Guides
Straight answers to the questions that come up while you plan a home or yard project, with the math shown.
Guides
- How Many Bags of Mulch Are in a Cubic Yard?A "yard" of mulch means a cubic yard, the unit bulk mulch is sold by. It's 13.5 two-cubic-foot bags. Here's the math for every bag size, how far each bag goes, and what a cubic yard costs in bags.
- How Deep Should Mulch Be?Mulch should be 2–4 inches deep for most landscape beds. Here's how deep to go by mulch type, how to avoid mulch volcanoes, and when to top up.
- Bagged vs Bulk Mulch: Which Is Cheaper?When is bulk mulch cheaper than bags? See the break-even formula, worked examples at three price levels, and the non-price trade-offs.
- How Much Does a Yard of Gravel Weigh?A cubic yard of gravel weighs about 1.4–1.5 tons. Here's how to convert between yards and tons, what changes the weight, and what that means for hauling it.
- How Much Base Do You Need Under Pavers?Learn how deep the gravel base and sand should be under pavers, how far to dig, how far the base extends past the edges, and how to work out tons of base.
- How Much Sod Is on a Pallet?A pallet of sod usually covers 400–500 square feet. Here's what's on a pallet by sod format, how many pallets common lawns need, and what a pallet costs.
- How Many Cubic Feet Are in a Cubic Yard?There are 27 cubic feet in a cubic yard. Here are conversions for bags, square feet at common depths, and metric, plus the cubic yard vs square yard mix-up.
- How Many Bundles of Shingles Are in a Square?Most asphalt shingles come three bundles to a square (100 sq ft). Here's how to work out squares and bundles for your roof, and how much waste to add.
- How to Measure Roof Pitch (Without Getting on the Roof)Learn three safe ways to measure roof pitch from the attic, a ladder, or your phone, how to read the result, and what pitch means for roofing materials.
- How Much Paint Do I Need for a Room?Learn how much paint to buy for a room, with a table by room size, the formula, and what changes how far a gallon goes.
- How Many Sheets of Drywall Do I Need for a Room?Learn how many sheets of drywall a room needs, with a table by room size, the formula, and screws, mud, and tape to go with it.
- How Much Concrete Do I Need per Fence Post?See bags of concrete per fence post by post size and fence height, with Quikrete's rules for hole width and depth.
- How Much Thin-Set and Grout Do I Need?See thin-set coverage by trowel size and grout by tile size and joint width, with the formulas and tables.
- How Far Apart Should Deck Joists Be?Find the deck joist spacing for straight and diagonal decking, how many joists a deck needs, and the board gaps to use.