Enlarging a room with a loggia or balcony: how to do it right

Typically, apartment owners have this idea after major insulation of a balcony or loggia. The connection of two rooms will lead to a significant expansion of living space. The newly formed place has many appointments. This idea is especially relevant for owners of one-room apartments who lack living space. You can partially remove the former balcony, add space for a full bed instead of a folding sofa in the bedroom, equip a small home theater, arrange a place for reading, embroidery, a small library, a workspace for a child, or simply put a cozy sofa on which you can relax with a cup tea.

Beginning of work

The merging process consists of several important steps. The first step is to obtain special permission from the BTI for conversion. Moreover, according to the nomenclature established by law, this re-equipment is complex, in other words, redevelopment. Depending on the goals set, it may include changing the area of the bathroom, kitchen or living room, expanding the existing area through additional engineering structures. In addition, balconies are objects of increased accident risk, therefore the work that can be carried out on them is strictly regulated by established construction standards.

The main mistake that people often make when starting redevelopment is carrying out work before or while obtaining the appropriate permit. This is strictly not recommended, as in this case there may be a risk of receiving a serious and reasoned claim from specialized authorities and even from neighbors who do not agree with the construction work.

Therefore, before you take up a hammer drill and purchase building materials, you need to carefully study the legal side of this issue - practice shows that it is this that takes up most of the time and costs. Below is a list of required documents and recommendations that will help you obtain the necessary permit as painlessly as possible.

Options, timing, finances

But why then do houses have glazed balconies? This is also a change in architecture. And how do you actually make a room out of a loggia? After all, they actually do it!

Glazing, even with insulation, is a simple redevelopment, it is easier to coordinate, and forced legalization of unauthorized construction does not threaten serious sanctions and is not that expensive. The reason is not at all the tendency of officials towards excessive formalism and bribery, but is technically quite justified and compelling. Actually, all the difficulties described above are completely justified. We will return to this point below, but for now we will figure out what you need to do to achieve your goal.

Doing the paperwork yourself will take about a year and will require absolutely legitimate expenses of about $1000 for preparing documentation and paying for the services of a notary with technical supervision. Another $2000-$3000 will be needed for materials. Don’t be surprised, below we will explain why it is so expensive.

If you order a turnkey redevelopment from a specialized (and licensed) company, the total costs will increase by 25-50% depending on the region. That is, even in Moscow you can get an additional 3-6 or more square meters. m of residential housing, investing about $5,000, and new meters will cost at least one and a half to two times cheaper than market ones.

Kitchen balconies, however, are tiny, but a kitchen combined with a balcony provides so much convenience that the very fact of its presence immediately moves the apartment to the next price category. This can be exchanged for a larger one without additional payment or with a minimal additional payment in an area that is less prestigious, but quite prosperous. Or in your own, but, say, away from the metro.

Statistics confirm the conclusions: approximately 70% of the flow of orders to combine a balcony with a room comes from apartments intended for exchange, sale, or newly acquired and coincides with major renovations; in this case, the costs of redevelopment are not very noticeable in the total amount.

There are known incidents worthy of the pen of the classics: resourceful citizens, like the schemer from “The Master and Margarita,” move from a one-room apartment to a four- to five-room apartment in several stages over three to five years, investing no more than $20,000. And, unlike the Stalinist USSR, They are not threatened with any reprisals.

General conclusion from the previous sections:
The only acceptable option for connecting a balcony to a living space is to order it from a specialized organization with turnkey installation. The role of even the most skilled craftsman in this case comes down to monitoring the progress and quality of work and checking the new registration certificate for the apartment, which the contractors must hand over to you - do not forget to stipulate this point in the contract. It’s better not to deal with those who set the condition: “Our work is your papers”; In terms of costs and hassle, the game is not worth the candle.

Required documents. Part I

The first step is to fill out an application form for redevelopment of a residential premises in the form that was approved by the latest Government Decree.
It is mandatory to provide documents confirming ownership of the apartment or a corresponding warrant.
All capable family members must attach their written consent to the construction work.
Written consent is required from all capable neighbors from the apartment that is located below you.
Written consent from neighbors above is required only if you share a common balcony slab with them.
If you live in municipal housing , then you must attach written permission for redevelopment from the chief engineer .
If you are renting an apartment , the above permission must be provided by the owner of the building or its tenant .
An important point is to obtain permission from the authorities involved in the protection of architectural monuments . They must confirm the admissibility of your redevelopment. This applies only to those apartments that are located in buildings that are registered in the list of architectural monuments.

Permissions from all people listed in the paragraphs above are required. Most often, problems arise with neighbors. There can be two reasons - either the person who must sign the consent is very far away, or you are on bad terms with him. All actions to resolve these situations remain for your consideration; the human factor in resolving these situations is inevitable.

Usually such issues can be resolved with a small monetary compensation for future inconvenience during construction work. Obtaining permission from a person who is too far away can be obtained with the help of a notary - consult an appropriate specialist for advice.

Balcony insulation

The next stage of work on the project, implemented by Studio-33 and, was the installation of “warm packages” to replace the single-layer glazing of the balcony, as well as the construction of a partition that separated the left part of the balcony, which remained “cold,” from the right part, which was connected to the living room .

The technology for creating a new wall across the balcony is quite simple - the metal frame is covered with plasterboard, and the internal space is filled with dense façade mineral wool. The thickness of the partition was 200 mm.

But the installation of double-glazed windows in place of the former balcony glazing can be called the key point of the entire renovation. The workers had to create a glass wall with an area of more than 12 square meters. m., which in terms of thermal insulation properties would not differ much from an ordinary external wall.

Under no circumstances should you install new double-glazed windows on old insulation. It is necessary to clean the walls down to the concrete and install new thermal insulation on it. Another mandatory step is the preparation of vertical racks. It happens that workers, when organizing warm glazing of a balcony, remove old frames and install new double-glazed windows on the same racks. It is clear that metal pipes will turn into cold bridges. A competent specialist will drill these racks in several places, fill them with foam and wrap them with insulation on top. After installing the double-glazed windows, the counter is covered with a plastic strip.

To create a new glass “wall,” aluminum double-glazed windows were used, five-chamber with triple glazing, the warmest available on the market. The upper and lower edges of the frame were connected not to concrete structures, but to specially created heat-insulating “thresholds”.

However, the frosts that hit showed that the thermal insulation properties of the glass wall need to be further improved. Condensation began to appear on the inner surface of the glazing - “the windows began to cry.” Then the builders increased the layer of thermal insulation in the places where the window frames meet the floor and ceiling, and also carried out work to bring the installation of windows to ideal condition. Condensation on the windows stopped appearing. And the subsequent operation of the premises during the cold season showed that the full-wall glazing “withstands” the Ural frosts well.

Condensation on the inner surface of double-glazed windows may appear if, during the manufacture of the profile (aluminum or plastic), drainage systems were incorrectly made - channels for removing moisture that gets between the double-glazed window and the profile. If the manufacturer makes a mistake, water may begin to collect in the cavities of the profile and its thermal insulation properties will be impaired.

Required documents. Part II

After collecting the first package, you should receive the following list of documents:

The technical plan of your apartment, competently drawn up in the BTI and having all the necessary signatures and seals.
Redevelopment cannot be done at random; for this purpose, a special project is drawn up, the right to create and approve which only those design organizations that have a valid appropriate license have the right to create and approve.
Certified technical permit for the possibility of carrying out the work you need. It is based on permission from the Ministry of Emergency Situations or the fire service and Rospotrebnadzor.
A copy of the certificate of ownership of housing is certified by a notary and is also attached to the package.
The project of your redevelopment and the permit for it must be agreed upon with the organizations on whose balance sheet the building is listed, and with the organizations that will carry out technical control over the work.

For reference!

Please note that all documents received from organizations have an “expiration date”, so do not hesitate to take further actions after receiving them.

When permission to carry out the work is finally obtained, you can move on from the legal part to the technical part.

Procedure for redevelopment

Before starting work, obtain approval from the BTI.
Legal redevelopment requires:

Coordination and obtaining permission to carry out work from the Bureau of Technical Inventory.
Ordering and working on the project.
Safety confirmation, which can be obtained from the Ministry of Emergency Situations.
SES permits.
Consent from the architectural department of the housing office.

Only after receiving all the listed documents in your hands, you can safely seek help from an experienced designer who will help make your dreams come true.

Carrying out construction work

Since the construction is planned to be major, it is necessary to take into account that the service life of such a balcony should be no less than that of the building in which your apartment is located.

The fact of the presence of a balcony opening offers us three main ways to combine a balcony or loggia with the main living space .

The first case is typical for kitchen balconies - after all, they are usually very small. The opening remains unchanged, which significantly reduces the complexity of redevelopment work. An ordinary tabletop is installed on the window opening, which remains after removing the window, which turns it into a comfortable table for dining. The same option is suitable for ordinary rooms - after all, the appearance of a new table will only add convenience and coziness.
The second option is not much different from the second - the column, which was previously part of the former window opening, can be left as an additional supporting structure. The option is specific; for this you need a large loggia or balcony, and a bedroom is usually arranged in the added space.
The third option requires radical intervention in the integrity of the house. The parapet is completely removed, thereby creating a free passage between the balcony and the room. This option is convenient because by installing a light door or curtain you can get a full-fledged room, which is usually used for a bedroom or a place for a dressing table, a small closet, shelves for small items or books.

Considering that the attached balcony will be used as a full-fledged element of the apartment, it itself must be capital. It is required that it be installed on a solid stone parapet; the frame of the balcony itself must be welded from a good metal corner. The more reinforcement, the better.

Plastic and tension structures are excluded.

If the balcony is made with an extension, then the canopy must also be welded, made of metal. Glazing should be performed only with correctly installed and properly configured metal-plastic windows that correspond to the current climate. It is usually customary to install slightly thicker and heavier windows on the balcony than necessary, because the balcony is strongly blown by winds and cools down quickly. To reduce the chances of getting a draft during the operation of windows, it is customary to minimize the number of opening sections - one in the middle is enough.

The balcony must be fully insulated both inside and outside. Floor insulation can be carried out either in the usual way or using the “warm floor” system. The ceiling and walls inside are usually insulated with mineral wool, polystyrene foam, polystyrene foam, plastic, tiles or wood, then decorative finishing is carried out. Exterior finishing must be of the highest quality so that the balcony retains its original appearance for as long as possible.

The ideal option would be to supply electricity to the attached balcony. However, problems arise here due to the fact that the wall between the extension and the main room is an external wall. Therefore, capital wiring there, like heating, will most often not be allowed. If you need to install household appliances there, then the wiring for it is passed through a metal tube, which is driven into the corner of the wall. From the side of the room this wire is inserted into a socket, and from the side of the balcony a socket block with 3 or more sockets is installed.

You can organize lighting on the balcony using a waterproof lamp, or install curved options in the window opening that will illuminate the added space with directed light. In order not to complicate the already difficult construction work, you can lay an ordinary extension cord; no special permits are needed for this.

About strength and aerodynamics

Now let’s explain why connecting a balcony to a living space is so confusing.

Firstly, in our case, the thermal load on the supporting structure necessarily changes, causing its thermal deformations - after all, a new balcony-room is warm all year round, otherwise what’s the point in working? One such balcony, most likely, will not play a big role, but with such a massive improvement of living conditions using improvised means, the stress diagrams in the walls and ceilings can float so that a brand new building will become unsafe in 5-7 years. Therefore, each subsequent residential balcony requires appropriate calculations.

Secondly, aerodynamics comes into play. Although the balcony is not an airplane wing, it is a protrusion in the wall of a building with an aerodynamic quality greater than one, and the air pressure outside in the immediate vicinity of it will be lower than atmospheric pressure in the event of a side or oblique wind. And the glazing area of the expanded room per unit floor area doubles or quadruples.

As long as the balcony block remains in place, nothing bad will happen. The volume of air on the balcony is small, and in a storm or a sharp gust of wind it will be pressed towards the windows: the pressure near the wall will decrease, and near the windows it will increase. An air strike will not work: both the air mass and the length of the acceleration path (this is the width of the balcony in this case) are too small for the dynamic pressure on the glass to exceed the permissible value.

But with a free balcony opening, both the air mass in the new room and the length of its acceleration increase several times. Let us recall the formulas from school physics: the dependence of speed on the path length for uniformly accelerated motion and the expression for kinetic energy. The simplest calculation shows that when combining a balcony with a room, the power of an air ram increases tens of times.

As a result, during a storm or blizzard, the glazing can suddenly be blown out, or pressed in by a frontal gust, because the air cushion inside has now become several times plumper and softer. One section will be enough to turn your apartment into a wet or ice cave built into the house. There is no need to describe what this means for all residents, just defrosting the heating system in the entrance in the bitter cold threatens with human casualties, and the culprit in this case is you.

Therefore, when preparing to combine a balcony with housing, formal difficulties should be treated with understanding, and all circumstances should be taken into account at all stages of developing a project for a new premises.

conclusions

There are plenty of pros and cons to this idea. This is not a one-day job, but obtaining the appropriate permits takes about a year. Packages of documents and construction work require considerable costs. In addition, knowledge of technology is required. If you want to give this work to professionals, it will be done faster and better, but the final amount will be 20-30% more. However, all the costs of such an idea seem paltry compared to paying off a mortgage or loan for a new home, and besides, this is the cheapest way to painlessly expand your living space.

Related article: How to make curtains for a balcony with your own hands

In the video you will get acquainted with various original ideas for remodeling a room with a balcony.

Design of an insulated balcony. Photo examples.

Depending on your capabilities and needs, a balcony or loggia can be converted into the following rooms:

study,
children's room,
gym,
Kitchen Area,
library,
dressing room,
extended living room,
sleeping area,
winter garden or flower greenhouse.

Study.

Thanks to additional natural light and remote privacy, the area of an insulated balcony is perfect for creating a work office if you successfully place a desk with a comfortable chair, hang shelves with books and documents, and place a computer, table lamp or other work items.

Children's room.

Taking into account the needs and age of the child, a well-insulated and reinforced balcony can be turned into a playroom by gluing your favorite applications on the walls and arranging toys and all kinds of games on special shelves and devices.

Mini gym.

To save time and money in connection with going to the gym, you can set up a mini-gym room at home on a specially prepared balcony area, installing a wall bars, a small exercise machine to keep fit, or hang a punching bag.

Kitchen Area.

If the kitchen has access to an insulated balcony, then this room can be significantly enlarged by removing window and door partitions, and, if necessary, walls, if the layout of the house allows, and moving there a dining or work area with the necessary pieces of furniture.

Library.

To create a library on the balcony, it is enough to rationally arrange shelves on the walls or build in special cabinets with shelves and put your favorite books on them.

Nothing natural on the balcony

One of the important elements of the interior of the former balcony was a step on the floor, made of thermal insulation materials and serving as a support for the glazing frames. They decided to cover it with a white cork sheet. This material is much more resistant to abrasion than, for example, wallpaper. In addition, the cork coating will improve the thermal insulation properties of the steps.

On a glazed balcony you should not use flooring made from natural materials. You can put laminate, tiles, carpet on the floor. Heavy vinyl wallpaper is suitable for walls. They can stretch. In conditions of unstable temperature and humidity, this is a useful quality.

The project to expand the living space, implemented on the 16th floor of a long-term high-rise building, is unique due to the large area of the attached balcony and continuous glazing. At the same time, owners of Ekaterinburg apartments often convert balconies and loggias into warm living spaces. Modern technologies make it possible to ensure good thermal insulation of the balcony, without spoiling the facade of the house and without reducing the glazing area - therefore, without worsening the illumination of the “real” rooms. Moreover, such modernization of housing can be carried out at fairly moderate costs. Builders interviewed by Remont.Divandi reported that sufficiently high-quality insulation of a loggia in a panel high-rise building (with an area of 9–11 sq. m.) can cost 120–130 thousand rubles.

Expanding a living space with a loggia or balcony: where to start and the further process

Typically, apartment owners have this idea after major insulation of a balcony or loggia. The connection of two rooms will lead to a significant expansion of living space. The newly formed place has many appointments. This idea is especially relevant for owners of one-room apartments who lack living space. You can partially remove the former balcony, add space for a full bed instead of a folding sofa in the bedroom, equip a small home theater, arrange a place for reading, embroidery, a small library, a workspace for a child, or simply put a cozy sofa on which you can relax with a cup tea.

Creating a frame slab base

This method of increasing balcony space is the most labor-intensive type. Before starting work, obsolete metal railings and fences are removed. The frame elements are welded to the existing balcony base. The degree of power of the structure depends on the size of the frame extension. Most often, the area is expanded by 50 cm around the entire perimeter.

This method allows you to increase the area of the loggia or balcony by almost one and a half times. It is universal, because here it is possible to extend not only forward, but also at the ends. To manufacture the external frame, durable steel blanks of various profiles are used: pipes (round, square, rectangular sections), angles, channels, etc.

Important: in order to avoid collapse of the finished structure, the base is fastened with a maximum margin of safety.