device and installation technology. Advantages and disadvantages. A photo

The development of technology and the growing interest in unusual projects turns the glass roof into an increasingly familiar attribute of country life. The article describes the types of glass roofs, their advantages and disadvantages. You will learn what material is most suitable for profile and glazing, and the usefulness of the anti-aircraft light; Get acquainted with the features of installation and methods of protection against overheating.

About the history of the glass roof

Historically, the first glass roofs have got greenhouses and winter gardens and it happened in England in the middle of the 19th century. Until now, Victorian and Palm greenhouses, located in the Royal Botanical Gardens, are among the largest structures made of glass. Gradually, glass roofs began to appear in public and industrial buildings; as a rule, it was a partial glazing, accentuation in the form of a gallery or extension.

Until recently, residential buildings with a glass roof were rare; they were considered original but impractical detail, which was little associated with private buildings. Today, the owner of suburban housing seeks to ensure that his house is not only reliable and comfortable, but also aesthetically appealing. Not the last role in achieving this goal is played by the design and material of individual parts of the structure.

Glass roofing is an original way to decorate and select a building, to show its refined style. Such an element of design is in demand not only in the construction of office centers, museums, cafes and greenhouses; increasingly, it is implemented in private.

Pros and cons of glass roof

Glass construction bears as aesthetic, and practical load; its advantages include the following parameters:

• Originality . The trump card of the translucent roof, which allows you to turn an ordinary building into a memorable modern project.

• Reliability . A well-designed and assembled glass construction is not inferior in strength and durability to roofs made of other materials.

• Variety of design solutions . It is possible to assemble a structure of any shape from glass: single and gable, in the form of a pyramid, dome or arch.

• Savings . The transparent design provides the maximum level of natural lighting in the residential area, which saves on electricity.

• Performance characteristics . This includes resistance to wind and snow loads and water resistance; due to the smoothness of the glass, the snow on the slopes is not delayed.

• Additional features . You can turn a living room with a transparent ceiling into a corner of the rainforest or a piece of Japanese garden.

Such structures have disadvantages:

• Installation difficulty . Since glass sheets cannot be overlapped and reinforced with waterproofing materials, high-quality assembly and sealing of joints come to the fore.

• High thermal conductivity . Perhaps the main problem arising from the use of glass. The weak ability to serve as a heat barrier complicates the operation of the glass roof, both in winter and in summer. To combat this disadvantage, a combination of several methods is used.

• Cleaning difficulty . The glass surface needs regular and fairly frequent cleaning (from dust and debris, and in winter from snow), which must be taken into account at the design stage.

• Cost . The high cost of a transparent roof is shaped by several factors: the cost of high-quality materials and the payment of labor-intensive specialized works (mounting and shaping the glass to the desired shape).

• Security . Glass overhead is perceived as a potential source of danger. The use of special glass grades with increased impact resistance helps to eliminate the threat.

Types of glass roof

The design of glass is visually expands the interior of the living room and at the same time provides maximum natural light, which is important for the health of people and plants. This property is inherent in translucent roofs of all popular designs, including:

• Horizontal plane . The easiest way, when the basis of the design are the floor beams. Despite the simplicity, errors in the calculations are unacceptable: incorrectly calculated glass plates will begin to deform (sag).

• Inclined plane (or two in the gable variant).The smooth surface installed at an angle does not allow to be late to water and snow; It is relatively simple to design and implement.

On our site you can find contacts of construction companies that offer repair service roofing You can directly communicate with representatives by visiting the low-rise country exhibition.

• Panoramic . It has a complex structure with a large area filling glass. Looks best on buildings on a slope.

• Arch, hemisphere, pyramid, dome . Difficult in the calculation and installation of forms, which are often recommended for the greenhouse, winter garden or rooflight.

In many cases, glass roofing in a private house is an additional structural element , designed to increase the flow of natural lighting and installed on the main roof. Such a detail is called a zenith lamp (the best illumination falls on daytime hours, when the sun rises as high as possible, "to the zenith").

The skylight frame is often made in the form of a dome or a multi-faceted pyramid - they look beautiful and are not so difficult to implement because they are small in size. Sometimes you can find a tape-shaped anti-aircraft lantern, it passes along the entire length of the roof. In addition to increasing the luminous flux, the zenith lamp can perform the following functions:

• Ventilation of the room . For this, it is provided with an opening flap.

• Filtering light . If the glass is replaced with colored polycarbonate; You can achieve an interesting design effect.

On our site you can find contacts of construction companies that offer the service installation of metal structures. You can directly communicate with representatives by visiting the low-rise country exhibition.

Choice of material: practical and safe

The basis of the glass roof design is a frame that plays the role of a truss system and the sheathing of a conventional roof. It is clear that increased requirements are imposed on the strength of this design, and only high-quality materials are selected for its manufacture. The following materials are chosen for the glass roof:

• Aluminum profile . Aluminum is a material known for its merits: strength, low specific gravity and corrosion resistance. This combination allows you to reduce the overall load of the roof on the walls (which is important, since glass has considerable weight) without reducing reliability. The minus of aluminum, like all metals, consists in its high thermal conductivity, which means additional heating consumption in winter (and air conditioning in summer). In general, the aluminum frame is recommended for rooms that are used periodically in the cold season.

About the design of glass roofs in the following video:

On our website you can find contacts of construction companies that offer the service of building small architectural forms. You can directly communicate with representatives by visiting the low-rise country exhibition.

• A frame of warm aluminum . Such a framework is characterized by a lower thermal conductivity. Improvement is achieved due to the complex structure: two sheets of aluminum separate the layer of insulating material.

• Steel profile . Gives the design increased strength (with appropriate preventive care). For the same load, the sectional area of ​​the steel section will be one and a half times less than aluminum; This allows you to create elegant forms with a large glass area. However, the steel frame weighs more and costs more, and only stainless steel profile can boast of corrosion resistance (without the use of protective coatings).

• Wooden frame . The profile of the tree has a small weight; Such a wooden roof glazing is ideally in aesthetic terms for timber or log houses. The material is necessarily processed to protect against rot and fire.

• Combined profile . The all-metal frame is a very expensive thing, so it is often replaced with a combination of metal (usually aluminum) and wood. Such replacement is allowed if the glazing area is small. The aluminum-wooden profile combines the strength of a metal with a low thermal conductivity of wood. Wooden elements are subject to mandatory processing protective structures; However, this profile is not recommended for construction of a greenhouse.A tropical plant-friendly climate will destroy the wooden elements of the framework; if they are not replaced in time, the structure may collapse.

The choice of glass or its substitutes (ordinary glass is not suitable because of its fragility and massiveness) also has its own characteristics. The following specialized options have proven themselves well:

• Tempered glass . It is characterized by improved mechanical strength and heat resistance, obtained by high-temperature processing. The second important property is safe destruction. When breaking, glass forms many small non-hazardous fragments, the edges of which cannot be cut.

About the types of glass roofs in the following video:

It might be interesting! In article on the following link read about the types of skylights.

• Triplex . Laminated glass; may have two or three layers joined by a polymer. Triplex is convenient because it does not give fragments. It is used for glazing vehicles and building facades; it is also suitable for a glass roof.

• Reinforced glass . As well as triplex, refers to shatterproof glass. Reinforced glass contains inside the metal grid, it is used in the construction of transparent walls and roof structures.

• Laminated glass . One of the types of thermally polished glass produced by pouring glass on a thin metal layer. Heated from such glass can get any shape; It is characterized by high surface quality, and does not form fragments when destroyed.

Other translucent materials are used to build the glass roof in the house :

• Polycarbonate . Lightweight plastic material with high heat resistance. Due to a set of good performance characteristics, polycarbonate is widely used as translucent inserts into the roof of houses, sheds, gazebos and greenhouses.

• Transparent slate (made of PVC). Shockproof (not afraid of hail) and heat-resistant material with fiberglass as a reinforcing base. Transparent slate is available in two types: wavy and straight; It has a smooth texture and a wide range of colors.

• Plexiglas . Plastic with a lower thermal conductivity than glass; may be transparent, tinted or tinted. Plexiglas - flexible material; it weighs two times less than ordinary glass, which makes it possible to refuse to strengthen the frame and additional supports. All translucent materials have low weight, sufficient strength and moderate cost. Their common drawback is lower light transmission, which does not allow to get the feeling of a “transparent” room.

About the calculation of the glass roof in the following video:

It might be interesting! In the article on the following link read about the choice of the heating system.

Installation nuances

The glass roof begins with the design, it includes a competent calculation of the permissible loads on the load-bearing walls, as well as the parameters of the selected materials. Particular attention should be paid to the panoramic glass roof. Its weight may require reinforcement of supporting walls; additional construction work can turn the roof into a more expensive project than planned. In order for the roof to be strong and durable, the following requirements must be considered during design and installation work:

• Safety . Something that can not be saved in any case. Only shock-resistant materials that can withstand both snow drifts, a broken branch or a randomly hit ball or stone are suitable for glazing.

• Snow Cluster . This nuisance is fought in two ways. You can install an electric heating system (which should be foreseen at the design stage). Another, more rational option is to choose a design with an increased angle of inclination of the slopes, more than 30 ° C, or a dome (spherical) version.

• Tightness . Transparent parts cannot be overlapped, like slate or tile. So that the roof can serve as a reliable protection against water and dirt, the joints are held together with special colorless sealants.

• Dust protection . For glazing, you can use glass coated on the basis of titanium oxide, which protects against organic and other contaminants. Water on this surface is not collected in drops, and forms a film, which then slips off, leaving no streaks. Otherwise, the roof is designed so that it was convenient to wash.

• Multifunctionality .The use of lifting mechanisms for glass elements will make it possible to automatically open them without problems. You will provide access to fresh air and direct sunlight.

About installing the glass roof in the following video:

It might be interesting! In article on the following link read about the types of ventilation in the house.

Protection against overheating

In hot summer, a room under a glass roof can turn into a very uncomfortable place if you do not take care of methods of dealing with overheating in advance. There are several proven ways to maintain a comfortable microclimate. The most important method of protecting the room from overheating is ventilation, therefore, it is not recommended to save and refuse to organize opening doors.

You can use the cross and diagonal method of ventilation. In the first case, the air goes through the vents, located on the same level. In the second case, the heated air, as lighter, comes out through the vents in the roof, and fresh outside air enters through the ventilation ducts in the lower part of the walls. Reduce overheating by limiting the light transmission of roofing elements; This can be achieved in several ways:

• Choosing a sunscreen . Large manufacturers offer a wide range of glasses with a different mechanism of action. Glass can reflect or absorb ultraviolet light; for this purpose, it is painted in bulk or carried out with a special coating.

• Using sun protection films . Film tinting is done upon completion of installation; It extinguishes the sun glare and reflects 70-80% of the sunlight. The room will avoid overheating, and you will save on air conditioning. The films on the market are varied in color and level of darkening or specularity. The disadvantage is that the film coating is afraid of cleaning with abrasive pastes and hard brushes.

• External protective screens . Such a system protects not only from ultraviolet radiation, but also from accidental damage by a stone or icicle. However, screens need an automatic control system, they must be designed for strong wind loads.

• Awnings . Fabric awnings are installed both inside and outside the room, the roof with such decoration takes on an elegant look. They are successfully used in the arrangement of the winter garden, when the roof area is small. When installing inside a living room, remember that overheating protection will be minimal.

• Roller shutters . A variety of blinds, installed on the outside and serve as a reliable protection from the sun's rays, precipitation, dust and noise. Modern technologies make it possible to produce roller shutters of various shapes and sizes that can fit into the exterior of any building.

It might be interesting! In the article on the following link read about the house with transparent walls.

Conclusion

Glass roofs in modern suburban housing construction are a steady trend, a stylish way to harmoniously fit the building into the surrounding landscape. Glass roof gives the interior an impressive view and a delightful feeling of open space. In order for these pleasant feelings to be complemented by a sense of reliability and complete security, the development and installation of such a complex structure must be carried out by professionally trained specialists with experience in this field.

Rate this article, we tried for you