Solid Timber Flooring

Solid timber flooring in Melbourne

Greenhill Timbers stocks solid hardwood flooring at our showroom at 170 Settlement Road, Thomastown, with pickup or delivery across Melbourne and regional Victoria. Every board is a single piece of hardwood with a tongue-and-groove edge, 12 to 19 mm thick, so the floor can be sanded back and refinished several times over its life.

Species we stock

Australian hardwoods: Blackbutt, Spotted Gum from NSW and Queensland, Grey Ironbark, Tallowwood, Brushbox, Sydney Blue Gum, Messmate, Tasmanian Oak and Australian Chestnut. Imported: American Oak and Hickory. Colour varies from board to board and between screens, so see the timber in the showroom before you choose.

Sizes and grades

Most Australian species come in 83 × 14, 130 × 14 and 130 × 19 mm boards. Tasmanian Oak runs 85 to 133 mm wide in 12, 13 and 19 mm thicknesses, and American Oak 85 to 180 mm wide in 14 and 19 mm. Select and Prime are the cleanest grades, with few gum veins or knots; Standard shows more natural feature; Feature and Rustic show the most. Not every grade is held in every size, so check the product page or call first.

How hard is each timber?

Janka hardness in kN, hardest first: Grey Ironbark 14.0, Spotted Gum 11.0, Brushbox 9.5, Blackbutt 9.1, Sydney Blue Gum 9.0, Tallowwood 8.6, Hickory 8.5, Chestnut 8.1, Messmate 7.1, American Oak 6.0 and Tasmanian Oak 5.5. Harder timbers resist dents from heels, chair legs and dropped pans; softer ones are easier to cut, nail and sand.

Solid or engineered?

A 19 mm board is structural and can span joists or battens at 450 mm centres. The thinner 12 to 14 mm boards are overlay flooring and need a full sheet subfloor such as plywood or an existing timber floor. If you are laying onto a concrete slab, in an apartment or over underfloor heating, look at engineered flooring, which has a real hardwood wear layer on a stable core.

Ordering

Solid flooring is sold by the square metre. Measure each room, add about 10% for cuts and waste, and let the boards acclimatise in the house before they go down. Adhesives, moisture barriers and trowels are in flooring accessories, and skirting covers the expansion gap at the walls. Call 03 9465 9875 with your room sizes and we will work out the quantity.

Questions we get asked about solid timber flooring

Is Tasmanian oak a hardwood?

Yes. Tasmanian Oak is the trade name for three eucalypts, Mountain Ash, Messmate and Alpine Ash, sold together. It is a pale, straight-grained hardwood that takes stains and clear finishes well.

What subfloor does solid timber flooring need?

Tongue-and-groove boards go over joists, battens or a plywood sheet fixed to the slab. They are not glued straight to concrete.

How many times can a solid floor be sanded?

A 19 mm board can be sanded and refinished several times over its life, which is the main reason to choose solid over engineered for a home you will keep.

Which solid flooring is the hardest?

Grey ironbark and Spotted Gum are the hardest we stock, followed by Blackbutt and Sydney Blue Gum. Tasmanian Oak and American Oak are softer but easier to work and finish.