Sunday, March 29th, 2009
Balconies are usually made of a variety of materials, such as tiles, marble, terrazzo, travertine, sandstone, limestone, granite, slate and terracotta. These materials may seem like they are highly sturdy, but are just as susceptible to normal wear and tear as other materials. A balcony is a delicate structure to begin with; you cannot afford to have a situation where the structural integrity of your balcony is compromised, as this may result in a disastrous situation. This makes balcony repair an important thing to take care of.
Additionally, leaving a balcony leakage unattended will almost certainly affect the look of your balcony and make it seem like it is falling into a state of disrepair. Applying a leak-proof sealant when necessary can enable you to forgo most of these headaches. This type of sealant can be used in a variety of different situations and is equally applicable regardless of whether you want to do some minor touch-up work or fix a major leak.
Megasealed is an Australian company that has pioneered a wide range of products that can be used to seal leaking areas without having to remove any of the flooring or tiling in the given space. This allows customers to obtain leak-free areas with a minimal amount of effort and disruption. Megasealed offers leak-proofing solutions for showers and balconies, as well as marble and granite flooring. Megasealed also offers anti-slip coating solutions and can be used to create slip resistant surfaces in areas of your house, such as your bathroom. For more information, please visit www.megasealed.com.au.
Tags: Australian, Balcony, Leakage, Solutions
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Sunday, March 29th, 2009
Balcony is not just extra space — it serves various functions in urban areas where space is a constraint, says
Have you ever visited some of the elite areas of the capital like Vasant Vihar, Shanti Niketan, Anand Niketan, or Sunder Nagar in the evening or when sun is setting? If you have not so far, just visit those places, and you will see that foreigners living there are enjoying their tea or light drink in the balconies of their houses after a hard-day at office. The houses with balconies facing parks, ridge area or monuments are grabbed by anxious tenants the moment they fall vacant.
Our expatriate clients more often than not ask us to find houses with good spacious balconies. I have observed that houses with nice balconies with a good view always remain in great demand in the rental market, says Anil Makhijani of Mak Realtors.
Even young Indians too love to sit and enjoy the view from their highrise apartment. Anupama Jha, a journalist, says she enjoys lounging in her East End Apartment flats balcony in East Delhi, both in the morning and the evening everyday and enjoys the gentle breeze. I always recommend my friends to buy a flat above fifth floor to enjoy the view and the nice breeze, she says.
And as space is shrinking in flats and floors, balconies are also used as a reading and relaxing areas. Some people use them as childrens study and play area, while others use it as a service space for washbasin, washing machine and dish washers, or to dry clothes. This semi-indoor space is a filtering zone for noise and dust pollution and of course, is a space for pets.
Rizvi is of the view that one must avoid having window airconditioning units on the floor of the balcony as it will affect usage of the balcony. If there is no option before you, you can place it at lintel level. As far as possible, avoid using road-facing balconies as clothes drying spaces. If possible maintain a small garden in the balcony. If every roadfacing balcony has a small garden, the ambience will be really refreshing.
As Delhi and NCR experience scorching summers, bamboo and rolling screens on the sides can also protect balconies from harsh weather. You can also have a ceiling fan in the balcony. Water bodies and aquarium can also be very refreshing. Prefer folding and glazed doors with grills at the living and dining spaces that open towards balconies. This will enhance the usage of the space considerably.
According to Rajat Mahajan of Integrated PanRealty Solutions Private Limited, there are some builders who make balconies with every room in their residential apartment.
The buyers should ensure that they should pay extra money as preferential location charges (PLC) to builder only if the balcony is really good enough. It is a well-known fact that builders charge good amount of money as PLC from their clients if the balcony is facing a club house or a golf course.
Courtesy:- Times Property dt:- 07-11-09
Tags: AFFAIR, Balcony, BREEZY
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Tuesday, March 17th, 2009
Florence is a city full of history where it’s easy to be charmed by surrounds and you do not notice some little corners, minor ones that make you rediscover the city and the character of Florentine people.
One of these is little corners in Florence, perhaps surrounded by a legend, is in Borgo Ognissanti at number 12, where is located the reversed balcony. Admiring it is a real pleasure especially if you think about the legend that surrounds it, not because it was object of peculiar tales but because it reflects very well the city and its inhabitants character, reflection where I see myself too.
The reversed balcony that is located on the first floor, was built by assembling counter wise the classical elements of a regular balcony: the supporting corbels, its volutes and the balustrades where capitals are in place of the base.
The building dates back to the 16th century, and it seems to have been built in such a curious way as a request of the stable’s builder, due to some spites with the Duke Alessandro de’ Medici.
Looks like, that at the moment of the project proposal, this was rejected by the Duke, cause the balcony was too prominent (for some law of the age). After the first reject the builder presented the project a second time modifying a few things but leaving the balcony almost unchanged, of course the Duke Alessandro denied it again. At a third instance, trying to be salacious, the Duke wrote on his response: “yes on the contrary”. The builder, applying the answer to the letter, ordered to his architect to build the balcony upside-down. Perhaps the Duke Alessandro would have liked to punish the irreverent constructor, but as a Florentine … I think he appreciated and approved his presence of mind.
Tags: Balcony, Florentine, Legends, Reversed
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Sunday, March 15th, 2009
Before you get started with either your balcony garden or gardening on your rooftop, there are some very important factors to consider.
Firstly, and of course the most obvious, make sure that the structure can withstand the weight and the rooftop will not be comprised with anyone walking on it, let alone creating extra weight or watering difficulties.
Most apartment and condominium balconies will definitely support gardening in containers and planters. The ones that are built with wood may not support extremely large and heavy pots; however, gardening can still be done with smaller planters. Where you have concrete floors, there is little damage to the surface, however, be sure to avoid using very heavy containers. This is where research into other planter materials is prudent, your resin garden planters do not contribute weight in of themselves and larger containers therefore may be used. Spread the load over a wide area using wooden slats, brackets and hooks to take the weight of hanging pots or baskets.
Secondly, check the microclimate of your balcony or rooftop. Note the direction of the wind and how much sun it gets during the day. Some balconies are very sheltered and receive no direct sunlight; others are fully exposed and take the direct sun all day. Of course, the rooftop garden may be sheltered by service structures or you may place your own trellis to give some protection from the wind and sun. Many balcony plants do not get much rain because they are situated under an awning or protected from the balcony above. In this case, make sure that the containers are kept moist by watering daily.
What to plant. Just like planning your landscape garden, you may wish to consider your balcony and/or rooftop a private place to relax and entertain.
Start with a framework around your space. Create a distinct border to surround your new space. This can be done with plants that spill onto the space like lady’s mantle and geraniums or you can create clusters of height with grasses and small shrubs. All of your plants can be in garden planters and containers. They are easy to move around to see what works best and easier to control the intense heat or winds during certain times of the day.
Your planters may be incorporated into wonderful garden benches – the benches can delineate the space and provide additional seating. One simple way is to create a platform for your containers – then the plants can be easily seen and of course it is nice to have scented plants all around. Some of the best scented plants may be roses, heliotrope, jasmine, gardenias and sweet peas. You can be very creative with the placement of the planters and containers – cluster them in different sizes and shapes and filled with a wide variety of plant material.
Privacy on your balcony, rooftop or terrace is easily accomplished using well situated raised planters or by adding a pergola or trellis to block unsightly maintenance or ventilating equipment. Just plant a climbing hydrangea, wisteria, magnolia or jasmine vine and the garden décor is complete.
Linking your home, apartment or condo to your outside space can often be the best of all worlds. There are so many options to have a garden for enjoyment inspired by your own aspirations.
Tags: Balcony, Gardens, Rooftop
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Wednesday, February 25th, 2009
Cosy Residential Houses: Outdoors is Yours:-Alfrescos and Balconies.
Alfresco
An Alfresco is a room that is within the main house but is completely open on more than 1 side. This room is a buffer zone between the living room and the outside. In this room, a fireplace can be fitted in so that people can get warmth during cold nights.
An alfresco creates a very cosy place to relax that is outdoor and yet in close proximity to the living room and also protected from the elements of weather.
For outdoor lovers, this is a very cost-effective architectural design inclusion that effectively brings the outdoors into your house while still maintaining privacy.
A good example is the design of a residential house in Kugeria, near Ridgeways, Kiambu below:
Balconies.
These are spaces designed to project or indent from a room that is above ground level. Balconies have a wall that is 1.2 meters high which can also be made of steel grilles.
Balconies offer perfect panoramic views and are designed to capture the best views from a house.
These do not offer a very high privacy level so for the extroverts, this is a must-have feature for your house.
Balconies are a great place to relax as you watch the outdoors. Mot tourist class hotels especially the ones located in scenic places such as along Indian Ocean, Game reserves such as Maasai Mara, this is a must-have feature since due to the position above ground level, and this gives a very good view point that is desirable to relax.
Human Conditioning.
Human beings are at some point conditioned like wild animals in their best positions to relax after a hard days work. After a good kill, most canines will climb atop the nearest tree in solitude and rest. From this high point, they are sure to be safe from any attacks and can also survey their surroundings to keep abreast with the latest developments. The same way, humans feel secure and are also able to monitor their surroundings when perched above ground level. This subconscious attraction to high view points is what makes balconies a very desirable feature.
In the early days, castles were positioned at the highest pint due to the same reason.
The direct opposite of these spaces is the basements which are designed for very different reasons altogether. .
Recreational Facilities.
A good example of this is the design of Nomad Hotel in Kitengela by Frank Gichuhi.
The first floor lounge area has a long balcony on all three sides. The balcony has been designed to give customers the desired scenic views and sub-consciously attracts more people due to the high quality of space. On any given day, there will be more people on the first floor than the ground floor. These people will almost certainly be sitting along the balcony. This design feature has resulted in the Nomad Hotel, Kitengela attracting very many customers resulting in good profits.
The same concept also works for residential houses.
Frank Gichuhi.
www.a4architect.com
+254 721 410684
Tags: Balconies, Cosy, Houses, Outdoors, Residential, YoursAlfrescos
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Monday, February 23rd, 2009
One of the most popular trends of the new millennium is on towards outdoor living. What this means is that more and more people are seeking to use their land as well as their houses as living spaces, moving living areas out onto decks and patios and even lawns. By doing his, people can enjoy nice weather outdoors and still have the comforts they expect inside.
Contrary to popular opinion outside of our borders, Canadians are certainly not exempt from the draw of outside living. In fact, one might say that we appreciate really great weather even more than our neighbours to the south, since we know what BAD weather is really like. So it’s not surprising that all across Canada people are creating their own outdoor living rooms, from the rural areas right to the big cities such as Toronto.
Of course, when you are talking about the majority of Toronto residents in the downtown area particularly, outdoor living spaces are going to be centred around the balconies of apartment and condominium complexes. In this article, we are going to take a look at some ideas to incorporate into your outdoor living on your Toronto balcony.
Start with your furniture. The best place to begin when it comes to setting up a living area outdoors is with your furniture choices. Most balconies are covered, so you won’t have to worry about the effects of rain, but wind can still do some weathering on susceptible furniture. Take a look at pieces made form hardy materials, but which are still comfortable to sit or lie down on. You might want to include a couple of different pieces for sitting or lying down on; chairs, hammocks, even swings are all great options. And don’t forget a nice table, of a size that can suit your snacking or even outdoor dinner ideas!
Decorative touches. Once you have your furniture picked out, you can start thinking about those little touches that will give your balcony a flavour that is uniquely you. Your touches should include decor that flows well with your furniture choices.
Plants and flowers. Including plants and flower will add to the atmosphere, complementing the outdoor location of your home outside of home. Plastic arrangements are wonderful when done properly, and of course don’t require the labour needed for the real thing.
So don’t let living in Canada, or living in a high-rise building, stop you from creating your own room outdoors. Outdoor living spaces are easy, trendy, and they convey a true sense of freedom.
Tags: Balcony, Ideas, Toronto
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Monday, February 23rd, 2009
When choosing a handrail or balustrade system for a deck, stairs, Juliet balcony or a regular walk-on balcony, the shape of the hand rail can play a crucial part in your choice.
The standard shapes out there are mostly circular sections of varying diameters, starting from 40mm which is comfortable for holding onto on a stair railing, going up in diameter to 55mm-70mm.
The more interesting shapes out there are more intricate and include elliptical shapes of varying sizes and rectangular or square shapes.
Stainless steel handrail shapes are very limited, due to the extremely expensive tooling require to extrude or roll form these shapes the market tends to follow what is existent and very little room is available for architects to influence the shapes of the handrails. Many times architects will choose a stainless steel balustrade system or a stainless steel balcony and will want to have a “special” shape for their project, they will soon find the cost of this to be inhibitive, aswell as in many cases unavailable to be done at all.
This is not the case however with aluminum handrails and railings. Infact as opposed to stainless steel balustrades, with aluminium railings the ability to influence the shape by the architects on the project is making these systems the preferred solution. Infact on a recent project I visited, a project in the Docklands in London, I found that the company that made the glass balconies allowed the architects to create three separate handrail shapes for three different areas on the project. One of the handrail was 120mm wide.
There is also a finish out there called “Royal Chrome” which looks virtually like stainless steel but it is actually a special finish on the aluminium and there fore still allows the flexibility of shapes that the aluminium railing systems allow.
In summary stainless steel handrails are more limited in the availability of shapes, whereas aluminium handrail systems allow an inexhaustible possibility of shapes.
Tags: Aluminium, available, handrail, shapes, Stainless, steel
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Sunday, February 15th, 2009
If you’ve already started planning an Alaskan cruise or Alaskan cruise tour, you might have been considering whether it is worth the extra cost to book a balcony cabin. Of course, with Alaskan cruises in high demand, the cruise fares have been on the rise, meaning that a balcony room is often no small investment.
So are balcony rooms worth the price? The answer depends on several factors, including your personal finances, the time of year you plan on cruising, and the amount of time you plan on spending out of your room.
Balcony rooms on Alaskan cruises can cost anywhere from a couple hundred to a thousand dollars more than inside rooms (and the differential can be even higher at the peak of the season). However, despite this sometimes big difference in pricing, it is common for balcony rooms to sell out before either inside or oceanview cabins.
Why are balcony rooms so popular on Alaskan cruises? The reason for their popularity is that there simply is so much to see along the Alaskan cruise rout that, if you don’t have a balcony, you miss out on a good amount of it.
Unlike in the Caribbean, where you sail from island to island, spending much of your time at sea, in the Alaskan Inside Passage, you spend the majority of your journey passing through a relatively narrow waterway between a chain of islands, often with incredible landscapes visible from both sides of the ship: soaring mountains, lush, green forests, countless waterfalls, fjords, glaciers, and even the occasional whale — you’ll see it all along the Alaskan cruise route.
Of course, if you simply aren’t able to spend the money on a balcony room, you still will see plenty of Alaskan scenery. There are wonderful views from many of the ship’s decks, and often you will have great views from the restaurants as well. Many people who book inside rooms end up spending a good deal of their time outside of their rooms anyway, taking part in the many activities and attending the wonderful shows and other events available on large cruise ships.
However, with a balcony stateroom, you will be able to take it all in from the privacy of your cabin. If you have the money or can book in a less expensive time of year (like May or September), I highly recommend a balcony stateroom. It’s simply the best way there is to experience the wonders of coastal Alaska.
Tags: Alaskan, Balcony, Cost, Cruise, Room, Tips, Worth
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Friday, February 13th, 2009
Too often we see balcony and deck areas go unused because of a sheer lack of privacy. Now you can showcase and bring texture to your yard with natural beauty and privacy at the same time. A unique way to add beautiful greenery to your balcony, coverage from the prying eyes of neighbors, or, what might be an unattractive view, is to create a natural outdoor privacy screen .
Start with lightweight decorative resin or plastic containers. We used 3 for our project because of the size of the balcony deck. One for the front, and one for each side of the balcony. Be sure to select containers that that have drainage holes at the bottom. Plants that are sitting in soggy water-filled soil are never a good thing.
Put a few small rocks around the top of the drainage holes to keep the soil from draining out. Then, fill the containers with soil, and plant vines (we used Creeping Fig because it is hardy and will naturally cling to the surface once it gets established) with branches that are long enough to secure to your balcony’s fence panels. Position your 3 decorative resin containers along the front side of the balcony – center, left and right side. This will give you an outdoor privacy screen that covers all the angles.
Next, cut rolled plastic fencing in to 1-2 inch strips and staple to fence using your staple gun. Secure vines to plastic fencing with plastic coated wire ties. Be careful not to staple the vines themselves. Ouch!! As vines branch out, continue to add more plastic fencing until wood fence panels are completely covered. This will give your balcony a custom charm and a natural outdoor privacy screen. You can also use this same method to cover ugly metal fence poles in your yard as well (see our article on ‘Covering Up Ugly Metal Fence Poles.’)
Supplies:
3 Lightweight resin plant containers with drainage holes, or drill your own. Plastic Gardener Fencing (3 x 50 ft. ? Can be found at most home and garden centers.) Plastics coated wire ties for outdoor plants. Staple Gun Staples (for your staple gun of course) Scissors or wire cutters 3 creeping figs Potting soil and mulch Drainage saucers
Tags: Area, Balcony, Charm, Custom, Deck, Green, IdeasCreate, Landscaping, Natural, Outdoor, Privacy, Screen, Sure
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Friday, February 13th, 2009
Anyone can have a garden, even those apartment dwellers living in the smallest apartments. If you have a balcony, all you need is a little imagination and patience, and a bit of a green thumb and you too can have a pocket garden worth bragging about.
The balcony is actually the most underused space in an apartment and it’s precious space for wannabe gardener. No matter how small your balcony may be, it’s adequate space to support a number of potted plants. But there should be some order in the way the planters are arranged, or the overall space could end up looking cluttered. One could also hang a few pots from the balcony roof and walls, but don’t go overboard and make the balcony look like a tropical jungle.
Bigger balconies can also serve as a seating area – a perfect place to relax after a day at work. just remember to use light furniture as moving it around can be a backbreaking task in bad weather.
Even if your apartment doesn’t boast an extended balcony, there’s nothing to worry about. When it comes to gardens, size doesn’t really seem to matter and even the smallest square can support a mini-kitchen garden.
You can grow everything from tomatoes, cucumbers, and eggplant to oranges, all in pots. Admittedly, this is a bit more challenging than having just a few ferns and flowers. If you’re not willing to work that hard for fresh fruit and vegetables, consider growing your own herb garden. It’s the best option. Herbs can be grown in planters, needing just water and sunlight.
If you still feel that the balcony is too small, there’s one more option. Create the illusion of open space. A crystal-clear sliding glass door between the room and balcony along with continuous flooring between the spaces can achieve the look of wider-open spaces without costing you a fortune.
Growing an apartment-friendly garden on your balcony isn’t hard by any means. All it takes is a little bit of time. You’ll be proud of yourself for the work that you’ve created and the beauty that’s right outside your apartment – no matter how far up you are. From the second floor to the fifteenth and beyond – a beautiful garden could just be only a few steps from your door.
Tags: Creating, Garden, Small, Spaces
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