Welded-Wire Reinforcement (Mesh) Sheet Takeoff
Sheets of welded-wire reinforcement (mesh / WWF) for a slab once the side and end laps eat coverage.
Example
You enter
- Slab area to reinforce (ft²) 2000
- Mesh sheet width (ft) 5
- Mesh sheet length (ft) 10
- Side lap (in) 6
- End lap (in) 6
- Waste / cutting allowance (%) 5
You get
- Effective coverage per sheet 42.75 sf
- Sheets 50
- Purchased (ft²) 2500
No published worked example is on file for this calculation. It is checked against a hand-worked derivation of its method and an independent reference test.
Details, formula, and sources
ScopeEffective sheet = (width - side lap)(length - end lap); sheets = ceil(area x (1 + waste) / effective). A 2,000 sf slab with 5x10 sheets at 6 in laps needs 50 sheets, not the 42 a no-lap count suggests.
Formula or tableeffective_sheet_sf = (sheet_width_ft - side_lap_in/12) x (sheet_length_ft - end_lap_in/12); gross_area_sf = slab_area_sf x (1 + waste_pct/100); sheets = ceil(gross_area_sf / effective_sheet_sf); purchased_sf = sheets x sheet_width_ft x sheet_length_ft.
Source and editionLapped-coverage identity by name (mesh lapped one full square); ACI / WRI (Wire Reinforcement Institute) practice; first-principles area arithmetic.
Free accessThe lapped-coverage takeoff is public flatwork practice; WRI mesh-lap guidance is named.
What governsEstimate. AHJ and licensed professional govern.
API field namesslab_area_sf, sheet_width_ft, sheet_length_ft, side_lap_in, end_lap_in, waste_pct, effective_sheet_sf, sheets, purchased_sf
- Lap 6 in side and end lap default (one full square minimum); the drawings governACI / WRI
- Sheet size 5 x 10 ft sheet default; the structural drawings set the style (e.g. 6x6 W2.9)structural drawings