Create an ideabook for your next remodeling project!
Browse more than 1,000,000 photos from top designers and save your favorites
Lighten Up With Glass Floors
To spread the light, visually connect floors or infuse a space with drama, glass floors are a clear top choice
Houzz Contributor. I am an architect and writer living in New York City. I have Bachelor of Architecture and Master in Urban Planning degrees, and over ten years experience in architectural practice, split between Chicago and NYC. Currently I'm focused on writing and online pursuits. My daily blog can be found at http://archidose.blogspot.com
Houzz Contributor. I am an architect and writer living in New York City.... More »
In a previous article I focused on indoor bridges, many of which happened to use glass floors. Be they clear or translucent, glass floors enable light to pass from one floor to the one below, while also providing a visual connection between spaces. This article looks more generally at glass floors, in bridges and in other areas. Whatever the reasons for incorporating a feature such as this, the effect is always dramatic.
Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
As soon as glass is chosen as a flooring material, the first question is, "What kind of glass?" Clear glass gives views that might not be desired, so translucent glass is often favored. This bridge illustrates what can follow from using translucent glass: lighting that illuminates the floor and creates even more drama.
Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
This house in San Francisco by John Maniscalco uses glass walkways adjacent to the stairs. With the skylight located above the walkways, the light brought to the lower levels is maximized.
Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
This photo was taken one level below the previous photo, making it apparent that the glass walkways are stacked. Note that the lower level's glass floor is wider, and its effects are visible in the next photo.
| Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
|
| On the lowest floor, the glass floor helps bring plenty of light to the space. It presents a soft glow that echoes the plane of the white drywall ceiling around it. |
Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
Maniscalco used a glass bridge in another project, this one also located below a skylight. Note the green color of the glass, indicating the iron content naturally in the material. This is often undesirable in such an application, but low-iron glass, as the white-gray glass is called, comes with a cost premium.
by Shannon Malone
»
Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
Here is one more Maniscalco project that also places a glass floor under a skylight. It just makes sense to tie the two together vertically, so they work in concert.
| Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
|
| Glass floors need not be limited to walkways or bridges. This square patch of glass floor helps bring light to the library below. |
| Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
|
| This view shows how the cross-shaped structural members supporting the glass give the ceiling a strong character ... and an added sense of security. |
Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
Here is a library that doubles as a stairway. The tall bookshelves run across multiple floors off the stair landing. The glass floor gives this wall of books some cohesion.
Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
This view shows the narrow piece of glass off the wood landing.
Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
And a last view positions the viewer on the glass floor, illustrating how it relates to the window next to it. The glass floor also provides visibility of the green roof, a nice touch.
| Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
|
| In this multistory high-rise loft, a glass floor is used to bring additional light to the space below it. Sitting on a chair on a glass floor must take some getting used to! |
| Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
|
| This view from below shows some of the light coming from above, but also how objects touching the glass are in focus but those farther away are blurry. |
Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
This is probably the craziest application of a glass floor I found on Houzz, reminiscent of Philippe Starck's bar at the Hudson Hotel in New York. In both cases, a glass floor is combined with a whimsical design and some neoclassical elements. This house is interesting because of the space it overlooks.
| Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
|
| It's a wine cellar, a cathedral-like space in acrylic that glows blue. I could see the homeowner realizing after this was installed, "I need a glass floor to show off this space!" |
Ideabook updated on May 12, 2012.
What are you working on?
News From Our Partners
Latest Ideabooks
People found the photos in this ideabook after searching for:
View over a million photos:
marcie
http://custm.co/hz/54 (for more really cool glass installs)
Modern Furniture
1. Only UL tested and approved anti-slip glass surfaces should be used.
2. A structural engineer must be used to determine the make up of the glass panels.
3. In daylighting situations, glass should allow for the maximum amount of light to pass.
4. In privacy situations, the obscure product should still allow for light to pass through.
5. The product should be durable and easy to maintain.
6. Only tempered laminated glass should be used.
Plus they're creapy. Can almost hear the little crackling noises right now! Ever have a windshield shatter because of heat and cold? What would you do if that happened to your floors?
Nope. Sorry, Don't like em.