Outdoor projects
Calculators for outdoor building projects: bags of concrete for slabs and posts, fence posts and pickets, and deck boards with fasteners.
- Concrete Calculator Bags of concrete for slabs, footings, and post holes in every bag size, with cost and cubic yards for ready-mix.
- Fence Calculator Posts, rails, pickets, and post concrete for a wood fence, with gates, corners, and even picket spacing.
- Deck Board Calculator Deck boards by length with the fewest joints and least waste, plus hidden clips or screws, for straight or diagonal decks.
Plan the materials, check the rules
Outdoor projects are bought in pieces you can count: bags of concrete, posts, pickets, rails, boards, and boxes of screws. The calculators here turn your measurements into those counts and round up so you don’t run short halfway through a pour or a fence line.
What they don’t do is structural design. Footing depth, post spacing for tall fences, and deck joist spans depend on your soil, frost depth, wind, and local code. Before you dig, check with your city or county building department about permits, setbacks, and frost depth, and call 811 so buried utility lines are marked for free.
Buy a little extra
Concrete that runs short sets with a visible seam, so an extra bag or two is cheap insurance. Lumber has knots, splits, and warped boards, so pick through the pile and plan on a few spares. Keep receipts. Unopened bags and unused boards can usually go back to the store.
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