Carpentry Math: Board Feet, Rafters, Stairs, Framing & Material Takeoffs
Read decimal feet as feet, inches and 16ths, price lumber by the board foot, count studs, plates and headers, find rafter lengths with Pythagoras and pitch angles with ATAN, lay out stairs against code-style limits, order sheet goods and decking with waste and fasteners, and price the job with markup and a chart: 8 graded labs for apprentices, builders and serious DIYers. Illustrative values; your local building code applies.
The first lesson is free — no account needed.
About this course
A carpentry math course that plans and prices the garage workshop of one fictional builder, Cedarline Builders, in a spreadsheet, for carpentry apprentices, framers, builders, estimators and serious DIYers. You turn decimal feet into feet, inches and sixteenths, price a lumber list by the board foot with tax and delivery, count studs, plates and headers for five walls, find rafter lengths with Pythagoras and pitch angles with ATAN and chart them, lay out stairs and check risers and treads against illustrative limits, order OSB, plywood and drywall sheets with a waste factor, take off a deck's joists, boards and screws, and price the job with labour, overhead and markup in a stacked chart. Illustrative values: the building code adopted where you build and the approved drawings apply, with no affiliation with any code body. The first lab is free.
Lessons
- Tape Math: Decimal Feet to Feet, Inches & 16thsFree
- Board Feet & Lumber Cost: BF per Piece, Totals, Tax & Delivery Pro
- Wall Framing Takeoff: Studs, Plates & Headers Pro
- Common Rafters: Pitch Angle with ATAN, Length with Pythagoras (Chart) Pro
- Stair Layout: Risers, Treads, Total Run & Code-Style Checks Pro
- Sheet Goods: OSB, Plywood & Drywall Sheets with a Waste Factor Pro
- Decking & Fasteners Takeoff: Joists, Board Rows, Screws & Boxes Pro
- Job Estimate: Labour, Overhead, Markup, Margin & a Cost Chart Pro