It is important to know what the laminate flooring waste factor is when purchasing and installing laminate flooring. Essentially, the laminate flooring waste factor is the estimated amount of flooring you will waste during an installation due to improper cuts, damage, or extra cuts you may need. It is good to also keep extra planks on hand in case there is damage later on due to water or scratches. This way, you can easily replace planks without having to worry about your flooring being discontinued or the locking system changing.
Once you have calculated your total square footage you will need to cover your room, you will add between 5-10% of your total square footage as the laminate flooring waste factor.
Calculating this additional flooring is simple:
To Calculate for 5% Waste:
- Calculate the Waste Amount with the following equation: Total Room SQFT x 0.05 = Waste Amount
- Add the Waste Amount to your Total Room SQFT to find the final amount of flooring you need to purchase: Waste Amount + Total Room SQFT = Final Square Footage
Example:
150 sqft x 0.05= 7.5 sqft
150 sq.ft + 7.5 sq.ft = 157.5 sq.ft – final square footage
To Calculate for 10% Waste:
- Calculate the Waste Amount with the following equation: Total Room SQFT x 0.10 = Waste Amount
- Add the Waste Amount to your Total Room SQFT to find the final amount of flooring you need to purchase: Waste Amount + Total Room SQFT = Final Square Footage
Example:
150 sqft x 0.10 = 15 sqft
150 sq.ft + 15 sq.ft = 165 sq.ft – final square footage
It is much better to order a little too much flooring and have leftovers, than to run out and pay for additional shipping or be left with a product that is out of stock. If you have a hard time calculating square footage or the overage that you need, feel free to call Bestlaminate at 1-800-520-0961 and speak to one of our flooring specialists to calculate your project!
Learn More:
- How to Calculate Square Footage of a Room
- Why is there different square feet per box of laminate flooring?
- How To Find Out How Many Boxes of Laminate Flooring I Need?
5 comments
Need 12 boxes pergo prestige August oak
Should the waste factor be included when calculating labor cost of pro installers? Or just the actual sqft measurement x labor cost + waste factor cost?
Hi Michael! There are a lot of factors when calculating labor costs for pro installers including any additional work they will have from laying the floor, such as pulling out the existing floor, leveling subfloors, and removing and re installing moldings/wall bases. Typically the waste factor would be involved in professional installation costs. It does vary by company and area of the US.
Instead of calculating the waste factor and adding it to the square footage of the room, just multiply the room square footage by 1.05 for 5%, 1.15 for 15% etc.
Thanks for sharing a shortcut, Neil! You can also use our Room Calculator to calculate Waste Factor as well!