How to make a podium: materials, design, device

Recommendation points

• Definition and features of the use of the podium in the interior
• Optimal podium placement principles
• The choice of material and technology for the construction of the podium

The catwalk remains a very popular design element today, but its main purpose is not beauty, but functionality. This practical structure allows you to hide communications, reliably hide not only pipes or wires, but even a full-fledged sleeping place.

Designers and architects appreciate the podium for its versatility, since with the help of such a structure it is possible to organize spacious storage spaces even in a tiny “one-room”, while simultaneously solving a number of decorative tasks.

Let’s try to figure out what a podium is, what functions it can perform in an ordinary apartment, where it is best to place such a structure, and also find out the peculiarities of building a “room pedestal” and choosing the optimal material.

The podium can become a central object in a room, a highlight of the interior and a functional structure that allows you to solve a number of practical problems

Definition and features of the use of the podium in the interior

Designers and architects have traditionally called a podium a raised section of floor that is located within the same room. Thus, the steps that serve as a transition from one room to another are not a podium.

Most often, the podium is used in order to highlight separate functional areas in the room, that is, as an effective way of horizontal zoning of the floor. But its functions are not limited to this. So, it is customary to divide the podiums into two categories:

1. Technical, which perform the functions of disguise, hiding engineering communications and frame structures, which otherwise cannot be entered into the interior design. Such podiums are often used when redeveloping a bathroom and shower, moving a sink or toilet bowl, to create an island in the kitchen, when you need not only to move the working area to the center of the room, but also to lay water and sewer pipes with a sufficiently large diameter. In addition, in the case of an air heating system in a private house, it is in the technical podium that the air ducts can be hidden and the warm air will rise from the bottom up, which will make the heating system more efficient. To access utilities in the podium, you can leave a hatch, which will be almost invisible due to the finish with the same material as the rest of the top.
2. Decorative. Such podiums are usually used to create an original interior, become an important part of a design project, allow you to highlight on the territory, for example, a living room, a working corner or a dining area.

However, in principle, there is no strict separation, since a technical podium can also perform decorative functions, and an elegant design structure can act as a storage place or hide an additional berth underneath..

In the bathroom, the podium can not only serve as a camouflage for water pipes, but also provide convenient access to the bathroom for the elderly and small children – it will be easier to climb such steps, especially if you install reliable railings

I would like to note that recently there has been an opinion among designers that the podium is too radical a method of horizontal zoning and the use of such, often very massive structures in a small apartment is unjustified and even dangerous.

On the one hand, one cannot but agree with such an opinion – a podium, the average height of which is 20 centimeters, or even 50 centimeters, “eats up” a lot of space, especially if the ceiling height in the room is not more than 2.5 meters. In addition, if a podium is erected in the center of the room, it becomes an obstacle to movement and can be dangerous for children. The need to build two or three steps to a high podium can also cause inconvenience. And for zoning a studio apartment, it is often enough just to use different floor coverings, so there is no need for a more complex design and additional costs..

But on the other hand, it is simply impossible to solve a number of design and technical solutions without a podium, and the correct layout and thoughtful approach to the construction of an “artificial hill” can turn it from an annoying obstacle on the way into an incredibly beautiful and practical part of the room..

In this case, the sofa is literally “recessed” in a large podium, thanks to which there is no need for additional furniture in this room. By the way, this kind of raising the floor with the help of the podium to the level of the window is the favorite design technique and allows you to create the impression of panoramic glazing.

Optimal podium placement principles

As mentioned above, the appearance of a technical podium in a house or apartment is caused by the urgent need to hide engineering communications, therefore its location is determined by the redevelopment itself and the location of risers, pipes and air ducts.

With the placement of a decorative podium, the situation is different – its main task is to decorate the room, create an original interior. But do not forget about the functional tasks of such a design, in connection with which some basic principles of its location can be distinguished:

1. You should not place the podium right in the center of the room – this is not a stage and not a tribune for performances, and it will be simply inconvenient to walk around a high structure every time. For the same reason, it is impossible to place the podium in the passage areas..
2. The place for the construction of the podium can be determined by the configuration of the room itself – for example, if the boundaries of the structure are outlined by existing load-bearing columns, bay window, partitions, and so on. Moreover, if there are no such features in the room, sometimes it is worth highlighting the entrance to the podium with the help of light partitions in order to clearly define the boundaries of the structure.
3. In narrow and long rooms, designers advise installing podiums in width – from one wall to another, which will visually expand the boundaries of an elongated room. For square rooms, corner options are perfect, which do not have to be square at all – rounded podiums also look very beautiful.
4. If the podium will replace the bed, will become a storage place for numerous drawers with things, then it should be located where an ordinary bed or a low wide cabinet would look organically.

Corner podiums are very popular, as they do not interfere with movement around the room, while solving the problem of zoning and highlighting functional areas

It can be stated that the best place for a podium is in studio apartments, where it can be used to highlight a functional area, in small apartments, the owners of which are in dire need of an additional sleeping place hiding during the day, or would like to replace the outdated mezzanines with another storage facility. The podium will also perfectly fit into the interior of a room with a complex configuration, where the place for the location of the “stage” is determined by the presence of building structures.

The choice of material and technology for the construction of the podium

Having planned the construction of the podium, you should pay special attention to the choice of materials. Experts emphasize that the material for the podium should be:

1. Firstly, light, so as not to create additional load on the floors, which is especially important for apartments in ordinary high-rise buildings.
2. Secondly, it is reliable enough not to bend under the weight of walking people or pieces of furniture..
3. Thirdly, the material should not creak and make unpleasant booming sounds when hitting or walking.

Experts consider the following materials and construction technologies to be the best choice for the construction of a podium:

1. Expanded clay concrete. This material is poured according to the same principle as the floor screed, it is reliable and durable. However, expanded clay concrete has a specific gravity of about 900-1100 kg per cubic meter, therefore it is not suitable for houses with insufficiently high maximum permissible floor load. In this regard, only high sides of the podium are usually created from expanded clay concrete, and lighter large expanded clay is laid inside.
2. Foam blocks. The density of this material is only 250-500 kg per cubic meter, so that it creates a much lower load on the floors than expanded clay concrete. At the same time, a podium made of foam blocks is erected easier and faster, it is simply dismantled, in contrast to a solid concrete pour. But this material perfectly absorbs moisture, a fungus can start in it, which will affect the microclimate of the entire room. Therefore, in the case of the construction of a podium from foam blocks, special attention is paid to reliable waterproofing.
3. Dry screed. In this case, the base of the podium is erected from glued beams, which will become the boundary for the structure, expanded clay sand is poured into the resulting “trough”, and gypsum-fiber boards serve as the top. The mass of such a podium does not exceed 35–40 kg per square meter. But this solution also has several drawbacks – the podium from a dry screed cannot be higher than 10 centimeters, otherwise it will begin to bend. In addition, it will not work to cover a dry screed with solid wood, it is not reliable enough.
4. Lags made of laminated veneer lumber. A very popular material for the construction of the podium, it is quite lightweight and at the same time reliable. Usually, a plywood flooring with a thickness of at least 16 millimeters is laid on top of the log. The main drawback of this design is the booming sound that an empty podium inside will emit upon impact. You can get rid of this feature by laying cork strips under the logs or filling the void with expanded clay, as well as placing storage boxes under the podium.
5. Metal base frame. The most popular way to build a multipurpose podium is to use a roll steel base that is welded in place or bolted in place. To lighten the weight of this otherwise very robust and airtight structure, wooden bars are screwed to the steel profiles. It is enough to sheathe such a frame on the sides and on top with plywood from 12 millimeters thick and you will get a podium, inside which engineering communications, a retractable bed, and numerous boxes can be located. To get rid of the booming sound on impact, the metal frame can be filled with polyurethane foam, packed in polyethylene with mineral wool or expanded clay. And if there is a bed, pipes or drawers inside, then thick sheathing with a damping layer will help get rid of unnecessary noise..

A timber frame is a great option for building a podium. Later, it is sheathed with plywood. The only problem can be the booming sound that the structure will emit if it remains empty.

For finishing the top of the podium you can use:

1. Laminate and parquet flooring. In this case, you need a backing made of polyethylene foam or cork..
2. Solid wood or parquet is laid only on the podium, capable of withstanding a pressure of at least 100 kgf / cm².
3. Ceramic tiles are perfect for decorating a podium in a bathroom or kitchen. In this case, the base must withstand a pressure of at least 50 kgf / cm².
4. Linoleum.
5. Textile or carpet.

In general, the choice of the top for the podium depends not so much on the bearing capacity of the frame as on the interior design of the rest of the room – the structure should look organic, and not look like a foreign element. At the same time, a different floor covering is often used to decorate the podium – not the same as in the rest of the room, which allows you to further highlight this part of the room.

Particular attention is also paid to finishing the ends of the podium. If a flat polyurethane skirting board is used in the rest of the room, you can install it. Also, experts suggest using flexible plywood, MDF panels, as well as aluminum or brass profiles.

The podium, of course, can be finished with exactly the same material as the rest of the floor in the room, but playing on contrast will make the interior more original

Another important functional feature of the podium is that small bulbs or LED strips can be built into it. Usually, such lighting is located at the end of the structure and helps, for example, create a romantic atmosphere in the bedroom or highlight the relaxation area in the living room. The possibility of lighting should be foreseen, of course, even at the stage of podium construction, in order to reliably hide the wiring and select lighting fixtures in accordance with the chosen interior style.

Catwalk lighting will help turn the bedroom into a cozy nest for a couple in love

The construction of the podium, of course, is associated with additional costs for building materials and, if you do not plan to carry out repairs yourself, to pay for the services of specialists. Most likely, your apartment is cozy and beautiful without such a design, but, you must admit, the originality of the podium cannot be taken away – it always looks stylish and unusual. And if we take into account the numerous functions that such a “stage” can perform, then all the costs will not seem so serious.