A foot of lumber is a piece 12 inches square and 1 inch thick; a board 12 inches wide, 1 inch thick, and 10 feet long-contains 10 feet of lumber.

To measure boards, - Multiply the length in feet by the width in inches, and divide by 12; the result is the number of feet in the board if 1 inch thick; if 1 1/4 inches thick, add 1/4 if 1 1/2 inch thick, add 1/2 if 2 inches thick, the board will contain twice as many feet, and so on.

How To Measure A Pile Of Lumber

If the boards are of equal length and width, multiply the feet in one board by the number of boards. If the boards are of equal length, but vary in width, measure each board with a tape-line, drawing it out as each board is measured; and when the pile is completed, examine the tape-line, find how many feet you have measured off, and multiply this by the length, in feet, of one board. If the boards vary in length, they must be measured separately, or averaged.

To find number of feet in studding, etc. - Multiply length and breadth in inches by length in feet, and divide the product by 12. The result will be number of feet in the stick.

To find how many feet of lumber a log will make. - Take the average diameter in inches and subtract 4, square one-fourth of the remainder, and multiply by the length of the log in feet. The result will be the correct number of feet that the log will make.

Amount of lumber for a given building. - By applying the foregoing rules, any one may find the number of feet of lumber required for a given building. Begin with sills, and calculate for each kind of lumber separately, adding the results. For clapboarding, add one-third for lapping; for matched flooring, add one-fifth for waste.