Doors that block walkways, squeezing past a bulky kitchen island, or ceilings that feel too low – none of these sound like features you’d want in a forever home. And with the right planning, they don’t have to be. Creating a light, spacious, and functional home starts with knowing how to read a floor plan and spotting potential drawbacks before they become real-life issues.
Even if you’re a first homebuyer, this comprehensive guide to reading a floor plan will make it easy to visualise your new home. Learn about the symbols, scale, and what you won’t find on a floor plan. We’ve even included tips for spotting mistakes your builder might miss.
What is a Floor Plan?
While a site plan gives you a broad view of your property, showing orientation, boundaries and other important external features like utilities, floor plans show the interior measurements and layout of your home. Floor plans are not construction drawings either. Detailed house plans called blueprints are used to guide the construction process. Rather, floor plans are designed to give you an idea of how the actual space is arranged.
Drawn to scale to show you exterior walls, exact room dimensions, where windows sit and which way doors open, a floor plan gives you a 2D, bird’s eye view of your home so that you can assess how you’ll move through the space, how much storage your home will have and if all of your furniture pieces fit properly.
What a Floor Plan Reveals About a Home (And What it Can’t)
Floor plans allow you to imagine how you will use your home because they show room sizes and how they are connected to each other, they detail the placement of fixtures and appliances (like the all-important kitchen work triangle of the sink, refrigerator and stove), and they give you an idea of how internal spaces connect to outdoor living areas.
However, there are a few things floor plans can’t show you. Even though they show you where your windows are located and the orientation of your home, they can’t show you how much natural light you’ll receive at different times of the year because this depends on the sun’s path. Floor plans also don’t tell you anything about what you can expect to see from those windows, and if you want information on ceiling heights, you may need to request elevation drawings.
Because they focus on architectural elements, even the most detailed floor plans don’t show you interior design features or how the finishes and materials you select will work with your layout. The best way to see these details is to use 3D modelling to bring your floor plan to life.
Key Symbols and What They Mean
If you’ve never read a floor plan before, it can appear to be a series of confusing squiggles on a page. However, once you’re familiar with the common symbols, you’ll be able to get greater insight into how all of the features on the floor plan will come together to create your dream home.
Most floor plans feature a compass symbol to denote the orientation of the home and the scale to show the ratio of the floor plan to the actual dimensions. You will also see these elements on a floor plan:
- Internal walls are represented by thin lines, while the building’s total outline will have greater wall thickness (normally twice as thick as internal walls).
- Room labels show which rooms are placed where. While labels like ‘kitchen’ and ‘dining room’ are obvious, the master bedroom is normally referred to as bedroom 1, WC is ‘water closet’ and WIC is ‘walk-in closet’. Labels such as ‘utilities’ may need to be clarified.
- The floor area of each room is normally listed directly underneath its label.
- Doors are typically depicted by a solid line with an arc showing swing direction.
- Dashed lines indicate anything hidden from view. For example, a roof overhang or overhead kitchen cabinets.
- Windows are typically depicted as three parallel lines. However, symbols can vary if there are different types of windows in the building’s layout.
Key fixtures are often drawn instead of labelled. For example, a bathtub is an oval shape, toilets are small ovals with a rectangle at one end (see examples of common floor plan symbols below). In addition, garages are designated with car pictures, bedrooms with beds etc. This makes it easy to ascertain which rooms are where at a glance.
Tips for Reading Dimensions and Scale
To understand the actual space within rooms so that you can plan for furniture placement, you need to identify the scale ratio. The ratio is usually written as a fraction, for example, 1:100. This means every 1cm on the floor plan represents 100cm (1 metre) in actual measurements.
Exterior measurements usually represent the total square metres of the home. Knowing your future home’s total space can help determine the placement of rooms and ensure they are appropriately sized for the purpose.
How to Determine Orientation and Traffic Flow
Orientation, or the way a home is placed on a block, is crucially important when planning a new house. The correct orientation ensures your home has enough natural light, helps improve air circulation, and it can greatly reduce your home’s heating and cooling bills. Generally speaking, planning your home to have living areas facing north can help you make the most of winter sun and shade produced by eaves in the summer. However, orientation and the path of the sun can change dramatically depending on where you live in Australia, so it’s always best to seek advice from a professional with knowledge of your specific climate or use advanced tools such as a solar path calculator when designing your floor plan.
Another hugely important consideration for house plans is understanding traffic flow. That is, how you will move through your home and any potential congestion spots. To analyse traffic patterns, identify entry points like the garage and front door and trace movement paths within the home, focusing on any areas where people may need to change their behaviour in tight spaces. For example, do any doors block traffic when open? Can furniture placement be optimised to ensure there is enough space to move around it freely?
Common Pitfalls to Avoid
It’s important to get your floor plan right as early as possible in the home-building process to avoid costly revisions once construction has begun. Floor plans are also essential for other parts of the planning process, for things like plumbing and electrical plans. If you need to, get out your tape measure and compare your new home to your current house or mark out the room dimensions and consider whether everything will fit in real life. Here are some common things people overlook with floor plans:
- Room sizes that don’t suit their purpose. Is an oversized master bedroom the best use of space?
- Not providing proper illumination, either through incorrect orientation, inadequate natural light or improperly placed light fixtures. With window placement, what will you see from the windows?
- Wasting space with oversized foyers, thoroughfares or improper wall placement. For example, perhaps you’re better off increasing the feeling of space with taller ceilings?
- Not considering how door placement relates to furniture and flow. Can the door be moved to a better location?
- Not planning for furniture placement by overlooking the needs of planned locations. For example, can you easily move around furniture? Does the electrical plan work with TV placement?
- Not providing enough space for storage. Opt for drawers instead of cupboards in kitchens and bathrooms and consider storage for seasonal items, hobbies, and bulky household goods.
Tips for Understanding Complex Floor Plans
Complex floor plans can be daunting, but asking the right questions will make them easier to decode. Clarify room sizes, door placements, and how spaces connect before making decisions.
Use tools like 3D modelling software or augmented reality apps to help you visualise the space more clearly. If you’re still unsure, seek guidance from professionals, including your builder, architect, or interior designer. They can explain tricky symbols and ensure the layout works for your needs.
Practical Applications of Floor Plans in Custom Home Designs
Looking for a home builder who delivers practical floor plans with stunning features and smart use of space? Vision Homes offers an extensive range of beautiful, functional home designs to suit all sorts of sites and lifestyles. Visit our website to plan your future or find out where you can see our designs at one of our top-of-the-line display homes.