There are many considerations when shopping for new flooring. Foot traffic, wear and tear, looks, and cost, among many others, play a part in determining your dream flooring. Once everything is out, it’s time to order the flooring. Most flooring manufacturers and installers recommend you order an extra 10 percent of flooring. The percentage will change depending on the type of flooring and other factors such as room size and shape.
Are you curious about how much extra flooring to order? In this post, I’ll discuss the admissible wastage of different floorings to help you make an informed decision. Before we get into the maths, you have to measure the floor, multiply the numbers, and determine the total square footage. In this post, I’ll use a 15-by-20-foot room with a total area of 250 square feet.
How Much Extra Flooring to Buy?
Solid Hardwood Flooring
Hardwood flooring is renowned for its natural warmth, aesthetics, and durability. Hardwood planks are sold in boxes, and usually, each box covers a space of 20 square feet. For hardwood flooring, the admissible wastage is usually 10 percent during installation and 5 percent for defective materials. Below are the calculations of the amount of flooring to buy if we’re to install solid hardwood flooring in a 250 square feet room.
| Total Wood Flooring to Order: Example | ||
|---|---|---|
| Percentage Needed | 100% | 250 Square Feet |
| Admissible Wastage | 5-15% (Take 10%) | 25 Square Feet |
| Defective Materials | 5 % | 12.5 Square Feet |
| Total Flooring to Buy | 115 % | 287.5 Square Feet |
| Total Boxes to Buy (20 Square Feet/Box) | 287.5/20 | 15 Boxes (Rounded Off) |
For a 250 square feet room, you will require 15 boxes instead of 13 boxes. The two extra boxes will account for waste and defective flooring. You can replicate the example above and substitute the values to get an estimate of how much flooring to buy.
Laminate Flooring
Laminate flooring is one of the most popular and affordable types of flooring around. Because laminate flooring is synthetic, it usually lacks defects, as found in wood flooring. For this case, we do not include the percentage of defective products when calculating the total laminate flooring to buy. However, you still have to allow for wastage between 5 percent and 15 percent. If a box of laminate flooring can cover 20 square feet, below is the estimated total flooring to buy.
| Total Laminate Flooring to Order: Example | ||
|---|---|---|
| Percentage Needed | 100% | 250 Square Feet |
| Admissible Wastage | 5-15% (Take 5%) | 12.5 Square Feet |
| Total Flooring to Buy | 105% | 262.5 Square Feet |
| Total Boxes to Buy (20 Square Feet/Box) | 262.5/20 | 14 Boxes (Rounded Off) |
You’ll notice that instead of rounding off to the nearest digit (262.5/20=13.125), we rounded the number to 14. The extra box ordered can be used for future repairs and replacing worn-out laminate planks.
Vinyl Plank Flooring
Vinyl flooring is one of the most durable floorings around. It can take dents, scratches, wear, discoloration, and stains. Like laminate flooring, vinyl flooring is synthetic and usually lacks defects. When calculating how much vinyl plank flooring to order, allow an admissible wastage of 5 percent to 15 percent, like laminate flooring. With each box having 25 square feet of flooring, the number of boxes for a 250 square feet room will be as below.
| Total Vinyl Plank Flooring to Order: Example | ||
|---|---|---|
| Percentage Needed | 100% | 250 Square Feet |
| Admissible Wastage | 5-15% (Take 5%) | 12.5 Square Feet |
| Total Flooring to Buy | 105% | 262.5 Square Feet |
| Total Boxes to Buy (20 Square Feet/Box) | 262.5/25 | 11 Boxes (Rounded Off) |
Carpet
Carpet flooring was a trendy flooring that fell by the wayside due to the popularity of synthetic flooring options like laminate. However, it is slowly gaining popularity due to its versatility and benefits. Carpets usually come in 12-foot and 15-foot widths, so determine which works for you. The admissible wastage of carpet is 10 percent. For our room of 250 square feet, below are the calculations.
| Total Carpet Flooring to Order: Example | ||
|---|---|---|
| Percentage Needed | 100% | 250 Square Feet |
| Admissible Wastage | 10% | 25 Square Feet |
| Total Flooring to Buy | 110% | 275 Square Feet |
| Total Carpeting | 275 Square Feet | 31 Square Yards |
When buying carpet, be skeptical of the ratings because manufacturers usually rate themselves for marketing. During installation, hide the seams in doorways for a better look. The extra pieces of carpet that remain can be used in areas like your closets and alcoves. If you hire a professional carpet installer, they should charge only for the actual square feet installed.
Ceramic Tile Flooring
Ceramic and porcelain tiles are classic flooring materials that are highly resistant to wear, scratches, dents, moisture, and stains. The admissible wastage of tile flooring is between 5 percent and 15 percent. The size of the tile also affects the waste, with larger tiles accounting for a larger waste than smaller tiles. It is also common for tiles to break during shipping. When calculating how many tiles to order, below is an example from our room of 250 square feet.
| Total Tile Flooring to Order: Example | ||
|---|---|---|
| Percentage Needed | 100% | 250 Square Feet |
| Admissible Wastage | 5%-15% (Take 10%) | 25 Square Feet |
| Total Flooring to Buy | 110% | 275 Square Feet |
| Total Boxes to Buy (20 Square Feet/Box) | 275/20 | 14 Boxes (Rounded Off) |
Engineered Wood Flooring
Engineered hardwood is made by sandwiching layers of wood with adhesives. The top layer is a thin veneer of natural wood, which gives it the aesthetics of real solid hardwood flooring ata lower price. When calculating how much-engineered hardwood flooring to buy, most disadvantages of natural hardwood flooring are eliminated. This means we’ll only account for wastage and not defects. The waste percentage of engineered hardwood flooring is 7 percent to 15 percent. Below are the calculations of engineered hardwood flooring for our example room.
| Total Engineered Hardwood Flooring to Order: Example | ||
|---|---|---|
| Percentage Needed | 100% | 250 Square Feet |
| Admissible Wastage | 5%-15% (Take 8%) | 20 Square Feet |
| Total Flooring to Buy | 110% | 270 Square Feet |
| Total Boxes to Buy (20 Square Feet/Box) | 270/20 | 14 Boxes (Rounded Off) |
Why You Should Buy Extra Flooring
Account for Wastage
Wastage is never a good thing. However, it is unavoidable and should be accounted for when buying flooring. Wastage refers to flooring that cannot be reused once cut. Almost all types of flooring materials will require cutting. Some reasons to cut flooring are to fit end pieces or cut the flooring to fit odd-shaped areas, e.g., around the toilet bowl.
Cutting a Ceramic Tile during Installation
Flooring with larger planks or tile style also has more wastage than other types. This is because the flooring will only fit some spaces with the need for cutting. For smaller flooring materials, for example, mosaic tiles, the wastage will be small because the tiles are smaller and can fit easily into smaller spaces without cutting.
If a room has more obstructions, this will also increase the percentage of waste flooring. Toilets, vents, and cabinets will require flooring to work around them, thus increasing cutting and, therefore, waste.
The shape of a room will also affect the wastage percentage of different floorings. A square room will have less wastage compared to a curved room.
Defective Materials
Defects aren’t common in carpets, laminate, or vinyl flooring. However, you’ll most likely have defective pieces for natural flooring, like solid hardwood and engineered wood. While defective pieces can be repurposed and used in less noticeable room areas, having extra at hand means the job is done more efficiently. This is especially the case if you’re working with professional flooring installers. If they have to stop and wait for extra flooring materials to be ordered, the labor costs will increase.
Installing a Hardwood Floor
For Future Repairs
When maintained properly, most types of floors will last a very long time. Having normal wear and tear will eventually catch up. Whether it’s scuffing from furniture, water exposure, or other reasons, the result is damaged flooring. For most floating floors, replacing them is easier if it’s just a few planks that need repair. The extra flooring material you ordered can come in handy at this point.
