The porch of a private house can be decorated in a variety of ways. Glazed structures look especially impressive and stylish. Such solutions have their pros and cons, which we will get acquainted with in this article.






Advantages and disadvantages
The glazed porch is a structure that is hard to miss. Private houses and cottages, the entrance area of which is designed in this way, look especially modern and stylish. Many homeowners choose similar solutions to revitalize the facade of the home, giving it a fresher look. Glazed porches are attractive and have other important advantages.
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Such designs are very easy to maintain. Most of the dirt that ends up on glass substrates can be easily and quickly removed with a regular damp cloth or with common window cleaners. Treatment with antiseptics and other protective compounds is not needed here.
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The main thing that captivates homeowners in glazed entrance areas is their aesthetic appearance. As mentioned above, such structures look very beautiful and original, therefore they are able to refresh even the simplest residential buildings.
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A glazed porch can cost the owners a relatively small price. This plus is important for those users who are not willing to pay too large amounts for such facilities.
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The structures under consideration are characterized by very low thermal conductivity. If you want to make the porch heated, then plastic glazing will be a win-win solution.
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A high-quality glazed porch will serve for a very long time without losing its attractive appearance. Over the years, glass structures, unless they have wooden rails, will not rot or collapse.




The glazed porch has not only advantages, but also certain disadvantages. Let's get acquainted with them.
- If the porch is decorated with glass that is part of the plastic windows, then there will be a noticeable limitation in size. For example, it will be very difficult to glaze a panoramic porch-veranda.
- Porch glazing structures can be very heavy. This is especially true for PVC parts.
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No matter how high-quality and strong glass is, it can still be accidentally broken. Of course, in the case of multi-layered and high-quality elements, this is extremely difficult to do, but situations can be different, and people will still have to observe at least minimal caution.



Porch views
The front porch can be different. Let's get acquainted with the most common designs.
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Covered. The porch can cover a visor of certain sizes. A covered structure can have side walls, supports or columns - there are a lot of options. The canopy itself, which protects from snow and rain, can cover both the entire staircase and exclusively the sills at the very front door.



Closed. Fully closed porches with walls and a roof are also very popular. Such options are attached structures that can be made of different materials, including glass. Such annexes are good in that they completely cover the entrance area, becoming part of the facade of the building. Inside them, you can even put heating devices or install a warm floor system, as a result of which the porch turns into a full-fledged vestibule, in which it is not cold



Veranda. One of the varieties of a closed porch. The perfect solution for a country house or cottage. The design of such extensions looks solid and expensive. On the porch-veranda, you can equip not only the entrance area, but also a small recreation area for household members



Terrace. An entrance with a staircase can be a terrace-type structure. This is one of the most popular solutions in modern low-rise construction. Due to the porch-terrace, you can perfectly save the free squaring of the site, make the extension more functional and convenient



The porch can be of any structure and perform various functions. Each owner decides for himself what kind of structure to add to his home.
Glazing types
The glazing of the porch of a private house can be different. Different materials have different performance characteristics, pros and cons. We will find out what types of porch glazing are, and how they differ.
Pvc
Nowadays, glasses with PVC frames are often used for glazing entrance areas. Such materials are very widespread and are used not only for finishing porches, but also for glazing balconies, windows in houses and apartments. Let's consider what are the advantages of PVC glazing of the steps leading to the residential building:
- it is very easy to look after them;
- such designs boast an attractive and neat appearance;
- have a relatively low cost;
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are characterized by a low level of thermal conductivity;
- are easy to install.
Of the minuses, only a large mass of plastic structures can be noted, as well as a small selection of their dimensional parameters.
The disadvantages of the considered solutions are insignificant, therefore they are chosen quite often.



Aluminum
If you do not want to decorate the porch with double-glazed windows, you can turn to options with an aluminum profile. Recently, this is a very popular glazing option. A porch with this design looks especially attractive and original. Aluminum glazing is lightweight and can be easily dismantled at the right time.
But such designs are distinguished by high thermal conductivity. It is not worth equipping a warm porch with them, since a cold structure is obtained. Many copies are more expensive than plastic ones.



Wooden
An excellent solution with the following advantages:
- wood is an environmentally friendly material;
- such glazing looks attractive and cozy;
- ease of installation;
- wooden frames can be painted, restored, varnished or stained;
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structures are durable, provided they are properly maintained.


The main disadvantage of wooden frames is the need to treat them with antiseptics and fire retardants. Besides, wood is a fire hazardous, highly flammable material. Even with proper and regular maintenance, wood frames will one day begin to deteriorate and collapse, so they are inferior in terms of service life to the same plastic ones.
There are many more options for porch glazing. Often the design of this area is made of plexiglass or tinted glass.
Frameless glazing looks gorgeous, but it costs much more than simple frame options.



Styles
For different stylistic directions, different options for porch glazing will be suitable. Let's take a closer look at this issue.
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For houses weathered in a classic or country style, it is better to use glazing with wood frames. Such structures look good when combined not only with wooden houses, but also with block or stone houses.



If the style of the building facade is modern, then aluminum, plastic or frameless structures are suitable. They will look harmoniously against the background of fresh buildings without elements of antiquity



PVC glazing can be considered universal. Such solutions fit perfectly into a wide variety of house designs. If you wish, you can order such glazing, in which the plastic parts will not have a white color, but any other shade, up to the imitation of materials such as wood or stone




When choosing a certain option for glazing your home or a house in the country, it is very important to build on the basic style of construction. Only in this case the overall picture will turn out to be harmonious and attractive. If the styles diverge greatly, then the appearance of the home may turn out to be ridiculous.
Glazing process
It is quite possible to beautifully make high-quality and neat glazing of the porch with your own hands. There is nothing prohibitively complicated in this - even an inexperienced master can handle such installation work. If building skills are not enough, it is better to rely on step-by-step instructions. So, let's find out what is the installation order using the example of wooden frames.
- First you need to build a porch leading to the house, if it is not already there. When everything is ready, you can do the glazing. First, a window box is attached to the frame around the perimeter of the structure. Fasteners can be made with nails or self-tapping screws.
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All gaps that remained during the first stages of installation work must be filled with high-quality silicone sealant. In no case should you forget about these manipulations.
- First, the window frames must be attached separately from the glass. When installing such base parts, you can use special hinges. Due to the presence of these elements, the structure can be made swinging. In installation, it is considered the simplest and most accessible even for novice masters.
- Now glasses of suitable sizes can be carefully installed in the openings. They should be attached with so-called glazing beads. These parts are thin slats. They are attached to the frame itself, both from the outside and from the inside.
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After this stage, both frames and glazing beads should be treated with a special protective compound to protect them from rotting, drying out or destruction under the influence of wood parasites. This stage of work is very important, because if neglected, wooden structures will quickly begin to deteriorate, lose their attractive appearance and deform.
- All remaining seams must be thoroughly coated with a sealing material. If this is not done, then it will not work to close the entrance area so that drafts do not penetrate into it.




If wooden frames were chosen for installation, it is important to take into account that they will not be able to provide ideal protection from the cold. Such designs are more suitable for summer glazing, for example, in a country house.
Useful Tips
Consider a few tips for installing porch glazing
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If the glazing has aluminum frames, it is necessary to prevent the latter from contacting with alkaline and acidic solutions, as well as objects made of steel or copper.
- It is necessary to plan the glazing of the porch with PVC structures at the time of drawing up the project. The weight of the frames must be taken into account when calculating the required strength of certain elements of the street staircase.
- Wooden frames with ordinary glass are rather fragile, so they must be mounted at least at a low height from the floor level. This will prevent accidental hitting and serious injury.
- If you don't want to make the entrance area completely open and transparent, then the glass with frames can be raised higher, and the lower part, for example, can be laid out of bricks.



For the glazed porch, see the video below.