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RAISED FLOOR: USES AND ADVANTAGES

rasied-floor

RAISED FLOOR: INTRODUCTION

The raised floor (or floating floor) is a support basically composed of panels of standard size 60×60 cm and a metal cantilever frame.

The panel in turn consists of three main elements:

  • First of all, the upper covering or the walking surface (in porcelain stoneware, laminate, PVC, rubber, linoleum, granite, parquet);
  • internal core (in 38 mm thick wooden conglomerate or 30 mm thick calcium sulphate);
  • finally, a lower balancer (a 5 micrometer aluminum sheet, as a barrier to humidity to increase its flow performance).

Everything is assembled together, calibrated and edged.

Even the cantilever frames may vary, with columns and stringers of various types, in order to support more or less high loads, even if the minimum load that a raised floor can support, it is generally triple that of the underlying floor, and adjustable in height to reach quotas of the finished floor even at more than one meter height.

In addition, the study and technology have led to the development of the construction system, both from the point of view of design and from the point of view of safety, being able to install the raised floor in order to make it anti-seismic.

In fact, the usefulness of this type of floor is in the effective acoustic insulation between the rooms separated from the attic, and for the possibility of inserting the technical systems of a building (electrical, hydraulic, telematic and for air treatment) in the space created in the sub-floor (plenum).

It also allows for perfect modularity and interchangeability of the elements allowing the environment to be inspected right down to the floor at any time, ensuring ease of maintenance of the systems over time.

This application offers multiple advantages in the continuation of the works for the construction of the building. In fact, it is the ideal type of floor to be installed in executive, commercial, data center, restaurants, pavilions.

WHAT IT IS AND HOW IT WORKS

Technical indoor floors have been developed to meet the needs of the most modern indoor environments that require flexibility and adaptability without sacrificing the technical and aesthetic characteristics of porcelain stoneware.

Thanks to their versatility, these solutions allow you to change the layout of the rooms, allowing for maintenance and reuse. Types of technical floors for interiors:

  • Traditional raised;
  • Raised self-standing;
  • Finally, self-laying.

TRADITIONAL RAISED FLOOR

It is a suspended flooring system in which the walkable area rests on an elevated structure. Between the bottom and the floor an inspectionable and usable technical compartment is created for housing systems.

In fact, a technical compartment can be created between the bottom and the floor that can be used for housing the systems. The modules that make up the floor are supported on the subfloor, allowing it to be removed very easily and allowing access to the area below.

TRADITIONAL RAISED FLOOR: ADVANTAGES

This system has advantages such as:

  • First of all, flexibility in the management of systems that travel freely under the pavement;
  • Practicality in maintenance operations thanks to the accessibility of the systems;
  • Possibility of reuse. Dry laying without the use of adhesives allows the movement of the individual panels or of the entire flooring in environments other than the initial ones;
  • Adaptability: The raised floor can also be placed on an existing floor.
COMPONENTS AND MATERIALS

The elements that make up the raised floor are the panel and the support structure.

  • The panel is the result of the bonding of a 3-4cm support with a porcelain stoneware plate that represents the walking surface and guarantees aesthetic qualities together with excellent cleaning characteristics, unalterability and resistance over time.
  • The structure, on the other hand, is made by using galvanized steel crosspieces and feet. The connections of the systems with the premises are made through openings such as turrets or grilles for the passage of air.

The upper covering is in porcelain stoneware, proposed without limits in the use of finishes or surfaces according to the different aesthetic and design needs.

Porcelain stoneware is assembled to the structural core whose coupled material is rectified and worked to obtain a slight flaring useful to make it easier to lay and move the floor.

In addition, the support core can consist of two different types of material: wood chipboard or calcium sulphate.

  • The wood chipboard support allows to obtain a finished panel thickness of 48mm, in fact it is recommended for medium loads and stands out for its cheapness. Good mechanical and fire resistance;
  • instead, the calcium sulphate support allows to obtain a finished panel thickness of 40mm. It guarantees better resistance to humidity and fire and also combines high mechanical resistance with excellent sound absorbing power.

The load-bearing structure, located above the attic, is a steel frame supported by circular feet of variable height from 3-4cm up to over one meter and connecting beams also in steel. The top of the feet and crossbars is edged with antistatic rubber to absorb vibrations and noise.

rasied-floor

SELF-LAYING RAISED FLOOR

It represents the union of practicality in the maintenance of raised floors with application flexibility. Furthermore, used with the need to make the ceramic product independent of the support, it allows greater flexibility of modification and integration over time compared to traditional raised floors.

SELF-LAYING RAISED FLOOR: ADVANTAGES

The system provides advantages such as:

  • First of all, greater ease of installation;
  • Interchangeability of the ceramic product;
  • Quick and easy flooring replacement;
  • Finally, possibility of using various formats.
COMPONENTS AND MATERIALS

The system consists of a porcelain stoneware slab to which a support consisting of a special high-density compound in recycled rubber and cork with a thickness of 2mm is applied.

In addition to performing a sound-absorbing function, the rubber increases the grip of the sheets towards the underlying structure.

In fact, under the stoneware slab there is a support consisting of a calcium sulphate or chipboard panel encapsulated in two aluminum cores. This is then laid and fixed to the underlying aluminum foot.

TYPES OF CORES

There are three types of materials with which it is possible to create the core of the raised floor:

WOOD CONGLOMERATE

More commonly known by the name of chipboard, it is made with recycled wood, used in the thickness of 38 mm in the densities of 680/720 kg / m3

CALCIUM SULPHATE

High density monolayer, made up of plaster and cellulose fibers, used in various thicknesses (among the most common: 28, 30, 32, 34, 36, 38 mm) and average density of 1.500 kg/m3

X-FLOOR

Inert dough sintered at very high temperatures, made entirely of ceramic with a monolithic and homogeneous structure of medium density 2.200 Kg/m3

This type of raised floor has several very interesting properties:

  • First of all, water absorption and dimensional stability;
  • Noise reduction capability;
  • Walkalbe comfort;
  • Finally, fire resistance.

Furthermore, this property depends on the size and construction of the molecular particles. The wooden particles that make up the wood conglomerate absorb much more moisture and water than calcium sulphate. The X-floor, instead, it is totally absorbent.

THE FUNCTIONAL LAYERS

Raised floors generally consist of three main parts: top finish, panel and substructure.

The upper finish, generally of porcelain stoneware, forms the upper layer of the walking surface and forms the pricncipal component of the system; it is in fact the part directly visible and subject to solicitations.

In this regard, in choosing the finish, in addition to an aesthetic value, it is necessary to consider the characteristics of the environment and its intended use, to ensure excellent physical-mechanical characteristics.

Slabs generally have a border for drawing homogeneously the joints between the different panels; allow better adhesion and contact between panel and panel; cushioning the stresses between the various slabs and absorb any thermal expansion.

The panel, which supports the slabs, has a structural function as it bears the loads transmitted by the finishing slabs distributing them to the underlying structure.

Furthermore, it is possible to choose between materials with different characteristics of mechanical resistance and fire behavior that must be assessed according to the needs of the project.

Finally, it is important to pay attention to the lower finish of the panel which serves to protect the system from humidity and possibly improve its mechanical performance.

The substructure (made of transverse columns and seals) has the function of supporting the walking surface and transferring the stresses incident on it to the underlying screed, ensuring the stability of the coupling between the structure and the panel.

TRADITIONAL AND RAISED FLOORS IN COMPARISON

Finally, compared to traditional floors, floating floors allow the environments to be reset over time according to the new needs of space organization by inserting new workstations or modifying existing ones.

They also give the possibility, for the operations of maintenance and modification of the systems, to intervene on a single panel, without affecting the adjacent panels.

Furthermore, being the assembly and disassembly of the various components dry, installation is easier and faster than with a traditional floor.

This type of flooring also ensures good thermal advantages, in fact the thermal separation between screed and walking area leads to an improvement in living well-being.

There is also the possibility of eliminating problems due to incompatibility between screed and traditional floor, in addition to ensure maximum creative freedom for the designer who, in the process of design, is no longer tied to the positioning of the various systems.

Finally, in economic terms, the possibility of considering floating floors as movable walls, allows you to benefit of tax relief.

In summary, the advantages are:

  • practicality: the inspection and repair of the systems can be carried out at any time without the need for important masonry works;
  • flexibility: the architectural project can be detached from the plant design;
  • versatility and economic convenience: it can also be placed on an existing floor and each panel can be reused in environments other than the initial ones;
  • integrability with other technical finishes, such as movable walls and false ceilings;
  • high level of aesthetic customization, both in the choice of the finishing material and its colors and in the possibility of creating designs, brands and decorative motifs on request or inserts of different materials;
  • finally, availability of a wide range of accessories for customizing the floor.

LEAVE A COMMENT

Finally, if you believe that this type of solution may be suitable for your property and you need advice or have doubts about it, on installation, maintenance, the relative advantages of a underfloor heating, do not hesitate to leave a comment at the end of the article or write an e-mail to valeriadesign@casaomnia.it. Go to our online portal CasaOmnia.it!

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