Thursday, April 11, 2024
HomeVideosHow To Calculate Square Feet For Roofing

How To Calculate Square Feet For Roofing

How Do You Calculate Square Footage For A Roof

How to measure a roof and calculate square feet. | 01/2020

Instant Expert Tutoring

With Instant Expert Tutoring, you can get help with your homework anytime, anywhere.

Have more time for your recreation

Doing homework can help you learn and understand the material covered in class.

Focus on your job

If you’re looking for support from expert teachers, you’ve come to the right place. Our team of teachers is here to help you with whatever you need.

Multiply The Slope Factor By The Number Of Roofing Squares

Ok, so now we know the slope of the roof but we need to find the slope factor to figure out how many more roofing squares we need. Fortunately, lots of roofing companies share this information online. You can see the chart above from Everlast Roofing as an example.

Image credit: Everlast Roofing

So, going back to our roof with a 4:12 slope, you can see that the corresponding slope factor is 1.0541. To find what this means in terms of roofing squares, you would do the following calculation:

9 roofing squares x 1.0541 = 9.4869 roofing squares

Roofing Square: How Its Calculated And More

Can there be anything more exciting than building your own property? There are so many things that go into building your establishment, be it commercial or residential.

You have to think of the location, the layout, the size and measurement of the rooms, and so much more. The type of roofing you will opt for is another important aspect to take into account. While all of this sounds exciting, it can be equally tedious.

When you leave it to a contractor to choose a roof type for your home, or to replace the roof in your home, you may come across them using the following term, roofing square to describe the size of your roof.

No matter how good you are at math, you may have found that your calculations in terms of how much roofing supplies are required to put up the roofing system in your home are entirely different from what the roofing contractors you hired calculate them.

When it comes to building roofs, there are two important aspects to keep in mind:

  • Roof measurements
  • Roofing materials estimation

The one word that commonly gets thrown around in the world of roofing construction is roofing squares. Lets look more into what a roofing square is and why and how it matters in evaluating the shingles or roofing materials you will require in the following sections.

You May Like: How To Insulate A Garage Roof

Don’t Miss: What Is The Average Life Of A Roof

How Do I Calculate Roof Pitch

While using a roof gauge or the sight method described above are two ways of measuring roof pitch, if you have an attic, theres an even easier method. Head to the attic with a level and tape measure and choose a rafter.

For example, if the vertical measurement from the level to the rafter is 6 inches, the roof has a 6/12 pitch.

If you have a smartphone, you can also download one of several free roof pitch apps, such as Pitch Gauge. These apps allow you to determine the roof pitch simply by holding the phone against the roof or the rafter.

Read Also: How To Make A Living Roof

Roof Square Footage Calculator

Roof pitch square foot calculator

While it is good to know how to do the calculations yourself, there is a much easier way: a calculator! You can just put in the length, width, and pitch of the roof. Once you plug them in, it will calculate the squares and amount of supplies that you will need to redo the roof. You can even use it to calculate only a portion of the roof to determine the number of materials needed for a smaller project.

Also Check: Whatâs A Mansard Roof

You May Like: How To Fix Concrete Roof Leaks

What Color Metal Roof Is Best

The best color of metal roof really depends on your personal preference and where your home is located. Generally, lighter colors, such as white, taupe, or beige, are better reflecting the suns heat.

Darker colors, such as brown, black, or gray, tend to absorb more heat. Before you decide on a color, consider the climate in your area. In hot climates, lighter colors will help reduce energy costs by reflecting sunlight and keeping the interior of your home cooler.

In colder climates, darker colors can absorb more heat and keep the interior of your home warmer. Additionally, before making a decision, consider the style and color of your home and the other buildings or homes around you.

Youll want to select a color that blends in and complements the other structures.

How To Measure Roof Squares

Find this number by measuring the length and width of each plane on the roof then multiplying length times width. To find your roofs total square footage, simply add the square footage of each of the planes together

If youre intending on doing a shingle roof, youre going to need to consider exactly how many shingles you will need to procure. To do this, youll need to assess the total square footage of your roofs total surface. Doing so is straightforward. You or your hired roofing team will initiate by evaluating the span and width of each plane of the roof, adding to any dormers. Multiply the entire length by the width to receive the exact square footage of each plane. In the end, tally the roofs full square footage by summing the square footage of each plane together.

Every roof surface is surveyed in squares. A square is purely any area of roof which computes at an exact 100 square feet. Youll need to find out the number of squares on a roof in order to learn the number of shingles youll need to cover the roof. Lets say you have a gable roof that is a sum of 24,000 square feet. Simply divide the entire square footage by 100. Youll get a result of 240, meaning that youll need 240 squares of shingles to cover the roof.

How many bundles of shingles per square?

The most common type of shingle called a three-tab or strip shingle is generally packaged three bundles per square.

What About Other Roofing Costs?
Inspecting the Roof

Also Check: What Causes Swollen Gums And Roof Of Mouth

How Can I Measure My Roof Online For Free

Measuring your roof online for free is relatively easy, as long as you have access to the right tools and accurate measurements. However, it is important to note that measuring your roof properly is essential since it affects the cost of materials, labor and the overall function of your roof.

The first step in measuring your roof online for free is to draw the shape of your roof in SketchUp, a free 3D design software tool. This will help you accurately draw and measure the dimensions of your roof, including its length, width, and roof pitch.

Once you have finished creating your roof design, you can choose from a variety of roofing materials and colors to choose from.

To accurately measure your roof, you will also need to measure the dimensions of each peak and valley of the roof. This will ensure the roof is the correct size for the materials and labor cost associated with the repair or installation of your roof.

You can use digital calipers or rulers to take precise measurements.

Finally, you can use online calculators, such as Gable calculators, to measure the roofs area and determine the amount of shingles you need to purchase. With accurate measurements, you can accurately estimate the cost of materials and labor required for a roofing project.

Confirm Measurements Before Ordering Materials

How to Measure the Square Footage of a Roof

As we mentioned, measuring from the ground is a good way to get a rough idea of what youre dealing with when approaching a roofing project. Its also a good way to give an anxious homeowner a ballpark estimate.

Image credit: stonescapesteelroofing.com

What its not good for, however, is accurately ordering roofing materials or bidding jobs. As you can imagine, theres a lot that can be missed with this method since youre not actually getting a look at the roof first.

You can end up paying way too much for material and losing money on the job. Or under-bidding a job and having to work for peanuts. So before you get to this step, youll want to confirm your estimate by either getting up on the roof or ordering a virtual report from a company like EagleView.

If youre measuring by hand, check out this article that walks you through finding square footage step by step. If youre planning to order a virtual report, its as easy as inputting an address and sitting back. Well have a report out to you usually within the hour.

Our measurements are based on patented oblique image capture technology that delivers 4x the detail of standard aerial imagery and 70x that of satellite imagery.

You May Like: How To Lift A Roof

How Do I Get An Accurate Roof Measurement

Accurately measuring your roof can seem like a daunting task, but there are a few simple steps you can take to ensure that you get an accurate measurement. Firstly, review any existing plans or measurements to get an approximate size of your roof.

From there, it is important to measure the length and width of your roof, as well as the pitch. By measuring from the highest peak to the lowest eave, you can determine the length and width of your roof.

To calculate the pitch, measure the vertical drop for every 12 inches of horizontal run. Additionally, measuring the square footage of each plane of your roof is also recommended to ensure that you receive the most accurate measurement.

Should you be measuring a complex roof, it is valuable to draw out a plan so that you have a visual representation to refer to. No matter the type of roof you are measuring, it is recommended to measure a few times to confirm accuracy.

With these simple steps, you should be able to accurately measure your roof.

Sky Roof Measure Provides Industry Leading Takeoff And Roof Estimating Reports For Professional Construction Contractors Please Email :

Area of a rectangle or square:A = L x WExample: 20 feet x 10 feet = 200 square feet

Area of a trapezoid:A = / 2Area = / 2Example: / 2 = 45 square feet

Area of a triangle:A = / 2Area = / 2Example: / 2 = 10 square feet

When you have finished calculating the area of each plane, use this information to find your roofs total square footage. Add the area of each plane together, and the sum will be the total square footage of the roof.

You May Like: How Much Replace Roof Shingles

How To Measure Your Roofs Square Footage

The square footage of your roof has a huge impact on the cost of your replacement. It affects a number of cost factors, including the amount of materials used, labor, and time.

Be aware, the only way to get a 100 percent accurate measurement is to have a local roofing contractor come out to professionally measure your roof and give you a quote. However, I can give you the calculations to get a rough measurement of your homes square footage.

How To Measure A Roof For Shingles From The Ground

How to Calculate Roof Square Footage? What

Remember when your high school algebra teacher said you needed to know how to calculate slope. He may have been thinking about measuring the square footage of a roof.

This method allows you to calculate roof slope and determine the roof area while keeping both feet firmly on the ground.

Begin by measuring the distance from the edge of the eave to the point at which you can barely see the slope of the roof. This works best if you can attach the tape measure to the eve, then walk to the appropriate place and take the measurement at eye level.

This measurement is the horizontal run of the roof. Now, stand under the gutter of the roof you are measuring the slope for and measure the distance from your eye to the roof overhang. This is the roof rise.

Divide the roof rise by the horizontal run to get your roof pitch. For example, if the rise is 60 inches and the run is 120 inches, youll have a roof pitch of 6/12.

As in the method described above, measure the length of the roof from the edge of one eave to the other and the width from one eave to the other. For example, a roof that measures 60 feet by 40 feet would be 2,400 square feet.

Next, use the table below to determine the slope factor. In our example, the 6/12 roof would have a slope factor of 1.118. In our above example, you would multiply 2,400 square feet times the slope factor to get the total square footage of 2,683 square feet.

Don’t Miss: Do Solar Panels Cool The Roof

How Many Roofing Squares In 1200 Squares

As I mentioned earlier, a roofing square is a unit of measurement for determining the size of a roof, and it is equivalent to 100 square feet.

This large unit helps calculate the number of materials you will need for your roof.

It is a unit used in expressing 100 square feet. This unit simplifies the grouping of roofing materials like tiles, shingles, etc.

Only a few producers let you do free roofing square calculators online. You can let a professional assess your roof or measure it yourself.

If you want to measure the number of roofing squares your roof has, measure the total square footage of the roof and use the amount to determine the number of roofing squares it has.

Ensure that you have all the necessary equipment to climb your roof safely. You will need a measuring tape, a pen and notebook , and a ladder. You may read our post if you dont know how to climb up the roof.

Be extremely careful while climbing the ladder to avoid slipping off. Measure each roof planes length and width. There may be more than two planes on the roof.

Some features that may cause your roof to have more than two planes are dormer windows, protruding garage, skylights, covered porches, and others. First, calculate each planes area.

To get the total square footage, sum up the total of all the areas together. After getting the full square of the roof, convert it to roofing squares by dividing the number by 100.

You will have the pitch of the roof in mind to get the correct measurements.

Two: Split Tricky Shapes Into Squares And Rectangles

Once you have these figures, return to the safety of your home. Notice in the image above that the hip roof is made of two triangles and two trapezoids. Trapezoids are tricky to get the area measurement of, so were going to split each of them into two triangles and a rectangle:

We know enough about the overall measurements of the roof to fill in the missing values. Lets fill the figures in now:

You May Like: How To Fix A Roof Leak Around A Vent

Read Also: How To Soft Wash A Roof

How Much Does A Square Of Roofing Cost

The most frequent application for the term square throughout the roofing industry is in regard to pricing and ordering bundles of shingles, so it makes sense to cover the how much a square of roofing costs on average.

In the interest of time, well use the state of Massachusetts as our example. Massachusetts roofers in Boston and the Greater Boston area price their full replacement projects between $5 and $9 per square foot. We can convert cost per square foot to cost per square by multiplying the original number by 100. So in Boston, Massachusetts and the surrounding suburbs like Framingham or Braintree, the cost of a square of roofing is between $500 and $900.

What Is A Roofing Square

How To Calculate Materials for Roofing

In roofing, one square equals 10 X 10 ft., or 100 sq. ft. This unit of measurement determines how many shingles you’ll need for every 100 sq. ft. of rooftop. As you prepare for your roofing project, you’ll use squares to determine the amount of roofing materials you need, from asphalt shingles down to the underlayment.

Read Also: How Much Is A New Roof In Ct

Estimate Your Roof Area

Once you have your roof pitch this will help eliminate a lot of extra measurements because you can use the roof pitch to get an estimated square footage of your roof:

Step 1. Use the number you landed on for your roofs pitch, then divide the number by 12.

For example, if your roofs pitch is 6 in 12, you would divide 6 by 12. The resulting number would be 1/2.

Step 2. Then, square your result.

For example, if your number is 1/2, then squared would be 1/4

Step 3. Add 1 to your number.

Step 4. Now its time to figure out the square root of your new number.

Using our example, the square root of 10/4 is 1.58

Step 5. Next youll want to figure out the square footage for one of your home. To do this, divide the total square footage of your home by 2.

If you have a 3,000 square foot home, for example, this number would be 1,500.

Step 6. Multiply the square footage of one floor by your square root and voila! You now have the estimated square footage of your roof.

Do You Need Roof Repair Replacement Or New Installation In The Dallas Fort Worth Area

If so, TX Roofing Solutions is the first choice for residents in the Dallas, Texas, area.

Providing free, no-obligation roof inspections, our company can handle any service request you may have. Whether youre in Euless, Arlington, Flower Mound, Keller, Coppell, Grapevine or a surrounding area, were happy to provide you with honest, reputable roofing services.

Recommended Reading: How To Get Wrinkles Out Of Rubber Roofing

You May Like: How Much Are Roof Vents

RELATED ARTICLES

Most Popular