Decorating and insulating a balcony is a very necessary activity, although quite troublesome. Many people decide to sheathe the balcony with their own hands and do it quite successfully. After reviewing this article from start to finish, you can easily decorate your balcony or loggia.
Where to begin
In order for the cladding to serve as long as possible, it is necessary to prepare and strengthen the balcony. If you only need to make the outer skin, then no special preparations are required. Otherwise, the work will be more time consuming. Therefore, it is obvious that the facing of a non-insulated balcony will pass faster than an insulated one.
If you need to create thermal insulation, then first we sheathe the inner wall with insulation, after which we make the crate and only after that we cover the balcony from the inside with plasterboard or other suitable material.
How to sheathe?
What material to choose for cladding? The question is quite complicated, since at present there are a huge number of materials that differ in appearance, quality and many other properties.
See below for more details.
Drywall
Plasterboard finishing is very popular. It is quite possible to make cladding on your own with cladding sheets and standard tools at hand. Several parameters can be named as advantages: fire resistance, strength, ease of installation. The only and main disadvantage of drywall is fragility, due to which it is not possible to fix anything on the walls sheathed with this material.
MDV panels
This type of material is no less popular, since it is quite easy to use and affordable for most people.
DVA has many advantages:
- Great appearance;
- Wide selection;
- Ease of installation;
- Low price;
- Easy to care for.
But there were some drawbacks here. These include insufficient strength, sensitivity to moisture and high temperatures.
Block house finishing
Not so long ago, the material that appeared on the construction market has gained great popularity, since it has an excellent appearance. There are two types of material: imitation logs and imitation timber. Both options have the same properties, but differ only in size.
Advantages:
- Neat appearance;
- Natural and environmentally friendly material;
- Keeps you warm;
- Easy to assemble and maintain.
Disadvantages the "block house" is not observed, but if you do not cover the wood panels with varnish or paint, they will very quickly become unusable.
Plastic
Plastic in the modern world is widespread. Many people prefer PVC panels when cladding a balcony. This is because they have a huge list of positive properties:
- Fire safety;
- Environmental friendliness;
- Ease of installation;
- Long service life;
- Ease of care;
- Large selection of colors;
- Optimal price-performance ratio.
Cons, as such, no one noted
Lining
Once upon a time this material was at the peak of popularity until it was supplanted by the "block house". This cladding material is made from a wide variety of wood species, such as pine, aspen, larch, linden, oak and ash. The balcony, lined with clapboard on all sides, looks very attractive.
It has a lot of advantages (ease of installation, appearance, long service life, environmental friendliness, etc.) and one drawback, which is the flammability of the natural material.
The price and quality of the lining depends on the manufacturing class. There are several of them:
- "Premium";
- "AND";
- "IN";
- "FROM".
The higher the class, the higher its quality and price, respectively.
Plating process
To sheathe a balcony yourself, you need to study a relatively simple work technology. Each type has a general principle: you need to sheathe the most extensive areas first, gradually moving to smaller ones. There are also differences, therefore, when working with some particular material, it is necessary to take into account its features.
Lining
Since this material is natural, it is naturally susceptible to mold and various small parasites. Therefore, it is simply necessary to process all walls and crate with special means.
Clapboard cladding can take place in two ways: open and closed. Through the first, you can get an absolutely flat surface. In this case, the lining is fastened using self-tapping screws or ordinary nails.
The second option provides for fastening the panels to each other using special clamps. Due to this, the cladding can be easily removed completely, or individual boards can be replaced from time to time.
7 pictures
Plastic
Plastic sheathing is either siding or PVC. The first option is much more convenient, since it already has the necessary and convenient dimensions. While PVC needs to be cut into various pieces by yourself.
In the first case, it is necessary to fix the fastening profile. After that, you need to install a starting bar on which you can mount a variety of profiles. Next, the finishing bar is fixed, on which the siding panels are installed. Work should start from the very bottom.
To get started with PVC, you first need to make a strong sheathing. Then the panels are cut into pieces and fixed to the structure. The joints of the panels are connected with a special profile.
Be sure to make sure there are no gaps and do not forget to close all corners.
MDF panels
Before sheathing, it is necessary to make and fix the lathing from wooden bars. Then, using glue, fix the guide panel. Each subsequent panel is inserted into special holes in the previous one and additionally glued to the bars. The last panel should be cut straight and fastened as tightly as possible.
Drywall
Drywall is very fragile, so you need to make a metal frame for it. The width of each cell should not be more than 50 cm. It is best to work with such material in pairs, since drywall has large dimensions and weight.
Massive sheets are fastened with self-tapping screws, which must be screwed in two pieces into each cell at a short distance from each other. From time to time it is necessary to check the level of coverage using a special device. Be sure to grease all joints after fixing the sheets. After that, you can safely take up the decorative part of the work.