Using The Online Roof Square Footage Calculator

Calculating Roof Square Footage

Roof replacement is an expensive endeavor and you need to know the exact square footage of your roof in order to get the right estimate. Incorrect estimate of the square footage of the roof may need to lead to mistakes and you may overshoot your budget. There are a number of roof square footage calculators available online that can help you in estimating the square footage of the roof correctly in order to estimate the overall costs of roof replacement. However, you still need to do some manual calculations in order to make sure that the cost of roof replacement is calculated reasonably correctly.

As far as calculating the cost of total roof replacement is concerned, there are some simple calculations you need to do in order to estimate the overall cost of roof placement. You just need to figure out the overall roof area and the number of shingles needed to cover the roof area in order to calculate the overall cost. Needless to say, you will also need to pay for the services of roofing contractor in case you want a professional to do the job.

One of the most effective ways to calculate area of the roof is to get on the roof and measure the sides of each rectangle on the roof. However, standing on the roof and measuring the overall length and width is not safe without special equipment and therefore, it is recommended to calculate the length and width of the roof rectangles by estimating it from the ground. The overall square footage can be calculated by measuring the size of the roof and accounting for roof pitch in order to calculate the overall square footage.

When you’re standing on the ground, take a stiff and wide measuring tape in order to calculate the total length and breadth of the roof. Do not make the mistake of measuring the length and width of the house as you also need to account for the roof overhangs. Once you have calculated the overall footprint of the roof, you will need to account for the roof pitch. In simple terms, roof pitch is defined as the rise of the roof over a 1 foot run. If you have a standard roof, there are several online calculators that can help you in calculating the pitch of the roof. Once you have the length and breadth of the roof and the roof pitch, an online calculator be can be used to find out the overall roof square footage.

The square footage is essential as roofing contractors provide their estimates based on the number of squares. In simple terms, a square in defined as 10 feet by 10 feet area of roof. In other words, 100 square feet of roof is known as one square. So, if the square footage of your roof is 1750, you need to ask for estimates of 18 squares by rounding up the overall roof area divided by 100. However, the overall cost of your roof will depend on the choice of roofing materials. For instance, you can expect to spend a lot more money by opting for a metal roof instead of the regular asphalt shingles.

Overall, this is the manner in which you can use the roof square footage calculator available online. However, the overall calculation of the square footage of the roof is only a part of the overall cost estimate. When you ask for estimates from roofing contractors, you also need to make sure that they give a detailed breakup of the estimate that includes the labor costs, material costs, any warranties and other terms and conditions in order to make sure that you are getting the best value for your money. So, keep the above mentioned tips in mind when you ask for quotes from roofing contractors.

Read next about roof measuring using Google Earth.