What Is A Suspended Concrete Floor

This reduces the overall embodied energy and makes for less costly construction.

What is a suspended concrete floor.

Suspended concrete slab is referred to a cement slab that is not in contact with the ground. There are two basic ways to make the floors of a building. When selecting a floor construction there are a number of functional requirements that need to be considered. Instead of timber joists suspended concrete floor constructions use pre cast concrete planks or smaller pre cast concrete beams with concrete blocks laid in between.

Suspended floors a suspended concrete floor is a floor slab where its perimeter is or at least two of its opposite edges are supported on walls beams or columns that carry its self weight and imposed loading. There are various pros and cons to these types of floor some of which impact on the energy efficiency of the building and how you go about insulating them. Suspended slabs are made of concrete and steel mesh the same as a ground slab. They are often preferred as they can span greater distances than timber joists can.

Suspended concrete floors can be supported on timber structures and do not necessarily require steel or masonry support if designed by a qualified engineer with experience in timber design. The floor can be formed in various ways using timber joists precast concrete panels block and beam system or cast in situ with reinforced concrete. Suspended concrete floor construction is increasingly the most common flooring system specified in residential construction. They are normally pre fabricated offsite and transported by truck.

It s also common to have suspended concrete floors in a domestic and commercial property. This is generally an old fashioned type of floor and there are much more modern options available including solid floors which tend to need less maintenance in the long term. Some slabs have hollow channels running through them these hollow core slabs are used to help reduce weight and also to allow cabling and piping to be run through the slab. You can either have a concrete base or a suspended floor usually made out of timber.