Quickly determine the quantity of plywood sheets and the total cost required for a project
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This plywood calculator is designed to help general contractors, home builders, and remodelers quickly calculate how many sheets of plywood are needed based on square footage and a set percentage of waste. The calculator also helps determine a total cost based on a specified price per sheet and sheets required.
Plywood is a wood product created by gluing together several thin layers, or "plies," of wood veneer. The layers are put together with their grain running perpendicular to the layers it's combined with, significantly increasing the strength and durability of the finished sheet. This process makes plywood a great material for a wide range of projects, from walls and flooring to furniture and general construction projects. Plywood is know for its ability to withstand bending, cracking, splitting, and warping making it a popular material for general contractors, home builders, and remodelers.
Plywood is graded on a range from A (the highest quality) to D (the lowest quality), based on the plywood's veneer quality. `Grade A` plywood is smooth and free from defects, making it most suitable for higher end projects, such as furniture and cabinets. In contrast, `Grade D` plywood could be very rough, have visible imperfections or knots, making it better for projects where appearance is not important, such as a flooring base. The grading is based on the top and bottom layers of the plywood sheet. Some plywood, such as CDX plywood, is made intentionally with different grades on each side. The top may have a C grade, while the bottom would have a D grade, designed with the intent to be used in construction projects (and to be less expensive).
The most common sheet size for plywood is 4 x 8 (4 feet by 8 feet). This is a common size for construction materials in general due to its surface area and ease of transporting. While that's the standard size, plywood sheets can be found in other sizes as well based on its intended use. For example, you may find a higher grade sheet that's 5 x 5 that's intended to be used for cabinetry and furniture.
The thickness of plywood sheets can vary as well depending on the intended application. Some examples include:
To determine how many sheets of plywood you need for a project you start by measuring the length and width of the area in feet where the plywood is being applied. This will give you the total square footage for the project area. Once you have that, simply divide this number by the square footage of a single piece of plywood (i.e. 32 feet for a 4' x 8' sheet) to get the total number of sheets that you need. This is what the project area will require, but you may also account for some waste as well to cover for any screw ups or unusable scraps from sheets. Your potential waste is largely dependent on the type of project your working on, however 10% is a fairly common percentage to account for. To factor in a waste percentage, simply multiply the total square footage of the project area by the percentage and add this total to the original square footage. For example, if you project is 300 square feet and you're factoring a waste percentage of 10%, the waste would be 30 square feet (300 *.10). Using this example, you would need 10.31 sheets of plywood (330/32), which you could choose to round down to 10 or round up to 11.
