How to calculate tiles for the floor
The range of tiles sold in stores differs not only in texture and color, but also in size. When carrying out renovation work, the apartment owner must know how to correctly calculate the number of tiles. Experts recommend purchasing building materials with a small supply.
The content of the article
What features need to be taken into account when making calculations
Area is not the only indicator that affects the number of tiles. There are several important points that the apartment owner should know:
- Material consumption depends on the installation method used during the work process. When finishing, they can use the direct or diagonal method.
- From the total area of the room you need to subtract the space that does not require finishing. For example, in a room you don’t have to lay tiles under a cast-iron bathtub or furniture.
- Overuse of tiles may be due to manufacturing defects or the need for trimming.
The brittle material can crack or break in the wrong place at any time. During the installation process, specialists have to ensure that the drawings match. The situation is complicated by the presence of uneven walls and ledges.
Calculation methods
To reduce your costs, you need to try to measure the dimensions of the room as accurately as possible. Some elements will have to be cut into pieces during installation.
It is often difficult for builders to match patterns on ceramics. Careless actions can ruin the appearance of the floor.
By room area
Before laying tiles, it is recommended to measure the dimensions of the room. In this way you can determine the consumption of tiles in square meters. In rooms with a rectangular shape, it is best to use plain types of tiles.
You can measure the dimensions of the floor using a tape measure. The obtained values must be multiplied by 10%, since during the installation process the material can be damaged with one careless movement.
A room with complex geometry can be divided into figures that have the correct shape. These can be rectangles, circles, triangles and squares. Don't forget to measure the dimensions of the tile itself.
To understand the features of calculating the number of tiles, consider the following example.
The owner of the apartment decided to use the direct installation method. After measuring the room, the following parameters were obtained:
- The width of the room where the tiles are planned to be laid is 200 cm.
- The length of the room is 300 cm.
The owner decided to lay tiles with dimensions of 20x15 cm on the floor. Now let’s use a simple formula:
D/d1 x S/s1, where;
- D and S – length and width of the room;
- d1 and s1 – overall dimensions of the tile.
300/20=15 pcs.
200/15= 13.3 pcs.
Now you can calculate the total number of tiles.
15 x 13.3= 200 pcs.
When laying diagonally
To lay tiles in rooms with uneven walls, you can use the diagonal method. The disadvantage of this method is that it increases material consumption by 15%.
During the installation process, specialists are faced with the need to cut tiles to specified sizes. In a room with a complex configuration it is quite difficult to calculate the amount of material.
First you need to determine the floor area on which the tiles will be laid.
The total area of the room must be multiplied by a factor of 1.15.
For example, the owner of an apartment decided to lay the tiles diagonally. The floor area is 19.53 m.
19, 53 sq. m. x 1.15 = 22.46 sq. m.
Advice! Do not forget to round the obtained values up, since the preparation of ceramics will be accompanied by the formation of substandard waste.
By number of rows
The method consists in determining the number of rows of elements on which the finishing material will be laid. To get the required value, divide the width of the room by the width of the tile. The resulting figure must be rounded up, since some elements will have to be cut off during installation.
Piece method
Before purchasing expensive tiles, it is recommended to use the piecemeal method of calculating the amount of material.
The procedure can be divided into the following stages:
- First you need to measure the length and width of the floor area on which you plan to carry out repair work.
- After this, you need to measure the dimensions of the tiles.
- The laying diagram can be pre-drawn on graph paper.
As an example, consider the following case. The owner decided to lay tiles in the bathroom. After measuring the room using a tape measure, the owner received the following indicators:
- length 1.75 m;
- width 1.7 m.
The bathroom has a rectangular shape, without projections or niches. For installation, it is planned to use tiles with dimensions of 33x33 cm. To calculate the area of the room, multiply 1.75 by 1.7 m (2.975 sq. m). Let's round the resulting value to 3 square meters. m.
Now divide the width of the room (1.7 m) by the size of the tile (0.33 cm).
170/0.33 =5.1 pcs.
In the same way, we calculate the number of tiles taking into account the length of the room.
175/0.33= 5.7 pcs.
After rounding, multiply the resulting values.
5.1 x 6 = 31.6 pcs.
To lay tiles in the bathroom, you need to purchase at least 32 tiles.
Combined method
The need to use a combined method arises when laying different types of tiles. To more accurately determine the amount of material, it is recommended to draw up a laying diagram.
Online calculator
To facilitate the process of calculating the number of tiles, you can use an online calculator. This method is suitable for rooms with a standard shape.
The advantages of using online calculators include:
- Ability to check the accuracy of manual calculations.
- Buyers don't have to do the math themselves.
- Similar systems can be found on the websites of companies that sell building materials.
- Thanks to scripts, you can quickly determine the amount of tiles that will be needed to decorate your apartment.
Online calculators have several disadvantages:
- Users encounter errors in calculations.
- Developers cannot include parameters in the formula that take into account all the features of the room.
Often the room has a non-standard layout. In this case, it is recommended to clarify the dimensions of the room. After entering the indicators, the script automatically determines the number of tiles that are needed for finishing work.
