The floors in every gallery except one will be replaced in renovations of the National Portrait Gallery next year, according to new documents showing the extent of the work that will close the institution for six months.
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In March, gallery director Angus Trumble said the gallery needed to close between April and September in 2019 to allow for major structural work, including replacing double-glazing in windows, and flooring inside and outside the $87 million building, which is just 10 years old.
The gallery is set to close on April 22 and re-open on September 28, and work will continue into October.
The Department of Finance, which is covering the cost of the repairs, has published tender documents for the work, which includes replacing the waterproof membrane underneath the building, and terrazzo flooring outside the gallery entrance. Repairs to cracks in the structural slab are also required.
About 2000 square metres of timber flooring throughout the galleries and the foyer are set to be replaced.
The cost of the repairs won't be known until December, after the contracts are signed, but the gallery has already spent hundreds of thousands on repairs to similar areas of the building in 2012.
More than $700,000 was spent in 2012 on repairs including on timber flooring, terrazzo flooring, and window glazing.
While the works to be done next year are in the same areas as those repaired six years ago, Finance maintains the actual repairs being done are different. The department also said the work to be done as part of the new process is addressing different issues that weren't fixed in the 2012 works.
The documents also reveal works could create enough noise to impact the High Court of Australia, with potential contractors told work might need to take place early and late on the court's sitting days to prevent disruption.
Issues with the existing waterproof membrane were discovered after torrential rains around two years ago, when leaks were discovered in the basement carpark.
