Measuring a room for a new carpet or floo| ring is enough to send shivers down the spine of even the most hardened DIY enthusiast. However, armed with the Carpetncare.com guide, your measuring will be accurate, quick and shiver free.

First things first, you will need the following:

Paper
Pencil or pen
Tape Measure
Calculator

TIP : Write down the measurements as you take them!

We will now go through the basic steps you need to follow for the different types of flooring and the rooms around the house. Please remember, this guide is just to help you measure for your carpet, vinyl and flooring quickly and easily, this is not a guide to installation.

Carpets & Vinyl

Rooms

Grab your tape measure and measure the length and width of the room at the widest points. Remember to take into account any elements such as alcoves & to measure through doorways to meet other flooring.

Always add 10 centimetres to your measurements.

This will allow for any deviations in the wall & the cutting of the carpet / vinyl when it is fitted and ensures a good finish.

Particularly with vinyl, discuss the sub floor type with your retailer to ensure the best possible finish.

The width of your room is crucial when ordering your carpet or vinyl. For the best finish a single width is desirable as it leaves no joins. Sometimes a room is just too wide and a join is required, but do not worry, our expert fitters will make sure you still receive a fantastic finish on your carpet or vinyl.

Hall, Stairs & Landing

Don’t be daunted by these, often irregularly shaped areas, a few additional measurements is all you need.

Hall & Landing

Firstly, draw a rough diagram of the basic shape of the Hall & Landing, measure each side of the shape in turn (remember to add 10 centimetres on all sides).

Stairs

Measure from the back of the tread ( the part you stand on ) over the edge to the bottom of the riser ( the bit at the front ). Count the amount of steps & multiply your measurement to give you the overall length, for the width measure at the very front of the step & again near to the back of the tread, add 0.5 cm to allow for any deviations, double check the width measurement by measuring a few different steps.

If measuring for a runner, work out the width that you want the runner to finish.

For awkward shaped steps such as winding steps, measure from the back of the tread at its furthest point, over the edge, to the bottom of the riser. For the width measure from the widest point and don’t forget to add 0.5 cm.

Wood & Laminate Flooring

Take the measurements for rooms as instructed in the rooms section above.  

Work out the sq metres of the room by multiplying the measurements together, then, to calculate how many packs of laminate you will need, divide the square metres by the amount of square metres in a pack.

For example, your room is 6.25 x 3.75 = 23.44 square metres

23.44 square metres / 1.824 sq metres ( pack size ) = 12.85 packs ( round up to 13 )

Don’t forget – you will need beading or skirting!

To calculate how much beading or skirting you will need, add the room width & length then multiply by 2. Then divide this number by the length of the beading or skirting.

This will give you the lengths required for the room.  As before, round up to the next full length. 

Don’t forget to count how many doors the room has and their width. You should also note the type of flooring it will meet up to.  If you have any doubts, contact us at Carpetncare.com, we will be happy to advise.

Carpet Tiles & Ceramics

If you are purchasing carpet tiles or ceramics then you can just follow the same process.

This is just a guide to help you in a rough estimation of the area and to give you a guide for pricing and budgeting.  We would always recommend you ask your retailer to double check your measurements.

Remember, if your retailer uses your measurements, they cannot be held responsible for any errors.