Bath in the country - design, design selection and construction with your own hands. Photos and videos of the best options for construction

Almost every land owner, sooner or later, thinks about building a bath. After all, a bath is not just a room for washing, but also an important element of summer vacation. The construction of a turnkey bath can be ordered from professionals for a tidy sum, or you can try to build a bath with your own hands.

After reading this article, you will be able to choose a project, find out the sequence of the construction process, get acquainted with the models of boilers and find the best bath option for your dacha.

Before starting construction, it is necessary to develop a bath project. To do this, it is not necessary to contact an architect, you can develop a simple project yourself, especially since now there are many computer programs for designing.
Think about what size bath will be optimal for your family. What rooms will be located inside the bath. From what materials to make the foundation, walls and roof, do not forget also about the decoration of the bath. An important point in the design is the location of the boiler and the method of its combustion.
Below you can see the popular projects of baths:

• • Bath project size - 4x4 meters.

• • Bath project - 4x6 meters.

• • Bath project - 5x6 meters.

• • Bath project - 6x3 meters.

• Bath project - 3x3 meters.

After you have decided on the size and materials for the bath, you need to draw up a cost estimate.

Foundation

For the construction of a bath, several types of foundation are used. Depending on the weight of the walls and the characteristics of the soil, the following types of foundations are made:

• Slab foundation.
• Column foundation for light walls.
• Pile foundation.
• Concrete strip foundation.

As practice has shown, the most reliable foundation for almost all types of soil is a concrete strip foundation reinforced with reinforcement.

To make a strip reinforced foundation for a bath, you will need:

• Cement.
• Sand.
• Gravel.
• Fittings.
• Formwork.
• Ruberoid.
• Wire.
• Shovels.
• Concrete mixer.
• Harness.
• Stakes.
• Tools (pliers, hammer, tape measure and others).

In the place chosen for the construction of the bath, mark the trench for the future foundation. For marking, use a tourniquet stretched between the pegs. The width of the trenches is made based on the weight of the material for the walls. For a one-story bath made of wood or brick, it is enough to make a trench 30-40 centimeters wide. After installing the markup, do the following:

1. Based on the markings, dig a trench 50-80 centimeters deep.
2. Tamp the bottom of the trench and fill it with water to shrink the soil.
3. Cover the bottom of the trenches with roofing paper for waterproofing.
4. Fill the trench with gravel to a third of its depth.
5. Install the formwork along the edges of the trench.
6. Make a frame reinforcing the foundation, from reinforcement rods interconnected by wire.
7. Install the reinforcement cage into the formwork.
8. Using a concrete mixer, make a cement mortar in the proportion of one part cement to one part sand and two parts gravel.
9. Pour the cement into the formwork, being careful not to allow air pockets.
10. After the concrete has dried, remove the formwork.

The foundation for the bath is ready!

Walls

For the construction of walls use the following materials:

• Wooden beam.
• Logs.
• Boards.
• Brick.
• Blocks from various building mixtures (cinder block, aerated concrete, wood concrete, and so on).

Since the construction of a bath from logs or bricks has already been quite widely described on the Internet, let's consider the option of building a frame bath from a bar of 15x15 and 5x10 centimeters and boards with a section of 2x15 centimeters:

1. 1. Make the lower trim, for this, take bars with a section of 15x15 cm and install them on the foundation, connecting them with special metal plates and corners. There is another way to connect the bars, by cutting spikes, grooves at their ends and then fastening them with screws or nails. When tying, do not forget to put waterproofing under the bars.
   2. Install vertical racks from a 5x10 cm beam. The distance between the racks is usually 50-60 centimeters. First of all, determine the position of window and door openings and install the racks framing them.
   3. In the process of work, fix the already installed racks with temporary strips so that they do not warp.
   4. Make the top harness by attaching it to the ends of the uprights.
   5. Making the final fastening top harness, carefully monitor the position of the vertical racks, checking their evenness with a level.
   6. Be sure to strengthen everything corner connections diagonal racks, this will help to avoid warping the frame.
   7. Make a ceiling sheathing.
   8. After making the frame, make the outer cladding of the walls of the bath with a board with a section of 2x15 centimeters. If you do not want gaps between the boards, then make the sheathing - "overlap", laying the bottom edge of the board on the nailed board. In appearance, this method resembles wall siding.

1. Having sheathed the bath from the outside, proceed to the installation of insulation. Sheets of foam or mineral wool are installed along the vertical racks of the frame.
2. On top of the insulation, it is necessary to install a layer of vapor barrier, which is attached to vertical racks using thin rails.
3. After installing the vapor barrier, make the inner lining of the bath with clapboard or slats.
4. Insulate the ceiling by laying vapor barrier sheets on the inner lining, then insulation. Sheathe the ceiling from the outside with plywood sheets.

Please note that the manufacture and insulation of the ceiling can also be done after the installation of the roof.

Roof

The roof for the bath is of three types:

• Shed.
• Gable.
• Complex - consisting of four or more slopes.

Usually, the first two options are used for a bath. Let's look at the option of a gable roof covered with metal tiles:


The manufacture of the roof begins with the installation - Mauerlat. In the case of frame walls, the role of the Mauerlat is performed by the upper stroke.

1. Install the uprights on the bench.
2. Connect the racks with girders and puffs.
3. Install the rafter legs by attaching them to the Mauerlat, run and connecting the upper ends to each other. The distance between the rafters should be 50-60 centimeters.
4. Install sheets of metal.
5. Sheathe the gables with wooden slats or sheet iron.

For a more visual acquaintance with the roof fastening, the following figure is shown:


All sizes of roof elements are listed:


Keep in mind that the smaller you make the slope of the roof, the more snow load will fall on it in winter. Also, a small slope of the roof can lead to poor drainage and leaks.

floors

The design of the floor depends on the type of room. In the rest room, ordinary wooden floors are made. In the washing and steam rooms, the floors are made of two levels:

• The first level is made of concrete, has a slope towards the drain hole.
• The second level is a finished floor made of boards with gaps for draining water.

If you want to make a floor of porcelain stoneware or tiles, then they simply fit on the first level, sloping towards the drain hole.


In order to make a concrete floor and drain in the bath you need:

1. In the center of the steam room and washroom, install plastic pipes with a diameter of 5-10 centimeters with a bell at the end. Pipes must go through the foundation to the street and connect to the sewerage system.
2. Lay down a layer of waterproofing material.
3. Spread a layer of gravel 10-15 centimeters thick over the entire area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe rooms.
4. Make a cement mortar and pour the floor with a slope to the hole installed on the drain socket pipe.
5. Install a grate on the drain hole to prevent debris from entering the sewer.

At the second stage, wooden floors are made:

1. Install wooden logs in all rooms of the bath. Make the distance between the lags 30-40 centimeters. As a log, you can use bars with a section of 3x5 cm or 4x6 cm.
2. Nail boards with a section of 2x15 cm or 5x20 cm onto the logs.
3. In rooms where water is supposed to be drained, leave gaps of 0.5-1 cm between the boards.

Do not forget, before starting the installation of wooden floors, treat all parts with wood impregnation. When making floors, keep in mind that they should be above, or at the level of the top edge of the foundation.

Boiler

The model of the boiler for the bath will largely depend on your financial capabilities and the fuel that you will use for heating. If you know how to use welding, then you can make a simple boiler yourself, from thick sheet iron. If you prefer more advanced colas on gas or electricity, then they can be purchased from specialized companies.

The boiler in the steam room is installed in such a way that the combustion chamber is loaded with fuel either from the street or from the rest room (dressing room). The boiler itself, for fire safety purposes, is located 10-15 centimeters from the nearest walls. Walls to the height of the boiler, covered with sheets of iron. A good solution would be to overlay the boiler with bricks, thereby reducing its cooling time and protecting the walls from fire.

When arranging a chimney for a boiler, pay special attention to the place where the pipe is in contact with the ceiling. The hole for the chimney should be insulated with a refractory material. Also, pay attention to the place where the chimney pipe exits through the roof. Usually, this place is prone to leakage, so it should be carefully sealed. Below are the options for boilers for the bath:

• • Homemade boiler from sheets of metal.

• • A gas boiler.

• • Electric boiler.

• Solid fuel boiler.

Bath arrangement

After the bath is built, it is necessary to equip it:

• • Bring to the bath all the communications available on the site - electricity, sewerage, water supply.

• • Place inside the sink, shower, light sources, furniture for relaxation.

• • Decorate the walls of the steam room with curly slats and make stepped shelves.

• Buy wooden tubs, buckets, buckets and brooms.

After the arrangement, you can safely invite guests to take a steam bath in your personal bath!

You can also see the instructions for assembling a mini-bath for giving without a foundation in the video:

Variants of beautiful and unusual baths

In addition to traditional materials and design for a bath, there are many alternative solutions. Below we give photos of the most unusual baths:

• A mobile bath from a "lining", built on a car trailer.

• Sauna in a huge wine barrel.

• Bath from plastic bottles.

• Bath dugout, built right in the ground.

• Bath housed in an iron container.

• Forest bath from raw logs.

• A beautiful bath from a gun carriage.

• Bath from unedged boards.

At the end of the article, I would like to remind you that heating the bath is associated with fire and high temperatures. Therefore, when building a bath from bricks, logs, cinder blocks or boards, pay great attention to fire safety. This warning also applies to the electrical wiring device, since the rooms inside the bath have high air humidity and the risk of a power outage due to condensate is very high.


We hope that reading our article will encourage you to build a bath yourself!

Almost every owner of his own house dreams of a bath. And even if you are not going to build a bath with your own hands, then you need to at least understand the variety of bath projects and their little secrets.

Did you know that before building a bath, it is important to orient it to the cardinal points? Usually the door to the bath is located on the south side - in winter the snow melts there earlier and you do not have to often clear it. But it is better to place the windows in the west - in the evening they will have more light, because we usually go to the bathhouse in the evenings.

The bath is built of wood, brick, natural stone or concrete structures. The advantage of wooden baths is that they perfectly keep heat and are built from environmentally friendly material - spruce or pine. For a bath, wooden beam no additional ventilation required. The tree "breathes" perfectly, it is enough to install a ventilation grill.

For the construction of the log cabin of the bath, a winter forest is used - it is denser and less prone to decay. Do not rush to start a bath when the log house is ready - it should settle for a year, and only then you can start finishing work.


At the initial stage of construction, it is necessary to resolve the issue of choosing a place such as a bath. It can be erected as a freestanding structure or attached to a house or other residential building.

Many believe that combining a bathhouse and a home can add dampness and bad smell in home. But, if proper waterproofing, ventilation and sewerage are laid in the bath, then the above-mentioned problems should not be.

On the other hand, a bathhouse made as a separate building is more fireproof, and a small veranda near the bathhouse can completely replace a garden gazebo for you.


A very important point in the construction of a bath is laying the foundation. The foundation can be tape, columnar or pile. For the construction of a do-it-yourself bath, a columnar foundation is considered the best, which consists of concrete piles exposed to a depth of about 1.5 meters. Such a foundation is made of stone, brick or concrete.

To finish the bath inside, it is better to use material from such tree species as poplar, alder or aspen, as they have high moisture resistance and low thermal conductivity. We recommend making floors also from wood, since it heats up slightly. But the tree has a tendency to rot, so it is better to make a collapsible floor and ventilate and dry it in the sun at least once a year.

Shelves in the bath may not be very large. The main thing is that they can sit freely or lie comfortably. The size of the steam room should be about 6 square meters. m. - so you don’t need a lot of firewood for warming up, and not crowded. In a proper Russian bath, the air temperature is about 60 degrees, and the humidity is 40%. Compare with the Finnish sauna, where the temperature is 90 degrees and the humidity is 10%.

For building a bath with your own hands, an important point is the choice of a stove for heating the steam room. The “lightness” of steam depends on the type of furnace. A brick oven warms up longer, and should stand for about an hour - but the steam is perfect, light. The iron stove warms up quickly, does not threaten with waste, but the steam is harder.

The furnace must be installed on the foundation. In no case should it touch the walls of the bath. Consider the fact that the stove must be positioned so that all the rooms of the bath are heated at once. To date, stoves with an elongated firebox are very popular. Such stoves allow you to heat in the steam room from the dressing room. A good stove evenly distributes heat throughout the bath.

The layout of the bath includes three main rooms: a steam room, a shower room and a relaxation room.

In addition to these rooms, a bathhouse may include a small outdoor pool, because a bathhouse is not only steam and heat, but also hardening on fresh air. After all, after the steam room, it is necessary to close the pores - and cold water from an external reservoir can best cope with this.

If you do not have the opportunity to build a bath from logs, you can choose another construction option from the so-called "wooden bricks".


With such construction, wooden chocks are laid in cement mortar like bricks.


So you will not only save on the construction of a bath, but also get a more fireproof option.


Such a bath looks quite decent inside, and, in addition, in this way you can easily build a so rarely seen tent bath.

The layout of the bath will allow you to carefully consider the required functionality from your bath and more accurately predict your costs and labor costs.

Bath layout 1.

Bath layout 2.

Bath layout 3.

Bath layout 4.

Bath layout 5.

A bathhouse is not an easy place, since ancient times a bathhouse has been rightfully considered a real healer - “In the bathhouse, wash yourself and be born again!” But the bathhouse has its own legends. So in the days of paganism, the Slavs, having heated the baths well and laid out clean clothes there, tightly closed them and left. It was a time when the dead ancestors were soaring.

In early Christian times, the bath was considered a suspicious place. It was forbidden to hang icons in the bath and bring bath utensils into the house. After the bath, a person had to douse himself with cold water or plunge into the river - in order to drive away evil spirits from himself. After visiting the bath, it was impossible to go to church, it was a sin to wash on Orthodox holidays, as well as on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. Thus, Saturday became a bathing day.

The spirit of the bath - a bathhouse, demanded respect and forbade entering the bath after dark, and taking a bath drunk. It was a big misdemeanor to rush a person steaming in a bath or leave a child unattended in a bath - they could be dragged away by the bath spirit.


If you are going to build on your suburban area bath, we hope you found our little tips useful. And the old traditions that we told you about will help you not only enjoy visiting the bath, but also be extremely careful next to the hot stove and steam.
After all, a do-it-yourself bath is a fascinating and useful thing, you may be interested in getting to know modern options baths in our video:

Sometimes you really want to leave the hustle and bustle of the city, and go to the country. Silence, walks, doing what you love - what could be better! If comfort is provided at the dacha, I want to come again and again. One of comfortable conditions living in the country house is a bathhouse.

Construction can, of course, be entrusted to professional builders. However, it is quite possible to build and equip a bathhouse in a summer cottage on your own. This saves you from additional expenses and allows you to finish and improve in full accordance with your desires and preferences. Therefore, this task is not easy, but it is quite within the power of a novice builder. A bathhouse built with your own hands will delight the owners even more. So, how to build a bath yourself?

Firstly, as with any construction, you first need to decide on the project and the materials from which the bath will be built. The choice of base material for construction depends on geographical location and operating conditions, as well as on their own capabilities.

Baths are made of brick, aerated concrete and other stone materials, some prefer frame baths, however, many novice builders prefer to build a bath from wood. This lightweight and durable material does not require the arrangement of a serious and expensive foundation, but it has excellent characteristics. With proper care, the operation of the bath will not cause much trouble.

And of course, preference should be given to timber - a bath made of this material will retain all the advantages of a wooden structure and eliminate the problems and additional costs that may arise during the construction of log walls. Building walls from a beam is similar to working with a constructor - it can have different geometric dimensions and cross-sections (rectangle, square, semicircular), and also, in the case of a profiled beam, there are grooves for fastening. Building from timber is easy and convenient - what could be better for a novice builder!

How to choose a place to build a bath.

One of the most important points is the choice of the location of the future building. The place must satisfy both existing legislation and usability. Here are some basic tips to help you choose:

• if there is a reservoir nearby, you should not place the bathhouse too close to it, as the building will be threatened by flooding;
• it is necessary to decide how the bath will be located relative to the house: a separate building or will be attached to it, since each option has its positive and negative sides;
• it is believed that it is better to build a bath in the backyard, in relative seclusion;
• it is necessary to provide mandatory ventilation during construction, as well as to provide for the disposal of wastewater;
• it is highly discouraged to determine the location next to the road passing nearby;
• when placing a building, it is necessary to take into account the cardinal points and the direction of the wind: the best place- the southern part of the site, protected from the wind, so that it does not interfere with vacationers, it is better to have windows facing the west;
• it is desirable that the bathhouse be at some distance from other buildings, and if it is an extension to the house, it is imperative that fire safety rules be observed during construction, as, indeed, when erecting a separate building;
• when determining the placement of the bath and its size, it is necessary to observe the distances established by the rules from the boundaries of the site so that the neighbors do not experience discomfort in the future and do not make claims to the owner;
• it is recommended to observe the distance to the water intake (well or well) - no more than 20 meters.

At the beginning of construction, it is highly desirable to make a project, which should, among other things, determine the optimal building area.

It is believed that the estimated area for 1 person should be approximately 5 sq.m. Thus, if the expected number of visitors to the bath is 4 people, its total area should not be less than 20 sq.m.

The minimum composition of the premises is as follows: a steam room, a washing room, a rest room and a dressing room. It is important to determine the most convenient location of these rooms relative to each other, as well as their geometric dimensions.

First you need to complete several diagrams and drawings:

- the general plan of the building;
- drawings of each room separately;
- a diagram of the foundation device;
- scheme of the roof device;
- plan for fastening and laying out the timber;
- a plan for the installation of the floor and ceiling of the bath;
- a diagram of the installation of the furnace, taking into account its design features.

All the necessary drawings can be done independently, as well as found in many open sources. As a rule, log baths have similar designs and you can easily choose the most suitable one. If you wish and have the necessary budget, you can entrust the design to a professional architect or builder.

Choice of building materials.

Below is a list of materials that will be needed to build a bath from a bar:

a) beam 150x150 mm, although it is possible to use a beam with a section of 100 mm or 200 mm;

b) floorboard (great for edged board 150x50 mm, 4 meters long);

c) hardwood boards for ceiling installation (usually lining is used with a width of 100 mm and a thickness of 20 mm or more);

d) material for wall decoration (as a rule, the same lining is used);

e) material for vapor barrier (an excellent option would be to use a vapor barrier film);

f) waterproofing (it is desirable to use penofol, although plastic film is suitable);

g) ceiling insulation (a good option is mineral wool materials);

h) sheet asbestos for insulation of wooden structures from temperature effects, including for walls near the furnace and elements located near the chimney;

i) cement, sand and gravel for the foundation (recommendation - cement should be purchased before construction begins);

j) roofing material for the roof, which can be selected based on personal preferences and, most importantly, that it fits organically into the surrounding roofs of other buildings;

l) insulation for interventional space (it is better to use jute, although moss or tow are perfect).

The best time to start construction is spring, because after the completion of the main construction work, it is necessary for the timber to dry and shrink. This requires at least 6 months.

Do-it-yourself bath - step by step instructions.

Step I - preparation of the territory for construction.

Before starting construction, it is necessary to clear the site - remove shrubs, stumps, remove debris and everything that will interfere with the work on the foundation.

Step II - building the foundation.

It is best to build a bath from a bar on a columnar foundation, which is inexpensive and great for building small wooden and frame buildings.

When constructing it, you first need to dig the estimated number of holes for the installation of supports. Their number is calculated as follows - the supports must be installed in the corners of the building and at the intersections of the walls, as well as with a certain step along their perimeter.

The step is selected taking into account the type of soil and the estimated total weight of the structure. The depth of the pits should be 1-1.5 meters, although it may vary depending on the depth of soil freezing in a given area. To perform this type of foundation, in addition to the materials listed above, asbestos-cement pipes and fittings will be required.

At the bottom of the pit, it is necessary to fill in a mixture of sand and gravel with a thickness of 10-15 cm. Then install an asbestos-cement pipe of the required length into it, strictly vertically, and fix it. Several reinforcement bars should be placed inside the pipe.

After that, pour concrete mortar into the pipe and into the free space between the walls of the pit and the pipe.

After pouring the solution, you need to wait a few days, and then lay a wall half a brick thick between the pillars.

Step III - erecting walls and arranging the roof.

The traditional material for the construction of the walls of the bath is a beam measuring 150x150 mm. Before laying the first crown, it is imperative to put waterproofing on the foundation. The lower part of the crown must be treated with an antiseptic. Most often, the beam is laid out in the “paw” way.

The first crown must be carefully aligned with geometric parameters All angles must be exactly 90 degrees. After the first crown has been erected, the laying of the beams for the set of walls begins. When laying out the walls, you need to make openings for future doors and windows and be sure to insulate each row with the selected heat-insulating material.

To connect the crowns, dowels are used - metal or wooden pins.

After the walls are removed, the roof is installed. Depending on the chosen shape of the roof, it is necessary to fix the rafters, which are attached to the upper crown with brackets.

When constructing a shed sloping roof, the rafters are fixed either with two external or one external and one internal supports. When erecting a gable roof, it is necessary to securely support the rafters from below on the wall, and connect them together from above to form a roofing ridge.

Lathing boards are attached to the fixed rafters, then hydro- and vapor barriers and insulation are laid on them.

The installation of the selected roofing material completes the installation of the roof.

Step IV - interior finishing work.

Interior decoration should begin with a communications device - sewerage, plumbing, electricity. Sewerage should be taken care of even when designing and building a foundation.

It is necessary to dig a drainage well next to the future bath, which includes a sewer pipe buried in the ground with a slope to remove wastewater from the washing department.

After the installation of the sewerage system, a finishing floor is made, which is made of wood or concrete. The concrete floor is more durable, most often it is faced tiles or porcelain stoneware.

If at interior decoration a wooden floor is chosen, it is usually made leaky. To do this, the floor boards are nailed to the installed lags with a small gap, or a small drain hole closed by a grate is equipped in the floor.

In this case, the floor must be done with a slight slope towards the drain. Then the water that has fallen into the drain will be discharged through the sewer pipe into the drainage well.

After the sewerage installation, it is necessary to carry out insulation, hydro- and vapor barrier of the walls and ceiling with the help of appropriate materials, conduct electricity and plumbing.

After installing windows and doors, then finish the room with the help of, for example, lining.

After finishing the finish, you need to install the necessary electrical appliances.

Step V - installation of the oven and shelves.

There are a lot of options for placing shelves, you just need to follow the recommended dimensions and that they must be made of hardwood. The installation principle is simple - a stable frame is mounted, usually from a bar, and boards are attached to it.

The installation of the furnace must be carried out in full compliance with fire safety requirements. Wooden structures must be isolated from the high temperatures of the operating furnace and chimney. When heavy weight furnace, its installation must be carried out on a specially equipped foundation. This is determined on a case-by-case basis depending on the furnace chosen.

The stove is selected depending on the preferences of the owner. It can be a traditional wood-burning stove, a metal wood-burning or electric stove, sometimes it is advisable to choose a gas stove for a bath.

Step VI - Choosing Accessories

There are many accessories for the bath.

The main ones are:

- brooms (oak, birch and others);
- containers (buckets, basins);
- a wooden bucket for adding water;
- wooden gratings on the floor and much more.

Additional individuality can be added by the interior decoration of the premises, which remains at the discretion of the owner - here, depending on the desires and financial capabilities, you can give free rein to your imagination.

It must be added that all of the listed accessories can be made independently. Bath is a great place to spend time in a pleasant, friendly company or with family. It will be much more pleasant to realize that all this was done by hand, including useful and necessary devices: for example, hangers, lamps or ventilation grilles.

Enjoy Your Bath!

Video about the construction of the bath yourself.

Bath for a Russian person is not just a place where you can wash yourself. Her visit has long been a tradition. Here the Russian people relaxed, healed and just had a good time. Until now, the functions of the bath have not changed. This place remains one of the favorites of our people. The owners of summer cottages are trying to build this building on their site. Someone does it on their own, someone hires a team of specialists.

Bath features

Since ancient times, the so-called "purgatories" were built for noble persons, in which they renewed their spirit. The design of the Russian bath is the same as that of other similar buildings. Visually, it is no different, for example, from the Finnish sauna. But there are some nuances that distinguish the Russian bath from all the others.

The main feature of this structure is the presence of light steam in it during use, while the humidity is at the level of 60%, and the temperature reaches 50–70 degrees.

A visit to a bathhouse for Russians is a whole ritual with its own customs and traditions.

To create a temperature regime in the bath, a special stove-heater is used, which maintains the heat of the stones. They are located in a small compartment behind a metal door. Wet steam enters the steam room from the furnace. The door is opened only to pour water on the stones, as a result of which it turns into steam. So, the humidity in the bath is maintained at the required level.

And, of course, what Russian bath is complete without a broom? It is usually made from birch or fir. Due to the fact that the necessary humidity is achieved in the room, you can take a good steam with a broom. There will be no similar effect from the procedure if the air in the room is dry.

One of the most important conditions for creating a real Russian bath is a good stove, which must have certain qualities.

It is considered that the main building material for the construction of a Russian bath, there can only be a tree. He is loved for naturalness and environmental friendliness. True, the cost of a bath will be noticeably higher than when used for the construction of foam blocks or bricks.

Choosing a place for construction

Choosing a place to build is very important point. There are different types of baths according to the type of kindling: “in white” and “in black”. The latter are currently being built very rarely. The first ones are built near the house. Sometimes a "white" bath is made in the form of an extension to the dwelling, and it is necessary to obtain a special permit from the fire department.

Previously, a bathhouse was erected on the banks of rivers and lakes, so that after all the procedures one could plunge into cool water. But today it is difficult to do so. The way out of this situation can be the construction of a small personal pond near the bath or pool.

Experts advise building a bath on the most high point site. So precipitation will not be a problem for you.

Design

The bath project is one of the most important elements of the preparatory work.

It must indicate the number of rooms in the building where communications and other similar information will be located. Most often, a steam room, a room for washing, rest and a corridor are built in the bath. If the budget is limited, then sometimes the owners combine the steam room with the washing room, and the dressing room with the corridor. But this is not very convenient, because not everyone wants to wash in a heated room.

Designing a bath is an important stage of preparatory work

The size of the bath is planned depending on how many people will visit it at the same time. If it is for one person, then you can make it small. But if you host a lot of people and like bath procedures, then you should not save on space. But remember that warm up desired temperature a large size steam room is not easy. Usually it is done for 2 people. For this, 4 m 2 is enough.

Consider at the design stage the furniture that you will put in the rest room. Make this room as comfortable as possible so that you can fully relax in it.

A well thought out and designed project will indispensable assistant during construction work

The corridor is necessary for cold air from the street in the winter did not immediately get into the premises where you will be half-dressed.

Stages of building a bath

Conventionally, they can be divided into several:

1. Foundation construction.
2. Building walls and floors.
3. Roof construction.
4. Ceiling arrangement.
5. Thermal insulation laying.
6. Clean finish.

Foundation construction

Most often, a columnar or strip foundation is erected under the bath. The latter option is more reliable, but its construction requires much more materials, and therefore, financial expenses for its construction will increase.

Perform the erection in the following sequence:

1. Clear the area where the bath will be built. Remove debris and vegetation. Can be removed upper layer soil (200–300 mm) completely.
2. With the help of pegs and a rope, mark up.

   The evenness of the foundation depends on the correct markup

3. Dig a trench around the perimeter of the future bath. The depth of the foundation is selected based on the quality of the soil and the mass of the structure.

   Most often, a strip foundation is erected for the construction of a bath.

4. Lay a sand and gravel pillow at the bottom of the trench. Its ideal thickness is 250–300 mm.
5. Now build the formwork. It can be made from moisture resistant plywood or long boards, the thickness of which is 5 cm.
   The foundation should be 200–300 mm larger than the wall thickness of the future structure. It should be made 400–500 mm above the ground level.

   Edged boards can be used for formwork

6. Construct a reinforcing cage from rods with a diameter of 1.2–1.5 cm. Fasten them to each other with metal rods with a cross section of 6 mm. First, the construction of a vertical frame is carried out. Place it in the corners and in places where the walls of the bath intersect. Also, vertical bars must be placed under door and window openings. They should rise above the base by 300–350 mm. After installing the vertical frame, proceed to the horizontal one from the same diameter reinforcement.
7. When the metal skeleton is ready, pour the cement mortar in several stages. The first layer is 300–500 mm. It should be the most liquid in consistency. Using a special vibrator or a metal pin, compact the concrete layer by piercing it in several places so that the air remaining inside comes out. Thus, the quality and strength of the foundation are improved. Then pour the next layer of concrete. Repeat the procedure until the base is completely filled.

   It is necessary to pour the foundation along the entire length of the formwork at the same time

8. Cover freshly poured concrete with polyethylene to prevent rainfall from entering. The base will completely harden in about a month. After this period, it will be possible to remove the formwork. Experts recommend giving the foundation another 2 weeks to settle so that it becomes stronger.
9. The last stage is waterproofing the foundation.

   Insulation and waterproofing of the base will make your bathhouse even better

Now you need to give the structure time to shrink.

Thermal insulation should not be neglected either. This process is optional, but recommended. Thus, it is possible to improve the thermophysical qualities of the bath. For this, foam glass or polystyrene foam is suitable.

Walls and floor

It is best to use wood for the construction of the bath structure. Its clear advantages are good preservation warmth and creating a cozy atmosphere. For the construction of a bath, you can also use a bar.

Beam - one of the most common materials in construction

The construction of it shrinks less, besides, the material is easy to work with.

Incredible beautiful baths obtained from logs

You can use logs. To build walls out of them:

1. Select material with the same diameter.
2. Then trim the logs.
3. Lay the elements with the larger diameter first. Connect them together with spikes, which must be deepened inward by 270–300 mm. It doesn’t matter what is used for construction, it is recommended that the crowns of the structure be treated with an antiseptic.

To make the walls of the bath as tight as possible, the gaps between wooden elements it is necessary to caulk with felt, hemp or moss.

This must be done at least twice. The first time is right after the walls are built. The second - after the complete shrinkage of the structure. Punch all seams with wooden slats.

For the construction of the floor, use clay, concrete or wood.

Clay does not let water through. In its cracks, the liquid can stagnate, as a result of which an unpleasant odor will appear. Wood floors absorb moisture, causing them to rot and decay. Concrete, covered with tiles - the most reliable option. For comfort, cork mats or wooden frame.

The best floor for a bath - concrete

To build a floor:

1. First, arrange a sand cushion, the layer of which should be 100 mm. It must be carefully sealed.

   The sand cushion must be well compacted

2. Then lay down the gravel. Straighten it out.

   The layers of sand and gravel should be the same

3. After that, lay a waterproofing material (roofing material). It should go overlapping on the walls of the bath. And the last stage is a cement screed.

   Roofing material can be used to waterproof the floor

There is no need to make a ventilation system in the steam room, since there should be moist steam in the Russian bath.

Roof arrangement

Even at the design stage, consider whether you will have an attic.

The roof of the bath can be built in several ways.

Such a roof is more attractive. Usually they are equipped with baths, which are used all year round. If it is visited only in the summer, then there is no need to equip the attic.

The roof consists of rafters, girders, frame and waterproofing material. For construction you need:

Ceiling

The ceiling in a Russian bath can be panel, floor or hemmed. In the last version, for the arrangement it is necessary:

For small baths, in which an attic is not provided, they usually construct a floor version of the ceiling. For its construction:

1. Boards are laid in increments of 2.5 m. Steam and heat-insulating materials are laid on them.
2. Then they are sheathed with boards.

This version of the ceiling is not very durable. If you build it for a large bath with an attic, then it can easily fail.

Panel ceilings are difficult to construct independently. The advantage of this option is that for its manufacture you can use the remains of building materials. That is why such a ceiling is the cheapest. It is usually made from shields. For their manufacture, load-bearing bars are made, to which the inner lining, vapor barrier, thermal insulation, waterproofing and an external ladder are attached. To prevent heat loss, during the laying of the shields, a sealant is placed between them. It can be felt or plastic wrap.

Wall insulation and waterproofing works

Thermal insulation is essential to maintain high level temperature and humidity.

To keep the heat as long as possible, heat and waterproofing must be made at a high level.

• mineral wool;
• expanded polystyrene;
• polyurethane foam;
• foam glass.

The most important quality for thermal insulation material, which will be installed indoors, is that it must withstand high temperature conditions and be fireproof. Mineral wool based on basalt is ideal for this. It can withstand temperatures up to 1500 degrees.

Mineral wool is ideal for a bath

As a waterproofing material for a bath, polyethylene film or roofing material is usually used. It is attached to the walls under thermal insulation. A vapor barrier is placed on it, for example, glassine. The materials must be laid with an overlap of at least 100 mm.

After that, it is necessary to build a wooden frame from bars, which are pre-processed antiseptic from rot. They are fastened in increments of 10–20 mm smaller than the width of the heat-insulating material.

After the insulation is laid, you need to make another layer of vapor barrier. Use aluminum foil for this, which reflects heat and protects all materials of the roofing cake from moisture. The foil is spread in a continuous layer and fixed with construction tape.

Thermal insulation of the ceiling is very important, because heat, according to the laws of physics, rises up. And in order not to lose it, you do not need to neglect this process.

Finishing work and decoration of the premises

The last step can be considered the decoration of the walls and ceiling. It is recommended to start all work related to cladding only after the structure has given final shrinkage. There are many options for finishing materials. Various decorative elements perfectly complement the interior of the bath. Personal preferences and financial capabilities of the owner in this matter play a key role. The most common finishing option is lining.

The internal arrangement of the bath remains to the taste of the owner

Decorative tiles that lined the stove, carved elements, unusual wooden shelves, interesting buckets, etc. All this will help you create an original and unique interior.

To finish the bath, you can use a wooden lining

Video: construction of a Russian bath

Building a bath yourself is difficult, but possible. If you responsibly approach the theoretical part of the design and correctly use the knowledge gained in practice, construction will seem like an exciting process. In addition, you can always tell your friends that this bathhouse was built by you.

How beneficial the bath is, you don’t have to paint for a long time. And not only for physical and mental health. To have a bathhouse on the site is to gain prestige and respect for neighbors. And the opportunity to invite a useful person to take a steam bath will bring direct benefits. Let's be realistic, a lot of important issues are being decided in the bathhouse, and a document is already being signed at the meeting table. There is no need to look for corruption schemes here: after a bath, the head brightens, the unnecessary husks are obscured, and the essence of the matter comes to the eyes. Villains, by the way, do not appoint a “shooter” in the bathhouse, the conscience wakes up there.

This article is devoted to the question of how to build a bath with your own hands. Who said that only the powerful of this world have the right to a complete bathing good? But why, you ask, build yourself? The building seems to be unpretentious, in demand. Maybe it's better to order a turnkey?

Demand is everything. In combination with a small circumstance: a bath is not an object of prime necessity or vital. Hence, the contractor's cheat is limited only by the contents of the customer's pocket, as well as for luxury goods. What builders use - the market is the market, they also need to live, and they want better.

Take a look at fig. The bathhouse on the left will cost about $8,000 on a turn-key basis, and the one on the right will cost $23,000-25,000. Impressive? We will modestly keep silent about 2-3-storey baths with pools, billiard rooms, banquet rooms and massage rooms. What if you build it yourself? DIY construction baths for 2 compartments 3x4 m from a bar (this is the one on the left) will cost about $ 1800, and 4x6 m log from 3 compartments somewhere in $ 4000-5000. It is impressive, but the difference is not only many times, but also fundamental: if the turnkey amounts do not fit into the average budget, then self-construction is already feasible without an unaffordable consumer loan, because. a mortgage with a lower rate for a bath will not be given now.

The purpose of this article, first of all, is to show that the devil is not as terrible as he is painted. A bath is a serious building, it must meet certain requirements. And the emphasis in the following is on how to satisfy them without mastering complex technologies and without spending too much. If you know how to cut the board evenly, drill a hole directly, drive in a nail without bending and, after reading the following, believe that building a bath is within your power and means, we will consider our task completed. Therefore, the material is built for a more complete coverage of key points, but also for the features of the technology for building baths from various materials given due attention.

Russian or sauna?

The Finns themselves, and doctors too, admit that the Russian bath is superior to the Finnish one. In a Russian bath, you can create perfectly dry steam, like in a sauna, but you won’t be able to “burn” a vigorous steam in the last one. But the sauna has a valuable advantage - it is not very demanding on the design of the bath room with a heat source. A compact electric sauna the size of a wardrobe can be placed in a city apartment, and nothing, there is normal steam there. But the Russian requires a separate bath building and a stove for it. Therefore, further we will talk about the Russian bath, and we will leave the saunas for another occasion.

Ancestor

The original Russian bath consists of 2 sections: a dressing room and a steam room, see fig. on right; sizes - from 2.3x4 to 5x6 m. The fashion for such baths is now being revived, they are called wild baths. Indispensable features of the "wild" Russian bath:

• The foundation is not deepened from natural (also wild) boulders, without a plinth.
• The structure is a log house made of selectively chopped wild logs, i.e. not undergone any technical treatment, except for debarking and drying.
• Construction - without a single nail.
• Caulker - only moss and tow.
• The ceiling is flat (see below).
• Insulation of the floor and ceiling - moss and peat.
• Waterproofing - resin or shoe var.
• Roof - shingle or turf.
• The oven is brick.

It is not difficult to guess what these archaisms are worth in our time. Turnkey wild bath for less than 1 million rubles. - marvel. In addition, it is a fire hazard; peat, moss and wood not impregnated with flame retardants are combustible materials. But then we will see how to build a safe bathhouse on our own cheaper and simpler, not inferior to the original one. Firstly, modern materials and technologies will help; in addition to the traditional tree, unexpected solutions are possible here. Secondly, in the old days, bath stoves were built of brick only for lack of suitable metal ones. In fact, a stainless metal stove with an afterburner, an air convector and a properly arranged sauna heater is better in every way. So, to business. The action plan is:

1. Reconnaissance with surveys - we look at whether it is possible to put a bathhouse on the site, where exactly, what size and layout;
2. The choice of material for construction;
3. Project design and approval;
4. Construction and equipment, from foundation and drain to furnace installation.

Project

The project should be delayed immediately. The procedure for its approval is the same as for other non-residential buildings. However, it is not recommended to start a self-construction and legitimize it later. A bath is not an essential building. If, after its construction, harmful neighbors complained like: “But we have smelly carrots from the garden, how they built a bathhouse!”, Then it will be very problematic and expensive to prove your point. On the other hand, for the same reasons (non-residential, not vital), the dreary walking through the authorities is simplified and facilitated. Based on this, 3 options are possible:

• Order a turnkey project from local designers, i.e. already approved and tied to a place, it will cost up to 5,000 rubles for a small bath. + state duties and fees;
• Designing it yourself is undesirable, not being a builder, you will get confused, and arrogant amateurs are not favored in the bodies;
• Download from the Internet a ready-made sketch, i.e. not tied to the terrain, the project, and bind it to yourself yourself.

The last option is the best if you are not afraid to sit under the cabinets for 5,000 savings. He has, so to speak, a sub-option - to give the downloaded sketch to the designers for binding and design. In this case, the savings are halved or tripled, but walking is for their soul, and it is there like a fish in water. All you have to do is choose a suitable building, estimate its location, make a copy from the homeownership plan and show the designer where the bathhouse will be. However, you should not download the first beautiful 3D picture you like with some schemes, you need to check that the bath project contains at least the following sheets:

1. A floor plan with the necessary sections and an explication (technical description) of the premises, like the one in fig. below;
2. A summary sheet of the required materials, and then keep the receipts for them, so that in which case you can show that it was not built from stolen goods;
3. Recommended type of foundation and its plan.

An important point in a building permit is the consent of the neighbors. This is not an IOU, other laws apply here. A simple piece of paper with a signature as an argument will not work, but if it and other sheets have the stamp “Approved” and a visa, then the conversation with that very neighbor is short: “Do you see the seal on your squiggle? Yes? So you went to your garden to pick carrots.

And one more little remark. It is not necessary to count the nails individually and measure out where to beat according to the project. Builders are well aware that deviation from the project is far from the same as squatter construction. Therefore, having an approved project, more or less experienced developers are building, as long as it looks like it, and then suddenly something will settle down. The number of storeys, the dimensions in the plan, the location of the load-bearing walls (there are already 4 of them in a small bath), the material from which it is built - wood like wood, brick like brick - and the foundation, its type and material should match. The rest, if we are talking about a bath, will no longer be a violation, but a deviation from the project, which can be solved. Any foreman on this topic will tell such stories - you will marvel and laugh.

Note: the question may arise - what kind of liberalism to deviations? The point is in mother earth, they are building something on it, and it is still impossible to predict exactly how it will behave. Therefore, hard-working builders are given free rein so that at their own risk they can decide on the spot, according to the circumstances, how to build it so that it stands.

Location, dimensions, layout

The requirements for the location of the bath on the site are shown in Fig. on right. Of these, when approving, they especially strictly look at the distances to the source of water supply, the house, and the drain from the borders with neighbors. They should be adhered to with a margin, and the priority of water supply is the highest. If, for example, according to local conditions, it is necessary to take a distance from a well or well from 30 m to the nearest sources of pollution (and the bath belongs to these), then we take this or another large value. The same applies to the distances to the neighbors, carrots can really stink from the bath drain.

Other requirements are flexible enough based on local conditions. For example, the distance to the house is taken so that seepage from the bath drain does not wash away the foundation. If the bath is lower on the slope, and the underground runoff is directed from the house to it, then you can keep within 5-7 m, then only according to the results of on-site surveys.

A lot of "creaking" when approving bath projects is caused by the orientation of the entrance not to the south. There is already a medical reason: suddenly the steamed one will come out on a cutting north wind, not for long and before pneumonia. But, say, in Ciscaucasia, the most evil wind in winter is just the south, the so-called. similar to the mountains, and in the wind rose in the north there is a dip, so in this case the orientation of the entrance to the bathhouse can be the opposite of the typical one. Well, it doesn't matter where the window looks. If you want to admire the hatch of the sewage pit when washing - your business.

On a normal personal plot the very possibility of building a bath can be decided by a meter and a half of its size. In such a case, we give informal area standards for 1 wash: 1.5 sq. m of a dressing room and 1 sq. m washing (shower). That is, a fairly comfortable home bath is possible in sizes from 3x4 m. Examples of the layouts of such baths are shown in fig. below, with a steam room separate and combined with a washing room. Their peculiarity is that the front door can be on any of the walls of the dressing room, which facilitates the location of the bath on the site.

On the steam room should linger especially. The fact is that the general state of health of modern citizens often simply does not allow them to bathe. In this case, you need a bath of 3 compartments with a separate steam room. In 3x4 m, such a layout can be laid, on the right in fig. with plans, but then there is the problem of heating the shower in cold weather. It is irrational to let the shower warm up, wasting hot water in vain, there is so little of it in the water heater of the stove, and there is no longer any place for a separate stove in the shower.

A way out can be found by departing from bath-planning traditions, especially if the area available for construction allows you to increase its size. For example, in fig. - a scheme of a bath from 3x5 to 4x6 m with a small dressing room, in fact, a dressing room.

A large washing room is heated either by a separate stove (marked ?; a simple home-made potbelly stove or something like that will fit here), or by an air flow from a part of a modern convector sauna stove in a steam room. In the latter case, 2 solutions are possible: either non-combustible partitions and part of the air convector goes into the washing room, as in the figure, or cold air intake above the floor of the washing room and supply of heated air under the ceiling using tin boxes or metal corrugations. Due to the presence of a vestibule, the general entrance can be oriented in any way, and for those who like to get hot, plunge into fresh snow or a pool in the steam room, there is a separate exit.

Note: about the second sign? in fig. and drain with drain, see below.

materials

The choice of material for the construction of a bath is primarily due to the physical processes in it. More precisely, our ancestors, based on the available and medical and hygienic requirements, understood at that time intuitively, but correctly, came up with the design of the bath building. Therefore, it turned out to be quite conservative and tightly tied to the tree. Wooden buildings require a very high skill and long technological breaks for shrinkage and self-shrinkage if inexpensive timber is used. It is possible to find a replacement for wood for a bath, for example. the foam blocks considered further or wood concrete, or sawdust concrete. Therefore, before choosing a material, let's see what kind of physics operates in the bath.

Bath physics

The first is that the bathhouse is not constantly heated, the heated one warms up very much, and when washed it becomes damp. Secondly, during heating, the sauna stove must first give a powerful stream of thermal (IR, infrared) radiation, which will warm the walls and be absorbed by them, and a little later - a strong stream of heated air, giving a uniform temperature in the steam room. At the time of washing, the furnace firebox is weakened so that those who wash it do not burn its directional IR. People in the IR bath from heated walls and the heat of the air should gently and evenly envelop; this, in addition to air far from being saturated with moisture, is an indispensable condition for light steam.

The lightness or heaviness of the bath is not so strongly related to the temperature. Steam at 45 degrees can be heavy, and at 70 - light. The portability and benefits of a bath for people of different, as they say, constitutions are expressed by a parameter that can be called the intensity of exposure to steam; among the people, it has long been known as the "vigorousness" of the bath. Also, the classification of baths on this basis has long been established:

• Lightweight, for women and children- from a linden forest, the heat capacity of the walls is small, the IR from them quickly “exhales” and the washable ones warm up more with air.
• Plain, or condo- traditionally from coniferous forest. Heating IR from the walls and air is approximately equal, depending on the mode of the furnace, it is suitable for almost everyone. It can be built from any materials suitable for a bath.
• Vigorous- from thick oak logs. Thanks to a long and powerful IR from walls with a large heat capacity, at only 50 in a steam room, one wiggle with a broom makes its way, as they say, even the bones are playing. But you can withstand vigorous steam only with iron health. In general, a vigorous bath is heroic, after it, figuratively speaking, it is just right to throw trucks, grabbing the car by the hitch.

Light baths were built by the rich more for their wives, daughters and other women dear to them: a light bath has a beneficial effect on women's health and allows you to maintain beauty for a long time; both sexes adds sexual activity. Dear Russian cocottes of the past, without fail, before accepting, let their visitors through a light bath, long before Russian word, denoting their profession, became obscene.

However, linden timber was expensive even in the old days. Now all centuries-old linden forests are under protection, there is no harvesting of commercial linden wood. However, they are close in properties to a light linden foam block and frame bath, which will be described in more detail below. They are the cheapest and easiest to build. But riding after a light bath in the snow or floundering in an ice hole is strictly contraindicated. Even before leaving it outside, you need to cool down in a warm dressing room, and then, dressed warmly, quickly slip into the house.

A vigorous bath, on the contrary, is very expensive and complicated, because. it can only be built from logs of the highest standard. Longitudinal hollows between log crowns act as traps for the initial IR furnace, driving heat into the walls; lumber walls absorb IR far less greedily. The same applies to any log baths, so an “almost vigorous” bath can be built from a pine log with a diameter of 200 mm or more. We will continue to deal mainly with “normal” condo baths, as the most versatile and affordable.

Selection and rejection

The best material for a bath is wood, because. under him, she was created. We will talk about foam blocks and other suitable materials later when describing baths from them, because. they go into business immediately without rejection. This cannot be said about wood: one that is quite suitable for a home may not last long in a bath due to the specific conditions described above.

Note: a brick bath is inferior to a wooden one in all respects, except for one - large, from 70-100 sq. m in plan, a brick bath building will be cheaper than a wooden one, and its bathing qualities with this large volume buildings will become acceptable. So brick baths built and are building mainly large public ones.

The best tree for a bath is larch, and for a vigorous bath - bog oak, but both are expensive. Most often, baths are built from pine or spruce wood after preliminary rejection of lumber. The first thing you should pay attention to is the complete absence of cracks (pos. 1 in the figure), then wormholes, pos. 2 and blue, blackness, etc. signs of decay, paragraphs. 2 and 3. Blueness usually accompanies wormholes (pos. 2), but can also appear as individual spots, pos. 3. The third sign of unconditional culling of this piece is falling knots. If the forest is conditioned, the selection criteria come into force.

Tar and dry wood

Coniferous timber, especially pine, has 2 varieties - tar and dry chips. The second is the usual timber, cut into quarters. The first is impregnated with resin, it smells strongly of it, if you run your finger over the saw cut, it sticks and gets dirty. Smolka is expensive. trees are cut down selectively during sap flow, which is by no means useful for the forest as a whole. Nevertheless, when building a bath from logs or timber, it is worth spending money on pitch for 2-3 lower crowns: it does not rot at all, but under the influence of moisture it turns to stone, turning into a kind of bog oak. For a frame bath, it is also advisable to take a resin bar for the lower strapping (bearing belt). And one more thing: on the rough floor of any bath, it is very, very desirable to purchase much less expensive semi-finished products and waste sawing tar with wane, first of all - the cheapest slab, see fig. You will have to sweat more, debarking and adjusting, but the floor will come out eternal and inexpensive.

Note: still in some places predatory logging is still practiced, when trees are cut quarterly all year round. This is beneficial for the local builders of baths - tar can be taken directly from the timber exchange cheaper than then dry chips from the distributor's warehouse. But for nature, this approach is nowhere worse, and you need to be able to evaluate raw wood by eye for warping during drying, see below, about timber.

Impregnation

All lumber for the construction of a bath must be impregnated with antiseptics, biocides and fire retardants. In addition to tar, it doesn’t rot anyway, it won’t accept any impregnation, and when it hardens, it will become very poorly flammable. Impregnations for wood are also sold separately, i.e., if it works out cheaper, then you can buy inexpensive untreated wood and process it yourself.

Wood impregnations are made from refined mineral oils and/or silicone. You can find recommendations to replace them with working off or fresh engine oil, but it’s not necessary. Engine oils contain additives that are useful to machines, not people. In the bath, they will inevitably get into the air and soak you through steamed skin.

logs

Raw, i.e. wild logs are rarely sold now - it is more profitable to dissolve them into measured material, and the waste will go into business, for pulp, etc. There are firms that sell wild wood, but the prices are selected - my respect. Therefore, all of a sudden, after reading the following, you intend to build a log bath, then you will have to buy rounded logs.

The first selection criterion is that the log must be whole and chamber dried; it is a very expensive material. Glued imitations, pos. 1 in the figure, they will perfectly go to a residential building, but not to a bathhouse, because. due to different warping of the lamellas (fragments from which the log is glued) in bath operating conditions they will soon split and rot with any impregnation.

The second point is cracks. T. naz. healthy radial cracks, pos. 2, in log cabins residential buildings quite acceptable, but in the bath they will become collectors of condensate with everything that follows; there are no natural air-drying logs without them, therefore, as mentioned above, only chamber logs are suitable. For the same reason, the log profile should not have recesses facing upwards, pos. 3. From logs of the Finnish profile and any of its modifications, excellent houses are obtained, but baths are not built from them.

The log for the bath should be with the usual so-called. moon groove, pos. 4 facing down. To do this, during construction, you need to choose a suitable cutting scheme, see below. The best sizes for a bath are 190 or 210, marked in fig. If a “more vigorous” bath is being built from pine logs, then, in addition to the increased diameter, you need to choose logs with a dark core and light sapwood, on the right in Fig. Logs with dark and light belts of growth rings will randomly go to a regular bath.

Note: if the “vigorousness” of the bath does not matter much, then logs can be taken with slightly different diameters. When cutting into the oblo (this is the best way for a small bath, see below), a completely suitable frame is obtained from different-sized logs, see fig. left.

bar

A log bath will cost much cheaper than a log bath and in appearance it fits perfectly into a suburban residential development, see fig. The cheapest and easiest way to build it is from an ordinary clean-cut timber (rectangular in cross section). The criteria for its rejection are the same as for logs, but a check for evenness is added.

It seems that a simple chamber-drying beam is not currently on sale at all - it is unprofitable. And the air-drying beam is all warped to one degree or another. In general, this is not scary, in the construction of a log house they always provide for a technological break for shrinkage and the tree's own shrinkage. During it, the bars will lie down to each other and cement, as they say, get used to the caulking with an almost solid array.

However, the shrinkage of the tree is not unlimited, and if the beam was dried incorrectly, it may turn out to be excessively warped, and the frame from it will remain with cracks. There are 2 options for purchasing: either from a trusted supplier according to the live recommendations of reliable people, or with an inspection of the stack in the warehouse by an invited specialist - a carpenter, furniture maker, forestry engineer, etc. unfortunately not possible.

Beam for the construction of a bath "under the log"

It is very attractive, but requires especially careful rejection of the tree, the construction of a log bath from a three-edged beam with a wane (pos. 1 in the figure on the right) or a 2-edged one, it is also a semi-edged sleeper, pos. 2.

These are semi-finished products, i.e. are inexpensive. Cutting them is not much more difficult than a simple bar and may well be done by a non-carpenter. But it is possible to build a bathhouse from such a bar that looks very similar to a “cool” log bathhouse, and in terms of properties - with an intensive firebox, it is close to vigorous.

As for the profiled timber, it is, firstly, expensive. Then, glued laminated timber should not be allowed into the bath, for the same reasons as imitation of a log, pos. 2 in fig. And a solid chamber beam is even more expensive, and only one selected entirely from the core (pos. 1) or sapwood will go to the bath. If both of them are immediately visible on the cut of the beam, it will split in the bathhouse structure. Finally, in the profile of the beam, as in the logs for the bath, there should not be recesses facing upwards, pos. 4. All this turns the choice into a living hell, especially since the sellers, knowing that their goods are quite good at home, do not understand such fastidiousness.

More about brick

Suddenly you want to build brick bath, keep in mind that the brick for it is also subject to rejection. The bath needs a heavy and dark low-porous, or moderately, without warping and swelling, burnt iron ore, or clinker. A beautiful face brick of dry or semi-dry molding is unambiguously unsuitable.

Construction

Well, we will assume that we have passed the difficult and responsible stage of selecting and rejecting the material. After all, the cost of it only needs time, knowledge and attention. Now - we are building a bath! Here, too, there is something to pay attention to, in addition to the usual construction work operations. In general, the sequence of building a bath is as follows:

1. Foundation;
2. Underfloor insulation and drainage equipment with a drain;
3. For frame baths - frame;
4. For them - a technological break for 2-6 months. for frame shrinkage;
5. Walls;
6. For log and timber baths - log cabin caulking;
7. For them, from air-dried materials (unprofiled timber, wild and debarked non-cylindered logs) - a technical break for 6-18 months. for shrinkage / shrinkage of the log house;
8. openings, doors, windows;
9. Ceiling;
10. Roof;
11. Interior arrangement and, mainly, the installation of the furnace.

Foundation

In the old days, baths were placed on an unburied foundation of boulders (item 1 in the figure), this made it possible to reduce the processing of logs of the lower crown to a minimum. To do this, they collected something like a lodgment or centers from wild stones, in which round logs did not roll. At the corners, large boulders with intersecting natural hollows were especially valued; those are the cornerstones. The original meaning of this term is now forgotten. A boulder foundation for a bath can be laid even today, but, alas, wild stone is now far from waste material.

Note: do not be surprised at the mention of cornerstones in the Bible and the Gospel. The now almost treeless Levant was then rich in excellent cedar trees. It was enough for buildings and fleets. What was King Solomon's palace made of? "Thanks" to the high value of the Lebanese cedar, now it is almost gone.

A full-fledged replacement for a boulder - not buried or shallow, pos. 2. The first is suitable for any wooden bath, and the second - for a foam block. In terms of complexity and laboriousness, the laying of both are available to novice builders, and at a price - the family budget is below average. There is only one drawback: it is not suitable for unreliable soils. These include:

• Medium heaving closer to strongly heaving and strongly heaving (heaving over 6-7% by volume) - fine silty sandy loam, dense loam, puffy clay, etc.
• Subsidence II category, over 5% by volume - loose loess and clayey.
• Weak, with a bearing capacity of less than 1.7 kg / sq. cm - humus, silty, peaty, loose sandy loam.

In places with a consistently positive winter and a low probability of freezing of the runoff, an excellent, simple and cheap option for a foundation for a wooden bath is a columnar, not deepened from ready-made blocks 200x200x400, pos. 3. A conscientious and attentive office city dweller, having undertaken to build, can lay it down over the weekend.

On a slope, which is very good for a drain device, and on unreliable soils, a bathhouse can be placed on a columnar foundation of asbestos-cement pipes, pos. 4. Under a wooden structure, it is approximately equal in cost and labor intensity to a tape one. Underfloor insulation in places with frosty winters increases both slightly. Under the bath of foam blocks or bricks, the heads of the pillars will have to be tied with rand beams or grillage, pos. 5, this is already a rather complicated and expensive process, especially the application of a grillage. However, for baths, you can most often get by with rand beams.

Finally, the pile-grillage foundation, pos. 6. It can be either welded metal, as in the figure, or concrete on bored piles. Both are quite complicated and expensive, and a high-quality metal pile foundation also requires special equipment.

Pile foundations are laid under buildings on soils, as they say, none: silty, peaty, weak, heavily watered; in general, "in the swamp." They don’t put a bathhouse on rotten wetness, but laying a pile foundation under it is justified in special cases.

For example, the author had a chance to take a steam bath in a vigorous bath on a steep hill above the river. A platform protruded above the pool, from which a ladder went straight into the water. From the bottom, springs were beating there - in summer the water was icy, and in winter a polynya held. Feelings - unspeakable, if you soar in paradise, then that's how it is and not otherwise. But you can build in such a place only on piles, otherwise in a year or two the earth will crawl, and the bathhouse will only gurgle or float, swaying. It is for such exclusives that the pile foundation for the bath is intended.

Wall insulation and sheathing

Before the construction of any bath on any foundation, except for boulders, it is necessary to apply double waterproofing from bitumen and roofing material, see fig. It is applied after the foundation has gained strength, except for welded metal.

If a wooden bath is to be built on a strip foundation, then before laying the 1st crown of the log house or the lower frame belt, slats 30x30 mm or 40x40 mm are laid out on the tape along the insulation, as shown in fig. left; with high-quality lumber, you can get by with thick, from 10 mm, shreds. The purpose of this crate is to prevent the wood from rotting from underneath due to capillary blockage. The remaining gap is then caulked along with the walls.

Note: in any case, no anchor bolts, etc. to attach the walls to the foundation is not needed. With thermal shocks that the structure of the bath experiences, there will be no benefit from them, except for harm.

Floor and stock

The floor and the drain of the bath are inextricably linked and therefore are considered together. Together they make up the most complex and responsible structural unit of the bath, which largely determines its operational and sanitary and hygienic qualities.

In the old bathhouses, the drain went directly to the ground through a slotted floor. Now it is forbidden to dump any runoff on the ground surface, but the slatted floor of the steam room / washing room is quite appropriate, see below.

The drain from the bath can be organized scattered, through the entire surface of the floor, or point (concentrated) through the grate (ladder) in the floor. The first, as we will see below, is more difficult, but much more hygienic. Point drain is done most often if drain hole is under the floor. This saves space and the volume of earthworks, but sanitation with hygiene - by 3 with a minus. In addition, there are no drain pits that do not require cleaning and pumping out at all, and in this case, for plumbing repairs, you will need to break the floor. An additional minus is that due to the infiltration of sewage directly under the building, the bathhouse will “lead” sooner or later.

As an argument in favor of a pit under the floor, they often cite - they say, it will not freeze. And, sorry, are you heating your bathhouse all winter? If you can afford it, then why samostroy? Order a turnkey bathhouse and take a steam bath. Unfortunately, there is no reason to add "to health" since there is a hole under the floor. The way to protect any sewage pit from freezing has long been known: it is a wooden cover 30-40 cm under the revision hatch. The drain from the bath is warm and under the double cover will have time to soak into the ground before the most severe frost reaches it.

Note: sometimes they also say that a gas-tight cover should be placed on the pit under the bathhouse. pure water a curiosity in the spirit of black humor - any sealed sewer once explodes, like a poorly sterilized jar of home canned food. In the bath - mainly during washing, because. a thermal shock during heating will play the role of an initiator.

Device diffused flow from the bath, it is clear from pos. 1 fig. It is highly desirable to equip the concrete drain with a self-made water seal, pos. 2, this will ensure that the bath meets the most stringent sanitary requirements. Concrete on the screed is taken waterproof; when self-kneading, a water-polymer emulsion is added to the water at the rate of 200 ml per 10 l, and the screed that has hardened and gained strength is treated with bituminous mastic. This should be done in the warm season, and before laying the floor, give a technical break for 5-7 days.

The bath should have a separate drain hole. The drain from the bath is large for a house sewer and volley, but much cleaner than kitchen gray, not to mention fecal from, and contains a little fat. If you run a bath drain into a properly calculated and built common one, then it will choke and the active bacteria in it will die. If you build a large and expensive septic tank based on a salvo discharge, then the usual runoff will not be enough for bacteria to feed, the activated sludge will turn sour, and the sewage system will stop working again. A drain pit is dug at the rate of 50-100 liters per 1 person washing to a depth of at least 30 cm below the calculated (normative) freezing depth, provided that it is buried in the mainland (under the fertile layer) soil by at least 1.2 m. RF, these conditions are maintained when the drain is deepened by 1.6-1.8 m.

The simplest and cheapest drain pit is obtained from car tires in a clay castle, pos. 3. But sewage will inevitably stagnate in its side pockets, and such a pit will have to be disinfected much more often. Keeping in mind the future costs of antiseptics, cleaning and pumping, it turns out to be more profitable to buy a pair of (60-70) cm concrete or plastic rings for wells. These are the smallest and cheapest well rings. Their height is standard - 90 cm; 2 is just enough. With an inside diameter of 0.7 m, the volume of the pit is sufficient for 5-6 washers.

Suddenly, the pit is still under the floor (maybe there is simply no place for an external one on the site), then the bath can be used no more than once a week. In this case, the point runoff will also be cheaper, and its complex and expensive concrete catcher under the floor can be replaced with an overturned low wooden tent. Then, around the mouth of the pit, it is necessary to apply high-quality waterproofing with a removal of at least 0.5 m beyond the drainage grate contour, pos. 4. However, this is also a bad way out: water will still seep under the insulation, and what kind of biocenosis will develop there, it’s better not to think about it. At least before meals.

Floor

The floor of the bath should provide, firstly, a quick and complete flow of water, without rotting itself. Secondly, to give sufficient insulation and guarantee against drafts from below, provided that it is impossible to clog the underground with thermal insulation, you will have to limit yourself to backfilling with expanded clay. To do this, the floor of the bath is made floating, pos. 1 in Fig., i.e. unrelated to the structure of the building. Lay the floor on the logs; their ends in the log wall are inserted into the cutouts of the lower crown, pos. 2. In a log bath, the ends of the logs are connected with crossbars to form a solid lattice, and in a frame house, as in a frame house, the floor logs together in the lower belt form the main supporting frame.

The lag step is 40-60 cm. Their height is 100-120 mm for a span of up to 4 m and 150 mm for a span of 4-5 m. With a larger span, intermediate pillars or internal sections of the tape must be provided in the foundation. The lag thickness is taken approximately 1/50 of the span length, i.e. 60mm for 3m, 80mm for 4m, etc.

In the intervals between the lags, the slab is laid with the convex side up. Because slab boards taper to one end, they are laid alternately with a narrow end in one direction or the other. Between the boards leave gaps of 5 mm, the same pos. 2 in fig. This design does not interfere with the flow, improves thermal insulation to some extent, and, together with the finishing floor boards laid across the slabs, protects against drafts.

It is very, very desirable to take tar pine for logs and rough flooring from slab. To reduce the cost of the floor of the log, you can make them a 3-edged beam or a semi-edged sleeper spread along in two, see above. But then they will have to be trimmed from the side of the wane so that the base for the finishing floor is even and horizontal.

The finished floor with scattered drainage is laid from an ordinary planed clean-cut board, preferably tar, with a thickness of 40 mm or more. Reducing the cost, again, will cost extra work: you can take an unplaned and unedged pitching board, “bring it to mind” yourself on a circular saw and a jointer (the old Soviet desktop UBDS-1 and the like are very convenient for this), and lay it in the flooring the remnants of the wane down. A clean floor is laid with gaps between the boards of about 5 mm, to drain water.

To lay a floor with a point drain, first a larch or tar board with a drain grate is placed between the lags above the pit or water seal. The floor is laid without cracks, with a cutout above the grate, pos. 3 and 4. The board must be taken not grooved, but with a castle quarter, pos. 5. After a technical break for shrinkage of the structure, the joints of the boards are poured liquid nails or rubbed with waterproof putty on wood.

With all the high cost, complexity and complexity, this is far from the best option. At pos. 4 it can be seen that, judging by the general condition of the floor and the lattice, the bathhouse is still new, but the floor under the bench is already slick. Apparently, the hostility of the builders to the scattered drain through the slatted floor is explained by prejudices and incomplete knowledge of the history of the Russian bath.

Walls and frame

The log bath looks, of course, chic, see fig. But we will not linger on them for a long time: these buildings are actually not for beginners. In any case, in order to build the simplest bathhouse, you will need to master 2 difficult technologies - cutting logs with a cloud with a residue, pos. And in Fig., and with a paw without a trace, pos. B-D. The latter, by the way, is technologically simpler, but requires calibrated logs, because the proportions of the marking template (pos. D) are tied to the side of the square inscribed in the diameter of the log, pos. D. In any case, the bottom of the logs of the first crown must be very accurately and evenly hung, because. a boulder foundation that can be fitted under the logs is now unrealistic.

Note: cutting into an oblo and into a simple bowl (see the figure on the right) is often considered the same work operation, because the configuration of logs ready for laying in a log house is the same. In fact, when cutting into the bowl, the notches and grooves turn up, which is unacceptable for a bath. When cutting into the oblo, the fitted logs are transferred to the log house with a flip, this complicates and slows down the assembly of the log house on the foundation.

From a bar

It is already quite possible for a beginner to build a bath from a bar: there is no need to choose curved grooves and holes in a tree. It is enough to be able to handle a saw, hammer, chisel and axe. To build a small, up to 4x5 m, bath, you need to master only 3, or only one, simple operation: a cut into half a tree or into an ocher with a remainder, or a cut without a remainder into a paw (at the butt); marked in Fig. "!".

A beam from 100x100 to 250x250 mm will go to the bath. The thicker, the naturally better and more expensive. In general, "weaving" is enough south of Voronezh, 150x150 for the Moscow region, and 200x200 - north of St. Petersburg. For 1-3 lower crowns, you need to take a beam a size larger, and again, it is highly desirable, tar.

Actually, the process of assembling a log house without a trace of non-profile clean-cut timber (the simplest and cheapest) by cutting into the end is shown on the next. rice. First, according to the template, the ends of the bars cut to size are prepared, pos. 1. If instead of a beam there is a semi-edged sleeper (pos. 1a), which is conditioned for a bath (see above), then you can get an almost complete imitation of a log cabin.

When assembling the log house, it is necessary to prevent the lateral displacement of the beams. A log cabin is held by moon grooves, but for smooth beams, ties in the corners are not enough. There are 2 options here. First, pos. 2 - simple, but not the best, because the nails in the frame will rust. The log house is immediately knocked down tightly, and the caulked tape (see below) is applied immediately. The location and length of the nails are the same as the dowels in the trail. option. Nails are needed secret, with a fully recessed hat, or a special tool for the hammer - a hammer; it looks like a bench punch with a ground end.

According to the 2nd method, pos. 3, the bars are fastened with round deaf dowels - dowels. Calibrated pins are on sale, it is better to take oak ones. The connection of the crowns with dowels is done as follows:

• The next one is placed on the previous crown.
• Holes are drilled exactly according to the diameter of the dowels through the upper beam to half the height of the lower one.
• Remove the top crown.
• Lay caulk tape.
• Pins are inserted by piercing the caulk over the nests under them.
• Again, now for good, they lay the upper crown, putting it on the dowels.
• The procedure is repeated until the complete assembly of the frame; pins are staggered, see again pos. 3.

Note: with a span of up to 6 m, it is enough to fasten the bars at the corners, as shown in fig.

And if the beam is profiled?

One of the reasons why they came up with a profile beam is the desire to get rid of the rather laborious and additionally expensive fastening with dowels. However, this consideration is not applicable to the bath: profiles that hold each other "iron" are not suitable for a bath. And for those that will not “catch” condensate, bath temperature deformations will soon break the ridges. Therefore, the log cabin of a bath from a profiled beam still needs to be fastened together.

Caulker

Log and log cabins for the assembly of caulk. For a log, you will need solid caulking skills and a complete set of caulking tools, see fig.

It is easier to caulk a beam: you will need a crooked steel caulk - a swab, a narrow wooden straight line and a mallet, see fig. below. The bath log house is caulked in both ways shown there: when assembling the log house, it is laid between the crowns to caulk for stretched caulking, and at the end of it they are finally caulked into a set.

Note: the flannel is designed to push the caulk between the logs. From its name comes "to fawn" in the sense of ingratiating itself with trust, to crawl with ulterior motives in mind, in general, to crawl under the skin. If the caulking is jute (see below), and the log house is timber-framed, no flint is needed.

It is impossible to do without caulking with waterproofing, even the most modern one: caulking not only seals the seams, but “merges” with the tree into a single array and finally holds the frame together. There are no synthetics that can replace it yet.

In the old days, they were caulked with moss in a stretch, and in a set - with oiled or tarred linen tow. Now most of all they caulk with jute fiber, it is almost wood in composition and lignin content. It is better to take jute hemp in the form of a set of ribbon and cord, see fig. The tape is loose, it is easy to pierce it with a finger under the dowel. They lay the tape when assembling the log house, and then you don’t need to fawn over it; after assembling the log house, they immediately caulk it with a cord into the set.

To prevent the log house from leading, they caulk strictly in the following sequence: the deaf long side of the lower crown inside, then outside, then also opposite it. Then - the short sides of the lower crown, starting from the one where there are no openings, also first from the inside, then from the outside. In the same sequence, the remaining crowns are caulked strictly in turn from bottom to top.

The result of the beam and log

The galvanized log of chamber drying can be considered a kind of profiled timber. A bath from it and a professional beam, also chamber-drying, can be used immediately after construction, because. these materials have undergone shrinkage and shrinkage during processing; this is the undoubted advantage of "chamber" wood. The cost of 1 sq. m of a bath room made of these materials in most regions of the Russian Federation exceeds the cost of a square of living space in new buildings of the middle class.

The most expensive, complex and time-consuming, but also the most prestigious, will be a log bath. Its bath qualities exactly correspond to those of the traditional Russian bath. In terms of “steepness” and cost, it is almost equivalent to a log sauna, but technologically it is much simpler and can be supplied by an amateur builder of medium qualification. In terms of steam quality, a log bath can be made almost indistinguishable from a log bath.

The use of chamber profiled beams for the construction of a bathhouse can be justified if it is not possible to reject air-dried or raw material by the piece, for example, in regions where there are no own logging operations and merchants flatly refuse to sell ordinary sawn timber selectively. Otherwise, it is possible, using semi-finished products of commercial wood, to put a log bath, and it looks almost indistinguishable from a log bath.

On the whole a log or timber bath can be recommended for those who are sufficiently wealthy, he takes care of his health, keeps his physical shape, and has already built at least a country house or a barn. If you are not sure that a condo, and even more so a vigorous steam room, will do you good, then it is better to build one of the light baths described below. The same option is shown with a lack of funds and building experience: light baths are simple and inexpensive, and their steam will not hurt anyone.

technical break

After assembling and caulking the log house, it is temporarily sewn up from above with boards, plywood, cardboard, etc., and covered with a film. The film is fixed in any way so as not to be torn off by the wind. The log house is left to dry and shrink for at least six months; best - from spring or early summer to autumn next year. During this time, the tree will not only dry out and sit down, but also get used to the caulk.

Openings, doors, windows

Methods for arranging door and window openings in log baths are mainly used 2. 1st, pos. 1 and 2 in the figure, “for the lazy and uneconomical”: only 1 of its upper timber is selected in size according to the width of the opening, and after a technical break, the opening is simply sawn out. However, this method is not so wasteful: trimmings can go to the shield ceiling (see below) and certainly to the internal equipment of the bath, bed, etc. after shrinkage of the frame, the edges of the future opening must be reinforced with dowels when assembling the frame, like corners.

According to the 2nd method, pos. 3, the bars are cut to size in advance, and a spike is selected at their ends extending into the opening. The disadvantage of this method is that special door and window boxes are needed, while according to the first method, simple frames made of boards will go to them. In general, it is better to make openings “in the first way” when the appearance of the bath does not matter much, and “in the second way” - when you want “more abruptly”.

Note: from the baths of the middle-budget class, the timber ones are certainly the best. Therefore, we give in addition a video about the details of arranging a log bath:

Video: building a bath from a bar, the right device

frame

The frame bath is built as well. Immediately after the frame is assembled, rafter beams are placed, and the frame dries / shrinks already under its own roof, in the center in fig. Since the openwork structure is blown by all the winds, the technical break for drying / shrinkage is minimal. Usually the frame is assembled in the spring, in the same autumn the bath is completed and even before the cold weather they are already steaming.

The second feature is that the finishing floor is laid along with the wall sheathing from the outside, on the right in the figure, in the usual sequence from bottom to top, i.e. starting from the floor. It is not necessary to insulate the walls from the outside, as is sometimes advised. For decorative purposes, something like sheathing with siding is enough, without laying polystyrene in the cells of the crate. So it is necessary that the walls are better ventilated. But it is necessary to insulate from the inside thoroughly, as in the foam block bath described below, excluding the underlying plaster.

The frame bath turns out to be the simplest and cheapest, even cheaper than a bath from foam blocks. According to the “vigorousness” of the couple, this bath is only and only light. However, taking a steam bath in it in winter north of Moscow is very problematic: it gives off heat well, and the insulation measures used in frame houses, make steam heavy. On the whole frame bath– a typical weekend summer bath; serves especially well as a country bath, combined with a utility block.

Note: there are no restrictions on the outer skin of the frame bath, therefore, imitations for timber, logs, etc. are possible.

Foam block

A foam block bath is the only type of bath structure in our time that allows you to put a light bath in any climate due to the high heat-insulating properties of the wall material. Baths made of aerated concrete can also be considered the cheapest and simplest technologically: their cost is lower than that of a timber bath by 25-30%, and even up to 50%, see below. The number of measurements and fine-tuning operations during construction for a foam block bath is several times less than for a frame bath, and it is not at all necessary to form curved surfaces in the material.

It is also important that, with a generally significant expenditure of working time, little physical effort is required when building a bath from foam blocks. You don’t need to swing a saw and an ax all the time, in general, the construction technique is set, attached, nailed. For citizens unaccustomed to physical labor, this circumstance can be decisive. And for summer residents - the fact that a technical interruption during construction is needed minimal, for curing mortars. In a typical summer, a week is enough for this, and construction can continue next weekend. Which, working together on weekends, two or three, you can, starting in April, complete by July and still have a good steam before winter.

Foam concrete, from which foam blocks are made, is a light material, it floats in water. Therefore, on stable and well-bearing soils, the construction of a foam block bath can be further simplified and cheaper. In general, a strip foundation is recommended for a foam block bath, pos. 1 in fig. But on reliable soils, it can be replaced with a non-buried columnar of ready-made concrete blocks, as for a frame bath, and walls can be erected on a frame made of timber from 200x200 to 300x300, impregnated with an antiseptic, water repellent and covered with waterproofing, like a concrete tape.

However, the lightness and, especially, the porosity of aerated concrete set the same labor during construction; True, not hard and easy. It is especially necessary to protect the walls from getting stuck inside and out: aerated concrete dampens not only easily, but downright with pleasure, but it dries very hard and for a long time. Therefore, looking ahead, we’ll immediately say that, having covered the roof, the bathhouse must be surrounded by a ventilated facade with a gap of about 5 cm. With any other method of external insulation / insulation, the dew point entering the porous, greedily absorbing moisture wall is inevitable.

Further, when erecting walls, pos. 2, only the first 2-3 rows are laid on an ordinary cement-sand mortar, and then they switch to a special adhesive for aerated concrete, it looks like a regular masonry mortar. The lightness of the material already plays a role here: the cement masonry joint, being lightly loaded, poorly resists shear loads, and the wind can simply fill up the structure.

The most peculiarities concern internal insulation. It is produced in this order:

1. Walls with waterproof plaster (lime; a water-polymer emulsion is added to the solution water);
2. On completely dried plaster, they are painted with water-repellent paint, better than polymeric facade paint, in extreme cases - iron minium, zinc or titanium white;
3. On the dried paint, waterproofing is laid with an overlap of 15 cm, securing it with horizontal slats;
4. Mats of long-staple mineral wool are laid between the rails, pos. 3;
5. Mineral insulation is sheathed with rolled foil on both sides of glass wool, also long-fiber, pos. 4 and 4a, with an overlap of 25 cm;
6. Vertical slats are stuffed over the foil insulation and the inner lining is already led along them;
7. Upon completion of the finish and installation of doors / windows, all cracks are carefully foamed, pos. 5: foam concrete does not care where it gets wet, the moisture in it spreads instantly. A cloud escaping from the steam room into the dressing room can ruin the bathhouse.

And once again, looking ahead, but not much: due to the features of the building, visible in pos. 1, the ceiling in the bath of foam blocks is made only by hemming.

Ceiling

The ceiling of the bath is made flat, hemmed or panel. The first is the original ceiling of a small Russian bath. For its construction, the well-established log cabin is sewn up with boards from above, the cracks are caulked with moss into the set from the side of the attic and filled with resin. Then truss beams are applied (see below, about the roof) and the gaps between them are covered with peat; sometimes the entire ceiling is tarred before backfilling. The floor of the attic is either laid, or not. Now, of course, it is better to caulk with jute, before installing the beams, cover the flooring with waterproofing, and insulate with long-fiber mineral wool.

The false ceiling, see fig., is suitable for any bath, because. it is stronger - the ceiling beams are at the same time rafters, moreover, they are mechanically connected with the log house / structure. Shield ceiling - a combination of a flat one with a hemmed one: a shield with insulation and insulation is assembled on the ground, and then, pulling up with the whole crowd, either with a crane or a mini-excavator manipulator, they lay it on a log house. The shield ceiling is good in that it can be “blinded” from scraps, but it is only suitable for a log bath up to 4x5 m in size.

Roof

Roof for any of the described baths fit gable. Rafter trusses - simple triangles with one crossbar-kerchief, in the center in the figure:

The pediments are sewn up with boards; you definitely need dormer windows that open for the summer and for the duration of use + an hour and a half after it in the winter. Hanging rafters are suitable for a log bath, on the left in the figure, for the rest - a complete truss with a coupler beam, on the right there. The crate under the roof deck is sparse, with slots from 30 mm, for ventilation. The flooring itself is any, except for iron, it does not hold heat well and quickly rusts in the bath.

Arrangement

To finishing materials for a bath, requirements, except for decorative ones - moisture resistance, hygiene, complete chemical neutrality. According to their combination, they often take a wooden lining from an array. MDF and laminate are not suitable, they will swell and become limp! The lining profile for any orientation of the boards must comply with the requirements described above: no pockets facing upwards, for example, as in fig. on right.

In the steam room, of course, you need beds. They are made 2-3 tiered, with a vertical step of 50-60 cm, even if only one person is steamed all the time. The reason is that you need the ability to choose the height of the location when hovering, depending on the general condition, so that the bath does not come out sideways.

The width of the beds is 60-80 cm; flooring - necessarily with slots of 10-20 mm, on the left in fig. The finishing floor under the beds is not laid, it will slick! The length of the boards is taken 180-200 cm for soaring in a prone position or 80-100 cm for soaring while sitting. “Economical” 150 cm polati for soaring with knees up is not the best option. Sometimes you want and need to raise your knees when soaring in prone, but if you soar all the time, it will not be good for your health due to the constant outflow of blood from the legs to the heart and head.

It is better to finish the shower / washing room from upright boards, on the right in the figure, so there is less chance of decay - it is easier for water to drain from the grooves. Also in the washing room, eat there or roll from the gang, benches are needed - to sit, steamed up, do your feet without risking slipping, for children.

About partitions

Capital partitions in the bath are not needed. On the contrary, they need to be made lighter so that the heat of the oven is more likely to dissipate throughout the bath. Partitions are placed in front of internal insulation, insulation and decoration. Material - boards or wooden lining on a wooden frame; total thickness - 50-70 mm. Moisture resistant drywall, plywood, etc. they are not suitable, they will not last long in the bath.

Bake

A requirement common to all sauna stoves is an elongated furnace channel so that the furnace door can be led into the dressing room. Tradition is a tradition, but in the old days they burned most often just in baths: a person's susceptibility to carbon monoxide increases sharply with an increase in air temperature.

For a bath with a common steam-washing room, an inexpensive sauna stove without an air convector, like the “Heat” and its home-made copies, is most suitable. A potbelly stove for a bath with a water heater will also go - in the smallest steam room, you can ensure the length of the horizontal part of the chimney from 2 m, which will make the potbelly stove quite economical.

It is unrealistic to maintain in a small bath the distance of the furnace from the walls of 60 cm required by the PB, and special fireproof ones, as in the steam room on the previous. rice are very expensive. Therefore, the corner for the stove in the bath must, firstly, be covered with a mat of vermiculite or mineral cardboard, pos. 1 in fig. on right. The usual refractory bedding made of asbestos and steel sheet is not suitable for a bath - iron heated to 60-70 degrees can be severely burned by stepping on the foot, because. the severity of the burn depends on the amount of thermal energy transferred to the body, and the metal gives off heat well and quickly. Therefore, by the way, steam burns are so dangerous - in this case, a very large latent heat of water condensation is released.

Secondly, the walls near the furnace must be covered with refractory lining. On the same pose. 1 builders did not stint on fireclay bricks for her. In physics - excellent, but, constantly moistened, fireclay will soon crumble, and the lining will have to be changed. The same high-burnt (dark) ceramic working brick that went to the top of the skin would fit to the very bottom.

A little more about the shape of the sauna stove. In a collective steam room, it is best to install a round stove, pos. 2 in the same figure, or a basket stove with a furnace part hidden in the heater. Then all the steamers will receive equal shares of health.

Unusual differences

The most vigorous of Russian baths is a dugout bath, see fig. For its construction, a dry sandy (better), sandy or loamy hillock is required. Walls, stove, chimney - from boulders or large rubble; the roof is covered with sod. A wooden lattice-frame is placed on the earthen floor, which is then thrown back against the wall so that it does not rot. Drain into the ground, which in our time is only possible furtively, but steam - Ilya Muromets would only grunt and hoot.

And here's something else - a camping mini-bath, see next. rice.

The design on the same principle is repeated by many, both in mobile and in stationary versions, see at least the video:

Video: mini-bath

But let's take a look at Fig. Doesn't this structure look like...? If you take a milky one, not translucent, on the skin? Unless the owners are prone to exhibitionism, and even then the neighbors will complain. All in all, it's worth a try.