Blog › Construction Calculators Contractor Calculator · Plywood Plywood Calculator: Sheets, Coverage, and Cost Enter your area and sheet size. Sheets needed, total coverage, and cost update as you type. Try SimplyWise Cost Estimator freeFree to try. A photo becomes an itemized estimate in about 6 seconds. ★★★★★ 4.8 on the App Store for SimplyWise […]
How to Create a Construction Schedule: 4 Steps for 2026
Blog › How to Estimate How to Estimate · Scheduling How to Create a Construction Schedule: 4 Steps for 2026 How to create a construction schedule that holds past week one: task order, a duration cap borrowed from a state DOT spec, and who owns float when a delay hits. Try SimplyWise Cost Estimator freeFree […]
How to Calculate Labor Cost: The Burdened Rate Formula
Blog › How to Estimate How to Estimate · Labor Cost How to Calculate Labor Cost: The Burdened Rate Formula How to calculate labor cost as a burdened hourly rate: wage, payroll taxes, insurance, and benefits, divided by the hours you actually bill, not the hours you pay for. Try SimplyWise Cost Estimator freeFree to […]
Conduit Body: The Types, the Volume, and the Splice Rule
Blog › How to Estimate Contractor Glossary · Electrical Conduit Body: The Types, the Volume, and the Splice Rule Most crews believe any conduit body can hold a splice. The permission is conditional, and the condition is cast into the body. Pricing the conduit run? Estimate it from a photo. ★★★★★ 4.8 on the App […]
What Is a Cripple Wall? Code, Bracing and Retrofit
Blog › How to Estimate Trade Term · Framing What Is a Cripple Wall? Code, Bracing and Retrofit The short stud wall under the floor. It is a code section in new work and the vulnerability the retrofit standards were written for. Quoting a retrofit? Estimate it from a photo. ★★★★★ 4.8 on the App […]
Attic Access Requirements: R807 and the Equipment Rule
Blog › How to Estimate Contractor Explainer · IRC R807 Attic Access Requirements: R807 and the Equipment Rule Two rules, two triggers, two openings. Most pages run them together, and that fails inspections. Pricing the attic work? Estimate it from a photo. ★★★★★ 4.8 on the App Store for SimplyWise Cost Estimator SimplyWise Updated September […]
What Is a Header in Construction? Spans and Sizing
Blog › How to Estimate Trade Term · Framing What Is a Header in Construction? Spans and Sizing A header is the beam over an opening. The size comes off one table, and that table splits by what the wall carries. Pricing the opening? Estimate it from a photo. ★★★★★ 4.8 on the App Store […]
Finish Carpentry: What It Covers and Where Rough Ends
Blog › How to Estimate Contractor Glossary · Trades Finish Carpentry: What It Covers and Where Rough Ends The trim, the casing, the stairs and the built-ins. Here is the scope line, and the number nobody publishes. Bidding trim? Estimate it from a photo. ★★★★★ 4.8 on the App Store for SimplyWise Cost Estimator SimplyWise […]
AWG Meaning: What the Wire Gauge Number Actually Tells You
Blog › How to Estimate Contractor Glossary · Electrical AWG Meaning: What the Wire Gauge Number Actually Tells You The AWG meaning starts with a size. The size sets an ampacity. A different code section sets the breaker. Pricing the electrical scope? Estimate it from a photo. ★★★★★ 4.8 on the App Store for SimplyWise […]
Egress Window Requirements: The R310 Numbers That Count
Blog › How to Estimate Contractor Explainer · IRC R310 Egress Window Requirements: The R310 Numbers That Count Every figure quoted to the subsection that publishes it, cross checked against a second jurisdiction, measured against a real window. Pricing the basement finish? Estimate it from a photo. ★★★★★ 4.8 on the App Store for SimplyWise […]