Figuring Roof Squares

The square footage of a hip roof area is identical to the square footage of a gable roof of the same size.

Figuring roof squares.

Convert the area to roofing squares. In cases where a roof has a complex shape such as in the image to the right measuring the dimensions and areas of each part of the roof to calculate total area will result in a more accurate measurement of area. To calculate the size of the roof you need to measure the size of the roof as if it were flat account for roof pitch calculate square footage and finally determine how many squares of material are required for the roof the calculator above can handle all of this simply enter the length width and pitch and it will determine the size of the roof in squares. A square of shingles is the number of shingles needed to cover 100 sq feet of roof area.

Since it takes 3 bundles of shingles to cover a square plan to purchase 3 bundles for each square. Shingles and other roofing materials such as underlayment are typically measured in squares that are 10 feet long and 10 feet wide with each square measuring 100 square feet. To estimate roofing materials start by finding the total square footage of the roof and divide the number by 100 to determine the number of squares in the roof. As a result you might need to calculate an estimate of how much it will cost to replace your old roof with a new one.

The calculator cannot account for complex shapes based on a measurement of square footage alone. There are several factors to keep in mind for any estimate. As a rule of thumb there are 3 bundles to a square assuming that you are using three tab strip shingles. The only difference in this calculation to the one for a gable roof area is the amount of the ridge.

Because each 100 square feet of roof is one roofing square divide the total area from step 1 by 100. Before you do any roofing work you must calculate the roof s square footage to determine how much material you need. Get the square footage of roof and divide it by 100 and it will give the number of squares you need and for every decimal number over 3 buy a bundle to achieve the amount of material. A roof s pitch is determined by how much it rises vertically for every foot it runs horizontally.

The answer is the number of roofing squares for the roof. To accurately calculate the area of your roof you must first determine its slope or pitch. Then add 10 to the number to account for waste. 1square of roofing covers 100 square feet of roof a bundle is 1 3 of a square.

The top ridge will be shorter than the one of the gable roof but the four hips will add. However shingles are packaged in a way that they are light enough for the average person to carry around.