By second light in the interior we mean a room in which window openings are located in several rows. The ceiling in such rooms is high, and there is no overlap between the rows of windows. The room turns out to be bright and spacious, but not all homes can implement this option. The area of the house must be at least 200 square meters. m so that the designer’s idea is revealed as much as possible.
From history to modern times
Second-world interiors have been around since the Middle Ages in churches, shrines, government buildings and the homes of influential people. In those days, artificial light (candles) was not used so often, but the premises needed it. Therefore, this solution made it possible to solve several issues at once - to make the room brighter and to decorate the façade of the entire structure.
Not today, interiors with second light are found not only in the above buildings, but also in private houses and city apartments. In the latter case, it could be a penthouse or a duplex apartment.
This solution is especially popular in loft-style apartments. In private homes, the range of styles is wider - the interior of a house with a second light can embody Empire, Baroque, Rococo, classic, rustic and similar trends.
Advantages and disadvantages of second light in the interior
Second light in rooms provides the following advantages:
- Fills the room sun rays, making it lighter.
- Can be observed beautiful game light on decoration and interior items.
- Makes the interior and exterior presentable.
- Space is created in the room.
- Suitable for different styles.
Along with the advantages, we would like to mention the disadvantages:
- The useful area of the building is reduced.
- It will take longer to warm up the room in winter.
- Heat loss due to large glass area.
- Special requirements for heating and ventilation that must be implemented by specialists, otherwise warm air may accumulate at the top, and people will freeze below.
Methods for creating windows in 2 rows
You can implement interior design with a second light in the following ways:
- Draw up a house project with such an architectural solution in advance. This option is the most convenient and suitable.
- Dismantle the existing ceiling, abandoning the room located above. The work process will be labor-intensive and should only be carried out by competent specialists.
- Lower the floor. The method is available only in private homes and involves the installation of steps from the hallway to the living room.
Install two rows plastic windows and attach horizontal white blinds to them (separately to the bottom and top rows), and on the sides, along the entire length, hang a light translucent light gray curtain.
- The interior of the second light in the house has good acoustics. Therefore, you can put a piano or other musical instrument. You can also install a home theater to watch movies in the company of loved ones.
- At night, good artificial lighting will be required. Hang a massive central chandelier from the ceiling with multiple lights to match your chosen style. Also advisable pendant lamps on chains, large floor lamps and table lamps.
- Select tulle and curtains in advance - these can be massive curtains, drapery, or just light and airy tulle. You can also use vertical or horizontal blinds.
- Curtains along the entire length of the glazing will look impressive.
- To reduce heat loss during cold periods, the top row of windows can be made smaller.
- Between the top and bottom rows of windows there is sometimes a long shelf for storing decorative items. It can be either along the entire perimeter of the room or along one wall.
- The fireplace will warm the room on a cold winter evening. Since the room is large, the fireplace should not be small. It can be finished with tiles or natural stone, and arrange a sofa area next to it.
- Furniture items should be larger than in ordinary rooms. On one of the walls you can do bookshelves up to the ceiling. To reach them, special folding ladders are used.
Conclusion
Interior country house with second light or a city apartment will always effectively highlight your home both inside and outside against the background of other buildings. But to implement such a solution, the help of professionals is needed, since the issue is not only in the correct design, but also in the safety of the building.
TopDom specialists will help you develop and implement the interior design of houses in which the second light will not only provide additional light, but will also become the highlight of the entire home in which you will want to spend every day.
In our photo gallery with house design there are more than 1,500 ready-made design projects, including those with second light. We guarantee you high level professionalism and a result that will meet your expectations.
The second light is usually called a high ceiling and big windows in one of the rooms, most often a spacious living room. Moreover, some sources attribute the second light to a manifestation of “eliteness,” which is not entirely true. Of course, you won’t find second light in outright economy-class houses, but there’s nothing exclusive about it either.
In a 2-story house, the second light implies the absence of an interfloor ceiling above the same living room, which results in a room with a height of two floors at once. But there is a second light in one-story houses.
Second light in one-story houses
A modern house usually has a ceiling height of 3 or 2.7 meters, or any other, but we are talking about a flat ceiling. What if you make a ceiling along the rafters over part of the house, as in?
Living room with a high ceiling, house in Olshaniki (rough finishing in progress)
From the outside, this house looks like this:
Exterior appearance of a house with second light in Olshaniki
This is a kind of compromise, the simplest version of the second light is the ability to increase the volume of the living room without increasing the height of the house. It may not look so impressive, but it is quite simple to implement and does not greatly affect the cost.
More difficult option- add a “cuckoo” above the living room and also make the ceiling along the rafters, like this:
Living room of a 1-story house with second light in Smolyachkovo
Looks much more interesting now, right? And from the outside this house also looks quite intricate:
Exterior of a house with second light in Smolyachkovo
By the way, in a one-story house they often add a loft (together with a second light), but this is not necessary. The photo above shows a second light option in the living room without any loft.
Another example of the execution of the second light is. It’s still at the stage of a box with a roof, but the volume is already felt:
Living room with high ceiling, house in Kempelevo
The truth is not really cottage, but the idea should be clear - we make the ceiling along the rafters and insert skylights, it turns out spacious and bright.
Second light in a two-story house
Let's move on to 2-story houses with second light. Everything is clearer there, there are already two floors in the house, it’s just that in part of the house there is no overlap between the floors. For example, like:
Second light in frame house in Chernaya Rechka, photo from the 2nd floor
Of course, in such a house the second light gives even more volume, because the overall height of the house is greater. From the outside the house looks like this:
Frame house with second light in Chernaya Rechka
It was already mentioned in the note about lofts, but we cannot ignore it in the topic of second light:
Living room of a 2-story house in Lomonosov, view from the stairs to the second floor
The height of the ceiling in the ridge reaches more than six meters and the room seems simply huge.
There will be a kitchen under the stairs, a lamp hanging above the future table
At the same time, looking at the house from the outside, you won’t immediately be able to tell that the house has such a huge room:
Living room with a high ceiling in a lower part of the house, oddly enough
I quite often come across projects with second light, but not so many houses have been completed to final finishing. So there’s another very interesting one, but it’s also still at the box stage:
House in the shape of a 3-pointed star, the second light in the center of the house
There are high ceilings in the middle of the house.
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Houses with second light - what is it?
In short, houses with second light are buildings that combine two floors into one, with no overlap between them. Due to this, the effect of significantly increasing the space is achieved; the room is filled with more light due to an increase in the glazing area. trend recent years is an organization in country house large double-height living room. Such rooms look simply great - high ceilings and windows give such a room a lot of space. This idea has its fans and opponents. So, for example, rationalists argue that this is not functional, because there is no possibility to organize extra room On the second floor. And those who support this idea rightfully believe that a home organized in this way looks great and provides a lot of free space.
The advantage of such a house is that due to the absence of ceilings between floors, light from the windows of the second floor pours into the room; there is more light in such a room. As a rule, living rooms in such rooms have panoramic windows overlooking the garden, it is a pleasure to be here.
The idea of the house is not only to provide more space and light, but also to create a logical center of the house that can be accessed from any room in the house. Most often, living rooms where the whole family gathers are arranged this way. Of course, it is worth considering that organizing such a room significantly reduces the usable area of the house and this is unlikely to be relevant for a crowded family that wants to place as many rooms as possible on the second floor.
Our company has been developing projects of houses with second light for more than one year. We prepare documentation that meets all generally accepted standards in the field of construction. Therefore, any construction company can easily erect a building according to our designs. You can order construction directly from us. We carry out work with high quality and on time.
Houses with second light are the choice of people who know a lot about beauty. After all, it is these houses that are distinguished by sophistication and the embodiment of good taste. From the inside, rooms with high ceilings look grandiose, creating the impression of a huge space. The project can be designed to later remodel the room into attic room. But this should be decided at the stage of designing the house.
Modern residential buildings with a second light are structures in which there are no ceilings between floors. Such a solution promotes the active penetration of natural sunlight, however, has its drawbacks. Architects and designers who know everything about second light note that such a solution is not suitable for every home.
A small house with a second light, made in a laconic design
The unusual design coexists with the excessive “transparency” of the home with a second light, so debates between supporters and opponents of this technology continue to this day. Like any method of decorating a house, the choice of second light should be based on an analysis of all its features. Let's consider the features of such a solution, and how the second light in the house can be designed: design, photo interesting examples in our article.
Features of a residential building with a second light
Country housing or a two-story apartment with second light is a single living space, equipped with a large number of window openings. A house decorated using this technology looks spacious and “airy”; the effect is enhanced by the flow of natural light freely penetrating through the windows.
The basis of such architectural projects is the beauty of the surrounding landscape, as most The finished building is occupied by panoramic windows. In general, what is second light from an aesthetic point of view? A technologically advanced way to emphasize the beauty of the surrounding nature, therefore such buildings are best suited for owners of plots on the coast and in picturesque hilly areas.
Houses with a second light will add elegance to even the most banal view outside the window
The implementation of the second light system occurs either by eliminating the ceilings of the first floor, or by lowering the floor level. The first option involves loss living rooms on the second floor, while the owners receive a spacious living room. The second option is more common, and involves installing steps leading to the living room, decorated with second light.
Installation of a second light by eliminating the ceilings of the second floor
History of second light technology
Among professional architects, the technique of eliminating ceilings is known as a “double-light hall,” and the name of the second light is given to the second tier of walls with windows that provide a high level of illumination. Using similar technology, the state rooms of castles and palaces were decorated back in the Middle Ages. Double-height halls can be found in European and Russian state halls; domestic architects often used a similar technique in estates. The second light decorates the halls of the Grand Palace in Peterhof, in the vicinity of St. Petersburg, the Elysee Palace in Paris, and Herrenchiemsee Castle in Linderhof, Germany.
Second light in palace interiors: the state hall in Peterhof
When the era of palaces and balls in state halls gave way to the democratic Soviet system, buildings without ceilings between floors were erected for public needs. The Palace of Pioneers on the Lenin Hills in Moscow, as well as most of the main staircases in typical Soviet buildings, were complemented by several tiers of windows. This visually increased the available space in the room and created the impression of a monumental building.
Modern architects use second light in the house when building country estates, as well as in spacious two-level apartments. The relevance of this technique is due to the fashion for “natural beauty” in architecture: open spaces, natural raw materials, plenty of light and minimal amount decorative elements. Abundance of durable and aesthetic finishing materials allows you to create spacious house with second light a cozy and “airy” interior.
Modern halls with second light - less luxurious and more comfortable than a palace
Technical features of the “second light” architectural solution
A similar design of living space is used in large houses, optimally more than 120 square meters, since combining two floors into one reduces the number of living rooms.
The result of using the second light is a spacious room with high ceilings, which must be equipped with the system additional heating. Ordinary radiators will not be able to provide comfortable temperature air, especially if the house was built in a cold northern climate.
The optimal effect from the use of second light is achieved by the extensive panoramic windows that line the residential building. Their shape and location are limited only by the imagination of the owners, but the number and size in most modern buildings are doubled on average to create natural lighting.
The strict geometry of windows in houses with second light is a way to enliven the interior
The staircase to the second floor in such dwellings is not located in the center of the first floor room, but along one of the walls, often closer to the corner. This feature allows for more efficient use of space without blocking the owners’ view of a single room with the construction of staircases.
Projects of residential buildings with double-height halls create a spacious living room around which the rest of the rooms are grouped, eliminating the need for an abundance of corridors. Traditionally, in such houses, the public area (kitchen, living room, hallway, utility rooms) is located on the first floor, and the second floor is occupied by the master bedrooms.
Video description
A detailed overview of one of the projects in the video:
Arrangement of a comfortable microclimate in houses with second light
The main feature of installing home heating with a second light is to counteract uneven heating of the central room. Warm air rises under the roof, while its lower part remains insufficiently heated. If the insulation is poorly made, cold air will seep in and make the situation worse.
A large room created by a second light system must be carefully heated
The solution to the problem is a heated floor system - installing electrical cables or heating pipes in front finishing. The floor area heats up, raising the temperature in the lower third of the living room. The flow of cold air penetrating from the roof is leveled, and as a result the room receives a comfortable average temperature. As a rule, a heated floor system provides an air temperature of no higher than 60 degrees, so it should not be used to heat large rooms.
A universal option for second light in house designs of any size is a combination of radiators and a heated floor system. This technological solution allows you to create optimal temperature air and resist the cold. For the successful functioning of an engineering structure, it is necessary to ensure good level heat conservation by installing double-glazed windows with high insulating properties.
Installation of a heated floor system – good decision for heating houses with second light
A technological solution for houses located in harsh climatic conditions - installation of heaters in technological niches next to window openings. In this case, it is used as natural convection - the process of rising warm air up, and the fan system forming thermal curtain around the windows.
Properly selected curtains help create a visually comfortable impression of a living space. Depending on the size and location of the windows, curtains can be the main accent of the interior or serve the practical function of protecting the room from prying eyes. In any case, when installing curtain rods and choosing material for curtains, it is necessary to take into account the direction of light so as not to block its flow with too thick fabric.
Advantages and disadvantages of houses with second light technology
The main attractive feature of such residential buildings is the powerful lighting system, which combines natural light and large lighting fixtures that act as decorative and functional elements.
Original and catchy hanging chandeliers add even more sophistication to the home
A layout with high ceilings visually expands the space, so owners have a second light in wooden house there is a feeling of spacious living space even in cases where the total area does not exceed 150 square meters.
The absence of unnecessary partitions on the ground floor allows for zoning, interior items are adjusted to the needs of the owners: dinner table It can be easily moved to a relaxation area, and the cooking process can be combined with watching TV.
Panoramic windows and high ceilings visually “let nature” into the living spaces, which allows you to enjoy the beauty of the landscape located outside the window.
Second light in classical northern latitudes
An unusual and attractive home lighting system also has its drawbacks, among which both objective disadvantages and technical features, easily removable with the help of experienced specialists.
The main disadvantage of creating a house with second light is the high level of costs for thermal insulation, large windows, and heating the entire room. Like most original ones modern technologies, the second light does not apply economical options building a house.
A single room on the first floor contributes to the spread of sounds and smells throughout the home, which is not always comfortable.
Finishing work, choice of decor and window maintenance (washing, replacing curtains, light bulbs) lighting fixtures) will require either the use of a high stepladder or the payment of specialist labor.
Decorating windows in houses with second light takes time and effort
Refusal interfloor covering leads to a decrease in the number of living rooms. This feature is offset by an increase in the area of the second floor, on which the necessary premises are located.
Complex calculations and installation process heating system can be easily performed at the proper level by qualified engineers and technicians. For example, creating frame house with a second light turnkey includes the installation of a high-tech heating system.
Projects of houses with second light
Classic wooden houses with a second light allow you to combine the warmth and comfort of finishing from natural material with the “airiness” of the interior created by second light technology.
And examples of projects in the photo:
A house with second light, built from rounded logs - a cozy and warm home
Light finishing of logs and strict combination of colors with second light
Finnish house with a second light used in every room: a spacious home
Traditionally for Finnish house with a second light, the staircase is located near the entrance to the living room
Second light when building a frame house
Most often the second light is used as bright element living room or kitchen in a relatively small house
Conclusion
Second light - ancient technology furnishing of residential buildings, which has received a second life in the modern construction market. A consistent approach to the design, construction and finishing of buildings using this type of lighting will delight the owners with a practical and unusual home.
On our website you can get acquainted with the most popular house projects, including with the second light, from construction companies represented at the exhibition of Low-Rise Country houses.
Second light is a luxury you can’t do without
Projects of houses with second light are becoming increasingly popular. Although many still do not know what this “seventh wonder of the world” is. Let's try to figure it all out. Every person, at least once in his life, has encountered rooms in which several floors are combined, that is, there is no overlap between them. These are often found in central post offices, banks, office premises. They are characterized by huge windows covering the entire high wall. If two floors are combined, then there is twice as much light in the room, and hence the name - “second light”. At first glance it looks like architectural solution has nothing to do with residential buildings, but this is only for the first one. Increasingly, private houses began to combine floors. This is usually done in living rooms or dining rooms. Of course, if the house is being built small, then there can be no question of any second light. After all, by removing the ceiling, we reduce the efficiency of using living space. Therefore, the design of a house with second light can only be justified for big houses. Well, if the living space allows it, then why not. A lot of light and air make any home extraordinarily beautiful and cozy. Luxurious living rooms with second light are unlikely to leave anyone indifferent. Russia is famous not only compact houses, but also mansions, and therefore, in its vastness, designs of houses with a second light are becoming increasingly popular.
Projects of houses with second light - where to start
Design is a responsible thing. There are no small details here. Only the professional approach of the design organization’s employees will allow you to obtain a high-quality result. The Dom4M company provides both ready-made designs of houses with a second light, and the opportunity to order individual project houses with second light. Ready project houses with second light can be bought directly on the company’s website. But first, it is better to consult whether the project is suitable for your site. If necessary, it can be edited, or rather adapted. As a rule, adaptation concerns the foundation, because depending on the composition of the soil and the proximity of groundwater, the foundation is made of different strengths and depths.
It is at the design stage that everything is done necessary calculations by load. The project ensures not only the successful completion of construction, but also the safety of the house itself. In addition, without a project it is impossible to obtain permission to start construction work, nor put the house into operation.
The importance of house design.
The project of a house with a second light has a very important and responsible object. This big window two or more floors high. The size of the window complicates its installation and operation. The frame must be strong and reliable. Its task is not only to provide good lighting, but also heat preservation. Windows are the most vulnerable places in terms of heat loss, and even more so with their size. If the window is of poor quality or its installation, the house will turn out cold, and all the advantages of the second light will turn into a fat minus. Besides big sizes increase the weight of the window itself. Special requirements also arise for glass. If the window is not just a floor-to-ceiling window, but one glass wall covering the entire facade, then you also need to take into account whether such a wall will withstand the load of the roof.
It turns out that starting construction without a project is wasted money and nerves. The purchase of the project will more than pay for itself in the speed and quality of construction. After all, due to the lack of a project, dismantling cannot be avoided individual elements, alterations and defects, and all this entails overexpenditure of materials, and therefore finances. And such construction will also drag on over time. Therefore, everything must be done in order, first the design, then the construction, and not vice versa.
