How to Figure Yards of Topsoil
- 1). Measure in feet the length and width of the area to which you will apply the topsoil. Write both of these numbers on your piece of paper.
- 2). Use the calculator for the remaining steps, if desired. Divide both the length and the width by 3 to get the yards for the length and the width of your yard or topsoil area. For instance, a small garden measuring 12 feet by 12 feet would be 4 yards by 4 yards after dividing both measurements by 3.
- 3). Determine the depth in inches of the topsoil you wish to apply, and divide that number by 12. For instance, a topsoil depth of 3 inches divided by 12 is the same as 0.25 feet of topsoil.
- 4). Divide the feet for the depth of topsoil by 3 to get the number of yards deep. In the example of topsoil at 0.25 feet deep, divide this by 3 to get a depth of 0.08125 yards.
- 5). Multiply the answers for the depth in yards by the length and width in yards for the total cubic yardage of topsoil needed. In the example, multiply 0.08125 yards x 4 yards X 4 yards to get a total cubic yardage of 1.3 yards of topsoil.
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