Calculating Area (1512)

I have really been hoping to replace the carpet in my basement for quite some time and I’m debating on spending the money now or not. What does this have to do with math you might ask? EVERYTHING! I have to take the materials and labor into account, along with my monthly family budget.

 

One option would be to replace only the spare bedroom; the other option would be to include the whole basement hallway, family room and bedroom. While trying to figure out if it was a justified expense I first need to calculate the area to be covered. The bedroom is rather small with a closet that should be included.

To determine the area of carpet needed, I first had to decide if my room was a square or rectangle to use the appropriate formulas. I quickly realized that the room is longer than it is wide just be estimation, so I concluded that this room is a rectangle.

The formula to find the area of a rectangle is: Area = length x width 

The formula to find the area of a square is: Area = s x s where s is the length of each side

The measurements of the room are 14 feet long x 12 feet wide = 168 square feet. I also need to have matching carpet in the closet as well or it wouldn’t look too good if we ever decide to sell. The closet is essentially another long skinny rectangle that is 12 feet long and 3 feet wide = 36 feet. The total area needed is 204 feet (36 feet for closet + 168 feet for the main bedroom). You can imagine this as needing 204 of those squares that are 12” x 12” and putting them end-to-end for the whole room. Of course there will need to be some cuts made when they put the closet portion in for the door, so there will be a waste factor that I will include about 10%, or another 20 square feet. The total square footage I would buy is 225.

I shopped around, and for a decent carpet pad underneath and the actual carpet, I’m looking at about $3.50 per square foot x 225 square feet = $787.50 for the entire bedroom. I have a friend who would install it with my husband so it would only cost me the food and beverage while he was there. I know that I could go a cheaper route and spend less on materials, but I’d rather buy something that will last. Unfortunately after doing all of the computations, I think I will just have to shut that bedroom door and pretend like it doesn’t bother me. I’m an unemployed non-traditional student who has a pretty strict budget right now. My accounting background tells me that I should focus my funds on paying off debt and creating a savings until I land that great elementary teaching position in another 3 years!

Here is a link to a website, Math is Fun, that can help with calculating the area of different objects.