Measuring for wood flooring is essentially determining the square footage of the area you intend to cover, with allowances for waste. Here's a step-by-step guide:
1. Basic Rectangular or Square Rooms:
- Measure the length and width of the room in feet.
- Multiply the length by the width to get the square footage. For example, if the room is 12 feet long and 10 feet wide, the square footage is 12 ft x 10 ft = 120 square feet.
2. Rooms with Irregular Shapes (L-shaped, Angled Walls, etc.):
- Divide and Conquer: Break the room into smaller, easily measurable rectangular or square sections.
- Measure the length and width of each section and calculate the square footage for each.
- Add the square footage of all the sections together to get the total square footage of the room.
3. Measuring Angled Areas:
- Measure the longest length of the angled area.
- Measure the width at its widest point.
- Multiply those two distances.
- Divide the result by 2. This approximates the area of a triangle.
4. Accounting for Inaccuracy (Measuring in Inches for Precision):
- For increased accuracy, measure the length and width of each section in inches.
- Multiply the length (in inches) by the width (in inches) to get the area in square inches.
- Divide the total square inches by 144 (since there are 144 square inches in a square foot) to convert the measurement into square feet.
5. Adding Waste Allowance:
- It's crucial to add extra square footage to account for cuts, mistakes, and board matching. A general rule of thumb is to add 5-10% for straight patterns and 10-15% (or more) for diagonal or herringbone patterns. This percentage accounts for the necessary waste.
- Multiply the total square footage by 0.05 (for 5% waste), 0.10 (for 10% waste), or 0.15 (for 15% waste), etc.
- Add the waste allowance to the total square footage to determine the total amount of flooring you need to purchase.
Example:
Let's say your total square footage (including the sections of your oddly-shaped room) is 200 square feet, and you want to use a straight-lay flooring pattern, adding 10% for waste:
- Waste = 200 sq ft x 0.10 = 20 sq ft
- Total flooring needed = 200 sq ft + 20 sq ft = 220 sq ft
In summary, measure each area by length and width, divide complex shapes into simpler ones, account for angles by measuring longest points and dividing by two, and add a waste allowance. For best accuracy, measure in inches, then convert to square feet.
