It seems to someone that glass blocks are a relic of the Soviet past, someone is afraid that they will not be strong enough and easily break in the process. Now we will debunk these myths and at the same time consider the most diverse properties and areas of use of glass blocks.
Since Soviet times, glass blocks have changed significantly and again came into fashion in the area of two thousandths. If in Soviet times these were rectangles with a couple of options for quite dull design, which, often without any thought about the project, design or something like this, were used in schools, stairs and pools, now they are now attract many designers with a variety of shapes, textures, colors. Modern glass blocks, unlike their predecessors, are not only rectangular, but also triangular and even with rounded edges, which allows them to decorate the surfaces of various shapes or create complex, intricate structures.
In texture, glass blocks can be shiny and almost transparent glossy – glass, as it is, or laconic and restrained matte – sometimes they look as if soft and, due to the effect of dispersion of the rays directed through them, glow as if they are from the inside. There are glass blocks with various patterns that refract the beam of light or guiding it somewhere to the side – they will become excellent sources of beautiful glare on a wide variety of surfaces.
The coloring of blocks can also be almost anyone – what dye was added during manufacture, this color was received. Moreover, color misses the light not much worse than transparent (80% versus 50-75%), so that of them you can easily make a simple pattern or pattern for stained glass or simply use glass blocks of different colors to implement various design solutions.
It is best to fasten glass blocks with a cement, since the construction stores are now sold in a great many colored cements or colorful pigments for adding to the usual one, so the seams between the blocks will not look gray and ugly, they can be made contrasting or chosen cement tone in tone.
Thanks to all these properties: of different refractive and light transmitters of different blocks, the variety of their colors, the designer can create very interesting effects with the help of light, natural, sunny or artificial, for this both ordinary lamps and a specially installed LED backlight, which, in In turn, can be both in the form of a bright spotlight and small sparkling bulbs.
Glass blocks do not have to be the only component, for example, partitions, they can become a decorative element inserted into a wood grate or replace part of brick or concrete blocks – there are a great many ways to use them in the design of the room.
And here we approach the second question – what are the technical properties of glass blocks, in any rooms they can be used, because this must be first taken into account when creating a design project.
To begin with, a high -quality, not defective glass block, despite the apparent fragility, the material is quite durable. Of course, you should not build the load -bearing walls of them, but you can replace the concrete or brick partition between the rooms with a glass with ease. Glass blocks not only withstand a large load, but it is not so simple to break them: for this, probably, a sledgehammer, so they can be used even when designing a nursery – it is extremely doubtful that the disinfectants will be able to damage them. In any case, such design elements are much safer than mirrors, a glass in cabinets or doors – all the listed are smashed much more than it is easier than a glass block. If the nuisance happened, then replacing the damaged block easier – just carefully remove the fragments to smear the freed surface with special glue or cement and insert a new block for replacement.
Glass blocks – hollow inside, due to this they do not weigh too much, and also create excellent heat – and sound insulation, because it is known that both sound and temperature changes spread in gases much worse than in solid bodies, so the air that is located inside the glass block, serves as a kind of buffer.
Glass is not afraid of water and is not subject to corrosion, so glass blocks can be used in almost any conditions: they can even end up on the street or in an unheated room and nothing is terrible to happen to them. And even more so, they can be used in bathrooms or in the kitchen – you just need to miss the cement seams with a special putty, as in the case of tiles, but otherwise there are no problems.
Of course, behind the glass blocks, like any glossy surface, you need care – so that they look beautifully, they will have to be wiped often, not allowing gathering up or covered with lime plaque in the bathroom.
Standard rectangular glass blocks weigh from 2.5 to 4.3 kilograms, and there are 19x19x8 or 24x24x8 cm in size, that is, they are quite large, noticeably larger, for example, standard brick.