How To Measure A Room for Flooring: Laminate, LVT, Carpet, and More
Getting new flooring for your home is a big decision. It can change how your home looks and works, and even increase its value. Installing flooring yourself can save you a lot of money, but there are important things to think about before you begin. One of the first steps is learning how to measure your floor properly.
It's important to measure your room correctly when you're getting flooring. This helps you buy just the right amount of flooring material. If you measure wrong, you might have to go back for more or return extra materials, which can be a hassle.
Our guide will help you understand what tools you need to measure your floor, the steps to follow, and what to consider for different types of flooring materials.
Before you begin, make sure you have all the tools you need for measuring your floor space.
The tools you need to measure your flooring are:
- Measuring Tape
- Pen and Paper
- Calculator
Measuring with spare
In a square or rectangular room without any interruptions, it's important to add 5-10% extra to your measurements. This accounts for waste and allows room for any mistakes when cutting. If your room has additional structures like a staircase, a fireplace mantel, or a built-in closet, you might need to add more than 10%.
Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to measure a room when you’re buying new flooring:
Step 1: Measuring your room in Metres Squared or Square Foot
How to measure your room in Metre Squares
To measure your room in Meter squares to purchase flooring packs, here’s what you need to do:
- Choose a Starting Point: Select a corner as your starting reference.
- Measure Length: Use a measuring tape to measure the length of one side, e.g., from the starting corner to the opposite wall: example 4.5 meters.
- Measure Width: Measure the width perpendicular to the length, e.g., from the same starting corner to the adjacent wall: 3 meters.
- Calculate Area: Multiply the length and width measurements to find the area, e.g., 4.5 meters × 3 meters = 13.5 square meters.
- Repeat if Necessary: Take additional measurements for irregular shapes, e.g., if there's a bump-out or alcove.
- Consider Doors and Windows: Subtract the area of doors, windows, or other openings, e.g., if there's a door that covers 2 square meters, subtract that from the total.
- Document: Record the measurements and calculations to purchase flooring
How to measure your room in Square Foot
The first thing to do when measuring your room is to figure out the square footage. You can do this by using a tape measure to find the length and width of the room, and then multiplying these numbers together. For instance, if the room is 15 feet wide and 15 feet long, you will need enough flooring for 225 square feet (15×15=225).
To summarise:
1. Measure the length of the room in feet
2. Measure the width of the room in feet
3. Multiply the two numbers together (Length and Width)
My measuring tape only has inches, so how do you convert feet inches to square feet?
If you’re measuring in inches but need to get the square foot measurement, then this is what you need to do. First measure the length and the width of your room.
Next, divide those numbers by 12 to get the feet measurement conversion. That is because 1 inch is equivalent to 1/12th of a foot measurement.
Here’s an example of how to measure in inches then convert to square foot:
Length of room = 180 inches
Width of room = 180 inches
Divide 180 by 12 = 15
15 x 15 = 255 square foot.
How do I measure the floor for a room which isn’t a perfect square or rectangle?
If your room isn't a perfect square, don't worry. Most rooms can be broken down into rectangles if you think about them the right way. Draw a floor plan, divide it into regular shapes, find the square footage of each section, and add them up for the total square footage.
If your room is triangular or circular, the process is a bit different. For a triangular room, multiply the length by the width and then divide by two. For a circular room, use the equation (3.14 x radius x radius).
Step 2: Deduct for fixed items in the room
To get an accurate measurement, you should consider permanent objects like kitchen islands and staircases. Calculate the square footage of these objects by multiplying their width by their length, and then subtract this from the total square footage of your usable floor space.
For instance, if a room measures 200 square feet and a kitchen island occupies 20 square feet, you'd need flooring materials for 180 square feet of space after accounting for the island.
After measuring the usable floor space and subtracting permanent objects, you'll need to add up the square footage of all the rooms. For example, if Room 1 measures 200 square feet, Room 2 measures 300 square feet, and Room 3 measures 100 square feet with 80 square feet of permanent objects, the total flooring needed for the project would be 520 square feet.
Step 3: Adjust your measurements to include waste
In every flooring project, there's a need to cut materials to fit precisely within a room. This means, besides considering permanent objects, you must also think about wasted materials from unique cuts, damaged materials, and any errors that might occur during cutting.
The amount of waste you should factor in depends on a few factors:
- Whether it's a DIY project or done by professionals
- Rooms with complex shapes
- Permanent objects that need special adjustments
Professional installers usually plan for a 5% waste factor. However, if you're doing a DIY flooring project, it's safer to account for around 10% waste on average.
The type of flooring material also affects how much waste you should plan for in your materials.
Measuring Types of Flooring: LVT and Laminate Flooring
Laminate and Luxury vinyl tiles usually have less waste compared to hardwood flooring because they are less delicate during installation, unlike tiles. Therefore, it's typically advisable to account for a waste factor of 10% to 15% in addition to your measurements.
To calculate this, multiply the square footage of the room by 0.15. For instance, if you're installing hardwood flooring in a 200-square-foot room with a 15% waste factor, you'll need 230 square feet of actual flooring (200 x 0.15 = 230).
Measuring Types of Flooring: Carpets
Carpet flooring usually has the smallest waste factor among all flooring types. This is because it can be cut and adjusted around irregular shapes and permanent fixtures more easily compared to hard flooring materials. It's common to include a waste factor of 5% in your measurements.
For instance: If you're carpeting a 200-square-foot area with a 5% waste factor, you should buy 210 square feet of carpet flooring.
Measuring carpet for stairs follows a similar process.
First, measure the height and depth of each stair to determine its length. Then, multiply this length by the width to find the area of each step.
Step 4: Consult Wall2Wall Flooring for Accurate Measurements
We have expert installers and fitters in the areas where we have a Showroom too.
If you would prefer for someone to come and take measurements for you, then we can certainly do this!
If you have a question about one of our high-quality carpets, vinyl, laminate, etc. do not hesitate to call Wall2Wall Carpets on 01204 303 333 or you can contact us via email by click here. If you would like to see any product, we have 5 showrooms in the Manchester and London areas, you are welcome to visit our showrooms.