Want to fill the gas tank in your vehicle? Know how much coffee you consume per day? Or how much water is actually needed to fill your bathtub? In any of these cases, you need to learn how to calculate cubic feet to get your answer. 

The volume refers to the 3-dimensional space enclosed by boundaries or occupied by an object. There are lots of real-life applications for calculating volume in cubic feet, and in this article, you’ll learn about the most accurate way to do it.

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Cubic feet or ft3 is a unit used to measure volume. This can be used when you want to think about the amount of soil that needs to be added to your flower bed or the amount of liquid to fill a pot. 

Since there are several situations where calculating the volume can come in handy, you need to know how to calculate cubic feet accurately. 

One cubic foot refers to the volume that fills a container with 1 ft X 1 ft X 1 ft dimensions. 

Volume formula = length X width X height. 

So if you have a box-shaped container or a cube with a length that equals 1 foot, width that equals 1 foot, and height that equals 1 foot, then you can calculate the volume as follows.

The same formula can be used if the sides don’t measure the same. So, you can calculate the volume of your microwave, fridge, oven, or sandbox. Using this piece of information, you can calculate the amount of gravel that can fit into your driveway or the amount of water that goes into your aquarium. 

Calculating volume seems like a straightforward task if all the measurements are expressed in feet. All you have to do is to multiply the length by the width and the height. The result refers to the volume of the box-shaped container or space and is calculated in cubic feet. 

If you’re calculating the volume of a cylinder, you need to use a different formula. In the case of a cylinder-like glass bottle, you can calculate volume in this way.

The base could be rectangular or square-shaped, and in this case, Area = Length X Width.

All you have to do is to follow the formula and calculate the volume. If you know the diameter of the base, you can calculate the radius by dividing it by 2. 

So if the radius of the circle is 5 feet and the height is 20 feet, the volume can be calculated in the following way.

Area of base = 3.14 X 5 X 5 = 78.5 ft2.Volume = 78.5 X 20 = 1570 ft3.

How to Calculate Cubic Feet?

It’s possible to calculate the volume of a space or a container if the measurements are expressed in units other than feet. To find the cubic feet volume of such a container, you need to convert the units to feet, then apply the volume formula. 

There are two ways to do this. You can either convert the inches to feet before calculating the volume or after doing so. To convert inches to feet, you need to divide the numbers by 12. 

So, for example, if you have a container that has a length of 24 inches, the width of 48 inches, and a height of 12 inches, you can calculate the volume in cubic feet in two ways.

How to Calculate Cubic Feet From Inches

After you convert all the measurements, you can calculate the volume.

Method 1: Divide the measurements by 12

Volume = 24 X 48 X 12 = 13824 cubic inches.

Volume in feet = 13824/ (12X 12 X 12) = 8 cubic feet. 

As you can see, dividing all the dimensions by 12 before calculating the volume is a lot easier and can make the process easier, especially when you’re dealing with simple numbers. 

The same rule applies if you’re calculating the volume in cubic feet if the radius and height of your cylinder are measured in inches.

Method 2: Calculate the volume then divide the result by 12 three times

You can convert any length measurement to feet to calculate the volume in cubic feet. If your original measures are expressed in:

Inches, you need to divide the number by 12.

Yards, you need to multiply the number by 3.

Centimeters, you need to divide the number by 30.48.

Meters, you need to multiply the number by 3.281

After you do these conversions, you will have your measurements in feet. You can use the volume formula to calculate the volume in cubic feet. 

You can also calculate the volume using the original dimensions, then convert the result to cubic feet: 

If you have the volume calculated in cubic inches, you need to divide the result by 1728. 

If you calculate the volume in cubic yards, you need to multiply the result by 27. 

If you calculate the volume in cubic centimeters, you need to divide the result by 28316.847.

If you calculate the volume in cubic meters, you need to multiply the result by 35.315. 

It’s recommended to use the first method, especially if you’re dealing with different units for every dimension, so you can avoid miscalculations. 


How to Calculate Cubic Feet From Other Units

Calculating the volume in cubic feet can help you in several real-life situations. You can apply the rule of volume = length X width X height if you need to calculate the volume of a square or rectangle. The result will be measured in cubic feet. 

If you have a cylinder, you need to apply the rule of the area of base X height. The result will be measured in cubic feet. 

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How To Calculate Cubic Feet

How to Calculate Cubic Feet?

How to Calculate Cubic Feet From Inches

Method 1: Divide the measurements by 12

Method 2: Calculate the volume then divide the result by 12 three times

How to Calculate Cubic Feet From Other Units

Wrap Up