Floor definition
Approved document C, Site preparation and resistance to contaminants and moisture, suggests that a ‘floor’ can be defined as the: 'Lower horizontal surface of any space in a building including finishes that are laid as part of the permanent construction.'
A floor typically provides:
- Structural support for the contents of the room, its occupants, and the weight of the floor itself.
- Resistance to the passage of moisture, heat and sound.
- A surface finish which may contribute to the look, feel and acoustics of a space.
- Sometimes it may also form an integral part of the primary structure of the building.
- It may also include elements of building services, such as wiring, pipework, ducting, drainage, lighting, ventilation and so on.
The surface finish of a floor is generally referred to as flooring. For more information see: Flooring.
Types of floor include; floating floor, separating floor, sprung floor, raised floor, and so on. For more information, see Types of floor. For more information see: Types of floor.
[edit] Related articles on Designing Buildings
- Basement v cellar.
- Beam and block.
- Concrete floor.
- Cork flooring.
- Deck.
- Decking.
- Domestic floors: Part 1: Construction, insulation and damp proofing.
- Floating floor.
- Floor void.
- Flooring.
- Flooring defects.
- Glass bottle floor foundation.
- Plenum.
- Raised floor.
- Resilient flooring.
- Rubber flooring.
- Screed.
- Separating floor.
- Sprung floor.
- Storey.
- Types of floor.
Featured articles and news
The first line of defence against rain, wind and snow.
Building Safety recap January, 2026
What we missed at the end of last year, and at the start of this...
National Apprenticeship Week 2026, 9-15 Feb
Shining a light on the positive impacts for businesses, their apprentices and the wider economy alike.
Applications and benefits of acoustic flooring
From commercial to retail.
From solid to sprung and ribbed to raised.
Strengthening industry collaboration in Hong Kong
Hong Kong Institute of Construction and The Chartered Institute of Building sign Memorandum of Understanding.
A detailed description from the experts at Cornish Lime.
IHBC planning for growth with corporate plan development
Grow with the Institute by volunteering and CP25 consultation.
Connecting ambition and action for designers and specifiers.
Electrical skills gap deepens as apprenticeship starts fall despite surging demand says ECA.
Built environment bodies deepen joint action on EDI
B.E.Inclusive initiative agree next phase of joint equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) action plan.
Recognising culture as key to sustainable economic growth
Creative UK Provocation paper: Culture as Growth Infrastructure.
Futurebuild and UK Construction Week London Unite
Creating the UK’s Built Environment Super Event and over 25 other key partnerships.
Welsh and Scottish 2026 elections
Manifestos for the built environment for upcoming same May day elections.
Advancing BIM education with a competency framework
“We don’t need people who can just draw in 3D. We need people who can think in data.”





















Comments
[edit] To make a comment about this article, click 'Add a comment' above. Separate your comments from any existing comments by inserting a horizontal line.