Saving space in the kitchen has always been a priority. This is influenced by the size of standard cooking rooms and the growing need for household appliances. Sometimes a niche for a refrigerator is included in the design, and sometimes engineers provide only the conditions for using this area of the kitchen. The wider the window sill, the greater the chance that communications were designed for a non-standard location of the main components. Water pipes and gas pipes are laid there, but the radiators are removed - thus, we can talk about additional conveniences in terms of design. Before placing a refrigerator under the window, owners will have to take into account the disadvantages of such moves. In the same way as before turning free space into something else, less complex in execution. Some make refrigerators under the windows, others make storage sections. Either way, this is an option for flexible solutions.
Peculiarities
A window-sill refrigerator is a closed niche, which is exposed to kitchen temperatures on one side and outdoor temperatures on the other. Special equipment allows you to use the space as a refrigerator, and in a simple version there is the possibility of arranging a cabinet with a lower temperature. The idea of a refrigerator under the window organically appeared in the compact kitchens of Khrushchev-era apartments. There was no way for them to place objects in long lines. For this reason, the designers came up with the idea of a built-in niche. In some Khrushchev-era houses the solution was used, but in others it was not, but even there it will not be superfluous. In general, a refrigerator under the window will be relevant wherever there is little space for free-standing household appliances and there is a wide space below the window sill. Ready-made kitchen furniture sets also have variations in this regard.
Preparing the wiring diagram
To draw up a power distribution diagram at your dacha, you can use two options:
- classic - using a regular pencil and paper;
- modern - using specialized computer programs.
When performing work, it is not necessary to comply with established norms and rules. It is enough to accurately display the installation locations of switches, sockets, lamps, equipment, junction boxes, as well as the location of cable lines. It is first recommended to draw a schematic plan of a country house.
Electrical wiring diagram in a country house
Advantages and disadvantages
The refrigerator compartment under the window is converted into almost an additional cubic meter of space. At least if you remove the refrigerator and do not replace it with a small version with a freezer. The device inside the wall does not require careful maintenance. At the same time, cleaning the insides will be difficult. Ergonomics will also be a questionable point. Not everyone likes to bend over and over again for groceries.
Before choosing a built-in refrigerator, you should ask yourself the question of air microcirculation. The battery will have to be removed, so the problem of cold wind in winter should be somehow solved. It is better to treat the inside of the refrigerator to protect against mold caused by condensation. The difference in temperature indoors and outdoors affects. It wouldn't hurt to trim the interior walls with ceramic tiles.
More light!
Another interesting option has begun to gain popularity, when all the brickwork from the niche is removed and a double-glazed window is installed in its place.
This option is relevant for apartments whose kitchens face north and require an additional light source.
In this case, the double-glazed window can be small, repeating the dimensions of the niche, or have the shape of a circle (semicircle).
A large double-glazed window will add beauty to the kitchen interior if the kitchen window is “extended” to the floor by removing the brickwork.
This kind of work cannot be done with your own hands and you will have to invite professionals for repairs - finishing craftsmen and window installation specialists.
Some housewives will find a double-glazed window, like for a balcony door, inconvenient, because it will deprive them of the window sill area. However, the problem is easily solved by installing the same countertop as the kitchen unit.
When renovating a kitchen, many questions arise. For example, what materials are best for flooring?
What is decorative plaster and how to use it in the kitchen? The answer is here.
In conclusion, we can say that a small kitchen in a Khrushchev building is not a death sentence.
It is enough to change your outlook to a more positive one, think through and rationally use every centimeter, and a creative solution will definitely appear.
We invite you to watch a video about repairing a winter refrigerator.
Organizing a refrigerator under the window with your own hands
The process includes several main emphases:
- Site preparation;
- Treatment of the internal surface;
- Providing opportunities for ventilation;
- Choice of doors;
- Internal filling.
Choosing the exact installation location requires careful calculation of the available space, the volume of the refrigeration structure and the dimensions of its frame in particular, as well as technical gaps. The inner covering should be treated and lined with a smooth material. In the future, they will arrange ventilation and heating. Proper air circulation will protect refrigerator parts and materials from overheating. Heating is done either against freezing of refrigerator elements, or to protect warm storage facilities in the winter. Installation under the window involves the use of ready-made units, completely self-assembly or attaching the doors to the drawer. The canvases are selected mainly from metal-plastic and wooden options. Working with wood yourself will be easier. The internal structure and storage options should be thought out as carefully as possible, otherwise the window-sill refrigerator will not be able to perform the required functions.
Preparatory work
According to standards, the thickness of brick walls should be from 0.5 to 0.65 m. Taking into account the mandatory reserve in the additional protruding volume, the owners have approximately 30 cm of available space. In Khrushchev-era buildings, one row of bricks is usually removed. At the same time, actions near concrete floors always require greater care. Concrete slabs are also used in brick houses. The thickness of the outer wall of the house is sometimes increased to 25 cm and a ventilation hole with a damper is left. This is how the temperature inside the niche is regulated. The resulting thinner wall is plastered with sand-cement mortar. Then putty is used. It will not be possible to do without plaster, because the putty on the brickwork will crack, let in moisture and cold, and sometimes peel off. The facing layer is made of ceramic tiles.
To avoid fines, all work should be coordinated with housing and communal services structures!
Niche interior decoration
The main criterion for finishing material is a smooth surface. Ideally, ceramic products are used. The tiles are selected that are compatible with plaster and putty. The initial finishing is done either with plaster only, or 2 types of material are used. A tile with frost-resistant tile adhesive is placed on top of the base layer.
The tile itself is chosen to be inexpensive, because the main thing in it is a smooth surface structure. It is not necessary to even purchase a new product. You can buy tiles that do not meet the standards or make do with leftover material that has already been used. You don't want to put together something like a jigsaw puzzle with wide gaps. Proper installation involves a tight arrangement of elements. As for finishing the seams, it is better to choose a moisture-resistant grout. In this sense, it is better not to save money, but to purchase a multi-component water-repellent mixture.
Electric heating and ventilation of the refrigerator
Electric heating is used in 2 cases. Firstly, in warm storage systems to protect products from the effects of low temperatures. Secondly, heating elements prevent the formation of condensation when warm air enters when opening the refrigerator. They evaporate the moisture collected in a special container. In addition, ensuring that the refrigerator compartment receives sufficient heat gain prevents the temperature in the freezer section from rising. Another function of heating is to defrost and, accordingly, remove ice from the evaporator. As a heating device, you can use a regular 60-75 W incandescent lamp, placing it in a mesh shade below the ventilation hole.
Warm air moves from the back walls of the refrigerator and freezer compartments. It is impossible to hide a ready-made forced ventilation system in the depths of a niche. At the same time, such a move will become available if:
- Place ventilation grilles opposite the refrigerator ventilation system and above the refrigerator, respectively.
- Leave at least 2-3 cm of margin above the top of the refrigerator.
Selection and installation of doors
The optimal options are those made of PVC, as well as aluminum with a hinged or sliding type of construction. Correct installation on your own is possible provided right angles are observed. A ready-made wooden frame is suitable for installing door facades. The doors are installed as tightly as possible. The operation of an improvised refrigerator depends on its tightness. That is why sliding panels and doors made of plastic with rubber sealants will be better.
The design of the doors is selected based on size and economy. A small blind section and a large opening one would not hurt in this regard. Capacious storage areas are covered with 2 moving panels. Buyers can also find systems with ready-made interior finishing. Those who do not want to spend additional money make the grooves themselves and install hinges there for attaching the doors.
Restoration of old doors
This need usually arises in 3 cases:
- the refrigerator is humming;
- the device does not maintain a constant temperature;
- ice forms.
Restoration usually begins with repair or replacement of the seal. In addition to the above reasons, a defect will be indicated by sagging and too easy opening. In the first case, you also have to adjust the shutters. As for the seal, the first thing they look for is the most deformed part. It is heated with a regular hairdryer and given the desired shape. Foam rubber or a piece of rubber is placed under the heated part. All these actions are performed on the floor, that is, the seal will have to be carefully torn off from the sash. At the same time, the mounting option is being studied. The sealing element is mounted on special clamps, glue, bolts or in slots. Immediately after installing the repaired seal, check the position of the door/doors. Before the appropriate actions, they are freed from products. Check the door fastenings: identify hinges that creak when the door moves. A small amount of machine oil is dripped directly there.
Metal-plastic doors
For the so-called “Khrushchev” refrigerator, 2 thermal insulation options are used: incomplete and complete. The first method involves maintaining the function of the refrigerator using freezers. After complete thermal insulation, the refrigerator is more suitable for the role of a warm cabinet. If you need to hide the contents of a mini-refrigerator, choose doors with sandwich panels. In other cases, frosted or smooth glass is used, with laminating films for color variety. It makes sense to achieve maximum space savings and use a sliding mechanism. Metal-plastic structures come with or without an impost, which is convenient for planning the space inside the refrigerator. The products have standard fittings for plastic doors/windows, including seals for increased tightness. The level of light penetration can be adjusted, again in terms of the choice between glass and panels.
Doors made of chipboard and MDF
MDF and chipboard are suitable for self-installation of doors. In the process, we will install the refrigerator in a pencil case and then hang the doors. Before starting work, we send wood materials for sawing and edging. Next, you will need to select ball guides for the width of each facade, metal corners, hardware, a level and a ruler. So, we connect the back wall and shelf with confirmations. We also attach the back part with corners to the frame posts. We place the frame structure where it should be, and, if necessary, connect it to adjacent pedestals, if there are any. We attach the racks to the wall with corners to increase rigidity. We install hinges on the walls under the facades. We make a hole in one of the racks for connection.
Preparing the second set of devices:
- laminated chipboard or MDF 16 mm thick;
- furniture handles;
- minifixes;
- confirmations;
- self-tapping screws
After this, we build in the almost finished structure and begin installing the doors. Mark the location for mounting the guide. We install the doors using fasteners.
The temperature regime must be carefully calculated, otherwise the tree will quickly deteriorate!
Sliding doors
The leaves of sliding (sliding) door systems move parallel to the frame. With the “refrigeration” version of sliding doors, a sliding sash lock is used so that arranging products is not accompanied by difficulties. They also install a self-closing mechanism with a counterweight-based operating principle. The usefulness of the system will manifest itself the moment the owners forget to close the refrigerator. A heating mechanism is installed around the perimeter to prevent the doors from sticking to the frame. Heat loss is reduced thanks to doors with glass profiles and air in the middle. Bases are chosen with a thickness of 4 or 6 mm. For a kitchen, a configuration with 2-3 doors with movement in both directions is best suited. Large rubber handles are used as control elements for the canvases.
Internal filling – making shelves
Glass shelves will be the best option. They have high strength with a small thickness, which also saves space. The appearance of the “filling” will also be better. Plastic shelves, in principle, also look “nice”, but their reliability is only a temporary quality, taking into account the loads inside the refrigerator.
So, we choose glass from 5 mm thick, ideally tempered, whose strength is up to 6 times higher. When purchasing, please immediately cut the pieces to the required size. You should also order grinding of the ends there. If something happens, you can polish the edges yourself using a medium-grain emery block to an almost perfect state. Then we place the glass on a smooth surface and leave one edge above the floor, about 15-25 cm long, and immerse the emery block in water. Next, we sand the edges with careful straight-line movements. Periodically rinse the bar in water. We determine the readiness of the shelves visually.
Making a useful cabinet out of a Khrushchev refrigerator
A completely acceptable option would be to use the niche of the Khrushchev refrigerator as an additional kitchen cabinet. In this case, it is inappropriate to take advantage of its coolness in the winter, so you will have to insulate the wall and only then begin installing drawers or shelves behind the door.
The reasons why you should not insulate the wall of a niche from the inside and explanations on this topic may take a separate article. Everything is tied to the dew point and the detrimental consequences after condensation inevitably appears between the insulation and the outer wall, and subsequently mold. You can learn more about this in articles on the topic of insulating the walls of a house from the inside.
Kitchen interior design ideas
A reminder of the growing technology in modern times will be transparent doors, along with rich lighting inside the chamber. Convenience and practicality are guaranteed with this option. Under the very wide window sill there is room for a full-fledged refrigerator with a horizontal configuration of the freezer and refrigerator compartments. Low-temperature drawers will be an ergonomically attractive option and a solution for lazy people who don’t like to put in the effort to find the items they need. It wouldn’t hurt to design a refrigerator with just one door as an imitation hatch. The built-in refrigerators behind the dividing kitchen counter look interesting. In turn, a more designer approach is taken to sliding refrigerator models using attractive panel cladding.
How to apply?
There are a large number of ways to decorate a window-sill refrigerator that will give this unit the most acceptable look. From an aesthetic and practical point of view, the most suitable option when installing doors will be one in which the refrigerator doors match the kitchen design.
When choosing such a solution, you can contact the company for the manufacture and installation of kitchen sets, where you ordered your furniture (as a rule, you can purchase some parts of the set separately from manufacturers). In this case, you can ask the same specialists for help with installation, but this will cost money.
We have another task - to produce everything with our own efforts, absolutely free, without resorting to the help of professionals.
Installation of refrigeration chambers under the window
One of the scenarios involves using a ready-made niche. In this sense, you only need to provide openings for communications, ventilation and heating of the door/doors.
The second method means partial dismantling. We remove the old box, clean the surfaces and prime them before facing. We are taking measurements for the subsequent installation of the new structure and the refrigerator inside it. We insert the new box into the niche, and there is a refrigerator compartment.
In the third case, we dismantle the window sill. We clean everything. We replace damaged bricks with new ones. We use plaster and deep primer for high adhesion and strengthening of the existing finish. Then we make plasterboard sheathing.
If the window faces the courtyard and there is no load-bearing reinforced concrete beam under it, then you will be able to obtain permission to install a window block. In the case of the south side, nothing will work, because the exposure to the sun in the summer, combined with the heat generated by the refrigerator outside, will make this part of the kitchen too hot.
Interior decoration
Window-sill refrigerators in most apartments need to be repaired or dismantled, as they allow cold air to pass through in winter and collect condensation on the surface of the walls, contributing to the appearance of mold. Therefore, the purpose of reconstruction is the following:
- Reduce the amount of condensation and minimize the consequences of its occurrence;
- Ensure a sufficient degree of cooling inside, preventing freezing in winter;
- Bring the appearance of the refrigerator in line with the interior of the kitchen.
Interesting examples
The grille above the radiator in the area of the former niche looks simple and elegant; the heating device does not catch the eye.
You can use the niche under the window sill in any way you like - be it for food, kitchen utensils or towels. The drawer door is very convenient and looks like a natural extension of the plastic window.
The issue of placing a washing machine in the house is easily resolved thanks to the niche under the window. At the same time, the “washing machine” in the kitchen does not look foreign. It is simply not visible behind the headset door. And the window sill turns out to be wide, turning into a comfortable work space.
You can remodel the niche so that it becomes part of the corner kitchen unit, thereby increasing the functionality of the workspace. In a small kitchen there will be enough space for pots and cutlery placed in drawers, as well as for many other important things.
The place under the window can remain a refrigerator, but only in keeping with the spirit of our times. In a modern kitchen, such a cabinet with pickles looks futuristic.
It is convenient to place a microwave oven on the shelf under the window. It is very convenient to use it with this placement.
When the sink is moved to the place of the niche, it becomes possible to install a large, full-fledged refrigerator in a small kitchen. The housewife, while washing dishes, does not stare at the wall, but can look out the window.
See below for a master class on remaking a Khrushchev refrigerator.
Functional window sill
If you use a window sill in a room as a work desk, then drawers will definitely come in handy. Otherwise, where to put various office supplies and paper. You can make built-in furniture to order, which is very convenient. How to use a window sill in an apartment:
- as a place to place a sink;
- instead of a bar counter;
- we use it instead of a sofa;
- excellent device as a chest of drawers;
- comfortable pet bed;
- window sill as a rack.
As you can see, there are many opportunities to use drawers and more. This is a great place that should not be wasted, especially if there is little space in the apartment.
Background
In the post-war years, the issue of providing the population with housing was acute, and Nikita Khrushchev, who took the helm of the USSR, under the motto “every family has something small, but its own,” launched the mass construction of small-sized high-rise housing:
- The first 2- and 5-story houses were built of brick (from 1955 to 1963);
- In order to save money, they switched to panel housing construction in 1963;
Houses grew into entire neighborhoods at once, including social and cultural facilities.
- The dimensions of the rooms were the same:
- Height up to 2.5 m;
- Room area 8-16 sq.m;
- Kitchens - less than 6 sq.m.;
- Toilet 1 sq.m., bathroom – 2.2 sq.m.;
In two and three-room apartments, large rooms were walk-through.
- At first the bathrooms were separate, later they were combined;
- The houses lacked an attic, an elevator and a garbage chute.
The most important thing is that housing was distributed free of charge! Citizens purchased everything else for life themselves.
Captain Obvious informs: in order to fully live in an isolated apartment, a family needs to have a place to store food supplies. And since the industry in those years could not mass-produce refrigerators, it was decided to equip a “cold” niche in the kitchen under the window, which served as a refrigerator. True, only 5-6 months a year.
Refurbished place.
Option five: washing
The sink in a small kitchen takes up a lot of space. This becomes even more problematic if residents need a dishwasher. And the opening under the windows will save usable space. To wash by a window, you will need to redesign the sewer and water pipes and replace the window sill to install a sink there. To finish the opening you will need moisture-resistant materials and insulation to avoid condensation on the walls and pipes.
To install a dishwasher, you will need to change the kitchen electrical circuit. In the same way, you can install a washing machine under the window.
Cabinet under the kitchen window
