Gross vs. net wall area for siding — subtracting windows and doors, then adding waste

Size a siding order by net area, not the whole wall: subtract the windows and doors from the gross wall, then add 10–15% for cuts and coursing.

A wall elevation showing how to size a siding order. The whole wall, dimensioned by width and height, is the gross area. The window and the door are cut out and subtracted; the shaded remainder is the net siding area (gross wall minus openings). A separate note shows that a 10 to 15 percent waste factor is then added for cut-off and even coursing. Siding is ordered by net area plus waste, never by the gross wall alone. — Source: Standard siding take-off (net wall area + waste factor)

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A wall elevation showing how to size a siding order. The whole wall, dimensioned by width and height, is the gross area. The window and the door are cut out and subtracted; the shaded remainder is the net siding area (gross wall minus openings). A separate note shows that a 10 to 15 percent waste factor is then added for cut-off and even coursing. Siding is ordered by net area plus waste, never by the gross wall alone.

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    <img src="https://remodelcalculators.com/api/figure-embed/siding-wall-area" alt="A wall elevation showing how to size a siding order. The whole wall, dimensioned by width and height, is the gross area. The window and the door are cut out and subtracted; the shaded remainder is the net siding area (gross wall minus openings). A separate note shows that a 10 to 15 percent waste factor is then added for cut-off and even coursing. Siding is ordered by net area plus waste, never by the gross wall alone." width="800" height="460" style="width:100%;height:auto;border:0" loading="lazy">
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    Diagram: <a href="https://remodelcalculators.com/construction-diagrams/siding-wall-area" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Gross vs. net wall area for siding — subtracting windows and doors, then adding waste</a> — courtesy of <a href="https://remodelcalculators.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">RemodelCalculators.com</a>
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