The Project
Architect Sara Bondia lived in a first-floor apartment in central
London with no outdoor space. Right in front of her kitchen window lay
the roof of the ground-floor extension. Keen to spend some time in the
open air, Sara decided to convert that roof into a terrace for her
family. The terrace would need to be stylish yet functional and suited
to their needs.
The Requirements
Sara applied for planning permission to renovate the exterior space,
incorporating new wooden flooring and a combination of stylish glass and
wooden balustrades to preserve neighbours’ privacy.
She would also replace an existing walk-on rooflight that occupied
most of the terrace surface. Sara sought a supplier that could deliver a
tailor-made rooflight that met the project’s exacting requirements. A
large walk-on solution was needed, measuring 1550mm x 2132mm, which
would meet stringent building regulations. Additionally, to maintain a
flush surface with the new wooden flooring, a minimum frame height was
required. Sara struggled to find suppliers because it was a non-stock
item. However, after much online searching, she found NDC.
The Solution
Adept at delivering bespoke solutions for a wide variety of residential and commercial projects, NDC supplied an Astroglaze walk-on
unit for the project in the specified size. To maintain privacy for
both Sara and her neighbours below, the glazing was fully sandblasted
and delivered with a Ritec easy-clean coating for straight-forward
maintenance. The textured finish also ensures suitable grip for those
walking on the rooflight surface – essential as the balcony would also
be a play area for her young family. From a design perspective, a white
border was chosen around the glazing while the fixings were delivered
in a bespoke polyester powder-coated finish of black/grey in RAL 7021.
The white border and grey/black fixings set off the colour and texture
of the wooden decking well, with a standard black border considered too
dark and harsh, creating too much colour contrast to be in-keeping with
the overall design scheme of the balcony.
The Conclusion
The result is a now much-loved and often-used balcony, giving Sara and her family sought-after outside space.
“I’m delighted with the new balcony,” says Sara. “Before,
we had no useable external space and had just two small windows in our
living and kitchen areas. Now the apartment has large glazed doors and
you can walk out into this big open area outside. We use it all the
time, for breakfast, lunch and dinner. It’s transformed the way we live
and has been particularly brilliant during the hot summer evenings.” Regarding NDC’s involvement in the project, Sara says: “The
NDC team was extremely supportive. As our requirements were very
particular –especially considering the size and weight of the rooflight
needed – I had a lot of questions.”
Due to the large size and the resulting weight, a new steel structure
had to be created on top of the roof as it couldn’t be supported by
existing rafters and joists. I was also struggling to find a solution
with the minimum frame size required to make sure that there wouldn’t be
a step between the rooflight and the decked flooring. All of this had
to be taken into consideration and NDC was well-equipped with the
technical information and know-how to answer these questions and
responded quickly to all my enquiries. The team was proactive and very
supportive, and the quality of the solution is fantastic.”
Actual Product Supplied:
Bespoke: 1 x Astroglaze walk-on unit 1550 x 2132mm, polyester powder coated in RAL 7021 (black/grey).
Glazing: Fully sandblasted for a textured finish, with a white border and a Ritec easy-clean coating for ease of maintenance.
