Warehouse floor restoration at the end of a lease

The floor is where many warehouse make-good disagreements start. After years of forklifts, racking and line marking, a slab rarely looks the way it did on day one. This page explains what floor restoration at lease end can involve, the main methods, and why your move-in evidence matters more than anything else.

General information only, not legal advice. What you must do depends on the wording of your own lease. If the amount at stake is large or the landlord's demands look wrong, talk to a property lawyer.

What does the lease ask for on the floor?

Leases usually ask you to remove what you added and repair damage beyond fair wear and tear. The NSW Small Business Commission describes make good as returning premises to the condition they were first built, the condition at the start of the lease, "or some other condition as specified in the lease". The clause in your lease is what counts.

For floors, that means asking two questions:

1. What did the slab look like when you moved in? Bare concrete, already marked, already coated, already cracked?
2. What does the clause require? Original condition, base building, or only removal of your works and repair of damage?

If the slab was bare when you arrived and the lease requires original condition, the landlord may ask for marking and coatings to be removed. If the slab was already marked or coated, your obligation may be much smaller.

Why do move-in photos and condition reports decide the scope?

Because without them, it is your word against the landlord's. The Victorian Small Business Commission recommends agreeing a condition report at the start of a lease and keeping copies. For a warehouse, the photos of the slab are often the most valuable part.

Before you get quotes:

• Find the condition report, photos or video from move-in, especially of the floor.
• Walk the slab with those photos and note what is new: cracks, spalls, joint damage, stains, holes, marking and coatings.
• Compare the landlord's make-good notice with the photos, line by line.

If you have no move-in evidence, ask the landlord whether they have a schedule of condition from the start of the lease.

How is line marking removed?

Line marking covers aisle lines, pedestrian walkways, bay numbers, loading zones and safety hatching. It is usually removed by one of three methods:

The right method depends on the type of marking, the slab and the finish the lease requires. Ask the contractor to do a small test area so you and the landlord can see the result before they do the whole floor.

Before paying for removal, ask whether the landlord would rather keep the marking for the next tenant. Get any yes in writing.

How are epoxy and polyurethane coatings removed?

Epoxy and polyurethane floor coatings are usually removed by grinding or shot blasting. Large coated areas take more time than line marking, so this can be a big part of the floor scope.

Questions to ask the landlord:

• Was the coating there when you moved in, or did you apply it?
• Would they rather keep a coating in good condition, with damaged areas repaired?
• If it must come off, what finish do they expect underneath?

How are anchor holes and core holes patched?

Racking, barriers, column guards and machinery leave anchor holes. Services can leave core holes cut through the slab.

• Anchors are cut or ground flush, or drilled out, and the holes filled with a cementitious or epoxy repair mortar finished level with the slab. See racking removal for how this fits with dismantling.
• Core holes and floor penetrations are patched with a suitable repair mortar. Larger holes may need more preparation.
• Pits cut for tenant equipment, such as dock levellers, may need to be infilled if the lease requires the slab to be reinstated. That is a concrete job rather than a simple patch.

How are cracks, joints and spalls repaired?

Forklift traffic and heavy racking loads can damage a slab over time. Common repairs include:

• Joint repair: broken or worn joint edges are cut back and rebuilt, and joints refilled with a suitable joint filler.
• Spall repair: broken-out areas of concrete, often near joints or under racking, are cut back to sound concrete and filled with repair mortar.
• Crack repair: cracks are cleaned and filled. Not every crack is damage you caused, which is why move-in evidence matters.
• Forklift gouges and impact damage, filled and finished level.

Ask the contractor to mark each repair on a floor plan so the quote can be checked against the landlord's list.

Why don't patches match the rest of the floor?

Repair mortars, ground areas and blasted areas rarely look exactly like old concrete around them. They can be lighter, darker, smoother or more textured. Grinding off one line can leave a clean strip down an otherwise worn floor.

This matters if the lease asks for a finish that matches the surrounding floor. Agree with the landlord, in writing, what an acceptable finish looks like before work starts. A test area helps.

What about dust, waste and asbestos?

Grinding and blasting create dust and waste. Ask each contractor how they will control dust, especially if part of the building is still operating, and how waste will be removed.

Older industrial buildings can contain asbestos, including in some flooring. Before refurbishment or demolition work, the person who manages or controls the workplace must check the asbestos register and update it if it is not adequate for the work (Victoria, OHS Regulations 2017, regs 240 and 241). SafeWork NSW says an asbestos register is required for workplaces built before 31 December 2003, or where asbestos has been found. Ask the landlord for the register before any grinding. See asbestos and hazardous materials at make good.

What should I ask in a floor restoration quote?

Get two or three itemised quotes against the same scope, from contractors who have inspected the slab. Ask each one to show:

• the areas and items included, marked on a floor plan;
• the removal method for marking and coatings, and the finish it will leave;
• anchor, core hole, joint, crack and spall repairs as separate lines;
• dust control and waste disposal;
• whether a test area is included;
• the program, exclusions, provisional sums and GST.

How much does floor restoration cost?

We do not publish a price per square metre. When we searched in October 2026, we found no free, published Australian source for line-marking removal, coating removal or anchor-hole repair rates.

What drives the cost:

• The area to be treated, and whether it is the whole slab or just aisles and holes.
• What is being removed: thin line marking or a full coating.
• The finish the lease requires, and how close a match the landlord expects.
• The slab's condition: how many joints, cracks and spalls need repair.
• Access and timing, including racking that has to come out first.

Melbourne and Sydney industrial areas

Floor restoration is a common part of a warehouse make good in areas such as Dandenong, Truganina and Laverton in Melbourne, and Eastern Creek, Silverwater and Alexandria in Sydney. See warehouse make good in Melbourne and warehouse make good in Sydney. For structures on the floor, see mezzanine and cool room removal. For the full list, use our warehouse make-good checklist.

How MAKE GREAT helps with warehouse floor restoration

1. Tell us about the site. Upload the lease, any landlord notice, a floor plan, and photos of the slab from move-in and now.
2. Lease check. Our lease check reads the make-good clause and drafts a preliminary list of likely works. It is a starting point only: a person at MAKE GREAT reviews it, and a contractor must confirm the scope on site.
3. We send a structured brief to independent industrial contractors we have checked (ABN, insurance, and licences for trades that need them; see how we vet contractors) in your area.
4. Compare itemised quotes side by side against the same scope, and choose who you want. You contract directly with the contractor.

How we are paid: Free for tenants. If you hire a contractor through us, they pay us a referral fee. Nobody can pay to rank higher. You are never obliged to accept a quote.

Ready to start? Use Check my lease, free to upload your lease and the landlord's make-good list.