While installing your house or room flooring, you will usually find a dent or uneven angles in your rooms. Calculating width and difficult angles can be challenging if you do it alone. Here’s the guide on how to measure for laminate flooring and what to consider and prepare before installing your floor finishes.
The first thing you want to know is how to estimate for laminate flooring in your room and how many boxes you need. After you get the number, the next question will be how to measure angles for laminate flooring that will fit your room and furniture.
How to Measure for Laminate Flooring
Laminate Flooring is usually sold in rectangular form with about 10 pieces of plank in 1 box. Actually, for every laminate flooring you buy, you will get a laminate flooring installation guide from the manufacturer. It is because every brand of laminate flooring is different. Even so, not many of them have instructions on how to estimate for laminate flooring or how to measure laminate flooring.
Tools and Materials
All you need to prepare before calculating your rooms are tools. Make sure you have all the tools and materials below!
- Tape measure: A tape measure is used to measure the length and width of the room.
- Chalk: Chalk is used to mark the location of the laminate flooring on the subfloor.
- Level: A level is used to ensure that the subfloor is level before installing the laminate flooring.
- Pencil: A pencil is used to mark measurements on the subfloor.
- Utility knife: A utility knife is used to cut the laminate flooring to size.
- Saw: A saw is used to cut the laminate flooring to size.
You are free to use a calculator on your phone but for measurement, please use the proper measurement like a tape measure. This is because measuring instruments can have different accuracy according to their purpose.
Formula
Using your tape measure and calculator, measure your room width and length to get the total floor space required. If you still have furniture you can’t move such as a fireplace or big closet, that’s okay, just use the formula (width x length = total area).
Example :
Imagine you’re renovating your living room and want to know how much laminate flooring to buy. Grab your trusty tape measure and measure the width of the room, which comes to 15 feet (4.57 meters) and also the length, which is 20 feet (6.09 meters).
Using the formula width x length = total area
15 ft x 20 ft = 300 sq ft
So, you’ll need 300 sq ft of laminate flooring to cover your living room floor.
However, you might have immovable furniture like a fireplace or closet. To account for this, you can estimate the area of that furniture and subtract it from the total floor space. For example, let’s say your fireplace takes up roughly 30 sq ft (2.79 square meters).
You would subtract that from the total area:
300 sq ft – 30 sq ft = 270 sq ft
Therefore, considering the immovable furniture, you would need 270 sq ft of laminate flooring for your living room renovation.
How to Estimate for Laminate Flooring Boxs You Need
The standard coverage of a laminate flooring box is typically two square metres (2 m²). To calculate the number of boxes you need, follow these steps:
- Measure your room in metres: Precisely measure the length and width of the room in metres.
- Calculate the total area: Multiply the length by the width. This gives you the total area in square metres.
- Divide and round up: Divide the total area by two (2 m² per box). As some cutting and waste are inevitable, round the resulting number up to the nearest whole number. This gives you the minimum number of boxes required.
- Consider contingency (optional): To account for potential unforeseen circumstances during installation, you may choose to add a buffer of 10% to the minimum number of boxes. Multiply the minimum number by 1.1 to obtain the adjusted figure.
Formula
Number of Boxes = Total Area (m²) / Box Coverage (m²) + 10% (optional)
Description :
- Total Area (m²): Measure the length and width of your room in meters and multiply them to find the total area.
- Box Coverage (m²): This information is readily available on the packaging of your chosen laminate flooring. It typically ranges from 1.8 to 2.2 square meters per box.
- 10% (optional): This addition accounts for potential cutting waste and installation errors. Consider adding this buffer for peace of mind.
Example:
Imagine your room is 5 metres long and 4 metres wide.
- Total Area (m²): 5m x 4m = 20m²
- Number of Boxes: 20m² / 2m² = 10 boxes
- Optional Buffer: 10 boxes x 10% = 1 additional box
Therefore, you would need 11 boxes of laminate flooring for this room (10 calculated + 1 optional buffer)
How to Measure Angles for Laminate Flooring
The first step is to identify the angles that need to be measured. This will vary depending on the layout of the room and the type of laminate flooring being used. In general, however, angles will need to be measured at the following locations:
- Corners: The angle at each corner of the room will need to be measured.
- Doorways: The angle at each doorway will need to be measured.
- Obstacles: The angle at any obstacles in the room, such as a fireplace or a built-in cabinet, will need to be measured.
Once the angles have been identified, they can be measured using the following methods:
1. Using a Protractor : Place the protractor on the surface that needs to be measured and align the zero-degree mark with the edge of the surface. Then, rotate the protractor until the desired angle is aligned with the index line. The angle can then be read off the protractor scale.
2. Using a Speed Square : Put the speed square and align the edge of the speed square with the edge of the surface. Then, rotate the speed square until the desired angle is aligned with the index line.
3. Using a Miter Saw : Set the miter saw to the desired angle. Then, place the laminate flooring against the fence of the miter saw and make the cut.
After you found the pattern of your weird angles, now you can mark with a pencil and cut the laminate flooring with a saw. Then, repeat the process if you find other angles. If you still have no experience in cutting laminate flooring, go with our full instructions on How to Cut Laminate Flooring.
Alternatives on How to Measure Laminate Flooring
That’s how to measure for laminate flooring! If you find that your room is too difficult for you or you don’t have time to do it by yourself, another alternative to prepare your room flooring is to use external services. Using external services will help you to get the perfect result without worrying about how to measure laminate flooring guidelines and do your room alone. Get the best price and services with TEKA Flooring!
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