6 tips for arranging and designing the podium in the apartment + photo

Today it has become fashionable to equip a podium in an apartment. This is done not only for the purpose of aesthetics and zoning. The main reason is often an insufficient number of square meters and an attempt to place a lot of things and functional areas in a very limited space. In this sense, the podium in the apartment was a real salvation. Elevation allows you to hide the bed, drawers and shelves, hide communications and more. We have gathered a lot of interesting ideas for arranging the podium in the house.

No. 1. What functions are assigned to the podium?

The rapidly growing popularity of the catwalks is due to the versatility of this design. Elevation in the apartment can be used for such purposes:

• communications maskingif this cannot be done with other tricks. Often podiums are erected in kitchens and the bathroomsallowing you to hide plumbing and sewer pipes. Looking ahead, we note that in this case it is imperative to provide for free access to communications;
• zoning of space, because the difference in height allows you to clearly separate one functional area from another. Relevant for studio apartments and living rooms combined with kitchens;
• rational use of the existing area. The podium allows you to divide part of the room into tiers, and use each tier for its intended purpose. On the hill you can place any furniture, equip office or the living room, and the space under the podium can be used to store a lot of things. With proper planning of the storage area, you can replace just a half of the massive wardrobe, which means there will be more space in the room. Often the place under the pedestal is used to install a retractable the beds;
• space correction. The podium allows you to visually fix the geometry long narrow rooms. To do this, it is enough to organize an elevation near a short wall, the contour of which will have a rounded or curved shape;
• podium - instead of furniture. If you put a mattress on it, you get a cozy full bed. On the possibility of organizing a spacious catwalk under the podium dressing room we have already mentioned.

One podium can combine several of the above functions, which is especially appreciated by the owners of small apartments. For example, you can separate the working area with a desk from the living room with a podium, and inside you can hide a sleeping place, which in some studio apartments does not fit.

No. 2. Where is it better to place a podium?

A podium is a convenient and useful thing if the owners of the apartment have thought about its placement. Note immediately ready-made podiums in stores are not for sale - they gather in an apartment or house, taking into account all the requirements put forward, so you won’t have to adjust - everything is in our hands.

What is important to consider when choosing a place for the podium?

1. If the podium is used to mask communications, then its place is determined by the location of the pipes.
2. If the hill will play the role of a bed, then it will be where it is most appropriate to put a bed.
3. It is not worth organizing a podium in the center of the room or in a passageway, as the risk of injury increases, and it will be inconvenient to constantly go around the structure.
4. In the pencil box room, the podium is not placed along a long wall. The elevation is best organized near a short wall and thus divide the room into two squares. In rooms of the correct form, the podium can be arranged in a corner, making it in the form of a square, rectangle or semicircle.
5. When looking for the best place for a podium in an apartment, pay attention to arches, niches and other architectural features that can become part of the pedestal or serve as its frame.
6. The height of the podium, depending on its purpose, ranges from 15 to 50 cm, but the height of the room must be taken into account. It is important that a person standing on the podium can straighten up to his full height.

Designers recommend not placing unnecessarily massive pieces of furniture on the podium. Everything that stands at the height automatically attracts the attention of the person who entered - these are the features of human perception. If big heavy things are standing at the height, then the apartment will look overloaded.

No. 3. What are the disadvantages of the podium you need to know?

There are few drawbacks to the catwalks, but they still exist, and you need to know about them. Most of the minuses are the consequences of the ill-conceived location of the pedestal or its poor-quality construction.

The owner of the podium may encounter such shortcomings:

• the area of ​​the room remains unchanged, but at the same time some difficulties may arise during the rearrangement and selection of furniture. The reason is the rise;
• the catwalk can make life difficult for the elderly;
• very carefully worth calculating the height of the podium. If you want to place a roll-out bed inside, then the height of the mechanism with rollers and guides, the thickness of the mattress, pillows and blankets should be taken into account. On average, the height of the podium in this case should be 70-80 cm. If the height of the ceilings in the apartment is 2.5 m, then this is not your option;
• a sleeping place located on a low podium is romantic and beautiful, but it will be difficult to go to bed and get up. For a person of age, such a solution is definitely not suitable.

Number 4. Ideas for arranging a podium in an apartment

The podium involves a lot of scenarios for its use. Some of them are aimed at variety of interior, others - for the most rational use of space.

Here are some ideas for organizing a podium space:

• podium bed - the most common solution. The sleeping area can be organized in a niche or in an open space - in any case, the podium will allow you to visually separate it from other areas in the apartment. The height of the podium for the bed is 20-50 cm, take into account the height of the mattress when calculating. When arranging a bed on a similar hill, you can save on buying a full bed - you only need a good mattress. The space under the berth can be used for storage. If space remains around the perimeter of the podium, it can be used as bedside table;
• podium dresser. In the drawers on the rollers that are hidden under the podium, you can store a lot of things. For this purpose, you can use the steps of the podium. If the hill has a decent height, then its base can be decorated with niches for storing books and souvenirs. An LED backlight will serve as a decoration. Podium storage can be supplemented by conventional cabinets and shelveslocated along the perimeter of the pedestal;
• runway cache. The entire space under the podium can be occupied by a hidden bed, which will be advanced if necessary with the help of guides and rollers. For studio apartments with an area of ​​20-25 square meters, where the arrangement of a full-fledged sleeping place seems to be something of a fantasy, this is an excellent option. The main thing is to leave enough space to extend the bed. Another inverse option is to make it look like a cellar.If the podium is set up as a play area for children, then a recess can be made in the floor for storing toys. After active games, it will be enough to quickly put everything into an impromptu cellar, close it with a lid, and order;
• correction and zoning. The podium is necessary not only for narrow long rooms. IN hallway, combined with the living room, for example, by elevation, you can select the area where you need to take off your shoes.

The podium becomes indispensable in studio apartments and one-room apartmentsespecially if the family has children. In this case, the elevation can become a miniature children's room: on the upper tier is all that is needed for study and entertainment, the lower tier is a retractable bed, steps for storing things.

However, the podium is necessary not only for miniature spaces - in large living rooms and bedrooms, it allows you to clearly distinguish separate areas and make the room much more comfortable.

Finish podium spaces are often performed in the same way as in the rest of the room. If the task is to further highlight this zone, then you can use a different floor or wall covering, but you should not forget about harmony and color combination.

An interesting decision in the design of the podium is to use LED backlight along the contour. In this case, you can get a real scene in an ordinary apartment.

No. 5. Types of podiums and workmanship

According to the constructive solution, the catwalks can be divided into:

• monolithic;
• wireframe.

Monolithic make of concrete. Strong and reliable designs come out, only for an apartment building the weight of such a podium is prohibitively high. Facilitate the construction using expanded clay concrete or foam blocksbut this is an option for private homes. To fill the podium, formwork of the necessary form is used.

Wireframe podiums are the best solution for ordinary apartments. The frame is made of wood or metal, for plywood use plywood, chipboard or OSB. Sheet materials can be laid in two layers to increase structural strength.

No. 6. Podium in the apartment with your own hands: the principle of work + video

In order for the podium to be strong and reliable, all the roll-out mechanisms in it functioned normally and did not warp, it is worth approaching the construction process with all responsibility. It is better to entrust everything to a professional contractor, but if you have basic building skills, desire and self-confidence, then you can try to do everything yourself.

The optimal design of the podium for the apartment is frame. The principle of work on its creation is as follows:

• preparation of the drawing, which will reflect the dimensions and shape of the podium, the location of the lag frame, the dimensions of drawers and other details. Do not forget to consider the thickness of the bars and sheathing material;
• laser or building level mark on the walls the level of the future podium. The contour of the podium is applied to the floor. The result largely depends on the correctness of the implementation of this stage of work;
• Marks on the wall can also be made in the places of fastening the bars of the frame. For the construction of the frame, bars of 50 * 50 mm are suitable if the load is assumed to be no more than 200 kg / m². At higher loads, a bar of 75 * 75 mm is taken;
• the lower bars are fixed to the wooden floor with self-tapping screws, to the concrete - with quick-mount dowels. Naturally, before starting work it is better to remove the flooring, but some experts say that this is not necessary. Many do without lower bars, installing immediately vertical with a pitch of 40 cm. Vertical bars can be attached to the floor or load-bearing walls;
• when the lower horizontal bars are installed, vertical supports are placed at the corners, which are subsequently connected by the upper horizontal bars. Carefully controlled verticality. Now you can install additional vertical supports, if you have not installed them before. All bars are connected at right angles, fixed with screws or nails, you can use a metal corner to guarantee;
• if drawers or beds are supposed, at this stage frames for them and guides are mounted;
• if there are no boxes inside, then the space under the podium is better to fill mineral wool or polystyrene foamwhich will serve as soundproofing;
• if the podium is supposed to be illuminated, then it is better to summarize the wiring at this stage;
• sheathing of the frame is carried out with sheets of plywood 20 mm, chipboard, OSB, gypsum boards or ordinary boards. Fasten the material to the frame with self-tapping screws or nails, it is advisable to leave expansion joints of 2-3 mm in case of expansion of the material when absorbing moisture. If the internal space of the podium will be used, then it is also sheathed at this stage, moreover, before the front skin;
• if the end of the podium should be curved, then flexible material is used to cover it. Thin plywood and metal profiles are suitable.

The final touch is the fine finish. As a floor covering for the podium, you can choose any material, except for bulk floors. Do not forget about lighting. The illumination along the contour of the podium is not only an interesting design decision, but also a safety measure.