Bath insulation: polystyrene foam, sawdust or clay? Steam does not break bones, or complex insulation of the bath. Insulation of the walls outside with foam plastic bath.

20.06.2020

Styrofoam began to be produced not so long ago, in the 50s of the XX century. It consists of air bubbles enclosed in the thinnest shell of polystyrene. Since most of the material is air (up to 98% depending on the brand), the foam has excellent thermal insulation characteristics and is therefore often used as a heater.

Its popularity is due not only to heat-insulating properties. There is a whole list of positive qualities:

Durability - up to 50 years normal conditions and up to 20 years in severe (with large temperature differences);
Hydrophobicity. Styrofoam absorbs up to 0.2% moisture per day, i.e. You can tell it doesn't absorb it at all.
Biological neutrality and stability. The temperature regime at which the material remains stable (does not collapse and does not emit any substances) is from -60 ° C to + 95 ° C. The safety of polystyrene is confirmed by the fact that products made from it are used in food packaging, used in children's toys. These are two industries in which the safety of the materials used has recently received a lot of attention. And no one ever talked about the dangers of Styrofoam.
Low price. However, very cheap offers should be treated with caution: products must have certificates. Materials made with violations technological process, can be dangerous.
Styrofoam is easy to work with. It is lightweight, cuts well, is easy to install, and does not require any additional protective equipment or devices.
There is no environment for reproduction of fungi, disputes and bacteria, it is not damaged by insects.

It seems that everything is quite reasonable and understandable, but there are also negative properties: polystyrene is combustible and, when burned, releases substances dangerous to humans. This is true. But all burning materials release life-threatening substances. And in order to make polystyrene less dangerous from the point of view of fire safety, non-combustible additives have been added to it in recent decades. As a result, modern foam does not burn, but melts and is self-extinguishing, i.e. does not support combustion. Harmful substances they are released from the foam not during heating, but during melting, i.e. when the temperature is above 95°C. It should also be noted that the self-ignition temperature of polystyrene foam is more than + 490 ° C (for wood + 280 ° C). If you do not allow a fire, there will be no harmful emissions. At least that's what the manufacturers say. To believe them or not is a question, but no one has yet proven otherwise. And yet, polystyrene is harmful or not, whether to use it or not, everyone decides for himself.

Both the advantages and disadvantages of polystyrene include its complete impermeability to air and steam. This means that for rooms and houses with foam insulation, a good system ventilation.

There is one more negative quality of this material: its weak resistance to mechanical stress. Since air bubbles are enclosed in the thinnest polymer shell, it is easily damaged, dents, scratches, etc. appear on blocks or plates at the points of impact. Therefore, if the foam is used to insulate the foundation or facade, additional reinforcement and / or protective coating is necessary.

Is it possible to insulate a bath with foam plastic?

From all of the above, we can conclude: it is possible to use polystyrene foam as a heater, but it is highly undesirable to use it in the steam room of a Russian bath and, moreover, in a steam room of a Finnish sauna: temperature conditions there such that the thermal insulation may well warm up to 95 ° C and above, after which the foam will begin to lose its chemical stability.

In general, foam is recommended to be used for thermal insulation of walls outside, or walls inside the room, but which do not go outside. This is due to the high thermal insulation ability of the foam. If you lay it on the wall from the inside, then outer wall will be isolated from heat almost completely, which will lead to a shift in the dew point inside the wall. That is, condensation will form inside the wall. In frost, it will freeze / thaw, which will lead to the rapid destruction of the material. Therefore, if the bath is insulated with foam, then only from the outside, or its internal partitions, but not from the side of the steam room.

Insulation of the walls of the bath with foam. It is better to insulate from the outside so that the dew point is in the insulation

The very insulation of the walls from the outside with foam plastic has very good reviews: it is cooler in the summer, warmer in the winter, the cost of maintaining a comfortable microclimate becomes less. Another plus: the room becomes noticeably quieter. But for normal well-being, a well-functioning ventilation system is important: excess moisture is not removed through the walls, and since many windows are plastic, then through the windows too. Remains the only possible variant: efficient ventilation.

If we talk about a bath, then there is no need to insulate a wooden bath with foam plastic: wood itself has excellent heat-insulating properties. But it is very possible to insulate a bathhouse made of bricks or building blocks with foam plastic.

Since the foam has excellent thermal insulation abilities and is not afraid of moisture, it is successfully used for thermal insulation of foundations. True, to protect it from mechanical stress, a protective partition is needed. It is made either from boards, a cheaper, but also much less durable option, or from bricks (a half-brick wall).

For loams and clay soils insulation of the foundation with foam plastic - practically perfect option. Due to the fact that the foam almost does not absorb water, it protects the foundation from winter and spring heaving: it simply prevents water from seeping through and soaking into the foundation material. It is not recommended to use foam only if flooding occurs frequently at high levels. ground water: water can seep under the insulation layer, because perfect tightness is almost impossible to achieve.

With a simple foundation geometry, foam boards are most often chosen. For middle lane In Russia, their thickness must be at least 5cm. But for better thermal insulation in the corners of the foundation it is better to lay slabs 10 cm thick - in these places the heat loss is the most significant.

Preparatory work on the insulation of the foundation with foam

Around the foundation, the soil is removed to the freezing depth (better - a little lower), the walls are cleaned and primed. You can buy a primer on the market, or make it yourself: you need molten bitumen, to which you need to add the same amount of diesel fuel or gasoline. Apply the resulting mixture to the foundation, wait for it to dry (about 1 hour). A layer of waterproofing must be applied to the foundation covered with a primer. It can be liquid rubber (applied with a brush) or rolled bituminous materials (surfacing using a torch). Then proceed to the installation of foam.

Installation of foam boards on the foundation

It is better to lay the bottom row of plates on a rigid base. If you are just planning a foundation, you can make a special ledge on which the foam plates will rest. If the foundation is already in place, but there is no ledge, gravel bedding, on which the foundation itself stands, can serve as an emphasis.

It is necessary to fix the foam plates either on bitumen-polymer mastic or polyurethane glue. But the glue should not contain acetone, gasoline and toluene, as they destroy polystyrene. The adhesive composition is applied pointwise or on the entire surface of the plate, but the joints must be glued. Some manufacturers make plates with an L-shaped lock (it also needs to be lubricated with adhesive), which makes the connection of the plates more tight and reliable. With such a connection, cold bridges are practically not formed and the tightness of the entire insulation becomes almost perfect.

Sometimes it is advised to lay the boards in two layers, shifting the seams relative to each other - in this way, losses through the joints of polystyrene boards are also reduced. But this method has opponents: they say that water will seep between the two layers of foam. Then the thermal insulation properties will deteriorate significantly. Such a probability, of course, exists, especially with vertical displacements of the soil (shrinkage), but it is difficult to judge how large it is.

After the foam is laid around the entire perimeter to the desired thickness, you need to apply another layer of waterproofing material on top (all the same bituminous roll materials or liquid rubber). Above it is already possible to arrange a protective wall of brick. Sometimes boards are used. A good option is geotextiles. It also copes very well with loads from soils (it is laid under asphalt when constructing autobahns). Other options are possible. The main thing is to protect the foam from the load of soils.

The last stage of thermal and waterproofing of the foundation (this is exactly what happens as a result if you use foam plastic) is a blind area device. In general, thermal insulation of the foundation with foam plastic is quite troublesome, but as a result, your foundation is protected from moisture, and you don’t have to worry about heaving soils, and spend much less on heating.

It is possible to insulate the floor in the bag with foam plastic, especially under the screed: the floor will be warm, and the foam is not afraid of moisture.

Foam floor insulation

To do this, the soil is leveled if it is loose, compacted and left for 30 days. Then 10 cm of medium-sized gravel are poured and compacted, on top - 10 cm of sand, which is also compacted. A polyethylene film is laid on the sand, and foam sheets are already on it. The sheets are fastened with locks, and coated with the same bitumen-polymer mastic or solvent-free polyurethane adhesive. A polyethylene film is again laid on top of the foam plastic, on which a reinforcing mesh is laid. The base for the concrete screed is ready. The floor will be quite reliable and will withstand any load if the thickness of the screed is at least 6 cm. In terms of the level of heat and moisture insulation, there are few equals to it.

Floor insulation with foam plastic between the lag

If you insulate the floors between the lags, then it is advisable to cut the foam plastic exactly to size, and blow out the inevitable cracks with mounting foam: heat goes into the cracks significantly. In this case, it is possible to use any type of foam, including granular, because the boards will be laid on top, and the entire load will fall on them. To improve the waterproofing properties, a plastic film is also laid under the foam and on top of it. In a steam room, this option of floor insulation can hardly be used, but in a locker room or dressing room - completely.

Insulation of the roof of the bath with foam

It is possible to use polystyrene as a heater over the steam room only with the second layer: if a layer of clay is applied to the ceiling, expanded clay is poured or mineral wool is laid, the foam can become the next layer of the cake. But in this situation, it is necessary to make the vapor protection of the ceiling of very high quality, otherwise the steam will “get stuck” in the lower layer of thermal insulation. The ventilation in the room should also work at “five” - to remove this very steam. So, if there are other options for warming the roof of the bath - use them.

In order to clearly demonstrate how effective foam plastic is compared to other materials, we found the following data: 6 cm thick foam plastic replaces:

mineral wool 11cm thick;
tree - 19.5 cm;
dry foam concrete - 50 cm;
brick wall 85cm;
concrete 213.2 cm.

Impressive. It is so? But to insulate a bath, foam plastic should be used either for external insulation of walls and facades or for insulation of rooms without high temperatures. Please note that under the ceiling in washing department the temperature often reaches + 90 ° C, which is already almost critical for polystyrene.

How to make a frame bath insulation - nuances from the master

Frame buildings require thermal protection, especially when it comes to a bath with a steam room, since in this room long time temperature must be high. Careful thermal insulation, made by hand, will minimize heat loss.

Materials for thermal protection of frame baths

Choosing a heater for frame bath, it is necessary to take into account not only the heat-insulating characteristics of a particular material, but also its ability to withstand a significant temperature at a constant elevated level humidity.

In addition, the heater for the bath building, when the room is heated, should not emit toxic compounds that adversely affect the health of people taking the procedures.

In order to improve the thermal insulation parameters, the warming of a frame bath, such as in the photo, can be done using the following materials:

Mineral wool. Its plates consist of thin fibers, which are obtained by melting rocks or waste from metallurgical enterprises. In the process of weaving a large number of these fibers, air is retained between them, due to which the products have excellent thermal insulation qualities. As a result of the characteristics of the production of mineral wool, the material can withstand very intense heating, despite the fact that its performance characteristics do not change. Such plates in conditions of high humidity retain heat-saving properties and do not collapse.
Reed slabs. They are natural and environmentally friendly heat insulators. Their thickness is 15 centimeters and this parameter is very convenient when building frame structures.
Insulation from sawdust-gypsum mixture. To make it, you need to mix 10 parts of dried fine sawdust with 1 part of cement (gypsum). Insulating a frame bath from the inside using this mixture has a significant advantage - affordable cost and excellent thermal insulation (read: "How and how to insulate a bath inside - tips from the master").
Foamed synthetic products- polyurethane foam, polystyrene, etc. They have a number of advantages, including low price, immunity to moisture, ease of installation, low weight, low thermal conductivity. But these synthetic heaters cannot be mounted on the elements of a bath building, where exposure to high temperatures is possible, therefore, they are used to insulate walls that are far from the stove. They are placed in the dressing room, rest rooms or washing department.

Arrangement of vapor barrier

Before you start work, you need to know how to properly insulate frame bath in order to do it well. Regardless of which of the materials was chosen as a heater, when laying it in the frame cells, it is necessary to ensure reliable vapor barrier (in more detail: "Vapor barrier of the bath - the choice of material and its installation").

If you do not cut off the insulation from the atmosphere of the bath with its high humidity, it will absorb water in the process of cooling the steam, which will certainly lead to the most undesirable consequences:

a wet heat insulator will significantly increase its own thermal conductivity and heat will quickly move from the room to the environment;
the porous structure will not allow the material to dry quickly, which means that mold may appear and the frame of the building will begin to rot.

Thus, when a frame bath is made, the walls are insulated using high-quality vapor barrier.

aluminum foil - will not only protect the insulation from moisture, but will also reflect thermal energy;
polyethylene film;
glassine is environmentally friendly and inexpensive.

It is undesirable to use roofing material, since in the process of heating it begins to smell unpleasant. When installing a vapor barrier, even the smallest gaps should not be allowed to remain between the pieces of material. The tightness of the joints is ensured with the help of metallized adhesive tape, or by overlapping adjacent canvases.

Insulation of the walls of a frame building

To equip the thermal protection of the frame bath building begins simultaneously with the construction of its walls. The fact is that the use of this technology suggests that the heat insulator is also a structural material. When a do-it-yourself bath is built from a heater, its layers are laid out between the supporting elements of the frame. A vapor barrier is mounted on top of it.

At the end of the insulation work, a kind of pie is obtained, in the center of which there is a heat-insulating material, sheathed on the inside with vapor barrier, and on the outside with waterproofing.

The outer layer of the cake will be represented by decorative trim inside the bath rooms, and outside - by facade cladding. Both of these layers will not only become additional thermal protection, but will also serve as a structural element that will increase the strength of the entire building.

Among professionals, the best option is considered to be a bookmark in the bath frame of two layers thermal insulation material. In this case, it is desirable to make the first of them from tile insulation, and the second from rolled insulation. As a result, such a thickness of the walls of the frame bath is able to reliably protect the premises from heat loss.

In the process of laying the insulation, special attention should be paid to the fact that most materials have different sides - external and internal. To distinguish them, pay attention to the recommendations of product manufacturers.

Thermal insulation of the wall next to the stove

For the wall frame and insulation, located close to sauna stove, it is necessary to create additional protection to prevent exposure to high temperatures. The best choice in solving this problem, some experts consider the use of asbestos sheets and plates.

But since there is an opinion about the dangers of asbestos for human health, it is advisable to choose more modern options, including needle-punched mats, isolon, basalt fabrics and others. All of these materials can withstand temperatures of several hundred degrees and therefore are able to provide absolute fire safety.

Refractory protection is mounted in one of two ways:

top decorative trim;
directly on the vapor barrier.

It is pointless to equip a vapor barrier using a polyethylene film, since it will melt near the sauna stove. The best solution aluminum foil will be used, which, in order to ensure tightness, is glued with heat-resistant foil tape.

Thermal protection of the ceiling and floor

In a frame bath building, heat loss occurs not only due to the walls, since a considerable amount of thermal energy leaves the room through the ceiling and flooring. Accordingly, the procedure for insulating a frame bath provides for their thermal insulation.

Insulation is laid at the stage of floor installation, following a certain procedure:

pre-prepared and compacted soil is poured with a concrete screed;
create a waterproofing layer from a dense polyethylene film or roofing felt;
laying plates of heat-insulating material;
equip external waterproofing;
pour another layer of concrete base.

After the final hardening, in order to increase the service life of the rough concrete surface, it must be treated with a special waterproofing compound. Thanks to the use of this product, moisture will not be able to penetrate even the smallest cracks in concrete and destroy it and thermal insulation. See also: "How to build a frame bath with your own hands - building instructions."

When insulating the ceiling, they use the method that is used when laying a heat insulator in the walls of a frame bath building:

vapor barrier is fixed on the ceiling;
lay heat-insulating material;
attach the second layer of vapor barrier;
do the finishing touches.

There is one difference compared to the order of wall insulation, when there is no gap between the vapor barrier and the sheathing - there must be free space when thermally insulating the ceiling. Due to the gap decorative trim the ceiling will dry faster, because during the operation of the bath it is constantly exposed to hot vapors.

Thermal insulation of the bath with foam

If a decision is made to make thermal insulation using this material, then it is necessary to equip the room with high-quality ventilation, since it does not allow steam and air to pass through. The fact is that when a foam bath is built with their own hands, they cannot insulate the steam room due to the negative impact of high temperatures on it (read also: "How to make the steam room warming correctly and what materials to use"). In addition, cheap material may contain toxic compounds.

Floor insulation in the bath - implementation options

Warming the floor in the bath with your own hands is very important.

To underestimate this part of the arrangement of the premises means to finish the work poorly, since then you will be haunted by two problems:

Heat escape through the floor surface with high thermal conductivity. Consequently, the cost of heating the steam room will increase significantly.
The burning contrast of the cold floor and the surrounding hot air. This is not only discomfort for your body, but also the subsequent loss of condensate, which can lead to mold and rotting of the boards.

Floors can be concrete or wood. Based on this, consider the most convenient ways to warm them.

Concrete floor

Warming of the concrete floor in the bath occurs after the construction of the entire building.

To achieve a qualitative effect, you can use the following materials:

Expanded clay

This material is made by short-term firing of fusible clay. Specifications expanded clay allow its use, both in concrete and in wood flooring. And the low price is an additional argument in its favor.

For the implementation of high-quality installation of this insulation, the instruction will help you:

We calculate the approximate load on the base in order to know the desired thickness of the future insulating layer.

Tip: never mix expanded clay with concrete. Cement does not have such low thermal conductivity and moisture resistance, so the end result will be broken.

We lay a layer of waterproofing. Fits great polyethylene film three millimeters thick, and at the joints we fasten it with mounting tape. We draw the edges so that they lie on the wall. After filling the insulation, all excess is cut off.

From above we install a reinforced grating and fill it with cement mortar.
After complete hardening, the insulated floor in the bath is ready for use.

Glass bottles

This is the cheapest floor insulation in the bath, as it does not require the cost of purchasing the insulation itself. You just need to collect the spent empty bottles. In addition, not only glass, but also plastic eggplants are suitable.

The focus is on what we will create in concrete pavement warm sealed air cushion.

Installation of such a design is also elementary:

We wash and dry the prepared containers thoroughly.
We lay them on prepared for concrete screed base.
We fill everything with liquid cement mortar so that it closes the walls of the bottles.
From above, after drying, we carry out a finishing screed from a stronger mixture.

Styrofoam

This material has a number of remarkable qualities, due to which it is used not only for floor insulation, but also for the walls and ceiling of the bath:

Low price. Not as low as when using essentially discarded bottles, but much lower than many other heaters.
High heat-saving properties, due to the presence of many air bubbles in its structure.
Noise isolation.
Fire safety. It is self-extinguishing and does not emit any toxins during combustion.
The service life is more than fifty years.
Absence of processes of decay, shrinkage and other age-related deformations.
Ease of installation, which is greatly facilitated by the light weight of the material.

It is equally well installed both under the screed and under the boards:

Lay a layer of waterproofing.
On top of it we lay foam plates in a checkerboard pattern. This will betray greater reliability of the structure.
We close the gaps with mounting foam or waste material.
We mount a metal grate and pour a cement screed.
The frozen floor can be put into operation.

wooden floors

Warming a wooden floor in a bath is even less demanding than in the case of concrete. In addition to the unusual bottle method, all insulation used in cement coating can also be used under boards.

This is due to the installation technology:

We install wooden logs on a rough prepared base.

We put insulating material between the lags. It can be expanded clay, polystyrene, mineral wool, penoizol, polyurethane, etc.
We lay waterproofing to protect against possible moisture ingress from above.
We mount the boards, fixing them with nails to the logs.

Separately, one should consider such a heater as mineral wool, which is not suitable for lining under a concrete layer, but demonstrates itself perfectly in a wooden structure:

The lowest thermal conductivity coefficient is about 0.04 W/mK.
Fire resistance. Not afraid of even open flames.
Inertness to household chemicals.
High sound insulation.
Ecological purity. This material is made from minerals of rocks, which makes its use absolutely harmless.
Durability. Does not rot, corrode, attack pests and mold.

Despite not the lowest price, such a heater will qualitatively solve the problem of a cold floor in your bath or sauna.

Underfloor heating system

Another option for insulating the floor covering in the bath is to install a floor heating system. In this case, you can choose a design based on electric heating elements or water pipes.

Such floors can not only make the floor warm, but also heat the entire room. Therefore, if they are used in a steam room, they can participate in creating the necessary environment. Their location in other rooms of the building will make it possible to move comfortably barefoot.

Their installation takes place in the same way as other heaters under the reinforced grating and screed in concrete floor and between the lags under the boards in wooden. An important addition is the need to install heat-insulating material under the system to prevent heat loss to the ground.

Conclusion

The warm floor in the bath is a guarantee of your health and quality rest. As well as saving your budget by reducing the cost of space heating.

Lots of ways. From incredibly cheap to very expensive. It all depends on your preferences and financial capabilities.

The video in this article will provide additional materials on the topic.

Heated floor - the key to a warm bath!

The warming of the bath, and even more so the frame one, needs to be done correctly. material for insulation frame structure it is necessary to choose an environmentally friendly and non-combustible, while with high heat-saving properties. How to insulate the frame bath correctly and choose the optimal material, you can find out by reading the article to the end.

Frame bath without additional insulation the walls will be cold and it will not be possible to use it.

Types of heaters for a bath

Insulation for a frame bath is best used in the form of mats.

If you choose an inappropriate insulation or lay it with an insufficient layer, then the functionality of the steam room will be lost. Materials for warming a frame bath are natural and artificial. Bath and synthetic insulation are incompatible, of course, the design will be cheap, but some can emit harmful fumes when heated. The natural ones include:

Wood fiber.
Basaltic.
From flax.

For artificial ones:

Fiberglass.
Styrofoam.

According to their shape for a frame bath, types are chosen: tiled or matte. Rolled is also suitable, but it will be more difficult to lay it in a frame cake. Any beginner can cut and lay insulation in the form of plates or mats, it is enough to understand the technology and read this article.

wood fiber insulation

Wood fiber insulation is made from lumber waste.

The basis of the material is wood fibers, which are bound by various synthetic fibers. It is non-allergenic and does not irritate the skin during styling. The material is made by recycling lumber. It is a misconception that such a heater is made from waste paper. Due to the ability to absorb moisture and also quickly give it away, the frame bath will breathe like a full-fledged wooden one. One of the brightest representatives of wood fiber insulation is ecowool, the price of which is from 120 rubles. /kg.

The main disadvantage is just the ability to absorb moisture. If the hood in the bath is performed incorrectly, then moisture can linger in the wall structure for a long time and they will begin to rot.

Basalt insulation

Basalt wool is made from mineral fibers by binding them with an adhesive composition. The main advantages include:

High heat-saving properties.
Does not burn, can withstand temperatures up to 900 ° C.
It does not lose its quality characteristics over the years, so the service life is more than 20 years.
Increases sound insulation.
Does not absorb moisture and does not retain it in the frame structure.

The main disadvantage of the material was discovered at the end of 2014. Previously, it was considered one of the most eco-friendly materials. It turned out that the adhesive composition used for gluing basalt fibers can emit slight formaldehyde vapors. Whether or not the reaction increases during heating of the steam room has not been studied.

Linen fiber insulation

Linen mats began to be used not so long ago. The material is made from compressed flax fibers. The composition does not contain any additives, for example, formalin. the material is completely environmentally friendly and is able to absorb - release moisture. And because of the dense pressing, the plates have a high ability to save heat.

The main disadvantage of the plates is the insufficient test of time and rodents. Mice love to build nests in linen and gnaw holes in walls. Over time, the bath will lose its thermal insulation properties.

fiberglass insulation

Glass wool emits small particles of fiberglass during operation. which are hazardous to human health.

Glass wool is made from glass fibers bonded together with a synthetic adhesive. It is difficult to work with the material with your own hands, since when it gets into the air, the fibers settle on the skin and enter the respiratory tract. They can cause skin irritation and allergic reactions.

Glass wool has no less advantages:

Does not burn.
Its price is low.
Easy to mount.
It has high thermal insulation.
Provides some sound insulation.

If the choice fell on glass wool, then all work on the insulation of the frame bath must be carried out in protective clothing and a respirator.

Styrofoam for insulation

Styrofoam can be used to insulate the walls of a frame bath.

Expanded polystyrene is made by foaming polystyrene. Moreover, the larger and smaller the air bubbles in the material, the higher its heat-insulating properties. One of the brightest representatives of polystyrene. It is possible to insulate the walls of a frame bath with polystyrene foam, but it is not recommended. Moreover, insulate the ceiling and the space near the chimneys. Expanded polystyrene has a high fire hazard. It ignites from any spark. If the structure is insulated with foam, then the cake must have protection. The material has a number of advantages:

Low price. (The cheapest option for insulation).
Waterproof.

Any of the listed materials is used to insulate the frame bath. The main thing is to perform the installation, observing all the rules.

Do-it-yourself insulation installation

There are two ways to insulate a frame bath:

Classic pie. When the insulation is laid between the outer boards and the interior trim.
Additional. Usually performed from the facade.

Classic insulation

The classic frame bath insulation pie is performed from the inside of the building.

Classical insulation consists of a pie: vapor barrier, insulation, vapor barrier, interior decoration.

Steam - waterproofing is performed from the inside of the bath after sawdust boards or panels are fixed on the outside. The vapor barrier is laid directly on them and frame beam. It is necessary to mount the material with an overlap of 10–15 cm. The joints are glued with adhesive tape. You can attach the material directly to the tree with a construction stapler.

The insulation is placed in the formed cells. Standard Thickness insulation 50 mm and 100 mm. If the bath is to be used all year round, then 100 mm is taken and placed in two layers. This layer will be enough to keep the steam room warm in winter temperatures down to -35 ° C. For the southern regions, one layer of 100 mm is sufficient.

A bathhouse used only in the summer seasons does not require thorough insulation, so it is enough to lay 1-2 layers of 50 mm.

When installing joints, there should be as few as possible, and in places where the insulation does not fit, it is necessary to perform protection with polyurethane foam. The second layer of slabs is laid on top of the first so that the joints of the top do not coincide with the bottom. You can fix the heater special screws-fungi. They have a wide hat that will securely fasten the material to the wall. If foam plastic is chosen as insulation, then it can be glued to the wall with ordinary tile adhesive.

The next layer again fits the vapor barrier. Many people skip this layer, but it is necessary when using a material that absorbs water, such as ecowool.

Foil membrane material is used as waterproofing. It is laid with foil to the steam room, the joints are sealed with foil tape. Waterproofing with such material will play not only a protective function against moisture, but will also help keep heat in the steam room, reflecting it.

External insulation of the frame structure

Styrofoam is attached to the facade of the bath with an adhesive composition.

External insulation is optional. For a frame bath, it is better to make a ventilated facade, so condensate will not accumulate under the facade cladding and the walls will last longer. Usually, the insulation of the facade of the bath is performed with foam.

Initially, a crate is made on the walls of metal profiles or timber 40x40 mm. Before installation, the timber is covered with an antiseptic or liquid glass, which penetrates deep into the tree and protects it from various harmful effects.

The step of the crate depends on the width of the insulation sheet. If the foam has a width of 60 cm, then the step must correspond to it. Styrofoam can be fixed to the walls with special screws or glue. The material is lightweight and can be glued alone.

If the insulation of the facade is additional, then it is not necessary to take too thick insulation. It is not necessary to install a vapor barrier on the foam, it will repel water, and air will not penetrate through the material. A counter-batten is attached to the crate and a finish is mounted, such as siding or timber imitation panels.

Before warming, the outer skin of the frame and the structure itself are covered with antiseptics. If this is not done, then any ingress of moisture will be critical for the bath.

The design of the insulation resembles a multilayer pie, from which it is not worth excluding the layers-stages. Do-it-yourself warming of a frame bath is not difficult, but time-consuming. Not everyone is able to do the finishing of the entire structure with their own hands, so you can turn to specialists. On average, warming a frame bath in Russia costs from 200 rubles / m². In terms of the size of the walls, the service is not cheap. It is cheaper to do everything yourself, but you can work gradually.

And a bath is a room in which the disappearance of even one percent is noticeable. desired temperature, so the insulation of the ceiling here becomes a priority.

Styrofoam as an option for insulation

With any type of room insulation, many now prefer foam. This material is valued:

ease;
compactness;
ease of installation;
low cost.

How effective is such insulation and in what cases should only foam be used?

Thermal insulation of the bath ceiling with foam plastic and nothing else for you necessary if:

The ceilings of the room are very low and making them even lower is inappropriate and illogical.
In rooms where a material that does not absorb moisture is needed.

Efficiency of foam insulation- a fact proven by time. Heat saving increases many times, there is no accumulation of condensate, there is no mold, insects do not start.

Pros and cons of the material

Styrofoam- nothing more than foamed polymers that formed capsules with gas at high temperatures and retained their shape when cooled.

As a substance formed with the help of gas, foam has a number of excellent thermal insulation properties:

ease;
moisture resistance;
durability;
soundproofing;
resistance to shrinkage.

In addition, in the price lists, foam consistently occupies a position among the cheapest building materials. Just what you need for economical and fast warming.

However, don't get too enamored and think Styrofoam is perfect. Of course, it also has disadvantages, but to pay or not pay attention to the shortcomings of this heater is your choice.

The disadvantages of foam are:

flammability (due to the nature of its formation - with the help of gas);
not too long service life, which may be further reduced due to a violation of the installation technology;
unsuitability for warming wooden rooms. In practice, this is possible, but only if there is high-quality ventilation;
brittleness;
release during combustion of toxic substances that can cause paralysis of the respiratory tract;
poor quality of some brands of foam produced in artisanal conditions.

Are styrofoam and polystyrene the same thing?

Insulation of the ceiling of the bath with polystyrene foam can be somewhat diversified, while maintaining the fidelity of the choice of this particular material.

You could not help but hear about an improved form of foam - polystyrene foam. In fact, these are the same plates of capsules filled with a gaseous substance, only stronger, stronger, better.

Let's analyze Styrofoam quality:

it is not as fragile as polystyrene, even with not very careful transportation, the corners of the polystyrene foam plate remain intact;
this material does not ignite as quickly as foam filled with highly combustible gas;
the operational life of polystyrene foam is from 15 to 35 years, polystyrene foam is from 10 to 20.

As for the price, expanded polystyrene is only 5-10% more expensive than its "big brother".

Technology

No matter how good the material is, failure to comply with the accuracy of the installation technology may eventually adversely affect the quality of heat saving.

Therefore, having prepared desired material, carefully read the step by step instructions.

Frame mounting

Required:

foam sheets;
metal profile or wooden bars 50x50;
vapor barrier film.

Stages:

Clean the ceiling of dirt and dust, eliminate irregularities, if any. Treat the surface with an antiseptic.
Remove wiring. To do this, use a special protective corrugation.
Attach bars or a profile to the ceiling at a distance of 50 cm. Make sure that the shape of the attached bars takes the form of a large cage, each cell of which should correspond in size to a foam sheet.
Mount the foam with dowels or glue.
Treat joints and cracks with mounting foam.
Attach a vapor barrier to the insulation.
In conclusion, take care of the installation of drywall, wood or other material that matches the overall interior.

Adhesive mounting option

Required:

foam sheets in an amount corresponding to the total area of \u200b\u200bthe ceiling;
adhesive compound.

Stages:

Clean the ceiling, treat it with an antiseptic and prime it for a better bond between the adhesive and the surface.
Prepare the adhesive composition or use a ready-made one.
Apply glue to a sheet of foam (in continuous lines along the edge and slaps in the center of the plate). Press the styrofoam sheet as tightly as possible to the ceiling and hold for a few seconds.
If you insulate the ceiling with polystyrene foam, then all sheets should be prepared in advance: scratch with an iron brush on the working side (the one on which you will apply the adhesive).
Start gluing the sheets from the middle of the ceiling in a checkerboard pattern.
For greater reliability, foam sheets after the glue has dried can be additionally attached with dowels.
Glue the armnet on top of the foam and putty.

So is it worth it to insulate with foam?

And yet, there is an opinion among experts that all the disadvantages of polystyrene are more far-fetched than real.

The popularity of foam sheets among developers is unmatched. And if we talk about insulation as a low-cost, simple and fast process, then it is hardly possible to find a material better than it.

Insulation of the bath ceiling with foam plastic can be carried out without problems by a non-professional, a person who first started repair work.

However, when buying foam boards you need to be very careful so as not to bring a pile of small balls instead of whole sheets. Use products from trusted manufacturers only.

Insulation of a building, and especially a bath, plays an important role in the operation process. To extend the service life and avoid trouble, it is required to perform floor insulation in the bath. You will also have to take care of the protection from the cold of the walls and ceiling. Each design is considered separately, since different technologies and materials are used to perform the work.

Why insulate the floor

A thermal insulation layer is necessary to prevent heat loss from the room. The microclimate in the bath is characterized by high humidity and temperature. In the absence of proper insulation in this case, several problems arise:

The heat quickly escapes. The bath becomes difficult to melt. At the same time, the consumption of firewood or other fuel is greatly increased. The implementation of all necessary measures during construction will save.
The material of the load-bearing structures is subjected to simultaneous exposure to moisture from the inside and cold from the outside. This combination has an extremely negative effect on both concrete and wood. In this case, operating costs increase again, but at the expense of repair costs.
The bath cools down quickly. Drafts can get inside. Cold air becomes the cause of spoiled rest or illness.

Competent floor insulation in the bath with your own hands allows you to prevent problems, provide an optimal microclimate indoors and not spend money on the services of professionals.

What materials to use

The problem with thermal insulation of the floor will be water. Many materials are not designed for installation in conditions high humidity. This applies to heaters with a high ability to absorb.

For example, it is not allowed to use mineral wool to perform work. This effective insulation able to absorb water. In the wet state, cotton wool ceases to fulfill the established tasks, is crushed, settles and loses its shape.

Styrofoam;
extruded polystyrene foam (or penoplex);
penoizol, etc.

Styrofoam

Styrofoam balls do not absorb moisture, but manufacturers "forget" to mention that water can accumulate in the spaces between them. In the first winter, the insulation crumbles into separate particles. This is because the water freezes inside the styrofoam, increasing in volume as it does (it's the only substance on the planet that expands when it cools).

To prevent problems, floor insulation in the bath with foam plastic is carried out using additional materials:

Vapor barrier. Mounted on the side of warm air. Prevents the effect of steam from the bath on the insulation. Available in the form of films or membranes. For more efficient heat retention in the bath, special foil membranes are used. They not only protect the foam from getting wet, but also reflect heat back into the room.
Waterproofing. It is fixed from the side of cold air. Prevents the ingress of atmospheric or ground moisture onto the insulation. Films and membranes are used as a hydrobarrier. To insulate the floors in the bath on piles, moisture-proof membranes are chosen. They prevent drafts.

Penoplex

The material is a close relative of polystyrene, but devoid of its shortcomings. It costs more, but it is distinguished by high strength, quality and resistance to moisture. The thermal insulation performance of these materials is the same.

The choice between them is carried out depending on the method of installation and the expected load. When installing heavy furniture and laying insulation under the screed, extruded polystyrene foam is preferred. It definitely will not wash under load (with the right choice of brand for strength).

Insulation of the floor in the bath with penoplex allows you to do without vapor barrier and waterproofing. If possible, they should be used (especially in places with the highest humidity), but this is not a mandatory event.

Insulation under the screed

If the bath is built of brick, most likely the floors are made of reinforced concrete. Also, sometimes there is a need to make a floor on the ground. In this case, the insulation is performed under the screed. When using this technology, the load on the insulation increases, so the following recommendations should be observed:

choose material grade PSB-S 35 (polystyrene) or EPPS 35 (polystyrene);
the thickness of the screed is assigned 30-50 mm (when using the "warm floor" system - more);
when using foam plastic, the screed is reinforced with wire meshes with a diameter of 3-4 mm and cells 50 by 50 mm.

If it is necessary to insulate the floor on the ground, then the base is not only leveled, but also compacted. The floor pie in this case looks like this:

compacted soil;
sand and gravel mixture or sand of medium size (20-30 cm);
concrete preparation from lean concrete B7.5-B12.5;
waterproofing;
insulation;
vapor barrier;
screed with reinforcing mesh.

The concrete floor consists of the following layers:

reinforced concrete slab;
waterproofing;
insulation;
vapor barrier;
screed (with or without reinforcement).

Insulation of the bath begins with clearing and leveling the base. All cracks in the concrete floor must be covered with cement mortar. After that, special leveling compounds can be applied. Draw a clean floor mark on the wall. This is required in order to control evenness.

Waterproofing is placed on the prepared base. It is mounted with an overlap of 10 cm (including on the walls), gluing the joints with a special film.

Styrofoam or foam plastic is laid on glue. The solution is applied only at the edges and at several points in the center. When buying glue, it is important to check that it does not contain solvents and other substances hazardous to the insulation. Plates are mounted with dressing of seams (in a run-up). A gap of 1-2 cm is provided between the polystyrene and the wall, taking into account the expansion of the material during operation, this space is filled with a damper tape. Before pouring the screed, the slabs are fixed to the base with dish-shaped dowels.

Lag installation

Floor insulation in a bath on screw piles (or for a wooden structure on any foundations) is most often performed between logs or beams. Unlike the previous method, here you can choose a heater with less strength, since the material does not perceive the load from furniture and people.

Expanded polystyrene is mounted between wooden lags floors or between floor beams. cake overlap wooden bath in this case looks like this:

black floor boards (or plywood, DSP, OSB);
waterproofing;
insulation between load-bearing wooden beams;
vapor barrier;
clean floor.

Insulation is simply laid between the beams. There is no need to use glue or dowels. But it is required to fill the gaps between polystyrene and wood with sealant or foam.

Proper insulation of the bath will provide a comfortable microclimate and extend the life of the building. The increase in construction costs in this case leads to savings in operation.

The construction of a bathhouse is a rather responsible process, and therefore, if you want the procedures to be exclusively beneficial for the human body, and caring for the structure does not cause unnecessary trouble, you should take such a matter as warming the bath as seriously as possible.

At that moment, when the box is already standing, and it is time to perform insulation, quite logical questions arise: how, and with what? This article will tell you how to competently approach this issue, as well as which of the materials - polystyrene foam, sawdust or clay, is better to use for insulation.

Using Styrofoam as Insulation

Styrofoam is a kind of air bubbles enclosed in a thin shell of polystyrene. Due to the fact that the main part of the material is air (about 98%), the foam is characterized by excellent heat-insulating properties, which is why it is widely used as a quality.

It should be noted that its popularity is justified not only by high heat-insulating properties. There is a whole list of its positive qualities:

long service life - up to 50 years under normal conditions, up to 20 years in unfavorable conditions (with large temperature differences);
hydrophobicity. Styrofoam is able to absorb about 0.2% moisture per day, in other words, it practically does not absorb it;
biological neutrality and stability. The temperature at which this material is able not to break down and not release any substances is from -60 0 C to +95 0 C. In addition, the safety of the foam is also confirmed by the fact that it is widely used for products such as food packaging for products or in children's toys;
relatively low cost of this material. However, absolutely cheap offers must be treated with caution, as such products must be accompanied by appropriate certificates. Remember that all materials, the manufacture of which was carried out in violation of the technological process, can be quite dangerous;
Styrofoam is very easy to work with. It is characterized by low weight, perfectly cut, and also does not need additional protective equipment sludge fixtures;
there is absolutely no environment in which fungi, spores or bacteria can multiply. Not damaged by insects.

In addition to the advantages, the foam is characterized by the presence of disadvantages, in particular, its complete impermeability to steam and air. Thus, for rooms with foam insulation, it is necessary to develop a good one.

Also, there is another negative quality for this material: rather weak resistance to external mechanical influences. That is why, if the foam is used to insulate the foundation, additional reinforcement will be required, as well as a protective coating.

Is it possible to insulate a bath room using polystyrene foam?

Drawing conclusions from the foregoing, it can be noted that it is allowed to use polystyrene foam as a heater, however, it is strongly not recommended in the steam room of the Russian bath, as well as in the steam room of the Finnish sauna. Remember that the temperature regimes in these rooms are such that the performed thermal insulation can warm up to 95 0 C and even higher, and after that the foam will lose its chemical stability.

As a rule, foam is recommended to be used for thermal insulation of walls outside, or walls inside the room itself, but which do not go outside, since this is precisely due to the high level of thermal insulation properties of the foam. If it is laid on the wall from the inside, then the outer wall will be completely isolated from heat. In this case, condensation will form inside the wall. Thus, in cold weather, it will freeze / thaw, which will lead to instant destruction of building materials. That is why, if the bath is to be insulated with foam plastic, then it must be done exclusively from the outside, or it internal partition, but not from the side of the steam room.

Direct wall insulation from the outside with foam plastic is characterized by a rather good reviews: in summer time years - the room is cool, in winter time- warmer material costs to maintain a comfortable microclimate are significantly reduced. Another added plus: the room becomes much quieter. However, a well-functioning ventilation system, since excess moisture is not removed through the walls.

As for the bath room, there is simply no need to insulate a wooden bath using polystyrene foam: the tree itself has good heat-insulating characteristics. If we talk about a bathhouse made of bricks or building blocks, in this case it is very possible to insulate this room with foam.

Using clay with sawdust as a heater

Clay with sawdust is characterized by unique thermal insulation properties and is used not only as a heater, but also as a waterproofing. Please note that the waterproofing and heat-insulating properties of clay, in addition to sawdust, are often used to equip bath rooms. It is this material that is not subject to destruction, including the conditions of probable contact with hot steam. Not everyone can deal effectively with this factor. Construction Materials which are used for insulation and waterproofing.

The main advantage of such a heater as clay with sawdust is the possibility of using this option in almost any area: both where the temperature is constantly high, and where the temperature can drop to critical levels. Clay with sawdust is not only able to prevent heat loss in winter, but also keeps it pleasantly cool in summer. Moreover, in addition to excellent heat and waterproofing characteristics, this material is considered quite durable, as well as environmentally friendly. Most private developers prefer the use of clay with sawdust solely because of its safety, since not all modern building materials can be trusted for their direct use in the process of finishing the interior of the premises.

However, let's note that fixing a bath room with clay and sawdust is far from the easiest way to insulate a room. Remember that the efficiency of insulation with clay and sawdust is affected by quite a large number of factors. In particular, it should be noted that it is very important to prepare the mixture correctly, since at the moment of violation of the proportions, the finished material will not set well, thus, it will crumble very quickly. Also, it is necessary to carry out the application of insulation on the walls in the right way in order to achieve the maximum effect.

Important! Basically, clay with sawdust is used to insulate the ceiling, that is, the area on which there will be no significant load in the future.

In the event that it is planned, it is necessary to use material such as reeds or straw instead of small sawdust. As a rule, the use of reeds is preferred, which should be mixed with clay. The fact is that in this case, straw and reeds will serve as additional reinforcement, thereby increasing bearing capacity, as well as high level strength of the entire insulation layer.

Let's note that the insulation of a bathhouse using clay and sawdust is an old, time-tested method that is highly reliable in the results of work. However, such a process is very laborious, which is quite difficult to cope with alone.

The technological process of warming a bath using clay and sawdust

The first thing to do before laying the insulation is to treat the surface on which the installation will be carried out with cement mortar or plaster. After the base has completely hardened, you should start laying the insulation.

If you plan to use a wet mixture, in this case it is recommended to make wooden formwork so that the mixture is poured into special boxes, the width of which should be approximately 1 m. In turn, which are able to keep the mixture from spreading, and also form a more reliable layer of insulation.

After that, you should start pouring a thick mixture of clay mixed with sawdust. The insulation must be poured progressively, box by box, leveling the surface of each of the new fragments. After the mixture is completely filled, it is necessary that the surface is completely frozen. At the time of drying, peculiar cracks may appear, therefore, which need to be grouted with a clay solution. This method insulation is considered the most acceptable only at the stage, since it is rather dirty. In the event that the structure is already ready, it is recommended to use ready-made clay slabs, as well as wood waste. This will significantly reduce the risk of contamination of the surrounding surface.