Timber Floors and Strengthening Techniques (Illustrated with a Numerical Example)

The trend of renewing old masonry buildings and provision of new housing, public and other areas without using new building lots is becoming increasingly important to ensure the conformity of the renovated buildings with the current technical regulations. One compliance aspect is the load-bearing function, which in a large degree depends on the floor structures. As old masonry buildings often have timber floors, the purpose of this article is to provide an insight into the field of timber floor strengthening. Thus, the evolution of floor structures is compactly presented, and common types of timber floors are given. Furthermore, the weight of different timber floor fillings is studied in relation to the prescribed imposed loads. Measures for strengthening old timber floors are introduced separately for vertical and horizontal strengthening. Additionally, a classic timber floor and a timber-concrete composite floor are analyzed according to the current building standards in the European Union, the Eurocodes.