Board foot calculation

A board foot is a unit of measure that is used for estimating purposes. It represents a piece of lumber that is 12 inches wide by 1 foot long by 1 inch thick. This formula shows the basic calculation for board feet (BF):

• Thickness (T) * Width (W) * Length (L) /12

This calculation can be used to calculate the board foot for many of pieces of lumber at one time. You would multiply the pieces by the thickness by the width by the length, and divide the result by 12.

If lumber is thicker than one inch, use the equivalent value as the (T)hickness, instead of 1. For example, you would use 1.25 in the calculation if the lumber is 1¼ inches thick.