Estimating in Building Construction

Finishes 209

estimator, this means taking care to bid the color, design,
thickness (gauge), size, and finish that is specified.
Accessories include wall base, stair tread, stair nosings,
thresholds, feature strips, and reducing strips. The color and
design variations are more limited in the accessories than in
the flooring materials.

Specifications. From the specifications, the color,
design, gauge (thickness), size of tile or sheet, adhesives,
subfloor preparation, and any particular pattern require-
ments may be found. Fancy patterns may be shown on the
drawings and in most cases will have a higher percentage
of waste.
Note which areas will require the various types of
resilient flooring, since it is unusual for one type, color, size,
design, and so forth to be used throughout the project. The
wall base may vary in height from area to area; this can be
determined from the specifications, room finish schedule,
and details.

Estimating. Resilient tile is estimated by the square foot:
the actual square footage of the surface to be covered plus an
allowance for waste. The allowance will depend on the area
and shape of the room. When designs and patterns are made
of tile or a combination of feature strips and tile, a sketch of
the floor and an itemized breakdown of required materials
should be made. The cost of laying tile will vary with the size
and shape of the floor, size of the tile, type of subfloor and
underlayment, and the design. Allowable waste percentages
are shown in Figure 16.10.
Feature strips must be taken off in linear feet, and if they
are to be used as part of the floor pattern, the square footage
of feature strips must be subtracted from the floor area of
tile or sheets required.
For floors that need sheet flooring, the estimator must
do a rough layout of the floors involved to determine the
widths required, the location where the roll will be cut, and
ways to keep waste to a minimum. Waste can amount to
between 30 and 40 percent if the flooring is not well laid out
or if small amounts of different types are required.
Each area requiring different sizes, designs, patterns,
types of adhesives, or anything else that may be different
must be kept separately if the differences will affect the cost

of material and amount of labor required for installation

(including subfloor preparation).

Wall base (also referred to as cove base) is taken off by

the linear foot. It is available in vinyl and rubber, with

heights of 2^1 ⁄ 2 , 4, and 6 inches and in lengths of 42 inches, and

50 and 100 feet. Corners are preformed, so the number of

interior and exterior corners must be noted.

Adhesives are estimated by the number of gallons

required to install the flooring. To determine the number of

gallons, divide the total square footage of flooring by the cov-

erage of the adhesive per gallon (in square feet). The coverage

usually ranges from 150 to 200 sf per gallon but will vary

depending on the type used and the subfloor conditions.

EXAMPLE 16-6 COMMERCIAL BUILDING

Assume that the entire commercial building in Appendix A was to

be covered with resilient flooring (main level only).

41 ⁄ 2 –

Gallons of Adhesive

Linear Feet of Vinyl Base

From Example 16-1, the interior walls measure 346 lf. From the

drawings in Appendix A, there are 375 lf of exterior walls.

Deductions for doors:

Add 5 percent for waste—use 1,046 lf

With an adhesive coverage of 150 sf per gallon—order 3 gallons



Labor. Subcontractors who specialize in resilient floor

installation generally do this type of work, and they may

price it on a unit basis (per square foot) or on a lump sum.

The time required for resilient floor installation is shown in

Figure 16.11.

sf of base1,046¿ 4 – 1,046¿0.33¿346 sf

Net base1,067 lf71 lf996 lf

10 at 3¿ 0 – (1 at 1 side, 9 at 2 sides)57 ft

2 at 4¿ 0 – (2 sides)8 ft

1 at 6¿ 0 – (1 side)6 ft

Gross feet of base(2346) 375 1,067 lf

Use 34 gallons

Gallons of adhesive5,084 sf resilient flooring>150 sf per gallon

Required adhesive: coverage 150 sf per gallon

Resilient flooring required 5,338 sf

Add 5 percent for waste

Net area of floor (sf )5,218 sf134 sf5,084 sf

Area under walls122 sf12 sf134 sf

Area (26 walls) 21 ¿ 7 –  21 ¿0.583¿12 sf

Area (24 walls) 325 ¿  325 ¿0.375¿ 122 sf

Area taken by interior walls (Example 16-1)

Net sf of floor area5,893 375  300 5,218 sf

FIGURE 16.10.Approximate Waste for

Resilient Tile.