demolition in the Florida Keys
Inside a Keys building, the salt is already at work. Years of humid, briny air rust fasteners, swell wood and eat at wiring, so a strip-out often turns up more than the drawings show. We open one section first, see what the walls hold, and write the scope from that.
The jobs fall into a few groups. Condo and hotel rooms along the water are cleared out for renovation, often a floor or a wing at a time. Shops on Overseas Highway are gutted between tenants. And in raised stilt houses, the living floor sits on pilings above a ground level that may be enclosed or open, which changes how debris comes down and where it can be stacked.
Getting material out is harder than getting it loose. A hotel or condo has one elevator, one loading dock and a manager with rules. A stilt house has a stair and a yard. A building on a small key may be reached only by a road with a weight-limited bridge. Where a lot cannot take a truck, equipment and debris may need to move by water, and we find that out at the walk-through.
Moisture is the quiet problem. With the air conditioning off and finishes stripped, a closed room in the Keys can sour fast. We keep air moving through what is staying, and we write the drying plan into the scope.
Floor plans, photographs and any management rules are enough for us to start. We price what is removed, what is protected and what is carried out as separate items.
Order of work
- Tour the space, the loading route and any bridge or road limits that apply to trucks.
- Confirm an asbestos survey exists, or have a licensed consultant prepare one.
- Open a test section and tag the lines that are still live.
- Have the licensed trades shut down and cap what the scope requires.
- File for a permit with the office that holds the property, where one is needed.
- Remove the interior in the planned order, keeping salvage and debris apart.
- Clean the shell and walk it with the next trade.
Where Keys jobs stall
The usual trouble spots, and how each is handled
Corroded wiring and fittings
Salt air can leave conduit, sprinkler heads and hangers weaker than they look. We open selectively and confirm what is still live before the main strip-out begins.
One elevator, one dock
Condos and hotels give a contractor a narrow path for debris. We book the elevator and dock with the manager and pace the carry-out to match.
Debris on a stilt house
A raised house sends material down a stair or through a chute onto a small yard. We set the drop zone and protect the pilings and the ground-level enclosure.
Mold in a closed room
Humidity and stripped finishes invite mold. We plan airflow and drying before the walls come out.
What falls outside our hands
Shutting down fire sprinklers or alarms, making electrical systems safe and capping plumbing are jobs for licensed trades, and we schedule them. Whether the work needs a permit depends on the office that holds the property, so ask it before the quote is final.
Questions
About interior demolition
Is a permit required for an interior strip-out in the Keys?
In many cases, particularly where walls, plumbing, electrical or fire systems are involved. Key West, Marathon, Islamorada, Key Colony Beach and Monroe County each set their own line, so we ask the right one before pricing.
Can you work inside a hotel or condo that stays open?
Yes. We schedule around the manager's elevator times, quiet hours and corridor protection, and the cost of that planning is in the first quote.
What does a demolition cost in the Keys?
A quote follows a visit to the property, or a review of photos and drawings when those show enough. The figure moves with the building's materials and height, the asbestos survey, the utility disconnects, how equipment reaches the lot, and the haul, because everything leaves the island chain by truck. We do not publish prices, since two lots that look alike seldom cost alike.
Is there a minimum or maximum size of job?
No. A shed, a pool, a slab or one interior wall gets a quote, and so does an entire building, whether the work is selective or structural. Describe what is standing and what has to stay, and we price that scope.
Is Romco Builders licensed?
Yes. Romco Builders is a licensed Florida general contractor, headquartered in Fort Lauderdale. Some trades need a license of their own: asbestos removal, electrical disconnects and tree work are examples. Those are done by firms that hold it, and we fit them into one schedule.
From first call to final
Six stages, always in this order
Send the address and the scope
Phone us or fill in the quote form. Say which key it is on, what must come down and what must stay.
A visit to the lot
Someone from Romco goes to the property. The building, the flood zone, the utility connections, the way equipment and trucks get in, and the neighboring lots all get a look.
The written quote
You get a document listing what comes out, what is kept safe, and what is trucked north off the island chain. Anything that hangs on survey results is marked as such.
Paperwork before machines
If asbestos testing applies, it happens here. So do the utility shutoffs and the filing of your demolition permit with whichever office covers the parcel.
Demolition and haul-off
The crew works through the agreed order. Debris is trucked to permitted facilities, and we keep the load records.
Final inspection
The permit office signs off after its last inspection. You are left with a cleared lot, or the shell you specified.
Interior demolition across Monroe, including Key West, Stock Island, Marathon, Islamorada, Key Largo, Ocean Reef, Tavernier, Duck Key, Key Colony Beach, Big Pine Key, and every other Monroe city.
More ways we can help
Other kinds of demolition we quote
- Selective demolitionRemove one wing, a deck or a floor of a Keys building and protect what stays.Selective demolition in Monroe →
- Commercial demolitionShops, motels, marinas and multifamily buildings, planned around US 1 access.Commercial demolition in Monroe →
- House demolitionBlock ranches, wood cottages and stilt houses, taken down after the permit work is done.House demolition in Monroe →
- Structural demolitionConcrete frames, elevated slabs, piles and unsafe structures, taken down in engineered order.Structural demolition in Monroe →
- Concrete removalSlabs, driveways, decks and caps broken out, sorted and hauled off the island chain.Concrete removal in Monroe →
- Pool removalFill in or fully remove a pool, with the groundwater and the fill planned first.Pool removal in Monroe →
- Mobile home demolitionMobile homes, trailers and RVs removed from park lots and private lots, with utilities handled.Mobile home demolition in Monroe →
- Storm damage demolitionHurricane-damaged homes and buildings, made safe and removed, with the paperwork in order.Storm damage demolition in Monroe →
- Site clearingClear a lot of old structures, slabs and debris, where the habitat and tree rules allow it.Site clearing in Monroe →
- Asbestos coordinationSurvey, notice and licensed abatement lined up so the demolition can proceed.Asbestos coordination in Monroe →
- Accessory structure demolitionSheds, carports, garages, screen rooms and dock houses removed cleanly.Accessory structure demolition in Monroe →
- Something else?Do not see your job above? Phone us and describe it. We quote every type and size.Call (239) 510-4206 →
Any type, any size, anywhere in the Keys
Tell us where it is and what has to come down. We will price it.
Romco Builders is a licensed Florida general contractor, headquartered in Fort Lauderdale. From a single wall to a full building, you receive a written scope and a quote.