Black frame renovation in Batumi: from bare shell to move-in

What the developer hands over in black frame

The law does not define what black frame includes. The list of work is set out in an annex to your contract with the developer, and that is what we base the estimate on. Usually it is a bare concrete shell: columns, floor slabs, external block walls and the walls between apartments.

Beyond that, developers differ. Sometimes the windows and balcony door are fitted, sometimes there are only openings, and the front door may be a temporary one. The cable and water may end at the meter board on the landing or at the apartment door, and there may be no branches off the drain riser at all. So even before we visit the site, we ask for the apartment floor plan and that annex.

What we measure in a concrete shell

In black frame there is nothing to tear out, but there is a lot to measure. The foreman checks:

• the level difference across the floor slab in the whole apartment: it decides how thick the screed will be and how long it takes to dry;
• the height from the floor slab to the ceiling slab: whether there is room for the screed, a stretch ceiling and the air conditioner pipe run beneath it;
• whether the columns and external walls are plumb, which tells us how thick the plaster has to be;
• the risers in the service shaft and the height of the drain connection: it decides how far from the riser the bathroom and kitchen sink can go while the pipes keep their slope;
• water marks on the slabs and around the window openings, and cracks in the masonry of the external walls.

Defects for the developer to deal with, such as a crack in an external wall or a leak by a window, we record as a list with photos before the handover certificate is signed.

The order of work from black frame

The sequence here is strict: each layer covers the one before it, and swapping stages around to save time usually ends in redoing work.

1. Marking out the partitions to a plan that shows the furniture and kitchen.
2. Building the partitions and the lintels over the doors.
3. The consumer unit (fuse box), wall chases and cables to every point, water pipes and drains laid to a slope.
4. Plastering the walls to guide beads. We do this before the screed: mortar falling from the walls lands on the bare slab rather than on a new floor, and the perimeter (edge) insulation strip is then glued to a finished wall.
5. Screed laid to guide rails straight after the plaster: while it dries, the crew moves on to skim coating and ceilings.
6. Waterproofing of the wet areas, then tiling and the rest of the finishing.

We photograph the pipes and cables before they are closed up, and the photos and routing diagrams go into the handover file. How each layer of the rough work is accepted, we explain separately.

Partitions in a cast-in-place concrete building

People buy in black frame to get their own layout: a kitchen-living room, a walk-in wardrobe, a second bedroom in a 1+1 for renting out. Before the masonry starts you need a plan showing the furniture, sockets and water outlets, so that every point goes in the right place first time. If you don't have one yet, start with a space plan: a full design project isn't needed for this.

In a cast-in-place concrete building the partitions carry no load, but their weight bears on the slab, so we don't build solid brick walls on the floor slab. We choose the thickness to suit the wall's purpose. Between bedrooms, and wherever a bed will stand against the wall, we use a thicker block or build a wall with mineral wool, while a thin wall is enough for a walk-in wardrobe.

We leave the top of each partition and its joints with the columns flexible: the floor slabs of a new building deflect in the first few years, and a rigid joint would crack. How these joints are made is described on our page about renovation in a new build.

Screed and drying: where the time goes

In black frame, more time goes on drying the screed than on anything else. For a sand-cement screed of about 5 cm we allow roughly six weeks in the schedule before laminate can be laid, and longer in the damp months by the sea. Laminate laid on damp screed swells.

A semi-dry screed with fibre reinforcement contains less water and dries faster, and in the rainy season a dehumidifier and ventilation help. For us the date in the schedule is a guide: the go-ahead to lay the floor comes from the moisture meter.

Decide on underfloor heating before the screed is poured. Water underfloor heating pipes and heating cable are laid inside the screed, and adding them later is only possible together with a new screed.

How much black frame renovation costs in Batumi

Renovating from black frame to a finished apartment costs from 750 to 900 ₾ per m². The price includes labour, rough-work materials, delivery of materials and waste removal. Finishing materials are priced separately, according to your choice.

Black frame costs more than white frame because of the work that, in white frame, the developer has already done. Partition masonry costs from 76 ₾ per m² of wall, screed from 40 ₾ per m² of floor, and rough-work materials usually come to 120–155 ₾ per m² of apartment. Apartments with many partitions and wet areas, a thick screed and underfloor heating cost more, while a simple layout with one bathroom next to the riser costs less.

The final cost is set after the site measurement and once the estimate is agreed, and the price of each stage is written into the contract.

Timing and stage sign-off

A 1+1 (one-bedroom) apartment of about 45 m² usually takes us 3–4 months from black frame to move-in. If you are still choosing an apartment, our black frame vs white frame comparison shows how many weeks the masonry, plaster and drying add to the time before the first rental.

Each stage is closed with an acceptance certificate: partitions are accepted for plumb and openings, electrics point by point with labelled circuit breakers, screed for flatness and moisture. You can accept a stage on site or over video, and the next payment is made after the certificate is signed. There is more about stage sign-off and reports on the how we work page.