How to Calculate Water Volume

More difficult than calculating the volume of a solid object with definite sides, calculating the volume of water depends on the container that is holding the water. While using inches that are used to calculate lengths and widths, water volume must be indicated in a measurement of liquids, such as gallons in the United States. Calculating water volume uses similar principles to other volumes, but adds this liquid measurement.

Things You'll Need

• Calculator Measuring tape

Instructions

1. Rectangle
   Multiply the length by the width by the height of the container of water.
   Triangle
   Multiply the length by the width by the depths by .5.
   Oval
   Multiply the depth by the the width by the height by .25. by 3.14.
   Cylinder
   Multiply the radius by 3.14 by the depth.

2. Convert your products from Step 1 from their current state (cubic inches) to cubic feet by dividing them by 12.

3. Multiply the number of cubic feet by 7.48 to reach the volume in total gallons, which can be easily converted to any other unit of liquid measurement.

References

• Calculating Water Volume