Starting a new flooring project is an exciting prospect. It’s one of the most transformative upgrades you can make, a chance to completely reinvent the look and feel of a room from the ground up. But before you can get to the fun part of choosing colors and materials, you have to tackle the most critical and often tedious first step: measuring your space.
Traditionally, this meant wrestling with a clumsy tape measure, jotting down numbers on a scrap of paper, and doing complicated math, all while hoping you didn’t make a costly error. This is especially true when you’re considering a modern, seamless surface like rubber flooring for a patio or pool deck. An accurate measurement is the foundation of a good quote and a flawless installation. Thankfully, the smartphone in your pocket is now a powerful tool that can help you measure your space with a new level of ease and precision.
If you’re ready to plan your next flooring project, here are four tips for using technology to get it right.
1. Use an Augmented Reality (AR) Measuring App
The most powerful measuring tool you own is likely the phone you’re holding right now. Modern smartphones are equipped with sophisticated cameras and sensors that can be used for augmented reality (AR), which allows you to overlay digital information onto the real world.
AR measuring apps use your phone’s camera to calculate distances between points in a room. You can simply open the app, point your camera, and tap on the corners of your room. The app will measure the length of each wall and can often automatically calculate the total square footage for you. It’s an incredibly fast and intuitive way to get a very close estimate for your project.
2. Create a Digital Floor Plan in Minutes
For a more comprehensive view of your project, you can use one of the many apps designed to create a full digital floor plan. These apps use your phone’s camera to scan the room, automatically detecting the walls, doors, and windows to generate a surprisingly accurate 2D floor plan.
This digital blueprint is a fantastic tool for the planning phase. It can be easily shared with your spouse or a designer, and it’s an invaluable asset when you’re requesting a quote from a contractor or flooring company. It gives them a clear and precise understanding of the space they will be working with.
3. “See It in Your Room” with Visualization Tools
One of the hardest parts of choosing a new floor is trying to imagine what it will actually look like in your space. How will that color look with your wall paint? How will that pattern work with your furniture?
Many major flooring brands and retailers now offer AR-powered visualization tools on their websites to solve this exact problem. These tools allow you to upload a photo of your room or use your live camera to virtually overlay their different flooring options onto your own space. This allows you to “try before you buy” and experiment with different styles and colors with a level of realism that was once impossible. These visualization tools are a game-changer for homeowners.
4. Don’t Forget the “Waste Factor” and the Details
While technology is a fantastic tool, it’s important to remember the real-world practicalities of a flooring installation. No matter how you measure, you will always need to order more material than your exact square footage. This is known as the “waste factor.”
For any type of tile, plank, or roll flooring, you will need to make cuts to fit the material around the edges of the room and around any obstacles. You should always plan to order an extra 10-15% of material to account for these cuts and any potential mistakes. Use your digital measurements to calculate your base square footage, and then add the waste factor to get your final order quantity. Also, use your phone’s camera to take detailed photos of any tricky areas, like a curved wall or a transition to a different type of flooring, to share with your installer.
Technology has taken much of the guesswork and frustration out of planning a flooring project. By using these simple digital tools, you can plan your next renovation with more accuracy, confidence, and creativity than ever before.
