5 options for warming balconies

No modern apartment today can do without a warm balcony or loggias. This is done in order to increase the living area, creating conditions for a comfortable stay in the premises of people in the cold season. It often happens that the balcony is used to store unnecessary things, that is, trash. But modern residents of apartment buildings prefer to use this extra space more productively, creating coziness and comfort.

Indeed, on the balcony you can equip a small workshop, a small gym, a room for children or even your own greenhouse. Very options a lot and they will all be much better than normal pantry from old unnecessary things, which also pollute the apartment, as they collect dust and are a hotbed of harmful bacteria. Therefore, warming the balcony is a very important stage for creating a cozy and comfortable additional room.

There are several ways to insulate a loggia or balcony. We will consider some of them in more detail in the article. The main step in the insulation of the apartment is of course its glazing.

First option. Glazing of a balcony

What kind of balcony glazing to choose?

• Without glazing the balcony in the cold season will be cold, which will not even allow you to go there. In the warm season, it will not be very good either - this is wind and noise. Most practical and installation of a PVC profile is effective, i.e plastic frames with double-glazed windowthat are applied everywhere. They have good sound insulation, retain heat indoors, are easy to clean and look pretty good.
• You can of course choose cheaper balcony glazing options. For example, setting wood frames with single-layer glass, as was done the old fashioned way. But this approach will not allow you to create a warm additional room, since such a design will allow the cold to pass through. In this case, the tree is afraid of moisture and exposure to weather conditions. To do this, you have to regularly, about once a year, paint and process wooden frames, otherwise they will simply rot.
• You can also put aluminum frames, which in appearance practically do not differ from plastic ones and can be painted in different colors, even under a tree. They are thinner than PVC and much lighter, but less efficient while maintaining heat indoors.

Creating a brick or foam block partition

In many balcony systems there is no concrete partition, in the place of which there is often an iron fence with a railing. In this case, for the effective insulation of the balcony, the construction of a partition from bricks or foam block for installation on them balcony plastic frames. Let's see - which is better?

• Brick wall would be a perfectly acceptable option since brick It is an excellent durable material, which also has an attractive appearance. Therefore, additional exterior decoration may not be necessary.
• Foam block partition It will weigh less and has excellent thermal insulation. The disadvantages are poor resistance to moisture in the case of buying low-quality material (fakes not complying with the manufacturing standards), which can negatively affect the strength of the structure made of this material (it is better to buy products trusted manufacturers) Therefore, additional waterproofing is required from the outside of the balcony.

Why do you need high-quality thermal insulation?

After the partitions were erected and the balcony was glazed, it was necessary to carry out high-quality thermal insulation with special materials that are available in a wide range in modern building supermarkets. Let's look at the four main types of insulation materials to create an effective barrier against heat loss.

1. Mineral wool
2. Styrofoam
3. Extruded Styrofoam
4. Foiled Foamed Polyethylene

All these heat-insulating materials have good heat preservation properties inside the visit, which will make your balcony very warm. With high-quality waterproofing, you can even expand the room by removing window frames inside the balcony, thereby creating a continuation of the room.

The second option. Warming of the balcony with mineral wool

This is a fairly effective material for warming a balcony or loggia. It is completely harmless and made from natural ingredients of natural origin. At the same time, the cost of mineral wool is very low, so it is widely used to create reliable protection against heat loss through walls, floors or ceilings. In order to properly carry out repairs, planned actions are needed.

The stages of thermal insulation of mineral wool

• First it will take create waterproofing, since mineral wool is afraid of moisture and at the same time loses its heat preservation properties. Therefore, you should create an initial layer of waterproofing materials to prevent moisture from entering through the wall or balcony partition. To do this, you can use special polyethylene or other similar material, for example, based on foil. In this case, you should check for cracks in the walls through which air and moisture penetrate. If such are found, they should be repaired using a mounting foam, which is quite effective for such work.
• Then take build a wooden crate from the bars. For this, wooden slats 40 × 50 cm in size are suitable. This is done for attaching decorative decorative materials such as plastic, wood or other decorative panels.
• Having fixed the crate, we proceed to installation of mineral wool. This will require a special cement-based adhesive. You can use a construction stapler if the base where the insulation will be attached is wooden. Take a roll of mineral wool and cut into pieces of the right size to fix with glue in the space between the crates. Thus, you can insulate both the walls and the ceiling with the floor.

The third option. Foam insulation of the balcony

Polyfoam is the most economical and affordable heater of our time. It is cheaper than mineral wool and much more convenient to install, as it is very lightweight and does not require special skills when working with it. Polyfoam consists of 85% of air, but at the same time has excellent properties of thermal insulation and sound insulation. The laying process of this material is not much different from the previous version.

Stages of thermal insulation foam

• The first thing to do is create a barrier moisture penetration through the walls of the balcony. To do this, you can use a special waterproofing composition on a cement basis and treat it with the entire surface of the balcony walls and ceiling. You can use special polyethylene or other similar material, which will keep the insulation from moisture.Condensation and water buildup under the decorative coating can cause mold or mildew.
• Then also we build a crate, with a step of approximately 50 cm, attaching wooden planks with a perforator -drill to the walls and ceiling of the balcony with the help of corners and dowels. If you insulate the floor, then proceed in the same way, but using wooden planks of greater thickness 50 × 100 mm to create good strength.
• Then cut the sheets to fit the size. polystyrene foam and stack into the cells formed by the crate. In addition, gluing them to the surface with the appropriate composition. The choice of glue for such work in construction stores is quite wide.

The fourth option. Balcony insulation with extruded polystyrene foam

Unlike polystyrene, extruded polystyrene has best qualities. This is primarily its rigidity and smaller thickness, which is only 20 mm versus 30-40 mm for foam or mineral wool. Which is quite relevant when warming the balcony, because the area of ​​the room is so small and if it decreases by another ten centimeters, it will not be very good. In addition, expanded polystyrene plates can be laid without the construction of a crate, due to its rigidity. It has moisture protection and is not as finicky in this regard as minavat and polystyrene.

The material is pretty easy to install, therefore, you can do one step. The material adheres to an even surface of a wall or ceiling that has been previously cleaned and aligned. It is advisable to treat the surface with an additional waterproofing composition to create an even better thermal insulation effect. The joints between the polystyrene plates are covered with cement mortar, and then a reinforcing mesh is placed to create an additional layer of plaster. It is not necessary, but it is advisable to carry out such work. Then comes the decorative coating.

This is a very effective material with good thermal insulation properties, which is quite popular with construction masters. True, its cost is higher than that of mineral wool and polystyrene. You will also need a minimum of effort and skills to warm the walls, which is suitable for beginners who decide to warm the balcony with their own hands.

The fifth option. Balcony insulation foil foamed polyethylene

This material possesses quite universal propertieswhose main one is excellent thermal insulation. In addition, the material will provide high sound insulation and at the same time prevent moisture from entering the room. The structure of foil foamed polyethylene (FVP) consists of a layer of foil on which air polyethylene with a cellular structure is formed. Also, the material has an acceptable cost and has a very small thickness, which is important when warming the balcony.

You can use this material in an independent version, but better combine with others thermal insulation structures. For example, creating a kind of foam sandwich and foamed polyethylene with foil.

When installing the combined system, you must first put a layer of FVP on the surface of the wall, and then build a crate over the top and put foam between the wooden planks. Then, for better efficiency, put another layer of foamed polyethylene. It should be noted that the installation is carried out with the foil side to the wall. This is done in order to avoid moisture penetration.

The final decoration of the balcony

After thermal insulation was carried out by one of the types of materials presented in the article, work on decorating insulated surface balcony wall. To do this, you can use plastic or wooden panels. The latter will create another heat-insulating layer, since the tree retains heat perfectly. It has a beautiful appearance when it is varnished.You can simply paint the wooden surface with any color, which will also be beautiful.

The modern market for building decoration materials is a huge choice. The main thing to create a warm and comfortable balcony is to carry out thermal insulation. Then in winter you can arrange on your balcony, for example, your personal account, thereby expanding the space of the apartment.