Explore the process of interpreting floor plans and understanding their complexities. This article provides an in-depth look into the components of a residential floor plan, including the significance of graphic scales, dimension lines and architectural symbols used.
Key Insights
- The title block of a floor plan provides crucial information such as the page number and scope of the drawing. A graphic scale is also included, which can be used to estimate measurements.
- Dimensions on floor plans usually follow a specific order. The first string of dimensions represents the total size, the second string indicates major changes in the structure, and the third string provides measurements from one wall face to another.
- The article also emphasizes the importance of window symbol numbers, which provide specific details about each window in the building. Center lines are also used to indicate the midpoint of a feature, like a window or door.
Note: These materials offer prospective students a preview of how our classes are structured. Students enrolled in this course will receive access to the full set of materials, including video lectures, project-based assignments, and instructor feedback.
Let's begin looking at the first floor plan for the residence. Again, on the bottom right corner of the sheet is the title block. You can see that we're on page A1.0. The graphic area for the house is here.
What you'll also notice is that there is a graphic scale down there. So let's zoom in on that area. You can see that it's showing 0,1 foot, 2 foot, 3,4, up to 8 feet.
And there are smaller increments there. The drawing is at a quarter inch equals a foot. If you were to print this drawing, regardless, you can always take this area, the graphic scale, and you can copy it, lay it against something to confirm what a measurement is approximately.
Now, the general rule is that you never scale off the drawings. If you have a question, you contact the architect, you contact the designer, and you say, what's the dimension from here to here? You do not measure it yourself. But the graphic scale tends to be a very good way of letting people roughly estimate information.
Now, as we start developing into the building, you will notice a lot of similarities from what we've covered before in that you have the building, you have dimensions that go around the building. Now, let me talk to you about some of the procedures in how dimensions normally work. You can see that on this top row, we have three rows of dimensions.
Learn Blueprint Reading
- Nationally accredited
- Create your own portfolio
- Free student software
- Learn at your convenience
- Authorized Autodesk training center
The first dimension is typically an overall dimension. So this is saying that it's right around 60 feet, 7 inches. The dimension line, I go to the slash right here.
So the beginning dimension is going down to here to the outside face of the framing of the building. Now, you notice that some of the walls are dark and some of them have little hash lines in them. The walls that are dark represent the wood framing for the building.
The hashed areas on the outside represent the brick veneer. So again, what we're showing is that the dimension of 80 feet 7 inches is going from the outside framing on the left to the dimension line over and down, following it here, to the outside framing on the right. So the first string is typically overall.
The second string typically represents major bumps in the building. So what we're saying is that it's 7 feet from the outside of the framing at this corner to the outside of the framing at this corner, and it's 48 feet 9 inches from the outside corner here to the outside corner of the porch on the right, and it's 4 feet 10 inches from the outside corner of the porch to the outside corner of the building. The next string, we're trying to indicate measurements from wall face to wall face.
You'll see that it's 5 feet 7 1⁄2 inches from the outside left face of the framing here to the right face of the framing here. Now, this next dimension, you can see that the line is not quite a solid line. It is what we would call a centerline, and this is showing that it's 5 feet 8 inches from this corner of the framing to the centerline of the window, and 5 feet 7 1⁄2 inches from the centerline of the window over to this corner of the framing.
You can see a note here with a number inside a hexagon. That is the window symbol number.
So what's happening is this window in this master bedroom is window symbol number 5, and when we start getting into the window schedule, you will learn more about this specific window number 5. In the bathroom on the left, you can see the symbol number 4, and if I pan over, you can see that window 4 is 4 feet 3 inches, with the center of the window at 4 feet 3 inches from the outside corner of the framing to the centerline of the window. Okay, so let's continue on this string. We had the 5 feet 7 1⁄2 inches outside corner to edge of the wall, 5 feet 8 inches to centerline of window.
I see the window symbol and a keynote, and then once again, I'm continuing my dimensions to the corners of the framing, and again, you can notice here it's 8 feet 1 inch from this corner to the centerline of the column here, 4 feet 5 inches from the centerline of the column to the centerline of the door, and so on and so forth. So again, you're seeing consistencies in the drawings. If I look over here on the left-hand side, again, I have my overall dimension string.
I'm showing a dimension for this pop-out. It's 2 feet 6 inches from this corner over to this corner down here, and then again, you're seeing major bumps in the building, so the 2 feet 6 inches, the 2 feet 9 inches, 29 feet 2 inches, the 11 feet 5 inches, and so on and so forth. The third string, interior walls, and also showing dimensions to centerlines of windows.
All windows have window symbol numbers on them, and again, it's consistent throughout the building.
