Are you planning to build a porch at your dacha with your own hands? We have collected all the necessary recommendations with which your porch will be strong and durable.
Golden rules for a good porch
For a brick or concrete dwelling, it is best to make the extension from the appropriate material. Wooden houses will also look better with a wooden entrance.
Let us highlight four principles that experienced builders usually apply in practice. The number of steps must be odd; if the number is more than three, a railing must be constructed. It is unknown what determines such strict requirements (tradition or standard), but common sense, you see, is present.
The type of door determines the width of the porch to the house. The minimum for a single-leaf door is 1.5 m, if it is a double-leaf door - 2 m.
The length (depth) of the area in front of the door must be at least 1 m greater than the door leaf. A small space can cause you to fall off your porch or cause unwanted injury.
It is better to make the porch at the same time as building the house, otherwise there may be distortions and flaws due to shrinkage. But we will proceed from the fact that it is being built as an additional dacha building.
How to build a concrete structure?
Following our rule, a porch for a dacha made of reinforced concrete must also be made from this material. Let's see in what order the work will proceed.
How to build a porch at your dacha with your own hands - step-by-step diagram
Step 1: Pit
Before work, it is necessary to collect as much information as possible about the level of soil freezing in the area. This is necessary so that later all your work does not go to waste due to freezing of the soil in winter and subsequent thawing in the spring, when water washes away the base. The foundation pit must be dug to such a depth that it corresponds to the freezing level. After the construction of the country porch, some settlement will still occur, but it will not be catastrophic. When the pit is ready, its walls and bottom will be leveled. Then the base is backfilled with crushed stone; it is enough to make the layer height no higher than 10 cm. It is recommended to compact this layer well.
The arrangement of a private house falls entirely on the shoulders of its owner, and therefore the question of how to build a porch with your own hands still remains relevant. This element of the structure is mandatory, as it allows you to refine the entrance to the room, provides convenient access to it, and also performs many other useful functions. So, let's take a closer look at how to build a porch.
Selection of location and materials
Building a porch in front of the entrance to a house with your own hands is one of the stages of construction of almost any building. It can sometimes be very difficult to do without this element. The porch is a platform in front front door, most often with steps. It can be completely open, completely or partially covered with a canopy.
Main functions of the porch:
- protects the room from water ingress during significant precipitation;
- provides convenient access to the front door, especially if we are talking about a house with a high foundation;
- is part of the building's exterior and plays important role aesthetic plan;
- can serve as a place for a dining area or relaxation, storage, etc.
Before you decide to build a porch for a wooden or brick house, you need to determine its size, configuration and location. Basically, it is built in such a way that there is enough space not only for swinging the door open, but also for arranging a summer area. It may have rectangular shape, contain curves and protrusions. The door can be located either strictly in the center or away from the stairs.
The porch can be located not only from the main entrance. A platform with steps is also necessary for an alternative exit to the backyard, if there is one.
A variety of materials for the construction of the porch of a private house
The following materials are most often used for the construction of a porch:
- Wood. Aesthetic and easy to process material. Only hard rocks are used, since the structure is subject to a large load and influence of the external environment.
- Concrete. Strong and durable material allows you to create any configuration for the porch. It is important to use high-quality raw materials and reinforce individual areas when pouring concrete.
- Brick. An alternative to concrete. It has a more noble appearance and is convenient to work with. Nevertheless, the main elements are made of concrete and iron reinforcement.
- Metal. Mainly used to strengthen poured platforms and steps, as well as in the construction of external stairs and fences.
Calculations
Before building a porch at the entrance to the house, you should at least roughly outline the area and scale of the work. To do this, you need to identify the basic parameters of the porch. First of all, we are talking about its area. Optimal value It is difficult to determine, because everything depends on the area of land available for construction. In general, the porch should have at least enough space to enter the house. Therefore, you need to take the distance from the opening to the fence as a basis.
Porch country house most often built from metal, wood or concrete. The choice of a specific material depends mainly on the architectural features of the building itself. Each type of street staircase has its own construction technology.
They will be discussed in this article. You will learn not only how to properly make a porch for a house from one material or another, but also how to tie it to the foundation of the house and what its own foundation should be like.
Choosing material for the porch
The choice of material for the porch of a house mainly depends on what its walls are made of. So, near the facade of a wooden building, it is best to build a structure made of boards and timber. A concrete or metal structure can be attached to a concrete or brick house. For finishing, tiles, bricks, wood or even plastic are often used:
Wooden porches for a country house
Wooden porches have a number of undeniable advantages. They are beautiful and require virtually no additional finishing. Such designs are somewhat cheaper than other varieties.
Construction of a porch to the house. Photo of an aesthetic and easy-to-manufacture design
Wooden street stairs are usually attached only to a log or cobblestone building or to a bathhouse. But there are exceptions to every rule. The simplicity of the design of such stairs makes them extremely popular, and often a carved or ordinary wooden porch can be seen on concrete or brick houses.
A wooden staircase can also be attached to a concrete house
Should I make a porch out of concrete?
Concrete options for porches can be poured. They are also built from blocks. This design can be made at the entrance to a concrete or brick building. The main advantage concrete stairs durability is considered. How to fill a porch with your own hands and how to make it from blocks will be discussed below.
Concrete marches look very beautiful and at the same time solid and solid
Metal structures
A metal porch at the dacha with your own hands is best made from a corner or profiled pipe.
Note: Structures made from galvanized material are very beautiful. However, making them at home is hardly possible. In order to make such a ladder, you need considerable experience in working with a welding machine. Therefore, at the entrances to private houses you can often see painted metal structures made of ordinary steel.It is better to make wooden steps on street stairs made of metal. In some cases, they are also made of metal.
Using wooden steps you can build a very beautiful metal porch
You can build a porch at a dacha or in a country house using different technologies. The choice of a specific one depends on what material will be used for its manufacture:
Assembling a wooden street staircase
First, let's look at how to make a porch with your own hands for a wooden house. You can build even the simplest wooden porch so that it turns out reliable only by drawing up a project in advance. In this case, the stairs must be calculated taking into account the following factors:
- The tilt angle of a comfortable march varies from 27 to 45 degrees;
- The width of the step should be approximately 30cm, height 17cm;
- The height of the railing should not be less than 90cm.
How to build a porch with your own hands. Drawings of convenient street stairs
To make a simple wooden staircase you will need to prepare the following materials:
- Edged boards for steps and stringers;
- Beam minimum 80*80mm. It can be used to make porch supports;
- 3cm board for bowstring or stringer;
- Beam 50*50mm for making railings and canopy frame;
- 2cm board for covering the canopy.
They continue to build a wooden porch with their own hands by installing supports. To make them durable, it is worth treating their ends with automotive oil. Under them, holes about half a meter deep are dug in the ground at a distance from the wall equal to the width of the upper platform.
A durable porch can be built only by arranging reliable supports
At the next stage, the upper platform is knocked together. Next you will need to make stringers or a bowstring. One end of the stringer is attached to the upper platform, and the other is supported on a concrete pad. Then they begin to fill the treads and risers.
DIY wooden porch. Photo of the process of installing steps on stringers
Advice: Steps during construction wooden stairs For a private house, it is better to fasten it not with self-tapping screws, but with bolts and nuts. Weak fasteners will simply become loose under constant load in the future.So, we have looked at how to build a wooden porch with your own hands in stages. However, without railings and a canopy, the structure will be unfinished. Balusters are mounted on metal studs. Next, the handrail is attached to the bolts. After this, you need to make a canopy by covering the wooden frame with boards.
Making reliable railings with your own hands when building a porch is not so difficult
How to Build a Welded Metal Porch
Now let's figure out how to build a porch for a metal house. The technology for constructing such structures is slightly different from the method of assembling wooden ones. Install supports from a pipe, angle or profile of at least 50*50mm. Next you need to make the frame of the upper platform. The bowstring should be made from a channel or corner.
A porch to a metal house can be made using a welding machine
When building a porch, the steps are welded from a corner in the form of frames, to which the racks are welded to the height of the riser. Next, the resulting elements are welded to the bowstrings, to their upper edge. Then the edged board is screwed to the corner.
Since metal is a material that does not tolerate moisture, a canopy must be made. You can equip a metal porch with your own hands, for example, with a canopy made of corrugated sheet metal. In this case, the frame should be made from a steel angle.
The construction of a metal porch requires the installation of a canopy
If you like arched, dome or curved canopies, you can use polycarbonate instead of metal profiles. You can make a curved frame yourself using a pipe bender. Polycarbonate sheets are attached to it using self-tapping screws with thermal washers.
You can make a very interesting shaped visor from polycarbonate
Important: The holes for the fasteners should be slightly larger in diameter than their rods. When installing the sheet, the screws themselves do not tighten too much, since polycarbonate sheets expand as the temperature rises.How to build a concrete march
A concrete porch should be attached to a stone building. You can make it with your own hands as poured or block.
Monolithic porch. How to build
When constructing a porch made of monolithic concrete, formwork is used. Its shape depends on the chosen form of the march itself. The easiest way to make it is from a board, and it is a multi-tiered structure (according to the number of steps). All steps must be reinforced. The concrete mixture is made from cement, sand and crushed stone in a ratio of 1*4*4.
To build a concrete porch, you need to make multi-tiered formwork
Note: A semicircular, round or oval porch made of concrete looks very beautiful. In this case, during construction, the formwork can be made of tin or plastic.Below see how you can build a porch with your own hands (video):
How to Build a Block Porch
In order to make a neat porch of a country house from blocks or foam blocks, markings should be made. Next, the foundation is laid. The ladder is laid out with ligation of the seams. After construction, a block structure, just like a monolithic one, must be faced with tiles or boards. In this case, the result will be not only good quality, but also beautiful porch.
The porch can also be built from concrete blocks
Approximately the same technology is used to make a porch with your own hands from brick or stone.
How to tie a ladder to the house
If the porch of a village house is built during its construction, it is poured simultaneously with the foundation of the building.
Important: The foundation of the street staircase is laid at the same depth as the foundation of the house itself.
It is best to build a porch at the same time as the building itself
However, more often the connection of the march to the building is done after its construction. In this case, you should follow the rules for connecting the porch to the plinth, which will be discussed below.
Concrete staircase. How to build a reliable
When attaching the porch of a private house with your own hands, it is worth remembering that it is not recommended to attach heavy structures rigidly to the foundation and plinth. In this case, roofing material or polyethylene is laid between the march and the house. It can also be plywood or boards impregnated with bitumen. The fact is that an extension is usually made to a house that has already shrunk. A heavy concrete or brick staircase will definitely sink.
Iron and wooden porch
If you make a porch with your own hands from wood or metal, it can be attached directly to the base. In this case, during construction, bars or a metal corner are nailed to the wall. A wooden frame or iron frame of the upper platform is attached to them at one edge.
You can build a metal porch by attaching it directly to the house
What could be the foundation of the porch?
We hope you now understand how to properly attach a porch to a house with your own hands. Only one question remained unexamined, namely, what its foundation should be. You can make different types of bases for outdoor stairs.
Concrete pad
When constructing light wooden and metal stairs, a small concrete pad is usually placed under them. Next, let's see how to fill such a support. They do not lay it across the entire width of the porch, but only under the first step of the flight. Thus, it serves as a support for stringers or bowstrings. Its installation is carried out as follows:
- In the place where the ends of the stringers will subsequently be located, a square pit the width of the porch is dug. Its depth depends on the weight of the street staircase structure and is usually 30-40cm;
- Formwork made of boards is installed in the pit. Next, sand or gravel is poured onto its bottom in a layer of 10 cm;
DIY porch. Photo of the process of installing a concrete pad under the march
- After this, the bottom is filled with a three-centimeter layer of cement mortar;
- A reinforcement cage is installed on the resulting support, which can be made from a 12mm rod;
- Next, the formwork is filled with concrete mixture. In this case, for one part of cement grade 300-400, four parts of sand and the same amount of crushed stone are taken.
- On last stage The surface of the filled pillow is carefully leveled. In this case, it will be possible to build the most stable porch.
If a wooden or metal staircase has a very wide or long flight, it is worth building a thicker cushion. Wooden or concrete pillars of the upper platform must have a thickening at the very bottom.
The concrete pad under the porch can be quite large. It can also be built with steps
Columnar foundation for the porch to the house
Sometimes wooden stairs are simply supported on pillars during construction. At the same time, in addition to the supports of the upper platform, two more wooden columns are buried in the ground under the march (instead of a concrete pad). In the same way, you can make supports for the bowstrings of a metal ladder from sections of pipes. Such a foundation is cheaper than a pillow and is easier to build, but it is less reliable.
You can build a porch with different types pillars
Strip foundation
The design of a porch is technologically quite complex if it is built into the veranda. In this case, most often during construction, a strip foundation is poured under the entire structure.
DIY porch. Photo of a foundation pit for a strip foundation
This event consists of several stages:
- After the marking is made, a trench is dug around the perimeter of the veranda;
- Sand is poured onto its bottom;
- Next, formwork is installed along the edges, which can be made from boards;
- Then 5cm thick blocks (reinforcement supports) are laid at the bottom of the trench;
- The reinforcement is knitted from 12mm rod;
- After it is installed in the formwork, the latter is filled with a concrete mixture of the same composition as for a simple concrete pad;
- The formwork can be removed one day after pouring.
How to build a porch. Pouring strip foundation
Important: The veranda and the march itself are erected no earlier than two weeks after the foundation is laid.How to build a slab foundation
Next, let's see how to make slab foundation under the street stairs. This type of foundation is installed under heavy structures - concrete and brick. It is a monolithic slab under the entire area of the staircase. It pours in about the same way as a pillow. The depth of laying depends on the depth of the foundation of the building. Usually it is 50-70cm.
It’s not very difficult to make a slab foundation for a porch
Note: The thickness of the sand or gravel layer according to SNiP must be at least 10 cm.So, now you know how to build a porch with your own hands. Depending on its type, different techniques can be used. For light street stairs, you can make a cheaper and simpler foundation. Heavy structures require a more reliable foundation.
Wood will always remain our favorite material, because it is alive and natural; stone, even natural, does not have this property, and especially glass and concrete do not. As long as a person lives, they will build with their own hands. U wooden house there is a peculiarity - a porch made of wood can easily fit it, but almost never one made of metal and plastic. You must be a great specialist in the field of design wooden houses to organically integrate a modern “metal” style into the facade of a wooden house. And even more so, it’s not easy to make a beautiful porch with your own hands without a project.
Choosing a porch project for a wooden house
The task of working with your own hands is greatly simplified if you take into account several rules for the mutual combination of the features of the porch and the facade of the house:
- The porch for a wooden house can be made in the same style as the house itself. But do not make a small copy of the house, but ensure that its design looks like an integral part of the building. Look at a few photos. In all cases, a beautiful porch looks harmonious due to its functionality and thoughtful style;
- You can create a contrast between the beautiful texture of the porch and the standard look of an ordinary wooden house. Against the background of a boring, neat look of a wooden house, the porch will look more impressive.
Important ! Majority beautiful projects They attract with their simple and stylish design, which does not contain unnecessary elements or “empty” decorations.
Please note that in the above photos you can choose a whole photo gallery of the most successful projects with a minimum amount of decor; beauty is achieved only thanks to the natural characteristics of wood.
Interesting porch designs for a wooden house
The bulk of do-it-yourself wooden house projects are made either in the old “chopped” style, or stylized as wooden with extensive use of metal, ceramics, wooden beam. Houses of both styles are very beautiful, and with the right selection of porches they take on the appearance of a work of art.
House and porch in “chopped” style
Much of the beauty of the house and porch depends on the correctly chosen style of wooden construction. For example, a standard cottage, which does not have any special refinements in shape and design in the photo, changes dramatically in perception after vertical posts made from tree trunks have been added. Their unusual shape made it easy to stylize the entire building of the house with an unusual “forest” look. “Hut on chicken legs” style.
Often wooden houses are built with their own hands using the old fashioned method from large wooden logs. Almost always, such “log houses” turn out to be large two-story buildings, reminiscent of medieval Siberian houses. But with the correct location of the porch and compliance with the general style, the house can greatly benefit from making a beautiful “antique” carved porch, as in the photo.
Oddly enough, most houses built of wood repeat modern architecture, which is poorly combined with the ancient “chopped” style. The desire to create a complex roof and a log vault of walls leads to the appearance of a kind of “remake” - the texture of an old wooden house, mechanically transferred to a new architectural appearance. In such options, a beautiful carved porch practically saves the entire ensemble.
Some fans prefer the classic wooden house according to the samples and canons of the 18th century. Particularly interesting are the options typical for the northern latitudes of the country. Even in the photo, such projects look simple and very functional; there is nothing unnecessary in the design of the roof and walls, but one feels that the house is unusually strong and reliable. An openwork porch with beautiful stairs very accurately complements the beauty of a wooden house.
Almost always, the porch looks very beautiful and organic, it can complement and emphasize the beauty of the house if it is small in size, so the design of a small porch is not lost, but correctly complements the main building, as in the photo.
Stylization for “chopped” buildings
The effect of proportionality forces lovers of large houses to artificially increase the size of the porch in order to maintain the correct proportions in the house. In the guise of the facade of a beautiful wooden house main role dedicated to the porch, it is made of wood, but looks very modern and stylish, thanks to the laconic and beautiful design and well-chosen tinting of the supporting supports and wooden cladding of the house. The achieved effect speaks for itself in the photo.
The most successful and attractive wooden houses are not of the “logged” style, but those stylized as a log house. The architecture of such a house is more elegant and modern. In the photo you can see how to use a beautiful carved ornament that is organically combined with the general ideology of the wooden structure of the house. The porch turned out to be very spacious and bright, the carved ornament goes very well with the overall decor of the wooden house.
Wooden walls and porches look more modern and stylish, and there is no excess in the use of antique decorative elements. Moreover, the porch itself is very beautiful and complements well the facade of the wooden house, in the photo. But in such solutions, in order to maintain the overall style, the porch was faced with ceramic tiles of a very well-chosen shade. In this design, the monumentality of the building and the finishing of the timber under expensive varieties wood requires an exquisite texture of material for a wooden porch, so the stone steps are made with ceramic cladding.
Non-wooden porch for a wooden house
There are many successful options when builders and architects manage to combine with their own hands the warm style of a wooden house with the cold modern style in which the porch of the house is built. Wood goes very well with stone and ceramic tiles
The metal and plastic from which the porch is built do not spoil appearance wooden house, although the design itself looks a little unusual, but not alien, thanks to the successful wooden texture of the cladding and the design of the house itself.
It is not always possible to harmoniously combine a wooden house and a non-wooden porch. The complexity of this approach lies in the need to carefully select a compromise between the bright appearance of the wooden facade and the discreet style of the porch. Sometimes this is achieved by using a minimum of metal and glass in the porch. For example, in the photo it was possible to solve the compatibility problem thanks to the use of forged elements and a thin openwork construction scheme. In addition, the shading formed by the pine trees growing around it has a beneficial effect on the overall background of the house.
Advice ! One of the secrets to properly building a porch with your own hands is to use the right color scheme.
For open and brightly lit areas, a wooden house is usually made in light colors; they try not to highlight the porch too much. In conditions when most of The façade is covered with trees; it would be more organic to use more subdued tones and a minimum of varnished surfaces.
A simple solution, beautiful and tasteful
A beautiful porch does not necessarily have to impress with its size and richness of decor. For small houses you can use the most simple solutions from the stairs and side railings. At the same time, the main emphasis should be placed on reliability and comfort due to the wide upper platform, comfortable steps and very beautiful exterior finishing using special varnish and wax compositions, as in the photo.
The option in the photo below will be optimal for a summer house or country house. Such a porch can be considered a whole terrace. Often, due to the beautiful natural shade, the porch parts are not even painted, but are treated with wax mastics, so that the texture of the elements resembles freshly cut wood.
A simple design does not mean wretchedness; one of the nicest projects is a porch with several steps for an ordinary residential building in the city.
Natural color and good sunlight very well emphasize the classic design of the porch. This is a typical version of the attached scheme, when the staircase is built with your own hands to the landing in front of the front door of the house. At the same time, the canopy and the porch itself turned out to be very small in size, do not take up much space, and are absolutely organically combined with the appearance of the house itself.
Important ! To build such options, many construction companies produce standard porch designs in ready-made kits, which can be assembled and built in front of the entrance to the dacha or small house with your own hands.
Conclusion
The most successful do-it-yourself porch options for a home are obtained by individually selecting a canopy, stairs, railings and an upper platform in front of the door. But even with this approach best choice will make a simple and beautiful structure made of wood with a reliable canopy made of modern materials.
A porch is an external extension in front of the entrance to a house.
Have you ever seen a building (logically complete) without it? Hardly. After all, the porch is a functionally significant detail of any residential (and non-residential) structure; it facilitates a comfortable transition of a person from ground level to floor plane level.
Since the floor in the house cannot be level with the ground, steps are a mandatory “component” of the porch. Directly in front of the door there should be a platform large enough to comfortably accommodate several people. A canopy can be installed over the extension to protect it from precipitation.
Building a porch with your own hands - where to start?
Before you build a porch, you should definitely plan all your activities correctly, in particular, think about the appearance and design of the “structure,” its dimensions, optimal proportions, number of steps, height of handrails, etc.
And also learn some technical tricks of building a house porch. Thus, the number of steps and their height should be calculated with the guideline that a person should take a step onto the platform from the same foot with which he began the “climbing”.
The optimal number of steps is three, five or seven (odd number). The recommended height of the step is 15-20 centimeters, the depth is about 30. If you make the depth larger, walking will not be particularly comfortable.
An appropriate solution when building a wooden porch would be to create a slope of steps of several degrees. This way, water will not stagnate on surfaces.
Fencing a porch with railings is a rather controversial issue. Experts believe that for a tall structure (from one and a half meters) the railings are at least to some extent justified, but for a low extension it is rather overkill. It is clear that when you are not limited in funds, you can get creative and assign them the role of a decorative, aesthetically attractive detail of the exterior. With a modest budget for a small-sized structure, it is better not to waste money on the railings.
Important! From an ergonomic point of view, the most acceptable railing height for the average owner is 80-100 centimeters.
The porch, if desired, can be equipped with a bench (it is not a mandatory element).
As for the area of the site, there are no SNIPs or recommendations for all occasions from professional builders. The area can be made in any size - large, small... or even encircling the entire house, like a terrace. Some of the original projects involve the porch serving as a veranda. In a word, before you start building a porch, it would be a good idea to look at photos of houses with interesting exterior solutions. There are many options for arranging an extension.
The porch is often made in the form of an independent structure, attached to the finished house. But it can be (even better) and an integral part of the building, initially having a common foundation with it.
For the first case, there is one very important recommendation - connecting the extension to the monolith of the building, as they say, “tightly” is categorically not recommended. This is due to the fact that the structures have different weights, and, as a result, different shrinkage. Don't want to admire the deformations and cracks at the joint? So, don't tempt fate.
Materials for building a porch
It is highly desirable that the porch be designed in the same style as the house. Agree, a wooden house with a stone porch will look ridiculous, as well as vice versa.
When decorating a porch, you can combine stone and wood, but this must be done very carefully and carefully. It is important that the extension (especially if it is “outstanding”) forms a harmonious combination with external attributes - a fence, gates, etc. So, if the fence or the site itself contains a sufficient number of decorative forged elements, then the logical solution would be to use the same when decorating pilasters supporting the canopy or railings of the porch itself. The extension can be illuminated with lamps identical in style to those that illuminate your property at night.
As for the size of material investments, the price for building a porch will directly depend on what materials you choose and what “beauties” you want to decorate it with.
How to properly build a concrete porch?
Before you build a porch with your own hands at a house made of concrete blocks or a brick house, you need to carry out a series of preparatory work. First of all, dig a hole for the foundation and form a platform for the extension. The depth of the foundation pit should be approximately 100-120 centimeters. A sand cushion 20 centimeters high is formed at its bottom. Next, you should build a wooden formwork and fill the base with mortar.
The next stage of building a porch with your own hands is creating a concrete staircase. It is built using formwork designed taking into account each of the steps. To make the porch more reliable and durable, you need to reinforce it with special frames (from reinforcement with a diameter of 10 millimeters). The steps are formed one after another: the first one has dried, the second one has been filled, etc. The corners of the steps are reinforced with metal corners, “recessed” into the still uncured solution.
During the work process, do not forget to take care of the hydro- and vapor barrier of the extension.
The porch area should be made 5 centimeters below the level of the door.
When all the concrete work is completed, you can start finishing the extension. Porcelain stoneware or tiles are ideal for these purposes.
Pay attention! The main mistake of many inexperienced owners is to use interior tiles to decorate the porch. And sincere surprise why it is terribly slippery in the cold season.
Use only those materials whose use is recommended for exterior finishing.
Now, regarding the railings. If your house is brick, the best option There will be metal or brick railings, the handrails of which are made of wood. Wooden, high-quality processed railings are optimal for use at any time of the year. Even in winter.
If you are planning to make a canopy (roof), then keep in mind that it should cover the entire porch with a margin (protecting the entrance from rain and snow).
Making a brick extension
The initial stage of construction of a brick porch is absolutely the same as that of a concrete one - from preparing a hole for the foundation to pouring mortar into the area under the porch. Then it is created brickwork, “layer by layer” - as if building a house. In terms of strength, a brick extension is no worse than a concrete one, but it will cost more.
How to build a wooden porch?
A wooden porch is a great decoration for any wooden structure. It can be built in two ways.
The first (simple) method is to install a stepped wooden box on a concrete foundation, and support the porch platform for strength with two beams extending from the wall of the house. It is recommended to treat the lowest boards in contact with concrete with bitumen or machine oil - this is a critically important procedure for extending their service life.
The second is implemented using stringers. As in the first case, the porch platform rests on beams. And the stairs are on these same stringers (reinforced concrete sleepers or beams). The stringers are connected to the foundation by cutting them out, and they are fastened together with a support board (fixed with through tenons). A waterproof concrete support should also be provided.
Construction of a porch: video from an expert about the main technological mistakes
We construct a canopy
To create a canopy, you can use modern high-tech polycarbonate material. The frame for it is usually made of aluminum profile. Two consoles are used to support the structure.
Polycarbonate is attached to the frame using metal clips. It is better to use rubber washers at the fastening points - they will prevent leakage in bad weather. The dimensions of the holes for the screws should be two to three times larger than the dimensions of the parts themselves: this recommendation is intended to ensure free expansion of the polycarbonate under the summer sun.
Aesthetics and more aesthetics: how to build a beautiful porch in various styles
And finally, let's talk about the aesthetic side of the issue. There are a great many options for constructing a porch from a constructive and stylistic point of view. Let's try to highlight the main styles of porches that can be found in our cottage villages.
Classic porch
Covered with ceramic tiles or natural stone. The canopy is most often gable, there are railings and decorative posts. Availability large quantity designer stuff is unacceptable. It is undesirable to paint such an extension in bright colors. The classic porch is a purely practical solution in “neat colors”.
Gingerbread house porch
This is a combination of decorative elements made of brick and metal gratings. Cover such an extension gable roof. For decoration, wild grapes and ivy (other climbing plants) are used. Wooden parts painted in colors close to the plant world are not excluded.
European type of porch
It is characterized by regular, strict forms. Such an extension can be decorated with a wide variety of accessories.
In the question of how to build a porch photo various options finishing and decorating can be very useful. This way you can more clearly imagine what appearance the extension would like to see in the end.
Street lights and decorative garden figurines (animals, gnomes) can be located at the entrance.
Porch-patio
It is a kind of open terrace adjacent to the house. There can be tables, benches, and chairs. It is not always covered with a canopy or roof.
Fortress style porch
This extension is made massive and finished with natural stone. Appropriate details for its design are torch lamps and forged grilles. Pots with flowers will look great on forged gratings - they will further emphasize the massiveness and contrast of the structure.
Romantic style extension
This is a kind of symbiosis of a gazebo with a porch. This structure is ideal for communication, smoke breaks, and short dates. A porch in a romantic style must have benches; if desired, you can also place coffee tables. It is highly desirable to have flowers and several lamps at different levels.
Whatever type and design of the porch you like, remember, the main thing is the use quality materials and compliance with work technology at all stages of the process.
