Lining is a universal material. It can be used for cladding houses, extensions inside and outside. Also, lining is perfect for making furniture. A good example is a clapboard cabinet that you can easily assemble with your own hands.
You can use ready-made drawings if the size of the structure fits your space. Or develop an individual sketch and assemble it based on it.
Why do you need a closet on the balcony?
A wardrobe is a necessary piece of furniture in every apartment. You've probably come across a lot of unnecessary things cluttering up your home. By placing the closet on the balcony, you can solve this problem.
Not everyone has the opportunity to purchase a large apartment in order to easily fit all household items.
You can put unnecessary things in it, for example, some seasonal clothes, place jars of pickling on the shelves for the winter, or put a box of tools away from children.
Where to begin
Often, balconies have niches for installing cabinets (example in the photo), but before you begin installing a modernized pantry, you should know:
- Glazing the balcony will preserve the attractiveness of the wooden finish for a long time, protect it from dampness and direct moisture;
- Installation should begin with repairing the floor, if not the entire balcony, then certainly the part where the bottom of the cabinet will be located;
- Elimination of all cracks and cracks, as well as additional insulation of walls and floors will protect against drafts and sudden changes in temperature conditions.
Such simple introductory instructions help preserve the wood paneling so that it will delight you with its natural beauty for many years.
How to make a cabinet from clapboard with your own hands
Lining is a thin board from 7 to 20 mm, designed for covering various surfaces. What is the advantage of this material?
- Safety.
- Easy processing.
- Thermal insulation and sound insulation. Wood is a thermal insulation material.
- Durability. This material will last you a long time.
- Naturalness. Wood is an environmentally friendly and healthy material.
- Simple installation technology. Even the most novice owner can cope with attaching the lining.
- Versatility. This material can be used to solve various kinds of problems.
Natural wood has been used to create furniture for many centuries.
What are the advantages of creating a cabinet with your own hands?
- Saving money;
- Individual design;
- Independent selection of sizes, materials, shapes.
But do not forget that creating this kind of thing is a labor-intensive and time-consuming process. Therefore, it must be approached with full responsibility.
The material does not tolerate temperature changes.
Drawing and diagram
The design of the cabinet must be carried out taking into account the type of balcony on which it will be installed.
This is an approximate drawing of a wooden cabinet with 4 doors.
Types of designs:
- Standard two-door version. It all depends on the width of the room. If you have enough space, the space can be divided into 2 or 3 sections. If natural wood is used to make furniture, then such a structure can be installed in an uninsulated room. Changes in temperature and humidity will not harm it. Despite this, it is worth taking care of protection from external precipitation. This can significantly extend the service life.
- One and a half closet. This option is suitable for balconies without a niche.
- Two-section model. The width of the left section can be calculated to fit the size of the window sill, which is well suited for balconies with an extension, where the window sill space is 30-40 cm less than the outer perimeter of the glazing.
- Cabinet with one vertical section.
- Model for narrow loggias.
- A wide option for spacious balcony spaces.
In addition to the closet, you can make separate shelves on the balcony.
Sample cabinet layouts have been reviewed here. You can develop your own projects that will fully satisfy your needs.
Selection of tools and material
To start making your own product, you need to prepare the following tools and materials.
- Bars for frame 40 by 40 mm. Recommendation: purchase pine beams. The main thing to pay attention to is that the logs must be dry, clean and without signs of rotting.
- Metal corners for connection.
- Boards for door frames.
- Lining for cladding. It will also be useful for doors, so take it with a reserve.
- Material for shelves - chipboard or boards.
- Additional materials - hinges, locks, handles, decorations.
- Self-tapping screws for fasteners, nails, clamps for lining.
- Screwdriver with magnetic attachment.
- Saw, hammer.
- Construction level, tape measure.
It is better to have all the necessary tools at your fingertips.
First you need to choose the lining material, and then start creating the cabinet.
Advice. A lining made from wood species containing the least amount of resin is ideal. The class of lining depends entirely on your preferences. The higher it is, the more presentable the appearance of the product will be.
Installation of shelves
To install shelves, we attach bars to the racks on two opposite sides. We lay several boards on them. In our case - 3 (for boards with a width of 20 cm). To ensure greater strength, guides are mounted around the entire perimeter. When calculating the height between the shelves, they are guided by the fact that a 3-liter jar can fit on the shelf with a margin. The next shelf may be narrower or wider. In our case, there are 4 shelves. We begin their installation from the top. Below there will be quite a spacious space, allowing you to hide an old washing machine, exercise machine, and a tall 40-liter saucepan. The open closet is ready!
Cabinet creation process
Step 1. Prepare all the materials that were described in the previous paragraphs.
Step 2: Create the frame. For this we need pine beams. First, let's start creating the rear frame. Horizontal beams are attached to vertical beams at a distance of 55 cm. Nails are used to connect wood. Anchors are needed to attach the frame to the balcony wall. The slats can then be attached to the rear frame. Metal corners are used to fix the frame at right angles. Then the lower frame is created in a similar way. Also, with the help of anchors, all the walls and bottom of the structure are attached to the walls of the balcony.
It is possible to calculate how much material will be required only after the design has been determined.
Step 3. Lining the inner wall of the frame. A sheet of chipboard is ideal for the back of the frame. Using self-tapping screws, it is attached to the rear wall.
Step 4. Installation of shelves on the frame. We cut out the chipboard sheets to the required size and install them on the horizontal wood guides.
Making a cabinet out of clapboard with your own hands is not at all difficult if you follow the step-by-step instructions.
Step 5. Door. It is necessary to prepare the frame. Let's take thin beams and fasten the frame to the required height and width. We will use a diagonal jumper to make the frame strong. Then we cover the frame with clapboard. We fasten it with nails. Then we install locks, hinges, handles and secure the door to the cabinet.
Step 6. Decoration. After the installation has been completed, you can begin decorating. At this stage, it all depends on your preferences and desires. You don’t need to decorate a lining cabinet at all.
Creating such furniture yourself is a simple but labor-intensive process.
The final stage. To extend the life of the cabinet, it is necessary to coat it with several layers of protective varnish. You can use acrylic paints to add brightness and personality to the resulting product.
The lining is fragile, so you need to work with it carefully.
Once the cabinet is completely coated with varnish, leave it for 36-48 hours until completely dry. After this, you can begin to operate your homemade clapboard cabinet.
Doors
The frame of the cabinet door is made from planed boards. The dimensions of the door will be determined by the parameters of the furniture itself. Remember that the doors should be slightly narrower than the section of the product. These conditions must be met in order to gain access to all its sections equally. In this case, the closed cabinet doors should overlap each other slightly so that an unaesthetic gap does not form between them.
Let's sum it up
Thus, making furniture from lining, as in the photo, is not at all difficult. And in order to make this task even easier for you, the article contains a video with a detailed description of the work required for this. Go for it!
How to place it correctly
If there is a niche at the end of the balcony, then this is an ideal place to install a cabinet. Depending on the size and shape of your balcony, you can consider two cabinet options - corner and wall. Based on how much space you have, you can equip the structure with different types of doors.
Proper planning of the balcony space will help combine all these functions.
The following cabinet options are best suited for a balcony:
- single-leaf or double-leaf cabinet with hinged doors;
- with sliding doors.
Lining is a universal material in terms of decoration.
There are 2 design options for a balcony cabinet:
- Built-in. This option allows you to rationally use space, reducing material consumption. Please note that the built-in wardrobe is only suitable for balconies where there is an unloaded area and three solid walls on which the frame will subsequently be mounted.
- Corpus. This option consumes more material. If necessary, it can be moved to any place.
There are several cabinet designs.
Features of mechanisms
Sliding door systems for sliding wardrobes may also have their own characteristics, which must be properly taken into account when creating furniture. When choosing accessories, special attention should be paid to the rollers. They experience the greatest load when opening doors and wear out the fastest, so low-quality fittings will quickly become unusable. If the rollers fail, the doors may become askew and stop opening, which causes some inconvenience.
You can fix the problem by knowing how the mechanism works and how to configure it correctly. Most often, those rollers that suffer are those that are located at the bottom of the door leaf and move along the rail. At the top of the structure there is another pair of rollers, their shape is asymmetrical. They not only move, but also hold the canvas using a guide located above the door. If the rollers are worn out, they are easy to replace. To do this, it is enough to have a Phillips screwdriver. Unscrew the old and screw on the new structural elements.
For convenience, replacing the rollers begins with the far blade.
To adjust the door, use the adjusting screw located near the roller mechanism. Thanks to the screw, you can raise and lower the corner of the door leaf, which will allow you to place it level.
What else can you use to make a wardrobe for a balcony?
The main threat to furniture is moisture. Therefore, the material for the cabinet should be selected based on this factor.
There are many types of lining.
- Wood is the most practical material for any furniture. Advantages: aesthetics, easy to process, has excellent performance characteristics with timely care and processing. There is a contraindication - cold, unglazed balconies with high humidity.
- Chipboard (chipboard). The main disadvantage of this material is its poor resistance to moisture and temperature changes, so such furniture will only perform well on glazed balconies and loggias. Chipboard is suitable for heated rooms.
- MDF. The quality of the material is high. The properties of MDF are as close as possible to natural wood, but there is one important difference - the price. These panels are not afraid of either humidity or temperature changes. A good advantage is their environmental friendliness.
- Plastic - PVC panels. The most unpretentious material. It is often used because it is not afraid of moisture, is suitable for many tasks, inexpensive, and does not require much effort in care. It also has its drawbacks. This is fragility, changing color over time if it is exposed to sunlight for a long time.
- GKL. This is moisture-resistant drywall. This material cannot be called the best among its predecessors. The reason one can come to this conclusion is its fragility. Other disadvantages are the high consumption of material for the manufacture of a reliable structure. It is worth paying attention that the doors will have to be made of a different material.
- Metal-plastic. This material is known for its practicality. He is not afraid of either heat or cold. High humidity and mechanical stress do not pose too much of a threat. Most of all, this material does not tolerate bright sun because it causes yellowing. Individual elements for the cabinet (doors, shelves) are purchased at hardware stores.
Chipboard is one of the most popular materials for furniture.
The next thing you should pay attention to is the frame. Most often, timber is used for it, as mentioned earlier. Its size can be 40 by 40 mm or 50 by 50 mm. If the balcony is not heated, then wood is not the best choice. Due to changes in temperature and humidity, the dimensions of the timber will change.
Attention! To avoid damage to furniture, regular impregnation with protective agents is necessary!
If the closet does not fit, you can make a chest of drawers.
The optimal solution would be to use a metal profile that has a galvanized coating. It does not respond to temperature changes or humidity.
If the structure is free-standing, then the required amount of materials can be calculated by adding up the total area.
The next item is shelves. These components are easiest to make from sheet material, plywood, chipboard or laminated chipboard. The shelves are made from scrap boards. Treatment with a special varnish is also required. The shelves are placed on timber or secured to the frame with screws.
Making a cabinet out of clapboard with your own hands is not at all difficult if you follow the step-by-step instructions.
Next come the doors. There are three options for doors that are used in the manufacture of a balcony cabinet.
- Ordinary doors. Easy to install. Necessary materials: doors, furniture hinges, screwdriver.
- Sliding doors. Save space. Required materials: guides, roller systems for the door leaf.
- Roller shutters. Modern doors, not a cheap option.
The design of the doors may be different.
The doors can be the same height as the cabinet. If the cabinet has several sections, then each door has a height and width equal to this section.
Use advice from professionals when creating your closet.
I would also like to give some tips that will make your work easier when creating a cabinet from lining:
- Cladding products must be placed only on a glazed balcony. Because the impact of external factors - thunderstorms, wind, rain, direct rays of sunlight, have a detrimental effect on wood materials.
- Pay attention to the floor of the balcony. Pay special attention to the place where the closet will be located. The floor must be level.
- Get rid of cracks on the balcony and insulate it. This will help avoid the influence of temperature changes on your product.
Positive aspects and characteristics of the material
Why do all professional builders recommend making a door to a bathhouse or utility room out of clapboard?
It's all about the positive properties of the material listed below:
- availability;
- durability, long-term operation;
- speed of work;
- low price;
- thermal insulation;
- pleasant appearance;
- ease;
- a lining door can be installed in a room with a high degree of humidity;
- well suited as a material for a bath door (when steamed, such products release useful elements into the air);
- possibility of painting with any paint;
- soundproofing;
- solid material is fire resistant;
- making a door from lining is simple, no special knowledge is required;
- some species are resistant to fungal manifestations.
What is the appearance of the lining? These are narrow wooden slats that are practical and reliable. For their manufacture, they usually take solid wood of various species, less often plastic.
When creating products, the raw materials are carefully dried and treated with a special composition to make the material resistant to parasites and fungi. The price of lamellas will depend entirely on the wood used as a basis.
Calculations
When carrying out calculations, much is determined by the configuration of the balcony and the design of the cabinet. Assembly is done on site, so most elements are cut to exact size immediately before fixing. However, to start doing something, you need to purchase material. There is usually nowhere to put the excess, and if there is not enough lining or timber, it will have to be purchased, which entails additional transportation costs and loss of time.
Online services for calculating cabinets will help automate the process, but they are intended only for furniture made of chipboard and MDF. Of course, the results obtained can be adapted, but in this case it is easier to calculate everything yourself, based on the measurements taken.
Let's consider an approximate calculation for a double-leaf model with a width of 90 cm, a depth of 30 cm, a height of 2.5 m. The frame will be made of 40x40 mm timber, the perimeter of the doors will be made of 40x50 mm slats.
- Size of side face posts in mm: 2500 – 80 = 2420 (80 mm thickness of upper + lower beam);
- Middle post – 2000 mm before the mezzanine lintel + 380 mm after.
- Cross members – 900 mm (top, bottom); 820 mm mezzanine.
- Shelves – 390 mm each.
- Big doors. Be sure to subtract the gap for the porch, which depends on the canopies used. For ordinary furniture hinges – 2 mm. The width of one door is (900 – 6)/2 = 447 mm.
- Door pillars – 2000 mm; cross members – 447 – (50+50) = 347 mm.
- Small doors. Cross members – 347 mm. Racks with a gap of 2 mm between the top/bottom and 4 mm between the ceiling will be equal to 490 mm.
- The area of the required lining depends on the length of one plank. Blanks of 2.5 meters are available for sale, so the front part can be taken into account, taking into account small waste when trimming the outer parts. We calculate by usual multiplication 0.9 * 2.5 = 2.25 m2.
- The approximate area of all shelves is 0.9*0.3*4 = 1.08 m2.
Adviсe
It is highly undesirable to install any built-in furniture in an unprepared room. It is possible to assemble everything smoothly and get the fittings working properly. But this will take 2-3 times longer and still, along the perimeter of the junction with the walls, floor and ceiling, there will most likely be gaps that will have to be covered with something.
Do not use low-quality lining or softwood materials for exterior cladding. When working with wood, it is better to have as many tools as possible; if you don’t have your own, ask your friends in advance so you don’t have to run around at the most crucial moment.
If you have no experience, pay special attention to calculations. Double-check everything several times and buy materials and fasteners with a small margin. There is a high probability of accidentally damaging the part by cutting it incorrectly.
