What is a linear metre in Australia?

What is a linear metre and is a linear metre the same as a metre? A linear or lineal metre measures the length of a material, regardless of the width. While the width may vary, the length remains the same at 100cm, just like a standard metre.

Linear or lineal metres are used primarily across various trades, such as fencing, roofing and carpeting to measure the length of a material in a single direction. A linear metre is a simple way for tradesman to quantify and price the materials they are using.

In this guide, we discover:

• When to use linear metres
• How to calculate linear metres for certain materials
• The difference between square metres and linear metres, and
• The width of a lineal metre.

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When to use linear metre

You will need to use linear metres when measuring the length of an area in a single direction. This is necessary for many building and renovation tasks, such as fencing, cabling, carpeting, Colorbond roofing, and more.

How to calculate linear metres

Once you know how to calculate linear metres for your project, it’s a pretty simple process. When it comes to carpeting, you first need to figure out the exact area of the room and then divide it by the width of your material.

For example, if you have an area of 70m2 that’s 100mm wide, your linear length is 700mm or 7 linear metres. For materials such as fencing panels it will be much easier to calculate linear metres by the length of the fence line.

There are plenty of online calculators that you can use with trickier measurements, if needed.

For any DIY building project you undertake, you will need to carefully and accurately calculate the area size and the amount of materials required to complete the job. Precise measurements when getting quotes and ordering materials will help ensure you pay for exactly what you need and get the right amount.

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What’s the difference between square metres and linear metres?

While one linear metre is a measurement for the length of a material and is the same length as a standard metre at 100cm, a square metre is a square with each side measuring exactly one metre.

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How to calculate square metres

Need to know how to calculate square metres? For home renovation tasks and building, square metres are used to calculate the total area of a house or specific room. It’s a unit of measurement that helps suppliers with pricing materials, such as tiles, paints, flooring, and much more.

When you need to know the size of a floor, wall or any other area, you will need to calculate the square metres accurately to work out your material costs.

In order to calculate square metres (or m2) of an area, measure the length and width in metres or centimetres. Next, multiply the length by the width to get the total square metre. For example, if you’re measuring a bedroom that is 3.2m long x 3m wide, this would equal 9.6 square metres (m2).

For areas that are shaped differently, you can divide the space into smaller sections to measure them separately. Then simply add the figures together for the total square metre measurement. It’s a good idea to add an extra 10% to your measurements to ensure you have enough materials for the space.

There are plenty of online square metre calculators available to help you with your project.

Get professional help with your measurements

When you’re not sure whether you need to calculate a linear metre or square metres for your project or just need help with measuring up precisely, get in touch with a professional.

You can search Yellow Pages listings for tradesman to help with your job and compare multiple free quotes – whether it’s decking, carpeting, fencing, roofing or more! Qualified tradesman can assist you with measuring or using your calculations to prepare accurate quotes for the job.

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