Summary: Its not only the way you pour concrete that decides the success for your concrete job; estimating the amount of concrete required also contribute to the overall success of your concrete project. The better the estimate, the more successful your concrete project will be. That is why, it is always recommended that you should always spare enough time in order to discuss and estimate the amount of concrete required with the concrete company.
Companies that sell concrete always welcome discussion for estimating the amount of concrete required. Companies only need you to tell the dimensions of the area where you want to pour the concrete. Once you calculate the dimensions and tell them, the companies, then, can expertly calculate the amount of concrete required.
Lets discuss one of the most common and relatively simple concrete project; building a small 4 inch concrete slab. The reason for choosing a four inch slab is that it easily works with a Cubic foot equation. Most of us know that one Cubic Yard = 27 Cubic then 3 square feet can be taken for each Square foot. Using the above formula, we can derive; 81 square feet per cubic yard of concrete.
In order to understand how to efficiently calculate the amount of concrete required, let us consider a complete example that will calculate the amount of concrete required.
Assume that you have to pour a sidewalk (5 foot) that is almost 100 feet long; how much concrete would you need? 500 square feet would be required. Now further calculation will show that you would actually need 6 and a quarter yard of concrete. If you have calculated that the amount of concrete that would be required is 6 and a quarter yard then to be on the safe side, you should always order 6 and a half yard of concrete.
Quick Look at How to calculate the amount of concrete needed:
Carefully watch the following points in order to learn how to calculate the amount of concrete needed.
· The first thing you need to do is to compute the area where you want to pour concrete. Compute the length in feet and the width in feet and multiply them in order to calculate the area in square feet; length (feet) * width (feet) = area (sq feet)
· Magic Number for rectangles: Depth is another vital factor that should always be taken under consideration while calculating the amount of concrete required. The magic number here is 320; 320 if divided by any depth (inches) will give you a special number that is called the x factor. Simply divide the area in square feet with this x factor to calculate the amount of concrete required for the area in yards.
· In order to get the number of yards from your square feet calculation, simply divide your square feet amount with 80 and you will get the amount in yards; area (sq ft) / 80 = area (yards)
· After calculating the amount of concrete required, discuss the dimensions of the area where you want to pour concrete and your calculated amount of concrete required with the concrete company before ordering it. You must discuss the amount of concrete required with the company before ordering it since they are expert in this field and can expertly comment on your calculations.
· In case of circles, simply follow the following formula; (Radius of the Circle) (square) * 3.14= area in square feet. Now in order to consider the depth as well, follow the same x factor rule that was discussed above. It will give you an answer in yards.
· One useful tip for calculating those areas that are not in irregular shapes is to divide those areas in to several shapes of rectangles and square and the individually calculate the amount of concrete required for all those squares and rectangles or circles. At the end, sum up all of your calculations to get the actual amount of concrete required.
· Always order a little more amount of concrete than the calculated amount.
Be a good calculator; always use Margin of Safety:
As mentioned above, never ever order the exact amount of concrete needed. You should never be so confident about your calculations. In order to avoid any future regrets, always include a margin of safety in your calculations. For instance, if you have calculated the amount of concrete required to be 6 and a quarter yard then you should never order concrete only for a 6 and a quarter yard area, rather you should order concrete for a 6 and a half yard quarter area. In this case, your margin of safety would be quarter yard concrete.
You should discuss the margin of safety with the concrete company as well in order to reduce the left over as much as possible. If you have perfectly calculated the amount of concrete required then you will definitely end up with minimal left over. If you have ordered 20 cubic yard concrete and the left over is 1 cubic yard, it is still considered to be a good calculation and a good deal. Rather than falling short of even a half yard concrete, a half yard left over is far better. So never forget to add a margin of safety in your calculations in order to avoid falling short at the time of pouring concrete.
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