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A floor plan is the heart of the construction drawings in the house construction process . It is a 2D drawing that indicates the area, structure, stairs location, doors, and windows, the type and size of the house, and the entire home layout. Floor plans also illustrate the property outline like the interiors and garden areas. They offer an entire home design view which entails the measurements and technical information to assist you with your project management.

The floor plan provides a bird’s eye view of the construction project and helps you visualize your house. The floor plan allows you to be clear with the structural elements and exercise control on the final design and construction timelines.

A floor plan can be tricky and there are things you should keep well in mind before you start:

1. Building Codes and Regulations – Building codes and regulations are mandatory and can lead to demolition by the municipal corporations if not followed. The most common codes are with respect to footprint, margins from the road, fire requirements, utilities, etc.

2. Budget – You might want to develop the design first and determine the expenses later in a case where you have massive funds available at your disposal and vice versa if your funds are constrained.

3. Measure your furniture and plan the space - Before drawing a floor plan, you’ll have to get acquainted with the amount of space you got and consider the extrusions. Measure your furniture and walking areas to determine the amount of space you will need in your floor plan.

4. Keep interior locations in mind – While you can change a floor plan in the future, you cannot change the space. Hence, you should always keep the surroundings of your home in mind. Location is key when finalising your floor plan.

How to read a floor plan?

A floor plan generally has an arrow that symbolises North, which allows you to understand the rest of the directions and relative placement. A small arrow symbolises the main entrance and signifies the entry direction. Here is how you can read the rest of the major elements of the floor plan:

Walls, doors, and windows – Walls are represented with solid patterns or parallel lines. While windows are represented using three parallel lines, doors are represented using a straight line perpendicular to the wall. An arc connects the line to the wall which symbolises the direction in which it opens. The breaks between the walls indicate doors, windows, and openings to the rooms.

Stairs – A stairway is usually represented using a rectangle series with an arrow pointing towards the direction of your travel. On a floor plan, you might also see dashed lines after a diagonal cut. These lines are representative of stairs rising three feet above the ground.

Furniture and fittings – Key fixtures and appliances are easy to spot as they are generally shown as commonly understood icons. The location of these fixtures helps in determining the comfort of the adjoining areas. Here are some commonly used abbreviations to look out for: -

B – Basin

BC – Bookcase

CAB – Cabinet

CBD – Cupboard

CL- Closet

DW – Dishwasher

EF – Exhaust fan

O/OV – Oven

REF- Refrigerator

SHR – Shower

WC –Toilet

VP – Vent Pipe

WR – Wardrobe

4. Ceiling – A ceiling is generally not a part of the floor plan. However, the lower floor may show the ceiling height numerically, using a dashed line.

5. Measurements – Floor plans have dimension strings to help you locate windows, walls, doors, and other elements. These dimension strings are usually represented by hash marks indicating where the measurement starts and ends.

Common Terminologies used in a floor plan

Rendering – An elevation drawing representing what a house will look like from different perspectives after construction is finished

3D Elevation – The view of a 3D shape when the plan is looked at from the side or front. A 3d elevated plan explains the interior spaces without actually having to incur the time and cost of individual room renderings

Blueprint – Architectural drawing used as the contractor’s guide. This is referred to the old method of drawing white lines on a blue paper

Bumwad – Also called as trace paper or scratch paper, Bumwad is a tracing paper used by architects to draw initial floor plans.

Schematic – Rough drawing representing a general overview of the project. This is the initial design phase where you will closely work with your architect to produce a foundational design

Dollhouse view – View of a floor without ceilings. This view is used to illustrate traffic flow and the relationship between spaces

The floor plan is going to be a very crucial element for you if you are planning to build a house. Good designs begin with space planning. Earlier floor plans were two-dimensional, presenting a flat view from the top, showing the house layout. However, now most architects use 3D renderings to visualise space, furniture elements, and the aesthetic architecture of a building plan in real-time.

Align your floor plan as per Vaastu

Once your home is ready, it becomes twice as difficult to make allowance for Vaastu-related concerns. However, with your floor plan in hand before your house is ready, you can also use it to make your home Vaastu appropriate.

Want to know some tips on how to make your house Vaastu compliant? Read our article “6 tips to make your house Vaastu compliant” to know more.