City parks remain a favorite place for recreation and walks for residents of megacities. An integral attribute of such recreation areas is a park bench. As a decorative element, benches have been known since the Middle Ages. True, they looked like ledges of turf along the wall or fence of the gardens. Modern models are diverse, functional and very familiar in landscape design.
Bench
Actually, a bench is a piece of furniture designed for sitting or lying down. In any Russian hut, they were sure to be, usually attached to the wall. Stand-alone benches were structurally very simple: well-crafted boards were laid between two supports. The length and width were selected in accordance with the size of the room. In the East, benches were not known; they were replaced by carpets spread directly on the ground. Europeans used chests as seating.
The park bench is a small architectural form and plays an importantrole in landscape design. It serves not only as a cozy place to relax, but also sets the tone for the entire park complex. Incorrectly selected benches can bring disharmony to the overall ensemble of the garden. To maintain the style in the same key, other necessary small architectural forms, urns, lanterns, etc. are performed.
GOST requirements
GOST 19917-93 was adopted in October 1993 as an interstate (it was signed by eight countries, former Soviet republics) standard for seating and lying furniture. GOST of a park or garden bench is primarily aimed at the safety of the product for humans. The document takes into account all the nuances of products for public areas:
- size;
- strength, including impact;
- durability;
- sustainability;
- methods of fastening supports;
- back angle;
- applied dyes;
- The amount of harmful volatile chemicals emitted during the operation of the product is strictly limited.
The quality of the materials used for the manufacture of benches is regulated by the relevant GOSTs.
Material
The frame of the most familiar benches is made of a profiled metal pipe, aluminum or steel. The seat and backrest are made of coniferous trees, using a bar of standard sizes 80mmX50mm, 60mmX30mm and 100mmX50mm. Such products are classified as budget, they are inexpensive and functional. Wood must be treated with special impregnations that protect against mechanical wear, impactenvironment, insects and fire.
Bench park concrete, as a rule, monolithic will serve more than a dozen years. They do not rot, are not subject to corrosion. The advantage can be attributed to the large weight of the product, it is rather problematic to carry it away. Modern processing facilities allow making concrete benches of original shapes and colors.
Cast-iron benches in a park area, on boulevards or alleys of squares can become a real decoration of the landscape. The fanciful shapes of the legs, backrests and armrests allow you to create or maintain any style, from classic to modern. They use both artistic forging and casting. A properly dyed product will last for years without requiring special care.
Wooden benches are very popular. They are environmentally friendly, have a fairly presentable appearance, create an atmosphere of comfort, fit perfectly into any landscape. Their light weight makes them mobile. The disadvantages include the weak resistance of the tree to the effects of an unfavorable environment and mechanical stress (vandalism), the need for constant care of the product (tinting, minor repairs).
The combination of materials, as well as the shape of the benches themselves, is different:
- Aluminum support. The seat is made of textile, plastic, wood. Such benches are also suitable for a suburban area or a small garden.
- Concrete support. A good option for public places, the seat can be “insulated” with wood. Modern pigments allow you to experiment with colors by adding to the benchesattractiveness and liveliness.
- Cast iron support. Forged artsy forms will decorate any park.
- Support made of wood. Affordable, cheap, but short-lived material. Special treatment significantly increases the service life of such supports, but does not completely exclude fungus damage, rotting or swelling of wood. The most commonly used wood is pine and larch, as the most resistant to environmental influences.
Modern technologies make it possible to use not only natural materials. Designers give free rein to their imagination, decorating parks and squares with benches of unusual shapes and bright colors made of polymers.
Views
There are several types of park benches, the size and shape of which depend on their location:
- front doors - decorate the central or front entrances, the feature is an elegant and unusual shape;
- seasonal - foldable mobile structures, lightweight and very durable;
- water - located near open water bodies, waterfalls and other similar objects, have increased resistance to moisture.
Regardless of location, benches always maintain the overall style of the park, emphasizing its individuality.
Destination
In addition to the location, park benches are also classified according to their purpose:
- Mobile. Made from lightweight materials. The design makes it easy to move products to any point in the park. Themused for organizing various outdoor activities. They are perfect for equipping temporary recreation areas.
- Stationary. The most common option is a fixed, as a rule, permanently fixed element of the landscape. Does not include transportation within the park area. Made from stone, metal, wood or artificial materials.
Installation Options
Installation of benches depends on the type of supports and the surface on which the product will be installed. For example, a cast iron bench support in a park area can be anchored to the surface using anchor nails. Especially often this technique is used when the park area itself is already fully framed, and it is impossible to carry out any excavations for concreting. In this case, holes for fasteners are provided in the supports. It happens that the rounded or artistically executed shape of the supports does not allow the use of fasteners, then the bench is installed on a flat area.
In private areas, the wooden supports of the bench are simply buried in the ground. Massive concrete benches are installed using foundation embedded parts. For reliable fixation of the benches, the supports are extended (by welding or bolts) and concreted in pits up to 50 cm deep. Such fixation excludes the possibility of moving the product
Choice
Today, manufacturers offer a huge selection of park benches. When choosing a product, you should pay attention to the following points:
- destination;
- size;
- style;
- model (presence or absence of a back and armrests);
- exploitation intensity;
- material.
Many companies offer custom orders. For example, plastic benches perfectly tolerate weather conditions and are easy to clean. They can be stylized as wood or metal, and there are practically no restrictions on the choice of shape and color. A good quality bench can be chosen for any purpose in accordance with your financial capabilities.
