Abstract
The purpose of this study is to make clear the indoor environmental efficiency and spatial function of the front balcony in apartments using responses from residents'. An interview survey carried out during the 14/sup th/∼24/sup th/ of January 2003, and a questionnaire survey was given during the 17/sup th/∼29/sup th/of January. Interviewees consisted of 31 residents living in renovated apartments, which had the front balcony added onto the living room. The respondents of the questionnaire survey consisted of 37 residents living in ordinary apartments with an existing front balcony. The residents living in ordinary apartments show relatively positive responses on the indoor thermal environment during winter, glare by daylight, and outdoor noise. The average heating charges of the renovated apartments came out to be more expensive than the ordinary apartments. In most renovated apartments, the living area converted from front balcony was used as the same functions ('space for drying the laundry', 'storage space', or 'space for cultivating of flower pots') of ordinary front balcony. From the results of this study, it is undesirable to renovate the front balcony as an addition to the livingroom.
