A natural refrigerator under the kitchen window in Khrushchev: a niche is our everything. How to insulate a winter refrigerator under a window with your own hands How to make a winter refrigerator under a window

In Khrushchev's high-rise buildings, the builders left it under the window (for heating batteries). But resourceful people tried to save precious space and moved the radiator to the side, and placed a winter one in a niche.

In those days, branded refrigerators were expensive, consumed a lot of electricity, so the problem was solved in a different way. thin wall and its cooling during the cold months helped to cool the niche, so perishable food and preserves were stored there, saving precious space in the pantry and on the kitchen shelves. The disadvantage of this design is the constant wind of cold. IN modern kitchens the refrigerator under the window in Khrushchev looks specific, so it can be improved, finished in a new way and used for its intended purpose.

Pros and cons of a winter refrigerator under the window in Khrushchev

The Khrushchev refrigerator under the window has the following advantages:

saving square meters;
additional option for storing pickles;
freezer during the winter months;
seasonal analogue of a refrigerator at zero finance costs;
minimum finishing materials;
ease of cleaning.

Designing a winter refrigerator under the window involves moving the heating battery to the side. According to the rules, radiators should be under the windows. The warm air from the radiator under the window rises and creates an invisible blanket that blocks the cold. If the battery is displaced, then there will be no reliable isolation from cold air currents penetrating through the window. This is a minus.

The makeshift refrigerator has another drawback - the formation of condensation or frost on the inner walls, so it will have to be regularly wiped with a dry cloth. If you cover the inner walls with ceramic tiles, it will be much easier to clean the refrigerator. Condensation appears due to a noticeable difference in temperatures outside and inside the house. Due to constant freezing and high humidity, a fungus or mold can appear on the inner wall, which is difficult to remove.

How to independently deepen a niche and make a finish: installation rules

The main task of arranging a refrigerator under the window is to arrange a useful and convenient compartment that will fit into the interior of a modern kitchen.

A brick house according to GOST varies from 0.51 m (laying in 2 bricks) to 0.64 m (laying in 2.5 bricks). During construction multi-storey buildings the thickness of the walls in a brick house decreases as it is built. The thickness of the brick outer walls of the building is about 0.6 m, and the thickness of the brick wall in the recess is 0.45 m (therefore, it is colder in the niche). In the Khrushchev buildings, well masonry was used (slag was poured into the resulting voids). He served as a heater. You can knock down plaster, disassemble one row of bricks, deepen the space under the window and increase the capacity of the refrigerator.

Concrete lintels in brick walls above the window, they preserve the integrity of the structure, so nothing will happen from careful outside interference. As a result, the wall will become thinner by 0.2 m, that is outer wall will have a thickness of only 0.25 m. A vent with a damper is left in the wall. With this device, the temperature in the niche is raised or lowered.

The resulting thin partition between the street and the room is plastered with cement and sand. It is not recommended to apply putty directly to the masonry. Otherwise, a problem may arise that the wall freezes through. In the masonry itself, there may be microcracks and cracks through which moisture will penetrate in the fall. In frosty weather, it will freeze and tear off the putty.

A practical option for finishing the internal walls of an outdoor refrigerator is ceramic tiles. It is placed directly on the plaster using universal frost-resistant tile adhesive.

It is not necessary to buy expensive tiles for facing the device. The main requirement is the smoothness of the tile. You can buy defective tiles, leftovers, or use scrap left over from a bathroom or kitchen renovation.

Plastic refrigerator doors and doors: insulated version design

There are many ways to give an impromptu refrigerator modern look. Finishing the refrigerator under the window may be different. To make the interior of the kitchen look harmonious, it is desirable that the doors are identical to the facades of the headset. To those who did kitchen furniture to order, it will not be difficult to order separately two doors for the refrigeration niche. You can decorate the refrigerator with furniture panels yourself. But if there is no desire to mess around yourself, you can invite specialists. They will do everything quickly and accurately.

Of the options - doors made of PVC profile (optionally with double-glazed windows or sandwich panels) and aluminum sliding systems. Often companies involved in the production and installation of metal plastic windows, offer their customers to replace together with the old window and Khrushchev refrigerator. It is not cheap, but it has such advantages:

complete tightness;
ease of use;
functionality and capacity;
space saving;
attractive appearance and snow-white interior decoration.

Moreover, manufacturers give the opportunity to choose the required number of doors. If the refrigerator is small, one door is enough, large niche sizes require two opening doors. If in the first place is the desire to save money, there is an option to make the smaller half deaf, and the larger one opening. In everyday life, this is a little inconvenient, but it allows you to save money when ordering. The cost also depends on the configuration: you can order only doors for refrigerators, or you can order the entire interior decoration(cabinet under the refrigerator).

You can decorate the refrigerator with lighting. Installed behind transparent glass LED backlight(this looks spectacular in a high-tech interior). The order, however, will have to be monitored especially carefully. They also order doors with tinted glass (creates the effect of a mini-bar).

It is important that the facades are hung correctly. If the doors are hung crookedly, they will not fit snugly together. And this means that the window sill refrigerator will not keep the temperature, and the warm air of the room will penetrate inside the cabinet. The edges of the recess must be even. If the tile is laid flat, then all corners will have 90⁰. Otherwise, you will have to make a frame. The spacing of the frame with the edges is hidden with a baguette.

Sequence of actions: built-in refrigerator

For those who have basic handling skills building materials and tools, making a refrigerator with your own hands is easy. To begin with, mark the center of the groove for the hinges at a distance of 20-21 mm from the corner edge of the door. The distance from the hinge center to the end edge varies from 75 to 125 mm, depending on the dimensions and thickness of the facade. If the panels are big weight, then a third loop is added in the middle for reliability. It is important to calculate the gaps between the loops so that they are not in line with the shelves.

To cut the hinges, use a wood end mill with a diameter of 35 mm. Drilling must be done carefully, otherwise the cutter will go through, since the depth of the groove is 12 mm, and thin panels have a thickness of 17-18 mm. Careful sharpening of the drill will help in the work, it is easier to adjust the drilling depth and there is no need to put pressure on the door. Furniture makers recommend using an awl as a center punch, then cutters and self-tapping screws will not slip.

The other part of the loops is attached to ceramic tiles or frame. First, the tiles are accurately marked, control drilling is done, and then they are drilled under dowels 5 mm thick. It is better to take screws with a thickness of 3-4 mm so that the panels hold firmly.

For the doors of the Khrushchev refrigerator, they are used as furniture facades, and plastic panels. But wood, unlike plastic, has good thermal insulation and keeps a low temperature in a niche. For this effect, the plastic will have to be built up with polystyrene foam or polystyrene foam. For doors, a feigned bar is made around the perimeter. It guarantees the tightness of the recess and does not allow warm air to penetrate inside. Even custom-made door panels can be equipped with a baguette porch.

If the kitchen has a small square, then making swing doors is a great luxury. Making your own door is easy. You can purchase plastic guides and attach them to the floor and windowsill. They insert suitable-sized blanks from fiberboard into them. True, sliding systems reduce thermal insulation. But if you order them from glazing manufacturers, this can be avoided. Installing a system of sliding doors with fine-tuning reliably isolates the room from the cold air in the niche.

Do-it-yourself dismantling

If for some reason the owner of the apartment decided to dismantle the refrigerator under the window, then it is better to lay it with a foam block or brick. Brackets for the radiator are installed in the brick. If the recess is deep, then the free space between the partitions is covered with slag. The place under the windowsill is filled mounting foam. After dismantling the refrigerator, the battery is returned to its old place in order to increase its efficiency. Complete niche sealing solves all serious problems with heat leakage through a thin wall and wooden doors. Therefore, residents of the northern regions, this option will seem the most rational.

Close. First, the wooden slats are screwed to the brick wall, the ventilation hole is closed, the insulation sheets are inserted and the drywall is screwed to the guides with screws. The side walls are not insulated. They trim the former niche at their discretion. But for those who are not familiar with the principles of building walls, the notorious dew point and vapor permeability, such cladding may subsequently go sideways. Condensation forms between drywall and insulating material, which leads to flowering and destruction of the wall.

Solution options:

WATCH VIDEO

A winter refrigerator under the window is a field for a splash of creative ideas. If it does not justify its intended purpose, it can be transformed at any time and endowed with new useful functions. You can decorate a niche in the wall in full accordance with your personal preferences and tastes.

In modern conditions, the concept of how a refrigerator under the window, for most people, may be incomprehensible. The fact is that this type of refrigerator is a thing of the past due to impracticality. He rescued people in the winter in the cold season, helping to save a lot of money. They were popular with engineers in the 50s, but now there is no need for this device. Most people either dismantle or wall up the refrigerator under the window, because it is used only in winter and modern refrigerators have completely replaced this device in terms of volume and practicality.

Refrigerator design

The refrigerator is a niche under the window, deep, with a small layer brickwork separating the street from the premises. It has technological gaps and slots, air passes through them into the device in cold weather, and in winter.

The dimensions of the refrigerator under the window made it possible to save a lot of space in the kitchen before, and keep perishable foods in a suitable place for six months. Very convenient window sill replaces the table in the warm season. It can also be used as a shelf. In summer, the refrigerator can be used as storage for cereals, flour, and other things. This allows you to save a lot of space, both in winter and in summer.

Advantages of the refrigerator under the window:

The appearance of additional space, without compromising the premises.
The ability to change the niche in the case when there is no need for a refrigerator.
Saving electricity, refrigerators under the window can significantly save on electricity.
A great place to store conservation and other things in the warm season.

Refrigerator conversion options

The refrigerator under the window has its drawbacks, which do not suit many, such as poor thermal insulation of the room, and therefore, most devices of this type have undergone various modifications.

There are three main options:

Completely or partially seal the space below the window sill, and leave a small niche for installing the battery
Paste the refrigerator with insulation, especially the door, so that air does not penetrate into the room in winter, and use it for its intended purpose, in summer as a cabinet, in winter as a refrigerator.
Completely remove the partition separating the room from the street, remove the window sill, and put a large window. Naturally, the thermal insulation will become even worse, and in order to compensate for this, it is necessary to make a loggia or a balcony so that there is another layer of air.

We remove the refrigerator

This is the best option, which is suitable for most, because it is very hot in the warm season, and cold in winter. For residents of the northern regions, this is an ideal option to ensure a good heat capacity of the room.

It is best to seal a niche with a brick to ensure the reliability and durability of the structure. Ideally, it is better to align the niche with the main thickness of the wall. It is advisable to leave a space for air in the middle so that there is no condensation due to a sharp temperature drop. You can insulate the wall on top of the brickwork from the inside, which will make the problem area much more comfortable. There is an option for insulation outside the room, then the entire surface is sheathed with foam boards, plus plaster along with surface painting, which will completely eliminate the problem of a cold room.

You can leave a small niche for the battery, 10-15 cm, and install a heating radiator to fully compensate for the lack of a cold wall. The window sill can be replaced, because in houses with such a refrigerator they are very large, due to the space below.

Advice ! You can also use the window sill as a tabletop, and use the space under it for a chair and other things, it will not interfere with your legs.

Refrigerator improvement

It is quite possible to improve the refrigerator on your own without the help of specialists.

The main problematic place in the refrigerator is the door, if it is well insulated, it will make the room more comfortable. It is better to take a metal-plastic door, from the same profile as the window. You should not install sliding and other doors with unreliable fixation and many gaps, which are more expensive and will let a lot of cold into the room.

Advice ! Attention should be paid to the snug fit of the door to the refrigerator, it is possible to glue an additional insulation tape at the point of contact.

As inner material you can use special sandwich panels that optimally store cold and do not let it through the structure. This will make the refrigerator a little smaller, but it will help to isolate the air in it and not spread it to the walls and into the room.

With the simultaneous replacement of the window sill with a smaller one, and when the brick row has not yet been laid out (if any), it is possible to slightly increase the refrigerator in height, reducing the useful part of the window.

The interior space can be sealed with plasterboard or plastered. Drywall must be puttied at the joints, and edges should be made at about 20 degrees to avoid deformation, because it can expand, and the plastered edges will take on the entire load.

In any case, the interior space must be insulated so that the cold does not penetrate the walls, but is concentrated and remains in the refrigerator, and in summer the heat also does not reduce the comfort in the room.

In order to avoid the destruction of the wall from condensate, it is necessary to make gaps between the drywall / sealant and the wall so that there are additional layers of air to minimize a strong temperature difference, a warm homely atmosphere and a cold street.

You can make a light in the refrigerator so that you can see better, using simple elements for standard refrigerators, for example, a transformer and others, fixing them in a box next to the refrigerator, in a warm place with a stable temperature.

They can withstand negative temperatures, but the moisture and frost that is inside the refrigerator can damage the device and take up additional space.

Important ! Inside the refrigerator is the most inappropriate place for electrical equipment.

The rear wall can also be insulated with a layer of brickwork, but one should not forget that the main source of cold in winter is the holes in the wall, which are best left uncovered. Also, when plastering, they cannot be sealed.

When building a veranda or when insulating an existing one, we must not forget about the need for air to enter the holes. To improve efficiency, you can lead the tube through the veranda to the outside, and carefully seal everything around it so that the air goes only through the pipeline, and glue it with a heat insulator, the best remedy to keep the temperature and effective work no refrigerator.

At the last stage, shelves are attached and drawers.

Advice ! They should be oversized and simple to save precious space.

Glazing of unnecessary space

This is in a good way a visual extension of the kitchen, and makes it a great design masterpiece, a large window is essential to set the mood every morning if you live in an area with not-so-cold winters.

This part of the wall, with a refrigerator, does not carry a special load, so you can safely remove it.

First, you should measure everything, and make at least an approximate plan for the future window or veranda, find out the dimensions in the store, and order the future window using them.

It is possible to leave the window sill, but be careful with it, not forgetting that both below and above are glass.

Important ! When removing a partition above the first floor, it is important that there is a person below, or an indicator that work is underway. Ideally, you should limit the possible fall zone of building materials with a bright tape so that people see the danger and pass this area more carefully.

After cleaning the refrigerator and part of the wall, it is important to clean the edges so that the installers do not have to break up unnecessary and interfering areas for half a day.

After inserting the window by the workers, the gaps must be blown out with mounting foam, wait until it hardens, and cut off the excess with a knife.

Advice ! So that the foam does not deteriorate from moisture and the sun, it should be puttied or plastered

If you plan to make a small veranda, you should fix the channel on the floor with anchors from below, and sheathe the protruding part with iron sheets.

The resulting step from the channels can be carefully decorated, the railing can be fixed in the wall, and fixed above the platform with stops on the floor.

If the veranda is completely sheathed with glass, this will help to keep warm.

Advice ! Additionally, you can make floor heating, in order to make the room much more comfortable, since through such windows there is a large loss of heat.

But for these works in the apartment, a permit is required, because what we will do will possibly damage the entire structure, floors above and below. Same as demolition bearing walls and other elements that can lead to the destruction of the entire building.

Conclusion

The refrigerator under the window is a very convenient and practical tool, which, unfortunately, many have said goodbye to. If you are lucky and you still have such a refrigerator, then you can use it to save money on electricity, and how extra bed for food storage and conservation.

If you do not need it, then you can make a beautiful veranda that will cheer you up every morning at breakfast.

How to make a refrigerator under the window you can additionally learn from the following video

The refrigerator compartment, which is located under the window sill in the kitchen, is familiar to many who live or lived in houses built in the sixties and seventies of the past century.

This architectural element was envisaged by the builders in order to:

saving precious square meters of small apartments;
obtaining an alternative to the refrigerator, which in those years was hard to buy.

Built-in compartment features

Purpose

The Khrushchev refrigerator is a rather voluminous niche under the window sill of the kitchen window, which allows you to store kitchen items (utensils), and in the cold season, perishable foods.

Design

The thickness of the back wall is only half a brick. It is equipped with a hole for the entry of cold air for ventilation. The interior space of the refrigerator is separated from the kitchen only by the compartment door.

And, like any window element, over time it ceases to effectively perform its functions, opening access to cold air. Therefore, how to insulate a winter refrigerator under the window is an urgent issue for many residents.

Note! External air, getting inside the niche through the ventilation hole, has a low humidity, which contributes to the absence of frost (condensation) on stored products.

Advantages

The architectural solution for equipping an additional niche in the kitchen has certain advantages:

ease of access and ease of use;
a good alternative to a refrigerator at zero financial cost;
additional freezer compartment in winter.

Flaws

A number of problems are associated with the window sill kitchen compartment. Due to the fact that the outer wall is thin, it almost always freezes through in winter.

As a result, a fungus appears on the walls of the Khrushchev refrigerator, which is not so easy to remove. In addition, the air temperature in the kitchen and throughout the apartment is significantly reduced.

To solve this problem, you need to know how to insulate the refrigerator under the window? Properly made thermal insulation of the window sill refrigerator will significantly save heat in the apartment, as well as avoid fungus on the inner walls of the compartment.

Refrigerator conversion methods

There are several ways to bring the refrigerator compartment to the desired state.

The main ones are:

complete sealing of the niche under the window. As a result, good thermal insulation of the kitchen is ensured. It is possible to provide a small recess on the wall for installation under the window of the heating battery;
equip a cabinet for storing kitchen utensils that is not afraid of low temperatures. To do this, it is necessary to thoroughly insulate the walls to prevent the penetration of cold and also carry out the insulation of plastic windows (see also the article);
competently carry out thermal insulation and equip the refrigeration compartment for its intended use - for storing perishable foods and pickles.

Thermal insulation of the refrigerator compartment

Niche insulation under the window

You can soundly isolate the niche under the windowsill with your own hands. A small instruction will help to equip and bring the department to the desired state.

The main task is to equip a practical, useful, convenient refrigeration compartment under the window, which will ideally fit into modern interior kitchen after renovation.

The main element of the refrigerator, which is responsible for thermal insulation, is the inner door. It should provide maximum thermal protection. kitchen area. The metal-plastic door will perfectly cope with the task;

Advice! The door should be selected from the same profile as the kitchen window. Since it is wide enough, it is advisable to make the door single-leaf.

As a filler, it is better to use a two-chamber package (sandwich panel);

Accessories can be installed the simplest to save financial resources. It makes no sense to install a fanlight system, since the dimensions of the door do not allow;

The metal-plastic structure is attached to the side walls of the compartment under the window using anchors. From below and from above, the structure is sealed with mounting foam;

Note! Use as an inner door sliding system or sliding doors, significantly reduces the thermal insulation efficiency of the Khrushchev refrigerator. The price of such systems is higher than the metal-plastic construction.

For an aesthetic appearance, it is enough to finish the internal space of the refrigerator with drywall, upholster with plastic or simply plaster;

It is not worthwhile to close the outer opening for ventilation tightly (foam, cover with foam plastic). If cold outside air is supplied in sufficient quantity, it will be possible to avoid the formation of frost and condensation inside the niche. It is enough to close the hole with heat-insulating mineral wool (See also the article);

Advice! For the convenience of using such a window sill refrigerator, you can organize the backlight using a low voltage converter (12V, 24V).

Insulated and pre-finished niche

rear outer wall it is enough to sheathe it with moisture-resistant drywall or apply insulation for refrigerators.

Note! It is not recommended to make a three-dimensional structure, since condensation will form between the insulation and the wall, which will subsequently lead to the formation of mold and fungus.

Porilex material is suitable for drywall, which is a thin (about 4 mm), but rather dense foam rubber, pasted over with foil. Due to the heat-reflecting properties of the foil, the heat-reflection coefficient is equal to that of foam plastic having a thickness of 60 mm. Porilex is glued easily and conveniently.

Advice! During installation, it is necessary to provide a gap between drywall and porylex of 10 mm to minimize condensate.

Drywall is puttied and, if necessary, painted;

An ideal option when the apartment is insulated from the outside with mineral wool or polystyrene foam boards. In this case, the issue of warming the rear wall disappears by itself;

If there is no external insulation, then it would be advisable to put an additional row of bricks. In any case, the depth of the niche is enough to accommodate products and necessary kitchen items;

At the last stage, drawers or shelves are equipped;

When equipping a niche under the window and replacing the kitchen window at the same time, it is possible to provide for an increase in the height of the built-in refrigerator.

The Khrushchev refrigerator was located under the windowsill in view of the small area of the kitchen of the apartments of the same name. Modern tendencies in construction allow you to make high-quality redevelopment. There are several options for how to remake a Khrushchev refrigerator with your own hands.

In a small kitchen, you can successfully use the space occupied by a refrigerator as a kitchen cabinet, niche, etc. You can also restore it and use it to store canned food and other products in cold weather. If there is no need for such options, it is possible to dismantle the refrigerator and close the niche. And besides this, you can disassemble the partition and install a French window. Consider the order of work and the advantages of each option.

Re-equipment of the Khrushchev refrigerator into a cabinet.

To convert the Khrushchev refrigerator into a kitchen cabinet, you should dismantle the old doors, clear the space under the windowsill. If you plan to replace the window and window sill, these works are best combined. At the same time, it is also worth considering the option of raising the window sill to the height of the remaining kitchen surfaces or combining it with the work surface. This will give a single harmonious image to the kitchen, as well as save space.

Insulation is considered the most important during the work, because the “winter” refrigerator is separated from the street by a thin partition, just a brick floor. Such a design was necessary to create the required temperature in the refrigerator, but during re-equipment this will cause unnecessary heat loss in the room and the development of fungus on the inner wall due to the resulting condensate.

It would be best to lay another layer of brick on the mortar, and blow out all the cracks with mounting foam. If the apartment is insulated from the outside, then such actions will be redundant. On the brickwork, you need to attach a vapor barrier or thermal insulation and sheathe the back and side walls of the niche with drywall or lay tiles.

After that, you need to install the shelves. They can be made of any material: chipboard, glass, etc. The height and number of shelves should be commensurate with your needs. Doors for the cabinet can be ordered from furniture manufacturers so that it is in harmony with the kitchen set. You can also install plastic or glass doors.

Restoration of the Khrushchev refrigerator.

If it is decided that additional refrigerator cabinet The refurbishment won't take long. Khrushchev's refrigerator is a niche with doors, which is ventilated from the street. Ventilation should be given special attention, as well as decide on its necessity. If you leave it, you may encounter the fact that in severe frosts the temperature in the refrigerator will drop below 0 °, and the products that are in it, and this is often conservation, will freeze. If the ventilation hole is sealed, then at outdoor temperatures in the range of -10..-20°, in the refrigerator, the mode will be about +8..+10°. This is quite enough for its functionality. But it is not recommended to blow out foam or seal the vent with mortar. The best option would be thermal insulation material, mineral wool and so on.

Inside, the cabinet can be finished with plastic or moisture-resistant drywall. If necessary, it is allowed to bring lighting. In this case, a low voltage power connection is recommended, or an LED strip can be used.

The Khrushchev refrigerator will cope with its task if you install sealed doors so that warm air does not enter it, and cold air does not enter the room. The ideal solution in this case, a metal-plastic door protrudes. It can be ordered in the required dimensions, and installation will not require much effort. In addition, it can act as an additional support for the window sill.

To give a more original appearance, the door can be made of glass, with sliding doors.

French window instead of the Khrushchev refrigerator.

Since the rear wall of the refrigerator does not carry any load, it can be disassembled. However, you should first obtain the permission of the relevant authorities, because. this conversion involves an external wall. It is also worth comparing the advantages and disadvantages of this option: a kitchen with a French window looks original and unusual, it is lighter, but the functionality of the room becomes less. The absence of a window sill and an extra closet will not please every hostess.

Having made this decision, it is necessary to dismantle the Khrushchev refrigerator, window sill and window and disassemble the brickwork. You can install a French window yourself or order installation by specialists. After completing all the work, you will need to repair the slopes. Choice the best option depends on the design and appearance of the kitchen. It can be plastic, plaster, painting, etc.

To increase the functionality of the kitchen, you can move to the window working area: a frying surface, a washstand, and in a niche to equip a cabinet for storing kitchen utensils.

If a decision is made to completely abandon the cabinet and other improvements, you can dismantle the Khrushchev refrigerator and lay a niche. This is done using brickwork for the entire width of the opening. External finishing is carried out by means of plaster or fixing plasterboard. You can also lay tiles if it fits into the overall interior of the room.

Video instruction

A Khrushchev refrigerator, or rather a freezer under the window sill in the kitchen, is an obligatory attribute of many houses left in the possession of the 50-70s of the past century. At that time, not many people could afford the presence of a real refrigerator, and this was taken into account by designers and builders. A fairly wide box under an equally wide and endless window sill allowed people to keep some of their perishable products in a cool and accessible place even in winter. Specifically, how to remake the Khrushchev refrigerator with your own hands, and will be discussed further.

We make a practical cabinet from the Khrushchev refrigerator
Video: an example of work on arranging a niche under a window in Khrushchev

Many will agree that today such sophistication is not needed at all, or at least they insist on some refinement so that they fit into today's interiors. Although they are called "Khrushchev", they also met in the so-called stalins.

Khrushchev refrigerator remake

In essence, in any such living area, the layout does not allow you to put everything you need in a small space to your heart's content. kitchen room. And as an option, you can use the cabinet space under the windowsill for more applied tasks. And the most important thing is to frankly do something with thermal insulation, because now everyone already knows that the better the house is insulated, the lower the cost of heating it will be. But not everything is so simple with the possibility of altering or improving the Khrushchev refrigerator. It is important to take into account a number of very basic points, which are often overlooked by many DIYers.

For the sake of order, consider the variations of modifications that can be used for the Khrushchev refrigerator and explain in specifics important points in the materialization of the selected option. It's absolutely smart to imagine four options:

Entirely or mainly close up the space under the windowsill. In this way, good and high-quality thermal insulation is ensured. As a result, the wall will be leveled or a small hole remains, sufficient for installing a heating radiator.
Change and properly insulate the Khrushchev refrigerator in order to use it for its intended purpose and store food and pickles in it. Even with the fact that no important alterations are needed, it is still foreseen to do a lot so as not to leave even a chance for the cold to get inside the apartment and not get a bunch of negative consequences.
This niche can be completely reoriented, for example, into a cabinet or under an installation place for equipment that is unpretentious to low temperatures.
To dismantle a thin partition in half a brick outward and make a glazing in the strength of a French window. A particularly radical decision. Perfect for options when the kitchen window faces either north, or is closed from the sun by buildings or trees, the amount of daylight coming through such a window will block the minus in excess.

Remove Khrushchev refrigerator

The most common option is the complete sealing of the niche. With all this, the difficulty with heat leakage through a half-brick wall and unreliable wooden doors is solved. For the inhabitants of the northern regions, this is essentially a fairly reasonable option. Because all other variations of the Khrushchev refrigerator will require a lot of investment in order to do everything well.

Closing the niche is foreseen with a brick. Only in this way can sufficient protection against external weather be made. Use SNiP 23-02-2003 (SNiP II-3-79), which provides calculations to determine the desired wall thickness. But even so it is clear that for good thermal insulation it is enough to either simply level the niche with another wall or leave a smaller niche with a depth of no more than 12-15 cm.

DIY Khrushchev refrigerator

It should be noted that it is best to lay concretely with a brick. Variations of gypsum sheathing using different heat insulators can later go sideways. For the most part, this is due to the rules for erecting walls as such, vapor permeability, etc. If you do not go into details, then if you simply sheathe it with gypsum with thermal insulation, then moisture and frost will definitely appear between the cladding and the outer wall, as a rule, the wall will begin to bloom and crumble.

Remove Khrushchev refrigerator

If a niche with a depth of 12-15 cm is left, then you can safely use it to install a heating radiator. True, the replacement will simply be left unused, since the window sill, and it is just large, is often used as an additional countertop in the kitchen area and it is better to leave space under the window sill for legs.

Khrushchev refrigerator improvement

The very idea, albeit seasonal, but the refrigerator under the window in the kitchen area of the Khrushchev is very functional, it is absolutely smart to try to leave the niche in the same capacity. It is foreseen only to bring it into the necessary condition, so that it and the appearance would naturally have a new repair and work better. We indicate the important points that are associated with the Khrushchev refrigerator:

The wall behind is only half a brick, very often there is a ventilation hole to let in outside cool air;
Inside there are only wooden doors that separate the interior from the cold of the street;
Due to the ventilation holes inside the Khrushchev refrigerator, mainly outside air enters with a reduced total dampness and humidity from the outside, so that this protects against the appearance of frost and condensation.

So, it becomes absolutely logical that the main restructuring of the Khrushchev refrigerator may actually consist in replacing the inner door. It must guarantee the greatest thermal insulation that is suitable in this place. An excellent way out of this situation for the necessary task would be to install a door with one leaf made of metal-plastic. It is better to make one sash due to the fact that the profile chosen will be the same as on the door or for windows, and it is very wide. For the filler, you can insert both a double-glazed window with one chamber, for example 4x10x4, and a sandwich panel.

It is better to select accessories the most common in terms of functionality. There is no need to add a fanlight system, especially since the overall dimensions will not allow inserting anything significant anyway. Fasten the metal-plastic door with brackets to the walls on the sides of the Khrushchev refrigerator. From above and below it is enough to seal the space with foam for installation. The resulting door will hold the weight of the window sill on top well.

Swing door option made of plastic profile

The second option could be the Slidors system with sliding doors. Again, it is better to order them from glazing manufacturers. In this embodiment, the design of sliding doors is quite enough to firmly isolate the living area from the freshness in the niche. Almost as a result, a plastic Khrushchev refrigerator comes out.

Having made sheathing in the middle of plastic, a good well-groomed appearance comes out completely, close to the same in a real refrigerator. The most important thing is not to be greedy for the installation of the usual design of the lock of sliding doors with fine-tuning. Since a system of this type is very inferior in terms of insulation to simple swing systems of plastic windows and doors. Not fully closed sash leads to a strong draft of cool air down the legs.

sliding doors

But what about inside the niche? The hole to the outside, if there is one, is better not to close up, again, since at low temperatures it is better to let outside air enter inside, rather than hot and wet inside. So you can be safe and prevent the appearance of condensate in large quantities. It is enough to seal the hole with any vapor-permeable material for thermal insulation, for example, mineral-based wool. Variations such as foaming or plugging with polystyrene foam are not suitable. Internal walls can be sheathed with both moisture-resistant plasterboard sheets and plastic, or completely plastered.

It is important to know: Instead of additional "bells and whistles" you can bring the lighting inside. Again, taking into account the distinctive characteristics of this niche, it is better to use lighting powered by low voltage (12V, 24V) using step-down converters.

An absolutely acceptable option would be to use the niche of the Khrushchev refrigerator in the form of an additional kitchen cabinet. In this option, it is not appropriate to use its freshness in winter, so it is planned to insulate the wall and only then proceed with the installation of drawers that slide out or shelves behind the door.

Reasons why you should not insulate the niche wall inside and explanations on this topic may take a separate note. Everything is tied to the dew point and adverse consequences when there will certainly be condensate between the heat insulator and the outer wall, and later mold will also be elastic. More about this can be found in the notes on the topic of wall insulation of the house inside.

We make a practical cabinet from the Khrushchev refrigerator

So what to do? The best option is if the living area is already thermally insulated on the outside of the building with the help of sheathing with polystyrene foam panels or mineral-based wool. Then the difficulty with the thermal insulation of the Khrushchev refrigerator disappears by itself. It is enough to finish the Khrushchev refrigerator with plaster or tiles installed on the mortar, and proceed with the subsequent installation of shelves or drawers.

In another case, if there is no external insulation, then the most the best option there will be at least one more layer of bricks. With all this, the hole for accessing cool air is sealed over the entire length with a mortar with brick chips, or blown with foam for installation.

Important: If any through holes in a residential apartment or house, then by all means, the protruding foam from the outside should be cut off and plastered with a mortar layer of at least 3-4 cm.

On top of the sheathing, you can already place either a built-in cabinet, assembled separately, or install shelves or drawer rails directly on the walls of the niche. in any case, the depth remaining after the back wall is insulated will be enough to put too many utensils for the kitchen into the resulting cabinet.

Options for reworking the Khrushchev refrigerator

We make a practical cabinet from the Khrushchev refrigerator

The use of the Khrushchev refrigerator to save kitchen utensils and non-perishable products

Alternatively, with various alterations of the Khrushchev refrigerator, it must be remembered that the height of the window sill itself can be transferred for one. This mainly concerns the process of replacing windows. Along with this, with these measures, you can transfer the height of the window sill and equalize it with the height of all other kitchen surfaces. It often comes out to connect the window sill with a common surface with the transition to the main cutting table. As a result, almost 1.5-2 meters of usable square will come out, and any housewife will like it. It is important with all this to take into account changes in the size of the ordered windows.

Glazing instead of the Khrushchev refrigerator

You can do absolutely radical. A thin partition that defines the outer wall of the refrigerator and, in principle, the walls on the sides up to the edge of the window opening do not bear any load. Naturally, this can be completely dismantled these parts of the wall and make glazing from the floor itself to the part located on top of the window opening. As a result, something similar to a French-type window will come out. This will greatly increase the amount of daylight in the kitchen.

Glazing instead of the Khrushchev refrigerator

In the usual version, of course, there is no room for a wide and comfortable window sill. But this is also solvable. It is enough to divide the window space into 2 halves and still install the window sill. A significant priority will be to increase the usable area of the kitchen. But similar redevelopments may not fit into every design solution. So you should think carefully and weigh everything before starting work.

Perceptible complexity of similar alteration may be obtaining permits. Nevertheless, this is practically a redevelopment work and, like any change in the plan of an apartment, it will require project design and coordination with the authorities. It must also be said that this will manifest itself in the general appearance Buildings and city governments simply cannot overcome such broad changes.

As can be seen from the proposed repair ideas, you can take advantage of such a present from the past as a Khrushchev refrigerator. It is important to take into account those moments that can affect the comfort in the living space or insulation, in everything else you just need to show a little imagination and give own kitchen additional useful component.