1.What does “second light” mean?

Second light- this is a room in a house without ceilings on the second (third, etc.) floor. On professional language architects call this technique double-height hall. In educational literature on architecture, this definition sounds like this: “DOUBLE-STORY HALL (see HALL), a main room, a hall with two-story high walls (not separated by a ceiling) and two rows of windows. “Second light” is the name given to the upper tier of walls and windows.”.

2. History of the construction of buildings with second light.

This architectural technique in construction has been known since the construction of palaces and estates of the Middle Ages. Both in European and in architecture Russian Empire many examples of use double-height halls during the construction of royal mansions of past centuries.

For example, Banquet Hall Banqueting House) at Whitehall Palace (now defunct) in London was built in 1619-1622 in the style of English classicism, where a single double-height hall. From the noble solemnity and magnificent composition of the building, this palace was the first of its kind in Great Britain.

In St. Petersburg stands a magnificent monument of the 18th century - the first building northern capital 32 types of marble were used for decoration. The halls of this palace amaze with their wealth and elegance; a grand staircase led to the upper floors. The main room of which, the Marble Hall, was reconstructed in the 19th century; the interfloor coverings of the second and third floors were removed and the Marble Hall became double-light, as we see it now. The wonderfully beautiful ceiling was raised to the ceiling of the third floor and crystal chandeliers appeared.

In the history of architecture, they are also known from the second world. This was the case with Elizaveta Petrovna, who lived remotely during the reign of Anna Ioanovna in Pokrovskoye-Rubtsovo, which is not far from Moscow. According to legend, Elizabeth lived there cheerfully, organizing holidays, dancing and festivities. The wooden palace was located on the shore of a pond: one-story, on a high basement, with a central double-height hall. This monument of wooden architecture has not survived to this day; it is only known that it was decorated in Japanese and Chinese styles.

Most of our readers buildings with second light known from an early age. After all, many of us in childhood attended various clubs in astronomy, aircraft modeling, knitting, cutting and sewing, or music studios in the Palace of Pioneers or the House of Culture, and went to the swimming pool in the swimming section. It was there that we could first encounter this architectural technique double-height space with tiers of windows in many rows. Of course, the majority did not even pay attention to design features different public buildings, but spacious internal spaces and they probably couldn’t help but notice, since these public institutions were very different from our standard apartments.

For example, the Palace of Pioneers on the Lenin Hills in Moscow is the most successful construction Khrushchev's “thaw”, as the embodiment of the ideas of constructivism. The main building is the largest object of the complex, divided into several buildings, adjacent to the ends of an extended volume connecting them, where a spectacular space is created double-light winter garden. You can have different attitudes towards our common Soviet past, but it is worth recognizing that at that time the state did not skimp on the education, development and health of children, therefore, for the future builders of communism, magnificent palaces of pioneers and palaces of culture were erected, in which various architectural techniques were used, the most the most memorable of which was double-height space.

It is no secret that many historical buildings in the Russian capital at one time underwent repairs or reconstruction, and eventually lost their original function, suddenly turning into offices or apartments. But there are still buildings that have retained to this day the purpose for which they were created a century ago. One of them is the former Palace of Pioneers on Vorobyovy Gory with double-light room in the winter garden.

Organization double-light space is also often found in other public buildings: train stations, airports, gyms and indoor stadiums, in establishments of cultural organizations, restaurants, cafes, pavilions, etc.

4.Why do modern developers like a wooden house with a second light?

What is it that attracts the modern developer so much in this rather “official” architectural technique today? Probably, it is precisely this increase in space and the feeling of airiness, freedom, which is so lacking in our rather cramped apartments, limited by a box of walls and ceilings. Second light visually enlarges the room not only due to the absence of ceilings where they usually exist, but also the top row of windows in the second tier gives additional natural lighting to the room with second light.

Each developer, planning his own second light, probably imagines it in the form of an estate, a family nest, secretly dreaming of having something like a palace mansion, in order to feel himself in personal possession as the status owner of a respectable home: if not a marble palace, then at least an estate, second light in which, undoubtedly, it gives representativeness.

In peasant “double-fat huts”, to prevent heat from escaping upward, the staircase opening, together with the stairs leading upward, was tightly covered with boards. Thus, in the lower room, and most often it was large kitchen with a Russian stove, there was a structure in the form of a cabin in which there was a staircase for climbing to top part Houses. This suggests that in the peasant house they took great care of warmth and such a simple, but in an efficient way We tried to distribute it evenly throughout the house. After all, according to the researcher of Russian architecture M. Krasovsky, two-story huts were built “especially in the northern provinces, where there is still a lot of forest...”(it must be admitted that there is still “a lot of it” in the “northern provinces”, and especially in Kostroma region), and in the north people value warmth more than anywhere else and build wooden houses taking into account maximum preservation of it in their homes.

D) acoustics in wooden house with a second light;

There are some other features in a house with a second light that some may find inconvenient - the spread of sound from below throughout the house. If a wooden house has interfloor ceilings, they significantly muffle the sound coming from below. In a log house with a second light, the sound from the lower room echoes throughout the house. The second light is traditionally placed in the living room, where the TV is located, where all family members and their guests gather. Thus, if there are children in the house and they are already going to bed in the evening, and there are sounds from TV or conversations in your living room, then this noise will spread throughout the house, rising upstairs, preventing younger family members from falling asleep. In this case, you need to take care of additional sound insulation in advance, especially in children's rooms upstairs.

D) second light in a wooden house and children's pranks;

With children in the family, there is a danger of having a second light in a wooden house. You can often hear from the owners of such houses that boys and girls sometimes like to play, jumping from top to bottom over the railings of the second floor, come up with parachute descents with an umbrella and other fun - children's ingenuity is inexhaustible! In such cases, injuries to children or breakdowns are inevitable. various items furniture, since it is almost impossible to predict what your child will invent (especially without parental supervision, left alone) in a house with such an interesting layout with second light, where there is space and where children’s imagination can run wild.

6. What should you pay attention to first if you decide to build a wooden house with second light?

If the future developer is not stopped by any of the negative arguments given above, he is ready to overcome them, then first of all he should pay attention to heating the house. Very the right decision will install a warm floor, in which the heat will be forcibly retained below. And what larger area warm floor, the greater the effect it will have. Thus, the increase in costs from operating a heated floor in a room with a second light about 6 m high will be 20% higher than in a room with a ceiling about 3 m high. If you use only convectors for heating a log house, then the increase in costs can be even 80% - it’s up to you to decide whether this is a lot or a little. By heating efficiency wooden house with the second light, you can make the following rating: warm floors come first, then registers, then cast iron radiators, aluminum radiators, and lastly the convector. If the frost outside the window is -20 degrees, and the temperature of the heated floors is +24 degrees, then the measurements from the floor will be as follows: 1cm from the floor +21 degrees, 2cm from the floor +20 degrees, 4m from the floor +19.5 degrees, 5m (almost under the ceiling) +16-19 degrees.

Thus, the cost of heating a wooden house with second light requires a significant increase in the budget. And houses made of timber with a double-height room, as a rule, are built large, where for the sake of a spectacular view of the front room they sacrifice additional living space on the second floor, therefore, its residents must be wealthy people who can afford the maintenance of such expensive house. A log house with a second light due to its non-standard layout is included in the category luxury houses compared to other wooden houses of the same area.

In any case, if the time comes when you get tired of living in such luxury house or you will get tired of overpaying for it expensive maintenance, you are tired of living in a “palace” or “house of culture”, then in a wooden house there is always an opportunity to rectify the situation: contact conscientious construction company with qualified craftsmen who will professionally make inter-ceilings. Then your house will have additional rooms on the second floor and heat will be more evenly maintained at the top and bottom of the house.

We have compiled here ready-made projects of houses and cottages with a second light living room. They are different in area, style, set of rooms, but all with spectacular interiors, convenient layouts, inexpensive to build. So we hope that every lover of space will find something for themselves here. You can view the rest of our architects' projects in full.

A second light in the living room is usually considered an unaffordable luxury, arguing that the house could have had a room on the second floor instead.

Bureau Invapolis disagrees!
In a house project, a second light can be a decoration of life and a means of saving!

The living room combined with the dining room turns out to be approximately 4 by 8 (or 5 by 7), which means the ceiling must be at least three meters, otherwise it will be psychologically “pressure.” But at the same time, the remaining rooms (kitchen, bedrooms, utility rooms, hall, furnace room, etc.) are small and can be lower, 2.5 -2.7 m. Here, on the contrary, excess height will create a “well” effect. And here the second light will become a “lifesaver”...

In fact, we are only building one high room. Moreover, the second light may not be throughout the entire area, but only, for example, by the fireplace. We design other rooms to be low, lower than they would be in a regular living room.

At the same time, we get a whole “bouquet” of architectural advantages:

1. Impressive living room interior with high ceiling. You can put up a huge New Year's tree here, LIKE IN THE KREMLIN! Balconies on the second floor visually further expand the space of the double-height room. The staircase in projects of houses and cottages with a second light completely fits into the interior and decorates it.
2. With such an extraordinary room, even a modest house will look respectable
3. We don’t build unnecessary things. Decrease total height at home in a project with a second light provides savings in wall material of 5-10%.
4. We respect our neighbors and increase the harvest. We build a more squat cottage, and do not shade the area with it.

Conclusion: By choosing to build a house and cottage project with second light, we get beauty, comfort and savings at the same time.

Please note that in most of the house and cottage projects presented here, the second light of the living room can be blocked off to increase the number of bedrooms in the attic or second floor. In addition, a two-story living room can be arranged in the design of almost any house with an attic

The tradition of designing spaces with second light originates in the distant Middle Ages. It was then that throne and state rooms began to be built in palaces and castles. The abolition of interfloor ceilings made it possible to make the structure not only not limited in height, but also to give it special ostentation and even pomp due to the illumination of many high windows. Later, the palace ensembles of Paris and Peterhof shone with the luxury and decoration of their double-height halls.

Epochs succeeded each other, values ​​changed, and in Soviet times the trend migrated to public buildings. Palaces of culture and houses of pioneers were built, where it was necessary to emphasize the solemnity of the moment with the majesty of the setting.

And finally, the architects of our time increasingly began to resort to such a spectacular technique in individual buildings. Today they are seeking to combine the facility with environment and create the illusion of a smooth flow of external and internal spaces into each other through large quantity high window openings. The interiors are filled with light and air and visually continue the landscape outside the window.

Advantages of houses with second light

• The internal space visually increases, even in houses with a small area a feeling of spacious housing is created.
• Powerful insolation gives scope for interior solutions and has a beneficial effect on the well-being of the people living in it.
• Diversifies façade solutions through the use of panoramic windows.
• Makes it possible to create winter gardens and green areas from light-loving plants.
• During the day, natural illumination of stairs and balustrades is assumed.

Construction Features

• Heating such houses is somewhat more expensive than conventional heating. floor plan. But by taking care of good thermal insulation of the roof, you can avoid heat loss. It is also possible to solve this issue with the help of additional heating with a natural fireplace and by installing “warm floors”.
• You will need to order large-sized “joinery” for panoramic glazing.
• It will be necessary to think about correct zoning to ensure isolation of noise and odors in a single volume of the room.

Project catalog

Our catalog contains drawings of projects of various styles, materials and designs with the presence of rooms with second light. These could be:

• two-story houses with a full second floor, such as the compact and charming and cozy classic, where only the dining part of the kitchen-dining room has a double-height space, or with a high living room where the home theater area is located;
• houses with two above-ground floors plus a usable space in the underground part - a basement, which gives the owners an additional living level (this is a magnificent wooden one with an underground garage and a sauna and a high living room; and a beautiful modern cottage with an underground home gym and a high dining room);
• The most common category is two-story houses with an attic. Examples include: with a square double-height living room and a billiard room in attic floor; extravagant with two terraces and a compact high bay window in the dining room; with a carport garage for two cars, a gallery balcony and a two-light high dining room.

If you decide to move out of town and become an owner land plot located in a beautiful natural area - on the shore of a picturesque lake, on the edge of a forest, or from the windows of your future home with a view of the mountains, be sure to pay attention to this section.

The tradition of designing spaces with second light originates in the distant Middle Ages. It was then that throne and state rooms began to be built in palaces and castles. The abolition of interfloor ceilings made it possible to make the structure not only unlimited in height, but also to give it a special stateliness and even pomp due to the illumination of many high windows. Later, the palace ensembles of Paris and Peterhof shone with the luxury and decoration of their double-height halls.

Epochs succeeded each other, values ​​changed, and in Soviet times the trend migrated to public buildings. Palaces of culture and houses of pioneers were built, where it was necessary to emphasize the solemnity of the moment with the majesty of the setting.

And finally, the architects of our time increasingly began to resort to such a spectacular technique in individual buildings. Today they strive to unite the object with the environment and create the illusion of a smooth flow of external and internal spaces into each other through a large number of high window openings. The interiors are filled with light and air and visually continue the landscape outside the window.

Advantages of houses with second light

• The internal space visually increases, even in houses with a small area a feeling of spacious housing is created.
• Powerful insolation gives scope for interior solutions and has a beneficial effect on the well-being of the people living in it.
• Diversifies façade solutions through the use of panoramic windows.
• Makes it possible to create winter gardens and green areas from light-loving plants.
• During the day, natural illumination of stairs and balustrades is assumed.

Construction Features

• Heating such houses is somewhat more expensive than with a conventional floor plan. But by taking care of good thermal insulation of the roof, you can avoid heat loss. It is also possible to solve this issue with the help of additional heating with a natural fireplace and by installing “warm floors”.
• You will need to order large-sized “joinery” for panoramic glazing.
• It will be necessary to think about proper zoning to ensure isolation of noise and odors in a single volume of the room.

Project catalog

Our catalog contains drawings of projects of various styles, materials and designs with the presence of rooms with second light. These could be:

• two-story houses with a full second floor, such as the compact and charming and cozy classic, where only the dining part of the kitchen-dining room has a double-height space, or with a high living room where the home theater area is located;
• houses with two above-ground floors plus a usable space in the underground part - a basement, which gives the owners an additional living level (this is a magnificent wooden one with an underground garage and a sauna and a high living room; and a beautiful modern cottage with an underground home gym and a high dining room);
• The most common category is two-story houses with an attic. Examples include: with a square double-height living room and a billiard room in the attic; extravagant with two terraces and a compact high bay window in the dining room; with a carport garage for two cars, a gallery balcony and a two-light high dining room.

If you decide to move out of town and become the owner of a plot of land located in a beautiful natural area - on the shore of a picturesque lake, on the edge of a forest, or from the windows of your future home with a view of the mountains, be sure to pay attention to this section.

IN wooden house construction houses with second light have long become popular.
In houses with second light are not installed in one or more rooms (most often in the living room or dining room) interfloor ceilings. Thus, the space between the first and second in these rooms becomes unified.
Natural light enters the rooms with second light through the windows of the first and second floors, creating, as it were, double lighting. The room becomes even more spacious and light. Often the windows of the first and second floors are combined, and one common glazing is obtained for two floors. This gives the facade of the house with a second light style and presence, and the room - solemnity and presentability. High ceilings allow you to hang luxurious chandeliers and lamps, to embody various design solutions, which are not possible to decorate rooms with standard height ceilings.
The effect of second light is also present when the ceiling is hemmed along the rafters, and not parallel to the floor.

Advantages and disadvantages of houses with second light

Houses with second light have two significant advantages:

1. 1. Due to the absence of ceilings, rooms with second light look larger and freer, and the footage of the entire house seems larger. All this adds solidity and solidity to houses with a second light.
2. 2.Additional natural light has a beneficial effect on emotional state and the health of the owners of the house with second light, and, to some extent, allows you to save energy.

The disadvantages include the following facts:

1. 1. The second light organization takes a part usable area Houses. Therefore, when designing, you should initially provide for the number and size of premises necessary for the comfortable living of all family members.
2. 2. As is known, warm air rises up. Therefore, in rooms with second light, the organization of modern efficient systems heating, contributing to savings in the operation of the house.

Construction of houses with second light in North Forest

Architects of the North Forest company in projects wooden houses with the second light, all details are taken into account, the layouts are carefully thought out, which ensures comfortable accommodation in such a house.
If, instead of a second light, you want to equip an additional bedroom, office or dressing room on the second floor, we will rework the project in accordance with your wishes. And if you liked it standard project, in which the second light is closed, in most cases it is permissible to arrange it. We make these changes at no additional charge.

The most popular among our customers is a house project with a second light and