How to Calculate Square Footage of a Room 

HOW TO CALCULATE SQUARE FOOTAGE OF A ROOM:
Looking to buy a cork flooring? At Forna Cork flooring we are here to help. One of the first steps towards purchasing your flooring is measuring the square footage of your floor or room. Depending on the layout of your space, use the following method to calculate the square footage of the room you are wanting to install your flooring in. The base equation is the length of your room multiplied by the width of your room. Or Length x Width. It is not complicated at all, but it can seem tricky when your room isn’t a perfect rectangle. We will walk you through a couple of room scenarios and describe the process of calculating the square footage of each.
To start, you will need:
• Tape measure
• Calculator
• Notepad and pen/pencil or a device to record your measurements
Next, follow the steps that apply to your room layout.
1. How to measure and calculate the square footage of a simple, rectangular room:
Calculating square footage of a rectangular room is a quite easy. To calculate the square footage, multiply the length of the room by the width of the room. You will measure this from the inside of the room. For example if your length is 20 ft and your width is 10 ft then you would multiply 20 ft x 10 ft:
Length (ft) x Width (ft) = Square Footage
Example:
20 ft x 10 ft = 200 sq. ft
(If you have a measurement that falls in 20ft by 3inches combination, you can easily round it up, so you’d have 20ft by 6inches or 20 ½ feet, for easier estimation)
2. How to measure and calculate the square footage of an odd shaped room:
It is not uncommon to deal with a room that may have an open or large floor plan with several closets, nooks, built ins or odd shaped spaces. Don’t stress. The solution is an easy too! All you need to do is to divide your space into even shapes, (squares or rectangles) and be able to use the simple calculation formula of length multiplied by width. After you are done with this step, the only thing to do is to add all individual spaces you just calculated together.
• Separate the room into squares or rectangles; such as “Area 1”, “Area 2”, and “Area 3”
• Measure each rectangle or square area separately
• Calculate the square footage of each space by multiplying length by width.
o Area 1: A (length) x B (width) = Area 1 SQFT
o Area 2: A (length) x B (width) = Area 2 SQFT
o Area 3: A (length) x B (width) = Area 3 SQFT
o
• Add the calculations of each space to equal a total square footage.
o Formula: Area 1 SQFT + Area 2 SQFT + Area 3 SQFT = Total square footage of the room
Don’t forget to add the waste factor!
When buying new floors, don’t forget to add the waste factor. You will want to add 5% - 15% extra to your total square footage to account for waste during the installation process, such as errors, damage, or extra cuts. You don’t want to end up in the middle of the installation a few boxes short! Calculating waste is also an easy two-step equation.
To Calculate for 5% - 15% Waste:
1. Calculate the Waste Amount with the following equation: Total Room SQFT x % = Waste Amount
2. Add the Waste Amount to your Total Room SQFT to find the final amount of flooring you need to purchase: Waste Amount + Total Room SQFT = Final Square Footage
Example:
200 sq. ft x 5% = 10 sqft
200 sq. ft + 10 sq. ft = 210 sqft
or
200 sq.ft x 15% = 30 sqft
200 sq.ft + 30 sq.ft = 230 sq.ft
Yes, it’s as easy as 1, 2, 3. Get measuring today and visit our site for a look at our Forna Cork flooring.
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