Finishes: Floor, Wall and Ceiling Finishes Measurement
Finishes reward a systematic room-by-room approach. This domain tests whether you can derive floor, wall, ceiling and skirting quantities from one set of room dimensions without double counting or missing the openings.
Units
- Floor, wall and ceiling finishes in m²; skirting, coving, trims and thresholds in m.
- Screeds in m² where thin, or m³ where thick, with mix and thickness stated.
- Suspended ceilings in m² with grid type, tile type and hanger depth; access panels enumerated.
- Painting and decorating by area with the number of coats, the surface and the preparation stated.
Deductions and additions
- Openings above the threshold are deducted and smaller ones ignored. Reveals, returns and window boards are measured as extra over.
- Skirting runs around the room but stops at door openings; a threshold strip is a separate linear item.
Worked example
A room 5.000 × 4.000 m, height 2.700 m, one door 0.900 × 2.100 m, one window 1.500 × 1.200 m. Floor = 5.000 × 4.000 = 20.000 m². Ceiling = 20.000 m², with no deductions. Walls = 2 × (5.000 + 4.000) × 2.700 = 48.600 m²; less door 1.890 m² and window 1.800 m², giving 44.910 m². Skirting = perimeter 18.000 m − 0.900 m door = 17.100 m. The skirting follows the wall line but is interrupted by the door opening, and the ceiling carries no deductions in a room with no rooflight.
Traps that cost marks
- Forgetting the door opening when measuring the skirting run.
- Measuring wall finish to structural rather than finished dimensions, so the plaster thickness is lost.
- Counting one coat when the specification requires three.
- Deducting a small window the method says to ignore, or ignoring a large one.
- Measuring a suspended ceiling without stating grid, tile and hanger depth, making the rate ambiguous.