Much of inner Sydney is standing on imported softwood, not Australian hardwood. It needs a different hand.
No obligation. Takes 30 seconds.
Floor Sanding and Polishing Sydney connects Sydney and greater Sydney property owners with qualified, connects Sydney property owners with licensed local floor sanders for baltic pine. Tell us the rough floor area and whether you're in a house or an apartment and we'll match it to a licensed contractor covering your suburb. Firm per-square-metre price after an inspection.
Baltic pine is noticeably softer — a fingernail marks it — usually lighter in colour, often in narrower boards, with a straight, fine grain and frequent small knots.
It was used widely in terraces and Federation homes through Newtown, Glebe, Surry Hills, Balmain and Paddington. Australian hardwood — tallowwood, blackbutt, brush box, Sydney blue gum — is denser, heavier and typically wider.
That's the real question. A terrace floor may have been sanded two or three times already across its life, and each of those took timber off.
The tongue is the limit. Once you sand into it the board is finished. A contractor who checks thickness at a vent or a cut-out before quoting is telling you they've done this before.
Softwood absorbs unevenly, so dark stains go blotchy on baltic pine in a way they don't on hardwood. The grain drinks it at different rates and the result can be genuinely unattractive.
Sample on your own boards, in your own light, before committing. If you want a dark floor and you have baltic pine, this is the conversation to have before the sanding starts, not after.
A clear or natural finish, which lets the warm honey colour of aged pine come through. It suits terrace proportions and it never dates.
Whitewash and limewash also work well on pine and are far more forgiving than a dark stain, because they sit on the surface rather than soaking in unevenly.
Sydney.
Where this job typically sits. Access is usually a bigger cost driver than size.
| Job | Indicative price | What moves it |
|---|---|---|
| Sand and polish, per square metre | $40 – $70 /m² | Sydney rates run above the national average. Covers sanding plus coats. |
| Typical 3-bedroom home (~110m²) | $4,400 – $7,500 | Whole floor, sanded and finished. Condition drives the range. |
| Typical 2-bedroom apartment (~70m²) | $2,800 – $4,900 | Before any acoustic underlay, which is a separate line. |
| Single room (~15m²) | $800 – $1,400 | Small jobs carry proportionally more setup. |
| Acoustic underlay, supplied and laid | $25 – $60 /m² | Strata work. The test report matters as much as the product. |
| Acoustic test report | $400 – $1,200 | Field testing to demonstrate compliance where a by-law requires it. |
| Board replacement | $100 – $220 per board | Baltic pine and old hardwood profiles are both hard to match. |
| Extra coat of finish | $9 – $15 /m² | Three coats is standard; a high-traffic hallway may want four. |
| Parquetry restoration | $80 – $130 /m² | Slower and more skilled than strip flooring. |
| Recoat only (no full sand) | $20 – $35 /m² | Where the finish is worn but the timber is sound. Far cheaper. |
Prices are indicative only and usually quoted per square metre. What a floor costs depends on its condition, the timber, how many coats it needs and whether boards have to be replaced. In a strata building, acoustic underlay and testing add to it. You get a firm price after an inspection.
The core job — taking a tired timber floor back to bare wood.
Read more →Getting owners corporation approval before the floor goes in — in the right order.
Read more →Meeting the noise rating your by-law sets — and proving it.
Read more →The finish itself — water-based or solvent, and how many coats.
Read more →Tell us the suburb and the floor area and we'll get it to the right person.
Call 0468 165 354