House Floor Construction Details

The floor detail is a drawing which is used to show the assembly of the materials used in constructing floors.

The floor is the initial part of most builds and so must be water sealed and structurally capable of withstanding the forces which will be exerted on it by the rest of the building.

These details are drawn by architects and building designers who use set codes and regulations published by the government’s building authorities.

They are constantly being amended and improved to make the construction as cost effective and energy efficient as possible.

Details are drawn as part of a building regulation application these drawings will have to be submitted for approval prior to work beginning on site.

Once approval is gained they will be used as a reference on site for constructing the house.

There are many types of details used and each will have to be designed specifically to suit the style of the new building.

House Floor Construction - Solid Floor

House Floor Construction - Suspended Floor

Tips on House Floor Construction

Certain item can reduce your budget without have a major impact on your plan. And here is a few ideas related to house floor construction:

Reduce or eliminate the size of the sill plate.

If your foundation is completely level and accurate in its measurements, then installing a sill plate becomes unnecessary. Instead, you have the option to have floor framing which is placed directly on the top of the base of the foundation, and then anchored into place using the metal straps necessary for the project.

Built-up wood beams for construction.

Do you need a center beam to support the floor joists in your construction project? If so, then you need to build a beam that is made from a standard 2x piece of lumber. No need for a more expensive steel frame or a wood beam that’s pricey and laminated. When you’ve got this beam created, then you can fasten the joists directly to this beam.

Fasten the floor joists 24” O.C.

You need to space them properly, so that they coincide with the two-foot module from the planning. By doing this, you will allow the wall studs that are placed at 24” O.C. to be in alignment above the joist perfectly. In many cases, you can use the same sized floor joist that is used with a 16” O.C. as long as the plywood floor is being glue-nailed for fastening, or all of the joists are spliced to be off center.

Utilize the in-line and off-center spliced floor joists that you have.

You can actually increase the span of floor joists that is allowed if you maintain continuity on top of the center bearing beam. How to do this? Splice unequal lengths in your floor joists that are full length, but do this at a less critical piece of the beams, that are away from the center supports.

Try using engineered floor trusses versus regular lumber pieces.

You need to make sure that the trusses will be fully engineered to cover the expanse of the floor, and that only one solid piece of truss is used for the width of the entire house you’re working on. While it’s possible to use them to cover a greater distance, these work especially well then they are spaced at 24" O.C.

You’ll find that a majority of floor trusses have a far wider surface area in order to cover the subfloor adhesive. In addition to all of these benefits when it comes to using trusses, using the open web trusses also give the convenience feature of space for the instance of running plumbing, any wiring or the installation of HVAC vents. It also eliminates the alternative need to box in a utility duct during construction.

Eliminate the need for double floor joists.

You don’t have to, and it isn’t necessary to use double floor joists when you’re working underneath non-load bearing partitions in the interior. As a rule of thumb, you should know that there is no reason to have a joist when you’re working on spaces below non-load bearing walls, as long as you use a 5/8” or thicker piece of subflooring.

Now to reduce or even eliminate the band joist.

A band joist actually has little if any structural function in the design of a room, as long as the wall studs are over the floor joists directly. In the construction process if you find a band joist is needed, then you can use a 1X piece of lumber versus a 2X piece.

Eliminate any bridging in between the floor joists.

Bridging will in no way contribute to strengthening the floor system in your construction project, and is not required under any recent building codes, with the exception of those that are larger than a 2 X 12. Bridging actually has the potentially to cause a squeaking sound when walking on the floor – never a good thing.

Be sure you preplan your floor sheathing to minimize wasteful scraps.

If you make sure to lay the floor out in 2’ or 4’ modules, then you can avoid any waste of materials.

If you use a glued-and-screwed tongue-and-grove plywood floor, you increase the actual span of the floor system.

By using these systems, you have the ability to stiffen the floor, and to eliminate those awful squeaks. This also allows you to skip the need for a separate underlayment, which is extra time and work.

House Floor Construction Plan Drawing