Estimating the amount of paint for a single room or the entire home interior is best done by having information. That information should be the total area of the ceiling and wall surfaces plus the amount of trim and doors. If you make only two measurements per room, you can find the surface area and trim length by following a few basic procedures.
Instructions
1. Measure the first room's length and width. If the room has an odd measurement such as 11 feet and 8 inches, round up to the nearest foot. The 11 feet 8 inches becomes a full 12 feet.
2. Find the square footage of the room and record it on your paper. For example, if the room measures 12 feet by 18 feet, multiply 12 feet times 18 feet, which equals 216 square feet. This is the area of the ceiling.
3. Find the area of the wall surface. Every standard home has a ceiling height of 8 feet. So one wall would be 12 feet times 8 feet, which equals 96 square feet. Double this number and you will have the complete area for the two 12-foot long walls, which is 192 square feet.
4. Find the area of the other walls in the same way -- 8 feet times 18 feet times two walls is equal to 288 square feet.
5. Add all three area measurements together, and the total square footage for the painted room is equal to: 216 sq ft (ceiling) + 192 sq ft (wall 1) + 288 sq ft (wall 2) = 696 square feet. If the walls or ceiling are to be a different color, make note of this on your list and do not add the area for a total square footage of the paint required for the room.
6. Find the length of the baseboard trim by adding all of the wall lengths together. This will be 12 feet plus 12 feet, which is equal to 24 feet. The opposite walls are 18 feet plus 18 feet, which is equal to 36 feet.
7. Adding the two together, the baseboard has a total running length of 60 feet.
8. Finding the square footage of the baseboard depends on its height. A four-inch-high baseboard can be calculated by dividing 4 inches by 12 inches in one foot, which equals .33 feet.
9. Multiply 60 feet times .33 feet and the square footage of the baseboard is equal to 20 square feet.
10. Find the area of the door in the same manner as the room. Measure the door's length and width and round up to the nearest foot. Because most interior doors are 2 feet 6 inches wide and 6 feet 6 inches tall, figure 3 feet times 7 feet, which equals 21 square feet.
11. Calculate the rest of the home's rooms in the same way by making a list of each room's measurements.
12. Order the paint quantities by the manufacturer's labeling of specifications. Not all paints are made the same, and coverage area depends on the type of paint used.
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