Sheet Vinyl

The best way to plan a flooring layout is to create a scale drawing of the area. A scale of 1 inch equal to 1 foot works well. Sheet vinyl flooring is usually sold by the square yard and by utilizing a drawing, any seams or cuts can be easily worked into the overall plan.

• Measure the area, multiplying the largest dimension of width by the largest dimension of length (example: a 10' x 8' area = 80 square feet). Convert to square yards by dividing square footage by 9 (example: 80' divided by 9 = 8.88 square yards).
• A seam is necessary when the dimensions of the room are greater than the available width of materials (usually 12' goods). It is important that the pattern is taken into consideration when planning a seamed application and that sufficient material is purchased for pattern matching, cutting and seaming.
• Measure the length of any permanent feature at its base and multiply it by its width. Subtract that amount from the basic square footage.
• Measure the length of each nook, bay and closet and multiply it by its width. If the flooring will extend into those areas, add this amount to the basic square footage.

Vinyl Tile

Vinyl tile is usually sold in 9" and 12" squares, however, it is sold and ordered by the square foot. Measure the area, multiplying the largest dimension of length by the largest dimension of width (example: 10'x 8' area = 80 square feet). A good rule of thumb is to purchase 10% overage in materials to allow for cutting, errors and future repairs.

Follow the instructions in items 3 and 4 above to figure any deductions or additions to the total square footage required.