Skirting boards are easy to overlook until new flooring or fresh paint makes the old ones look tired. Replacing them can sharpen a room, cover the intended floor edge and bring mismatched renovations together. The cost, however, depends as much on removal, corners and making good as on the moulding you choose. A modest material upgrade may have little effect on the total; damaged plaster behind every board can have a much larger one.
For an Australian renovation, start with the condition of the existing room and the proposed floor finish. Decide whether you need wholesale replacement, selected repairs or simply a different paint treatment. Then ask for a complete installed price based on measured lengths and a named profile. This guide explains how to make that decision and build a useful budget in AUD.
Establish why the boards need replacing
Separate appearance problems from building problems. Chipped paint, a dated profile and several mismatched repairs can justify replacement, but they do not necessarily mean the timber is unsound. Swollen sections, staining or recurring deterioration need investigation before new boards hide the area again. Replacing a damaged piece without addressing the moisture source can leave the same problem beneath a fresh finish.
Walk through each room and record which lengths are serviceable. Note awkward corners, built-in furniture and changes in floor height. Photographs are useful when discussing the work with a carpenter, especially around doorways where the skirting meets an architrave. Keep the proposed furniture layout nearby: a highly decorative profile behind permanent cabinetry may add little practical value.
If the existing boards are sound and consistent, obtain a price for preparation and repainting as an alternative. The decision should account for the desired result, not simply the age of the material. Our guide to interior house painting costs helps place the trim work within the wider decorating scope.
Compare the material and the finish together
Pre-primed MDF
MDF is a common choice for a painted finish where you want a consistent profile. Porta’s Australian moulding information distinguishes pre-primed MDF from its solid timber range, which can be painted or finished to show the timber. Pre-priming is a preparation stage; ask the painter what further treatment the supplied boards and site-cut edges require.
Check the exact product grade and intended location. A dry bedroom, a laundry doorway and a floor frequently cleaned with water do not present the same exposure. Do not interpret the words pre-primed or moisture-resistant as permission to ignore the manufacturer’s limitations. If dampness is already present, investigate it before selecting any new skirting material.
MDF can be a sensible option when the room is being fully painted and there is no requirement to display natural grain. Ask to see a sample of the actual profile, including its upper edge. A simple shape may be easier to dust and touch up than a deeply moulded alternative, regardless of the underlying board material.
Painted timber
Timber offers another route to a painted finish, with the final choice depending on species, grade, available lengths and the profile required. Confirm whether the quoted product is clear timber, contains visible knots or uses finger-jointed sections. These descriptions matter to preparation and appearance, particularly if you later decide to use a translucent finish instead of opaque paint.
The Australian Government’s Your Home guidance notes timber’s relationship with moisture and the need for suitable detailing. For skirting, the practical response is to ask the supplier and installer about storage, conditioning and coating for the specified product. A board delivered straight from an exposed storage area should not be treated as interchangeable with material properly prepared for the room.
Timber with a visible grain
Stained or clear-finished timber makes the boards part of the room’s material palette. Compare samples against the flooring, doors and furniture in daylight. A near match can look less intentional than a clearly complementary timber. Ask whether colour variation is expected across the order and how the installer will distribute visibly different pieces.
Allow for more care in selecting boards and arranging joints. Paint can disguise some filler and preparation; a transparent finish leaves more of the material visible. The quotation should identify the finish system and whether sample approval is included. If the floor is also being restored, coordinate the colour decision with floor sanding and polishing before the final coating is chosen.
Use a finished sample at a real junction
A loose strip viewed on a workbench gives only part of the picture. Place the sample beside an existing doorway and the proposed floor. Check the board’s height, projection and upper edge together. A taller replacement might cover the previous paint line, yet project awkwardly beyond a thin architrave. Resolve that junction before ordering the whole house.
Choose a profile that fits the room
There is no universal skirting height that suits every Australian home. Room proportions, ceiling treatment, doorway trim and the character of the building all matter. A plain profile can work in an older house if it is deliberately proportioned, while a decorative profile can feel excessive in a small room with several competing details.
For a partial replacement, matching the existing shape is often more demanding than matching its approximate height. Take a clear profile record and ask the supplier whether a standard product is genuinely equivalent. A small difference becomes obvious when two lengths meet in the middle of a wall. Custom machining may be worth pricing where important original detail would otherwise be lost.
Look at the room from its usual entrance. Notice whether the skirting forms a calm continuous line or is interrupted by cupboards, radiators, steps and several doorways. Where doors are also changing, coordinate the architraves with the internal door replacement scope. Solving each trim separately can create avoidable mismatches.
Measure installed length and purchase quantity separately
Prepare a room-by-room schedule of the lengths that will actually receive skirting. Subtract openings where appropriate, and identify cupboards or fixed furniture that interrupt the run. Label each room so the contractor can check the figures on site. A total floor area in square metres does not describe the skirting work accurately.
Purchase quantity depends on the available stock lengths and the cutting plan. A room with several short returns may use material differently from a long uninterrupted hallway. Ask the installer to allow for joints, corners and sensible spare material instead of adding an unexplained percentage to every order.
- Record the intended material, profile, height and thickness.
- Distinguish measured installed metres from purchased metres.
- Count external corners, short returns and unusual angles.
- Mark lengths behind furniture that will be removed temporarily.
- Confirm whether any retained boards will be reinstalled.
- Identify the finish and who supplies the coating materials.
For a simple hypothetical quantity exercise, a room measuring 4 metres by 3 metres has a perimeter of 14 metres. If a 0.9-metre doorway is the only interruption, the initial installed-length estimate is 13.1 metres. It is not an ordering instruction: the installer still needs to check actual dimensions, stock lengths and how the corners will be formed.
Build a complete replacement budget
The following allowances are illustrative planning examples in AUD, including assumed GST. They are not current national market rates or supplier quotations. Each assumes ordinary access to cleared rooms, sound backing after limited preparation and a painted finish. Hazardous-material work, extensive damp repairs and major floor reconstruction are excluded.
| Illustrative project | Planning allowance including GST | Scope assumptions |
|---|---|---|
| One straightforward room | AUD $700–$1,400 | Approximately 12–16 installed metres, standard profile, removal and limited making good |
| Several connected rooms | AUD $2,800–$5,500 | Approximately 50–70 installed metres, coordinated access, standard painted material |
| Detailed replacement through a larger area | AUD $5,500–$10,000 or more | Approximately 90–120 installed metres, more corners, matching work or substantial preparation |
A separate worked example shows why the material price is only one part of the total. Suppose a contractor measures 60 installed metres and, after planning the cuts, orders 66 metres. At an assumed supply price of AUD $8 per metre, material costs AUD $528. Add hypothetical allowances of AUD $450 for removal and disposal, AUD $1,200 for installation, AUD $350 for wall repairs and AUD $800 for preparation and painting.
The assumed GST-inclusive total is AUD $3,328. Keeping an additional AUD $500 reserve gives available funds of AUD $3,828. If the material price changes to an assumed AUD $12 per metre with every other input unchanged, the material increases by AUD $264. In practice, a different profile can also change labour and coating requirements, so ask for the revised complete price.
Find the work hidden behind a small trim job
Removing old boards can expose torn lining paper, broken plaster edges, adhesive residue or an unpainted strip. Establish who repairs those surfaces and what constitutes a finished result. A carpenter’s price may stop at fixed boards, while the painter expects all surrounding wall repairs to have been completed.
A taller board may cover an old paint boundary, but it should not conceal unresolved damage. A shorter board can leave an obvious strip that needs preparation and repainting. Ask whether the painter will coat a local patch or the whole wall; the answer affects both appearance and cost.
Older coatings and surrounding building materials need appropriate assessment before sanding, cutting or removal. The Asbestos and Silica Safety and Eradication Agency advises checking for asbestos before renovation disturbance. Include asbestos assessment in the preliminary scope where relevant, and have suspect coatings considered by a competent professional. Do not begin destructive investigation simply to obtain a sample profile.
Coordinate skirting with the flooring programme
Tell the carpenter exactly which floor system is being installed and provide its current instructions. Some floors require an edge allowance for movement, and the trim must cover the intended junction without preventing the floor from working as designed. The flooring installer should confirm the detail; there is no useful universal gap to apply to every product.
Where existing skirting will be removed, agree when this happens relative to floor preparation and installation. New floor thickness can change the visible board height and how it meets door trim. A room that combines retained flooring with a new section needs particular attention at the transition.
Protect the completed floor during cutting, fixing and painting. Ask the contractor to nominate a suitable work area and arrange access before furniture returns. Bringing heavy wardrobes back too early can turn a simple finishing visit into a second moving exercise.
Keep the trim language consistent
Skirting does not need to match every moulding exactly, but the room should have a coherent hierarchy. Compare the lower wall detail with the ceiling edge, window trim and door surrounds. If you are deciding between shadowline and cornice ceilings, settle the broader direction before buying a highly distinctive skirting profile.
Consistency can be achieved within zones rather than throughout the entire house. Original front rooms may retain traditional timber while a later addition uses a simpler painted profile. Make the transition at a logical doorway or architectural break. An arbitrary change halfway along a shared wall is harder to explain visually.
Agree on finish checks before the final visit
When comparing renovation quotes, ask each contractor to price the same rooms, material and completed finish. Clarify whether furniture movement, disposal, wall repairs and final painting are included. Identify who deals with concealed damage and how any additional work will be approved.
At completion, inspect visible joints, corners, paint coverage and the transition to door trim under normal room lighting. Check that service access remains available and that the floor-edge detail matches the agreed system. Record any touch-ups while the room is still clear enough to reach them.
Keep the product profile, coating details and a small practical amount of spare material where suitable. The best skirting replacement is a coordinated finishing job: the boards suit the room, the damaged areas have been addressed, and the quoted price covers the work needed to make the new edges look intentional.