Measuring hardwood flooring

Hands of a carpenter measuring wood flooring

Take your time and take the measurements by yourself using a pen, paper, and tape measure. Measure each length and width twice to confirm you didn’t accidently make a mistake with the tape measure. If possible, have someone else do a quick measurement of the same areas and see if they come up with Take as much time as necessary and take the estimations independent from anyone else utilizing a pencil/pen, paper, and measuring tape. On the off chance, when possible, have another person complete a brisk estimation of the same regions and check whether they come up with the equivalent. Otherwise do it again on a separate piece of paper and compare your figures. Measure every length and width twice to affirm you didn’t incidentally commit an error with the measuring tape.

Hardwood flooring is sold by the square foot so take the length of the room and multiply it by the width. For regions with edges, measure to the longest points and divide that number by 2. This will give you the aggregate square feet of the room.

Here are a couple of examples below:

Room Dimension for each sample are:

  • 10 feet long by 9 feet wide, which multiplied is 90 sq ft (10 x 9 = 90).
  • 13 feet 6 inches long by 15 feet 4 inches wide. It’s best to round both numbers to the next foot. So, you would go with 14 feet (long) x 16 feet (wide) which multiplied is 224 sq ft (14 x 16 = 224).

Some prefer to measure more accurately by measuring by the inch. Measure the length and width of the room in inches and multiply those numbers.

Here’s an example of measuring by inches:

Room Dimension in inches listed below:

  • 348 inches long by 274 inches wide, multiply those numbers and it comes to 94,352 inches. Divide that by the number of square inches in a square foot, which is 144, and you have 662.17 square feet.

Industry standard suggest adding 8% to 10% waste for corners, cut backs, walls, etc. for higher quality products. Take the amount of sq ft and 8% to 10%. Ordering a more Rustic or Utility Grade of hardwood flooring will come with a higher waste factor that may include anywhere from 12% up to 30%. Add up all the rooms you are installing hardwood flooring into and you come up with the amount of square footage needed for your project. Your sales rep can review that with you.

Lastly, it is a good idea to have about 1 or 2 bundles/boxes left over for potential repairs in the future. Getting a little extra flooring can be a life saver in the future!! You will be ensured that you have the color, product, and milling all matched up for a small repair.

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