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Built-in balcony: New skylight windows can fold out to create a patio

Built-in balcony: New skylight windows can fold out to create a patio

The skylights also incorporate energy efficiency measures.


By BD+C Staff | June 10, 2014

If you've ever wished for a balcony that would allow you to enjoy a beautiful day from your own home, it might be possible for you to add one.

Fakro has developed skylight windows that turn into a balcony, according to Inhabitat. Made for pitched roofs, the panes open outward to create a small open-air platform. For safety, a slide rail is built-in and moves forward when the bottom window is pushed out.

After the initial phase of transformation, then the top window opens upward at a 45-degree angle. One window allows enough balcony area for one person, but multiple windows can be installed together for more space. 

All balcony windows are glazed to block solar gain and allow better interior insulation. When closed, the guard-rails fold up so that the windows look like standard skylights. In addition, the windows' automatic air inlets encourage air circulation, meaning residents will require less climate control.

 

When pushed out, a built-in guard rail protects anyone standing in the balcony space.
 
 
When closed, the windows look like ordinary skylights.

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