To measure kitchen cabinets in square feet, you need to measure the total surface area of the cabinet faces (or the wall area they cover) and convert the measurement from inches to square feet by dividing by 144.
Measuring your kitchen cabinets in square footage is often necessary for estimating costs for refinishing, refacing, or sometimes painting. The process involves calculating the total area covered by the cabinets on your walls.
Based on the provided reference, here's a straightforward method:
Step-by-Step Measurement Guide
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Measure Upper Cabinets: Record the height and the length of your upper cabinets in inches. If your cabinets have varying heights or lengths, measure each section or run separately.
- Example: A run of upper cabinets might be 30 inches high and 120 inches long.
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Calculate Upper Cabinet Area (Inches): Multiply the height measurement by the length measurement for the upper cabinets. If you measured multiple sections, calculate the area for each section and add them together.
- Example: 30 inches (height) * 120 inches (length) = 3600 square inches.
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Measure Lower Cabinets: Measure the height and the length of your lower cabinets in inches. Again, measure distinct sections separately if dimensions vary.
- Example: A run of lower cabinets might be 34.5 inches high and 120 inches long.
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Calculate Lower Cabinet Area (Inches): Multiply the height measurement by the length measurement for the lower cabinets. If you measured multiple sections, calculate the area for each section and add them together.
- Example: 34.5 inches (height) * 120 inches (length) = 4140 square inches.
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Add Total Area (Inches): Add the total area calculated for the upper cabinets and the total area calculated for the lower cabinets together. This gives you the grand total area in square inches.
- Example: 3600 square inches (upper) + 4140 square inches (lower) = 7740 square inches (total).
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Convert to Square Feet: To convert the total area from square inches to square feet, divide the total by 144 (since 1 square foot = 12 inches * 12 inches = 144 square inches).
- Formula: Total Square Feet = Total Square Inches / 144
- Example: 7740 square inches / 144 = 53.75 square feet.
By following these steps, you can determine the approximate square footage of your kitchen cabinets using the method of measuring the total height by the total length for both upper and lower runs and converting the total inches to square feet.
Practical Tips for Accurate Measurement
- Measure Runs: Measure the total length of a continuous run of cabinets, even if there are individual boxes within that run.
- Standard Heights: Be aware of standard cabinet heights (e.g., upper cabinets often 30", 36", or 42"; lower cabinets often 34.5" with countertop making it 36"). However, always measure your specific cabinets.
- Ignore Gaps: This method typically measures the area covered by the cabinets, effectively ignoring small gaps between boxes or stiles/rails for a general surface area estimate.
- Measure Frames (Optional Detail): For more precise estimates (like painting), some might measure door and drawer face areas separately, but the method described above measures the overall surface area they occupy.
Using this method provides a reliable estimate of the surface area covered by your cabinets, crucial for budgeting materials or labor based on square footage.
