How to Calculate How Many Brick Slips You Need – Practical Guide Before You Order

One of the most common questions during a renovation is surprisingly simple:

“How many brick slips do I actually need?”

And honestly-it’s a good question.

Ordering too little can delay the entire project, while ordering too much means unnecessary cost. The good news? Once you know a few basic rules, calculating everything becomes very straightforward.

In this guide, we’ll show you how to estimate:

• brick slip coverage
• corner pieces
• adhesive
• grout

…so you can plan your project properly from the start.

Step 1: Measure Your Wall

Start by measuring:

• wall width
• wall height

Multiply them together to get the total area.

Example:

Wall width: 4m
Wall height: 2.5m

4 × 2.5 = 10 m²

If your wall has large windows or doors, subtract those areas from the total.

Step 2: Calculate Brick Slip Coverage

Our reclaimed brick slips are sold in crates covering:

0.7 m² per crate

Example:

If your wall is 10 m²:

10 ÷ 0.7 = approx. 14.3 crates

In practice, you should round up and also include a small extra allowance for cuts and waste.

We usually recommend adding:

• 10% extra for standard installations
• slightly more for difficult layouts or many cuts

So for a 10 m² wall, ordering around 15–16 crates is usually the safest option.

Step 3: Don’t Forget Corner Pieces

This is one of the things people forget most often.

Corner brick slips are sold individually, but to make calculations easier:

10 corner pieces cover approximately 0.71 linear metres (including standard grout joints).

Example:

If your project has:

• 2 external corners
• each corner is 2.4m high

Calculation:

2 × 2.4m = 4.8 linear metres

4.8 ÷ 0.71 = approx. 6.8 sets of 10

You’ll need around 68–70 corner pieces.

Step 4: How Much Adhesive Do You Need?

For installation, we recommend using:

SOPRO S-FLEX – a highly flexible slow-set adhesive.

Why does this matter? Because brick slips can be installed in areas exposed to temperature changes, and flexible adhesive helps prevent cracking over time.

Coverage:

1 bag covers approximately 5–5.5 m²

Example:

For a 10 m² wall:

10 ÷ 5 = approx. 2 bags

In most cases, we recommend ordering: 2 bags for up to 10 m² or 3 bags if the wall is uneven or heavily textured

Step 5: Calculate Grout Coverage

We offer:

• grey grout
• white grout

With a standard joint width of 10mm, one bag covers: up to 4 m²

Example:

For a 10 m² installation:

10 ÷ 4 = 2.5 bags

You’ll typically need 3 bags of grout.

Quick Example - Full Calculation

Let’s say you’re installing brick slips on a feature wall:

Wall size:

3.5m × 2.5m = 8.75 m²

Brick slips:

8.75 ÷ 0.7 = approx. 12.5 crates

Recommended order: 13–14 crates

Corners:

2 corners × 2.5m = 5m

5 ÷ 0.71 = approx. 70 corner pieces

Adhesive:

8.75 ÷ 5 = approx. 2 bags

Grout:

8.75 ÷ 4 = approx. 3 bags

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Here are the most common issues we see:

❌ Ordering exact quantities only
❌ Forgetting corners
❌ Not including waste allowance
❌ Underestimating grout usage
❌ Using the wrong adhesive

A little planning at the beginning saves a lot of stress later.

Conclusion

Calculating materials for brick slips is much easier when you break it down step by step.

The most important things to remember:

✔️ measure carefully
✔️ include corners
✔️ add extra for cuts and waste
✔️ use the right adhesive and grout

With proper planning, your installation process becomes smoother, faster, and much more cost-effective.

And most importantly-you avoid the nightmare of running out of materials halfway through the project.