Divide Any Length in Half Without Using Math
You don’t need a calculator to quickly find the center of something with an unusual length, like 37 5/8 inches. The smart folks at This Old House show us two ways to quickly split a piece in half using a tape measure.
In the video above, Tom Silva demonstrates two methods. The first option is easier because it only uses one tape measure:
- Measure your item. In this case, the board.
- Round to a higher number that is easily divisible by two. In this example, 40 inches.
- Run the tape measure diagonally across the board until the 40-inch graduation lines up with one edge.
- Draw a line with a pencil on the 20 “graduation line (half 40). This will be the center of the 37 5/8 “board.
The second method is to use two tape measures, pulling each tape across from opposite edges, and find where the identical size is. This is the center.
Math is fun, but sometimes math abbreviations are even more fun.
Ask Tom: How To Find Measurements Without Math | This old house