The construction of panel five - story buildings in our country began around the middle of the last century. The first such house in the Soviet Union was erected in 1948 on 5th Sokolina Gora Street in Moscow. It was a frame-panel structure with a height of four floors.
The main task of that time, which the country's leadership was obliged to solve, was to create the cheapest building project. Residential homes were needed in which people could live in families, as opposed to communal settlement.
"Khrushchev" today
After many decades, apartments in prefabricated houses are still associated with low cost and affordability. This is a real national housing. Real estate market analysts name the main reasons that such apartments continue to be sold: the rapid pace of construction, low price and somewhat better quality of the latest generation of panels compared to previously released ones.
Nevertheless, today in the market of new buildings, panel houses occupy no more than 5%. The fact is that for the most part, modern options available on the market and those that are just planned, exist in monolithic technology. Quite large economy-class projects have now been developed, which are entire residential complexes.
If we consider only the secondary market, then, for example, in Moscow about 45% of it is represented by "panels" built in different years. The oldest of the prefabricated houses account for only a few percent of the total volume of offers. And the demand for them is also low. The purchase of such housing is basically the lot of those who do not have the means to purchase something of higher quality.
Why are they cheaper
What explains the affordability of prefabricated buildings? The thing is that the main production load during the construction is transferred from the construction site to the workshop of the precast concrete plant, which immediately reduces costs. In addition to the economic factor, there is a climatic one, because it is much simpler to produce reinforced concrete elements in shops without regard to weather conditions, and quality control in the factory is much easier.
We all love to save, but you shouldn’t forget that the avaricious pays twice. This rule also applies to panel housing construction. There are many cases when, after moving into a new model house, problems begin in just a couple of years.
Imperfections can vary from small to quite serious. In some apartments, facing tiles are showered, in others interpanel seams come out. What is the reason for this manifestly premature aging? After all, a building, by definition, should be designed for a much longer service life.
What affects the life of prefabricated houses?
The fact is that there is a concept of shrinkage, and in panel houses this process, unfortunately, occurs rather unevenly. Another pain point of such a house is its seams. According to the standards of European construction, embedded elements of joints are made of stainless steel, as they are recognized as one of the most important elements in ensuring the strength and reliability of structures. But this decision is too expensive for the developer, and panel houses at the same time lose their trump card - low cost.
For this reason, in our country, this technology has not found its application. In Russia, the joints are covered with anti-corrosion paint, which, of course, does not give any guarantees in terms of reliability.
Other disadvantages
In addition, everyone knows that the thermal characteristics of panel houses leave much to be desired. This is especially evident in comparison with monolithic and brick buildings. The heat from the "panels" simply goes away. In the conditions of serious Russian winters, heating an apartment in such a house becomes a serious problem.
Another classic misfortune of every such building is its roof. There are usually no lofts in panel five-story buildings, and roofs are very often prone to leakage. Even if you make them gable, this will not solve the problem, since interpanel seams quickly lose their tightness. Some developers resort to modern sealants, but the share of such protection is too low, this again is associated with additional costs.
About obsolescence
The fact that the service life of the panel houses of the early period (popularly referred to as "Khrushchev") has actually passed, and they have long been outdated morally, it's no secret to anyone. With their tiny kitchens, combined bathrooms, low ceilings and the absence of a garbage chute, they have long been sore. Modern buyers with a decent amount of money will prefer to pay a little more expensive than at the cost of saving to purchase such low-quality housing.
It has long been officially recognized that urban areas built up by the "Khrushchevs" are used extremely inefficiently. These buildings do not adorn urban landscapes and carry high heat loss figures to public utilities. For a long time no one doubts the feasibility of their demolition and construction of new modern buildings in the vacant place.
What is the service life of prefabricated houses 80 years?
Service life is the criterion that allows you to assess the liquidity of a house with maximum objectivity. Let's try to evaluate our "panels" from this point of view. If we consider the first thin-walled "Khrushchev", then the service life of panel houses of 80 years - about 50 years. It is clear that in the physical and moral terms, such housing has long been exhausted.
Another category of houses is panel and block high-rise buildings. This is a slightly more advanced option. Each such house has 9-16 floors. Their construction began in the interval from 1965 to 1980. The service life of a 9-storey panel house is designed for 100 years.
What else could he be
Experts say that the service life of modern panel houses of different series is about the same. This is due to the fact that during the construction they use the same standards and building rules.
Relatively new prefabricated houses have a stated operating time somewhat longer. The service life of a panel apartment building is generally designed for a period of 50 to 70 years. For individual series (for example, P 44), this period is prescribed up to one hundred years. There is a series C 220, the construction of houses of which are assembled from panels, but the material of their external walls is brickwork. The appearance of such buildings is similar to monolithic-brick. The standard service life of panel houses of this series is indicated within 150 years. It should be noted that this option is not very common in the housing market.
How can I extend it
According to the project, during the operation of newly built prefabricated panel houses, the planned period between mandatory overhauls is laid, and it is from 20 to 25 years. In reality, real buildings do without major repairs 10-15 years more than planned. How long can a panel house last? The unspoken opinion of most experts says that the concept of a norm is very arbitrary, and repairs and respect for it can prolong it. Of course, we are talking about repairing the entire building, not a single apartment. In the latter case, such an event will not have any serious effect on the general house condition.
Thus, according to experts, during the operation of prefabricated houses, the main thing is to carry out major repairs on time and carefully monitor the maintenance of all communications in good condition. There are standards for the number of people allowed to live on a specific footage. Under the conditions of Russian reality, these standards were violated for decades, which, accordingly, accelerated the deterioration of most buildings.
Signs of an emergency building
Even the appearance of a panel house may indicate the need for repair. Numerous cracks and repeatedly patched seams between the panels will eloquently tell you about this. If you go inside the house, damp walls with mold and an unpleasant smell, as well as dilapidated communications eloquently complete the picture.
An additional difficulty for repairmen is that, according to the design features, such repairs are not always possible. For example, some projects include the installation of batteries and pipes directly inside the walls. The communication data wears out faster than the life of prefabricated houses ends.
The cost of apartments after major repairs on the real estate market can be increased by about 15%, but this applies mainly to those buildings that have undergone comprehensive repairs. This concept implies measures to warm the facade with a socle, roof, repair stairwells and attic (if any), glazing all balconies, replace pipes and equipment of elevators and gas facilities, as well as thorough cleaning of ventilation ducts.
Maximum digits
Such a full-fledged repair is able to significantly improve the quality of the house and significantly extend its operation time. In addition, as a result of transformations, the appearance of a building can be significantly improved, which immediately raises its value in the secondary real estate market.
What is the maximum service life of prefabricated houses? According to the standards, reinforced concrete structures can be operated for up to 125 years, but under strict observance of certain conditions, namely: at least once every 25 years, major repairs should be carried out, the current one every seven years. In practice, to get the authorities to conduct these events is an almost unrealistic task. Nobody is engaged in the prevention and determination of the technical condition of each building. Repair can be achieved only after numerous complaints for serious reasons.
About the reconstruction of old houses
In the capital, a program for the resettlement of residents from shabby and five-story houses has long been developed . First of all, it is supposed to resettle the oldest panel five-story buildings, the service life of which has long been exhausted. Both in Moscow and in the regions from time to time there have been attempts to reconstruct individual Khrushchevs. Unfortunately, this practice can be said to have failed.
Attempts were made in the fact that houses of a certain series were subjected to a superstructure and the construction of additional sections. As a result, it was concluded that the project was not economically feasible. After all, the maximum number of built-in floors is one or two, no more. The process of erecting additional roof space provoked active protests from residents. Similar apartments also did not use demand among buyers. As a result, it was decided that the demolition of old housing with the subsequent construction of a new one in this area is much more profitable.
Neither the installation of elevators, nor the complete replacement of communications, nor the rehabilitation of the entire building will extend the service life of prefabricated houses of 70 years and add demand to the Khrushchevs in the housing market. After all, the quality of the panels, as well as the initial layout of the apartments, cannot be changed. Conclusion - comfortable housing "Khrushchev" will never become.
What does it look like
How offhand can you determine the pre-emergency condition of a panel house? In such cases, external wall cracks and broken temperature joints are always striking . The specialist's eye will also instantly calculate the foundation cracks, which are much more dangerous. Corrosion of the reinforcement leads to the destruction of plates, which threatens the collapse of the entire building. Old communications provoke uneven ground sedimentation, which further exacerbates the problem and shortens the life of prefabricated houses. Pipes and electrical networks in such houses are significantly overloaded and very worn out. And the question is already being raised not only about the comfort and prestige of living. At stake is a much more important concept - human security.