What affects timber floor installation cost

Installation cost is set by the floor in front of us, not by a published rate. Area and layout, the product you choose, how it is fixed, the state of the subfloor, removal of what is there now, stairs and trims, and how we get materials to the rooms all move the quote. Master Timber Floors does not list prices for these. You get a free quote after an on-site inspection, itemised, including removal of carpet or an old floor when that is part of the job.

The product

Species, grade, board width, thickness and finish are different products. A prefinished engineered board does not need on-site sanding and coating. Solid timber usually does, so the labour in the quote is not the same even before the board itself is considered. Hybrid and vinyl are different again. The comparison, without prices, is in engineered vs solid vs hybrid.

Area, layout and details

• Square metres are only the start. Hallways, doorways and a floor that must run as one plane through several rooms take more setting-out than a single rectangle.
• Stairs and winders are their own scope. The Carindale staircase in Riverhill engineered oak, with winder steps, is not priced like a flat floor.
• Borders and feature cuts add time. The Camp Hill brush box floor has a darker border that turns at corners and doorways.
• Trims and skirting. Scotia, stair nosings, and skirting that has to come off and go back on are line items, not extras discovered at the end.

Subfloor and removal

A flat, dry slab and a damp or uneven one are different jobs. Moisture testing, a moisture barrier, grinding or levelling, and sheet underlay over old boards all sit in the quote when they are needed. New concrete can keep releasing moisture for months, so a slab that is not dry enough is not a floor we install that week. Taking up carpet, tiles, vinyl or an old timber floor, including staples and gripper, is work as well. Paint, glue and adhesive residue can add prep. None of that has a standing fee on this site.

Method and site finishing

Floating a prefinished board over underlay is a different operation from direct-stick adhesive, and both differ from secret-nailing solid boards to joists and then sanding and coating them. Coatings are part of a site-finished floor. The Holland Park solid blackbutt floor uses a water-based 2K matt coating through kitchen, living and bedrooms. A gloss oil-based finish, such as the Toowong gallery listing of solid Blackbutt Select with an oil-based polish, is a different coating system. Sheen does not have a published surcharge here. It is chosen for the room and written into the quote.

Access

Apartments can need lift bookings, loading times, parking and limits on noisy work. Many bodies corporate also require approval and an acoustic underlay before carpet is replaced with a hard floor. A house with a driveway and a clear path to the rooms does not have those constraints. Stairs inside the house, occupied rooms, and furniture that cannot be moved before we arrive all affect how the job is planned. We confirm that at the inspection.

What the quote is for

The written quote follows the measure. It is the place for product, method, prep, removal, stairs and trims. It is not a suburb rate for Toowong, Chermside, Carindale, Holland Park, Camp Hill or Woolloongabba. Showroom samples are at 26 Elliott St, Woolloongabba QLD 4102, monday–friday 10am–3pm. Phone 0405 411 456. Director Benjamin Park. QBCC 15100816. Installation carries a 5-year workmanship warranty. Product warranties are the manufacturer’s, and they come with the product you choose.

How long the work then takes is a separate question: installation time and how to prepare. The install steps themselves are on floor installation.