The main requirements for a floor in a bathhouse are good heat conservation, resistance to rot, non-absorption of moisture, and provision of comfort to bare feet. This design is easy to organize in a log house. However, modern production does not stand still, and today a steam room can be built according to various technologies, for example, by frame. What is the difference between the floor in such a bathhouse, how to properly build and insulate it?

In most cases, a frame bathhouse is equipped with a wood floor. Its main components are boards and logs. Before starting work, it is necessary to correctly calculate the dimensions of each part. But since this task is quite complex, in private construction it is allowed to use average universal values, not forgetting to add 10-15% for the margin.

To create a finished floor in a frame steam room, it is recommended to take boards 3-4 cm thick, timber 10x15 cm. The subfloor logs are made of boards, the thickness (in mm) of which should be proportional to the gap between the logs (in cm). For example, if the latter is 50 cm, then the recommended thickness of the boards is 40-50 mm.

When choosing wood, it is better to use durable hardwood or softwood. The material must be thoroughly dried and free from cracks, tears and other external defects. It is recommended to select boards from the same cut, as this will ensure the same “behavior” of the material after installation.

Creating a floor in a frame bath

In most cases, events are carried out based on the technology of organizing a floor on the ground, but with minor changes.

Installation of logs

The logs are secured to supporting frame posts or to pre-installed support parts.

In the first case, installation is carried out on embedded beams and frame racks. Work begins after treating the base with molten bitumen, as well as impregnating the logs with an antiseptic solution. The latter are made from boards 5x20 cm.

• First, fix the outer joists using 8 screws on each edge. The length of the fasteners should be enough to penetrate them into the wood by 5-6 cm;
• Then you need to make sure that the lags are level and stretch a rope between them, which will be used to control the installation of the following elements;
• Fix the intermediate logs on the lower crown using metal corners. In the shelf adjacent to the embedded beam, use 6 bolts, in the shelf touching frame rack, – 5 each.

A gap of 2-3 mm should be maintained between the walls of the bathhouse and the logs to compensate for the deformation of the wood.

Installation of rough floor

The boards are mounted perpendicular to the joists:

• The first board is secured to the joists with screws or nails, not forgetting to leave a small distance from the wall. If one board is not enough to cover the entire length of the floor, then the second is laid in such a way that the joining takes place strictly on the joist;
• Then all subsequent elements are fixed. The latter is mounted in accordance with the dimensions of the remaining gap. Longitudinal sawing is carried out using a circular saw.

The boards are fastened as tightly as possible when creating a non-spillable floor and with small gaps when creating a pourable floor.

Installation of finishing floor

Arranging the finished floor allows you to perform waterproofing and ensure uniform distribution of loads. Installation work includes several stages:

• Lay the logs perpendicular to the rough flooring using 5x10 cm timber. The distance between the elements is 60-80 cm. The height of the logs should be such that there is a ventilation gap of 5 mm between the insulation layer and the finished floor;
• Fix the waterproofing material on top of the joists with a construction stapler with a slight overlap on the walls;
• Install thermal insulation and cover it with another layer of vapor barrier;
• Lay the boards (the laying pattern is similar to the installation of a subfloor), using tongue and groove material that has an attractive appearance.

Important nuance

When arranging a leak-proof floor in a frame bath, you must remember such an important nuance as the slope towards the drain hole. As a standard, it should be maintained within 1-2 cm per meter of canvas.

To ensure slope, U-shaped brackets and adjustable studs are used. Between the walls and the outer beams leave 4-5 cm, between adjacent logs - 40-60 cm. The logs are fixed in brackets in compliance with the required slope. The brackets are installed at intervals of 50 cm.

Conclusion

Having finished installing the wooden floor in a frame bath, it is recommended to treat it with two layers of drying oil. At the same time, do not forget that a high-quality design must meet all technological standards, ensure water flow, keep the room warm, be comfortable and convenient.

The floor in the bathhouse should be warm, not rotten, and not absorb water. Such a floor is not difficult to make in a log house. What to do if you have a frame bath? After many days of deliberation, it was decided that in my frame (6x4.5 m) the floor would be multi-layered, with OSB lining and an installed electric heated floor system. This will make the surface comfortable and speed up its drying between procedures. Where the stove is installed on the floor, to evenly distribute the load, a device is needed concrete slab- supports.

I will describe the entire process of installing such a floor. At the beginning of construction there was a columnar foundation and a wooden grillage on it.

• 3 Installation of a concrete slab under the furnace
• 4 Installation of a heated floor system
• 5 Floor tiling

Installation of floor joists

First of all, a frame with internal jumpers and joists was knocked together from 150x50 boards. Beam spacing, by long side frame was 400 mm. Additional beams are installed around the perimeter of the future slab.

Floor covering device

Scheme of the floor “pie” (from bottom to top):

• subfloor rolling – OSB-3 (thickness 6mm);
• waterproofing and wind protection – “Izospan A”
• insulation – ecowool
• OSB-3 shield (thickness 18 mm);
• insulation – EPPS, 5 cm;
• vapor barrier – “Izospan D”;
• reinforcing mesh;
• underfloor heating cables;
• screed;
• tile adhesive;
• tile.

Now let's talk more about each layer.

Step #1 - rolling the subfloor

OSB-3 sheets 6 mm thick were nailed to the bottom side of the joists. They have drainage holes drilled for ventilation. A hole was also cut for the drain outlet.

Installation of a subfloor from OSB-3 sheets

Step #2 - waterproofing the floor

Waterproofing and windproof film “Izospan A” was laid on the roll. All joints were taped with construction tape.

Waterproofing subfloor roll-up with Izospan A film

According to the plan, the supply ventilation hole in the bathhouse will pass under the stove. To organize it, a metal box from the hood. A drain tee is also installed.

Installation of the supply ventilation duct

Step #3 - insulation with ecowool

The first layer of insulation is ecowool. But since niches were formed in the ceiling between the joists and the lower frame of the walls (where it is difficult to deliver ecowool), they were filled with Rockwool insulation.

“Rockwool” insulation is laid in niches under the wall trim

I beat the ecowool with an electric drill. During the process, the material increased approximately 2.5-3 times its original volume. The fluffed insulation was laid manually between the joists on the waterproofing. The surface was compacted and leveled with the rule flush with the joists. At this stage, the drainage organization is completed.

Laying ecowool between floor joists

Step #4 - OSB-3 sheathing

Next, the ecowool was covered with another layer of OSB-3. The sheets were cut into pieces so that their edges were located on the joists. Between the logs and the lower frame of the walls, wooden inserts are also fixed, serving as supports for OSB-3.

Embedded timber for OSB-3 support

Taking into account possible expansion (swelling), OSB-3 was laid with a small gap of 2-3 mm. They were secured with self-tapping screws to the joists.

Step #5 - insulation with EPS boards

The next step is additional insulation of the floor with a layer of EPS (extruded polystyrene foam). The slabs were laid in staggered order. To do this, entire slabs had to be cut with a construction knife (if you have a jigsaw, it’s better to use it).

The drain has been waterproofed. “Izospan D” is glued around the drain with double-sided tape, and the joints between the pipe and the film are filled with sealant.

Waterproofing the drain using Izospan film and sealant

Space has been left for installing a concrete slab under the stove.

In the place where it is planned to pour a concrete slab under the furnace, EPS does not fit

Step #6 - Placement of Vapor Barrier

A vapor barrier film “Izospan D” was laid on top of the EPS, and stapled to the EPS. The film is laid with an overlap (by 5 cm), the joints are taped with construction tape. To prevent rotting of the lower framing of the frame, the film is placed on the walls (10-15 cm) and connected to the vapor barrier of the walls.

Organization of a vapor barrier layer from Izospan D film

Installation of a concrete slab under the furnace

The bathhouse will have a metal electric stove. To protect those steaming from burns and to transform the sharp heat coming from the metal walls into pleasant warmth, it is planned to line the stove with bricks. The total weight of a stove with a brick screen will be quite impressive. It is necessary to install a concrete slab that ensures the stability of the furnace equipment and, in function, replaces the foundation.

The dimensions of the foundation slab are 15 cm larger than the dimensions of the brick screen (around the stove) by 15 cm. First of all, reinforcement is created at the location of the slab. A mesh is laid on OSB-3 sheets, its parts are connected with wire into a single web.

Plate thickness – 50 mm. At this height, along the perimeter of the slab, formwork made of boards was installed. Concrete with crushed stone of a fraction of 5-20 mm is poured inside. The slab was covered with film to maintain moisture and prevent cracking of the concrete. For the same purposes, every day the slab was moistened with water from a spray bottle until completely dry.

The concrete slab must stand for at least 2-3 weeks before installing a stove on it

A week later the formwork was removed.

Installation of a heated floor system

The presence of a heated floor promotes the rapid evaporation of moisture from the heated floor surface. This type of floor dries quickly and mold and mildew do not have time to form on it. And the constantly warm surface is very comfortable for bare feet! These reasons determined the choice of electric flooring for the steam room, washing room and rest room.

To facilitate cable installation, a 50x50 mm masonry mesh is laid on the surface of the vapor barrier. The mesh parts are connected with wire.

The cable was secured with 100 mm ties. A heated floor sensor is installed in the wall.

Laying underfloor heating cables on a grid

Installation of a heated floor sensor on the wall

Before pouring the mortar, the masonry mesh was raised 1 cm from the floor. To do this, from the remains of foamed polyethylene (remained after insulation plumbing pipes) were cut into pieces and placed under the net. You can use any other material that does not wrinkle, does not bend and holds its shape.

The thickness of the floor screed is 30 mm. In the steam room, relaxation room - without a slope, in the sink - with a slope of 5 mm/1 m towards the drain. To form flat surface beacons were used - U-shaped profile 19x20mm. First, wood grouse were placed on the floor surface using a laser level, and beacons were laid on top of them.

The screed was filled with a cement-sand mixture with a plasticizer (PVA glue) and fiber (reinforcing additive). Mixed in a concrete mixer. The solution turns out to be gray, dense, and almost as strong as metal.

The next day, the beacons were removed from the fresh screed and the wood grouse were unscrewed. The resulting holes are filled with mortar and rubbed flush with the hardened screed. Afterwards, the screed is moistened with water and covered with a film to prevent cracking. The film is removed after the screed has completely hardened. I did it after 5 days.

Screed device for subsequent tiling

Floor tiling

The hardened screed is covered with a concrete primer (I used Knauf “Betonkontakt”). For floor covering was chosen ceramic tile with a rough surface and a low level of water absorption (2%). This tile is recommended for use in wet areas with high traffic and the likelihood of damage.

The tiles are laid using moisture-resistant glue; in this case, Ceresit CM 11 was used. Using crosses, a 5 mm seam was formed between the tiles. The level of cladding was controlled by the building level.

On last stage The cladding was grouted. I decided not to use regular colored grout, due to the fact that it would quickly turn dirty gray on the floor. Therefore, the seams were sealed with the same tile adhesive. It’s a good idea to use a regular one for the same purposes. cement mortar. It turns out neatly, the mixture does not fall out of the seams, and retains its original shape for a long time. appearance. And in terms of strength it is not inferior to the most expensive grouts.

This is the floor I got in a frame bath. The main thing is that it is beautiful, warm, moisture does not stagnate on it, and no foreign odors are observed.

Do-it-yourself bathhouse floor - step-by-step guide

Laying floors is the most critical stage in the construction of any building. Properly laid floors reduce the load on the foundation, distributing it evenly, thereby extending the service life of the structure. In addition, properly laid floors mean the convenience and safety of people who live in the building or constantly use it.

It is especially important to follow the installation technology when building a bathhouse, since a bathhouse is a special object, in the premises of which there is high humidity and high temperature; both hot and cold water is used abundantly.

Below we will talk about what kind of bath floors there are, and we will try to describe their installation in the form of a step-by-step guide.

Types of floors

In the bathhouse, the floors can be made of concrete, wood or brick. The latter type of flooring is used very rarely.

The fact is that while brick has a high heat capacity, it also has low heat transfer. In other words, it heats up so much that you can get severe burns. Therefore, brick is used to construct the base for concrete or wooden floors.

a) concrete floor

This flooring is designed for long-term use. Its service life is at least 50 years.

Concrete floor is a cold floor. It requires large financial investments, labor costs and time.

b) wooden floors

The best and cleanest material for bath floors is wood.

There are two types of wooden floors that are installed in a bathhouse:

• leaky;
• leak-proof.

We will discuss the design of each of them below.

Concrete floor. Laying

A concrete floor is, in fact, a concrete screed. Either a floor covering is laid on it, or its surface is used as a floor.

It must be taken into account that in concrete mortar includes cement, sand, filler. Gravel, crushed stone, marble chips, etc. are used as filler. Such a solution cannot be prepared manually. Even using a hammer drill, it is impossible to get required quality solution. Therefore, it is better to purchase the solution at a concrete plant or replace sand-cement mortar. This solution can be easily prepared using a hammer drill with a special attachment. Ready-made dry sand-cement mixtures can be freely purchased at any specialized store.

Prepare the solution, taking into account what the floor covering will be. If the surface remains concrete or a plank floor is laid on top, then you can prepare a regular solution. If you plan to lay tiles, then you need to add gypsum with anhydrate to the solution or buy a specialized self-leveling mixture.

When installing concrete floors, you will also need materials such as:

• roofing felt;
• broken brick;
• gravel;
• reinforcing materials, for example, metal mesh;
• perlite It is designed for floor insulation. Add it to the solution when mixing;
• Styrofoam;
• mineral wool.

The concrete floor can be laid either on the ground or on joists.

All work on installing floors is divided into three stages. Preparatory stage, basic work, installation flooring.

Preparatory stage

First, we install a waste water drainage system. Naturally, it must first be designed and marked on site. The system includes two pipes and an intermediate tank. Typically the reservoir is a hole dug in the ground. Its dimensions should not be less than 40 x 40 x 30 centimeters. The bottom and walls of the tank are concreted. The recommended thickness of the concrete layer is 5 cm. A drain pipe extends from the tank. The recommended diameter is 20 cm. It is displayed either in gutter, or into a special septic tank. The second pipe is led into the tank from the bathhouse. First, determine the level and location of the drain hole, and only then lead the pipe from this place to the tank. In order to unpleasant odors did not penetrate into the room, it will be equipped with a special valve.

Having completed the installation of the drainage system, we begin to prepare for pouring the floor.

First, let's prepare the base of the floor.

StageDescription

	remove the top layer of soil, add sand, then compact it thoroughly. Ideally, you should have a flat area with a uniform surface
	pour gravel, preferably a large fraction, compact it. If there is no gravel, you can use broken bricks. It needs to be compacted even more thoroughly - so that the surface is uniform and even. The thickness of the resulting layer should be no more than 15 cm; pour a layer of crushed stone. We compact it in the same way as the previous layers. The thickness of this layer is 10 cm
	fill the resulting pillow with concrete. The thickness of the layer is 5 cm. This first layer of concrete must be given a slope towards the water drainage, that is, the reservoir. The gap between the concrete and the foundation walls is covered with bitumen
	After the concrete has set, we lay the insulation. Expanded clay, polystyrene foam, and mineral wool can be used as insulation. If we use expanded clay, then pour it in an even layer on the surface of the pillow. If we use mineral wool, then first we lay waterproofing, for example, roofing felt, then the mineral wool itself, then another layer of roofing felt on top. You can use perlite to insulate the floor. Perlite is a volcanic rock that retains heat well. But it is very volatile, so they work with it only in closed place. That is, you need to mix the solution using perlite indoors. Consumption rates, as well as exactly how to use it, are usually indicated on the packaging of the material.
	After insulation, we lay the reinforcing material. Most often, metal wire or mesh is used as a reinforcing material.

Main works. Pouring the floor

It is better to pour the floor with helpers. The solution thickens quickly, which is why efficiency is needed. That is, someone prepares the solution, someone pours it, and someone levels it. When pouring, the solution should be compacted. This is done so that the screed is homogeneous and does not form cavities, voids or other defects. To perform this operation, a vibrator is used.

Before pouring, the floor is waterproofed, and beacons are installed on the site. The step is no more than 1 m. With the help of beacons it is easier to obtain a flat surface. They are installed either on the surface of the insulation, or attached to pre-marked places on the foundation walls.

Filling begins from the farthest point and leads to the exit, leveling the solution. You need to level it with a trowel and tighten it with a rule. In this case, the movements are made in a circular manner, they need to be directed towards the exit.

Video - Concrete floor on the ground

Video - Pouring screed over insulation

The concrete will set in two days, and further work can be carried out. But the load on the floor can be applied only after it has completely hardened. The screed takes about three weeks to completely harden and depends on temperature conditions. The higher the room temperature, the faster the concrete sets.

It's easy to check its readiness. The set concrete can withstand the blow of a hammer. It doesn't even leave marks on it. The color of its surface should be uniform gray.

Flooring installation

The floor covering can be the surface of the screed itself, a board or tile.

We must not forget that the floor in the bathhouse must be sloping. The slope should be approximately 2 cm. It is made towards the drain hole.

a) concrete surface

Actually, this is the screed itself. Only its surface must be carefully leveled and, preferably, polished. It must be taken into account that the concrete floor is cold. Therefore, instead of the bare surface of the screed, it is better to use a covering made of tiles or boards.

b) tiles

When laying, the tiles are glued to the surface with a special glue. You should not use tiles as a floor in a bathhouse. When wet, it becomes slippery, so it is better to lay a broomstick. It is ideal for wet areas.

c) plank floor

Installation of such a coating is as follows:

• We lay waterproofing, for example, roofing felt, on the surface of the screed;
• We lay insulation on the waterproofing, for example, mineral wool, polystyrene foam;
• We again lay waterproofing on top of the insulation;
• We install logs, i.e. bars, the size of which is 5 by 5 cm, no more. A plank floor requires natural ventilation, so you will also have to make additional holes in the foundation;
• lay out the board. For the flooring you need to use edged planed boards, preferably tongue and groove.

If we lay a concrete floor on joists, then the steps will be as follows:

• We install a waste water drainage system. We described how to do it above;
• We level the area, add gravel, and compact it. You can additionally make a concrete screed as described above. The resulting pillow should have a slight slope towards the drain;
• we install logs. A beam of a certain cross-section is used as a lag. You can lay it on the ground, but it is better to secure it to the foundation walls. In this case, you need to use logs with a cross-section of 10x20 cm. The distance between them (step) is 50 cm. We must not forget about pre-treatment of the timber with agents against rotting and the effects of microorganisms;
  
  
• We lay an intermediate, rough, floor on the logs. To construct it, we use an edged board with a thickness of at least 30 millimeters. We seal all cracks, joints, gaps in the floor;

  
  

• We lay waterproofing on the intermediate floor. If joints or gaps appear, we seal them;
• We lay insulation on the waterproofing;

  
  

• lay another layer of waterproofing;
• then we lay the reinforcing mesh.
  
  

The preparatory work is completed, we are pouring the floor. After the screed has set, we lay the covering. The choice depends on the taste and desire of the owner.

One general note, it applies to all types of floors that are used in the bathhouse. Synthetic materials, for example, linoleum cannot be used as a floor covering. At high humidity And high temperature they become a source of toxic substances. The person will simply be poisoned.

Wooden floors leaking

The simplest floors. The design of leaking floors does not provide insulation, so they are used either in the south or in the warm season, in the country. There is no water drainage system as such in the design of such a floor. Waste water is most often drained directly onto the ground. But, if the soil is clayey, then you will have to install a water drainage system. To do this, we make a reservoir, as described in the section describing the construction of concrete floors. There is no need to bring the pipe into the bathhouse. The design of the floors does not require a special drain hole.

If we lay the logs on the ground, then perform the following steps:

The service life of such floors is short. They will last no more than five years.

Video - Laying posts for logs

There is another option for installing leaky floors:

• After preparing the site, beams are installed along the perimeter of the foundation. They are made from timber treated with an antiseptic. Its size can be 100 x 100, 100 x 150, 150 x 150 mm;
• logs are attached to these beams;
• The floor covering is laid on the joists.

Floors can be made from both softwood and hardwood. Most the best wood Larch is considered to be used for flooring. But, unfortunately, in our time it is very, very difficult to find larch. Therefore, pine is used when constructing floors. Linden is the most commonly used hardwood tree. Oak should not be used. It becomes slippery when wet.

A small digression. In Rus', bathhouses have always been built from aspen. It was believed that she drove away evil spirits and restores health.

The boards used for flooring are edged and planed. Its thickness must be at least 30 mm. The most common board for flooring is a 50 mm thick board.

A bathhouse with non-leaking floors can be used all year round in any region of the country. The design provides for the installation of an intermediate subfloor and installation of insulation.

The work that needs to be done when laying a leak-proof floor is as follows:

• We install a waste water drainage system. To do this, we dig a hole (reservoir). The sizes are shown above. We concrete it;
• we drain water into the drainage ditch. We use a pipe with a diameter of 200 mm for drainage. We install the second pipe. It will be connected to the floor drain. We install a siphon at the outlet of the pipe so that there is easy access to it. It will be needed to clean the siphon from accumulated dirt and debris;
• We are preparing the site. We remove the surface of the soil and fill it with sand. Carefully compact the area. We fill the area with gravel and compact it thoroughly again. You can additionally pour a concrete screed. The thickness of the screed should be no more than 5 cm;
• We lay waterproofing on the resulting floor base. Most often, roofing felt is used as insulation;
• install insulation. As insulation, you can use a layer of expanded clay or polystyrene foam. If the logs are laid on the base, then the insulation can be laid between them. The distance between the logs is 50 cm.

Video - Laying the floor in a bathhouse

Video - Procedure for laying floors in a bathhouse

The second option is when the logs are laid on pre-installed beams. In this case, beams made of massive timber with a cross-section of 10x20 cm are attached along the perimeter of the foundation. Further:

• installing an intermediate floor. It is attached to the bottom of the beams, if they are provided for in the design. If not, then we put it on the logs:
• An additional layer of insulation can be laid on the intermediate floor. In this case, waterproofing is installed first. Then insulation is placed on it. Another layer of waterproofing is laid on it.

Now let’s lay out the main finished floor. It must be installed with a slope towards the drain. The board is attached to the joist with screws or nails. We remove the siphon into a pre-prepared hole.

Vido - The nuances of laying a wooden floor in a bathhouse

When constructing non-leakage floors, it is used planed board thickness of at least 30 mm. It is best to use a tongue and groove board. That is, a board that has a groove at one end and a tongue (protrusion) at the other. A beam with a section of 50 x 50 or 50 x 70 mm is usually used as a log. Beam - a beam with a cross section of 100 x 100 or more. For the manufacture of boards and logs, beams, wood of both deciduous and coniferous species is used. Most often they use either pine or linden. The insulation can be expanded clay, polystyrene foam, or styrofoam.

Mandatory requirement for wooden floors in a bathhouse, both leaking and non-leaking is the presence of ventilation holes in the foundation. They are made so that the wood, as they say, breathes. That is, it released accumulated moisture into the atmosphere. We must not forget that the lower edge of the floor must be no less than 10 cm higher than the upper edge of the plinth.

The service life of non-leaking floors is at least 10 years.

Video - Floor in a bathhouse (preparing boards)

Video - Floor in the bathhouse (installation of beams)

The problem of heavy steam, constantly cold floors, rotting floorboards and mustiness in the steam room is familiar to many bathhouse attendants firsthand. In fact, all this can be solved, especially at the construction stage. A good effect is achieved by using a pouring floor (with slots), heated and dried through ventilation. I'll try to explain how this technical solution I managed to implement it in a frame bath on screw piles.

How does a ventilated flow floor work?

A poured floor is a classic, there’s nothing complicated about it. The boards are not laid end to end, but with small gaps. Water that gets on the floor seeps through these cracks into the subfloor. There she remains for some time. If the subfloor is not ventilated and remains cold, a damp smell appears, and gradually the floor boards begin to rot. In addition, there is heavy steam, stuffiness, and there is a feeling that you can’t breathe. Not much pleasant.

Of course, it is worth noting that such a nuisance is common both for poured floors and for ordinary wooden ones, with floorboards laid end to end. Wood, whatever one may say, absorbs moisture and as a result begins to rot.

The problem can be solved by including the floor and subfloor in common system ventilation of bath rooms. That is, you need to make sure that warm air from the steam room could get into the underground, warm up and dry the wet floorboards. Due to the design of the pouring floors (the presence of cracks), it is quite easy to “force” the hot air to fall into the underground and do your work there.

In my bathhouse this is implemented as follows:

• the sink and steam room use a pouring floor with a common subfloor in the form of a pallet;
• the walls of the sink and steam room are insulated and separated by a sealed partition;
• the stove is embedded in the partition between the sink and the steam room, the firebox is located on the sink side;
• air for the firebox is taken only from the sink (with behind closed doors and windows);
• outside air is supplied to the bathhouse through a ventilation duct located under the stove convectors; air access to the steam room through other channels is not provided.

When the furnace is fired and draft occurs, external air enters the convector through the ventilation duct, warms up and rises up to the ceiling of the steam room. Gradually it cools down, lowers and, under the influence of traction, passes through the cracks of the pouring floor into the subfloor.

I repeat that the subfloor in my version of the floor is a sealed pan and the heated air, having entered it, does not dissipate, but exits through the cracks in the floor into the washing room. Then it goes into the furnace firebox. Thus, the air moves along the circuit, blowing and warming the subfloor.

The following photos clearly illustrate technological solutions for the described ventilation scheme:

Partition between sink and steam room, stove built into the partition

Under the stove there is a ventilation duct through which outside air accesses the convector

Ventilation duct holes in grillage

There's nothing complicated about it. It is enough to install a stove between the sink and the steam room, arrange it between the logs ventilation duct for supplying air to the furnace convectors. And poured floors with a sealed underground will be included in the ventilation system. Now I have come to the most important issue, which is what my photo report is devoted to - the issue of installing hot water floors.

Step by step construction process

Step 1. Installation of grillage and joists

I began constructing the floor after the screw piles that served as the foundation for my bathhouse under construction were screwed in and filled with concrete. The height of the posts above the ground is 50 cm, 10 pieces in total.

The first step is installation of the grillage. I compiled it from horizontal beds(200x50 mm boards) extending into the internal inter-pile space and vertically installed 150x50 mm boards. The beam boards are fastened with self-tapping screws and nailed. The grillage is installed on piles and screwed to them with anchor bolts.

The logs are laid on the beams, pulled through the vertical grillage boards with self-tapping screws and nailed with 100 mm nails.

All boards are antiseptic with HMF BF. According to the project, a polycarbonate tray will be pushed under the grillage and screwed to the beds.

Step #2. Ventilation duct device

To ensure air supply to the stove convector, a ventilation duct was formed in two spaces between the logs (under the stove). To do this, I drilled holes in the grillage board, closed the opening between the joists with crossbars, hemmed an OSB sheet underneath, and sealed the seams with sealant.

Holes in the grillage board - for air access to the ventilation duct

Logs under the bottom of the furnace, forming the frame of the ventilation duct

I made a double cover for the ventilation duct, also from OSB. In the first part of the lid (it is permanently installed and cannot be removed), I cut out holes that will be placed under the bottom of the oven. Covered them with shallow metal mesh– to protect against dust and dirt.

The second part of the cover was not secured with anything; it can be removed to clean the ventilation duct if necessary. I sealed the joint with plumbing tape. On top of the lid I placed two LSU plates with cut out windows so that they coincided with the holes in the ventilation duct cover. All seams were sealed with sealant. As a result, I got a ventilation duct with thermal protection.

The cover for the ventilation duct is made double with two holes through which air will flow to the stove convector

Glass-magnesium sheet (GFS) is a non-flammable material with excellent thermal insulation properties

Outside, I installed an anemostat on the ventilation duct openings to be able to block access to the duct (reducing draft, protecting against insects). I also installed a supply fan there to increase the flow of fresh air.

The anemostat allows you to open and close the ventilation duct as needed

The supply fan allows you to increase the flow of outside air into the steam room

Step #3. Pallet assembly

Let me remind you that the design of my pouring floor consists of two parts - the floor itself (floorboards on joists) and a sealed tray that slides under the grillage.

I'll start with the pallet. It is made of a wooden outline (board) and a polycarbonate bottom with a drain. The shape of the pallet is the simplest, providing for the inclination of the body boards to the right corner of the grillage. This is where the drain goes.

The body is made from boards 150x50 mm, treated with HMF BF antiseptic.

The bottom material is polycarbonate, used for greenhouses, 4 mm thick. I’m not worried about it; it’s one of the most reliable and durable structural plastics. The polycarbonate is screwed to the body boards with self-tapping screws. The contact areas of the polycarbonate caps are protected with plumbing tape.

Polycarbonate sheet screwed to the wooden body of the pallet

To prevent the polycarbonate from sagging, the bottom is reinforced with wooden slats.

The slats will not allow the polycarbonate bottom to sag and crack under its own weight and the weight of water

The drainage area is lined at the bottom with a triangular OSB cover. All seams and joints are coated with sealant.

The finished pallet is pushed under the grillage, lubricated with sealant, jacked and screwed to the planks with plumbing bolts. The joints are sealed with sealant.

The pan turned out to be very sealed, the water leaves only through the drain. When the drain becomes clogged (with soap, small debris), the water sits in the pan, like in a trough. This necessitates checking the condition of the pan and cleaning the drain as necessary.

For the ventilated floor scheme to work, it is not necessary to make a special tray, like mine. The main thing is that the underground is airtight.

For example, concrete when using a strip foundation. Then the foundation walls will become the walls of the underground. But! The vents will have to be plugged while heating the bathhouse, otherwise, instead of heating the floor, you may end up with condensation on the subfloor surfaces.

Step #4. Laying floorboards

I decided to use dry planed boards as floorboards. I laid them on the joists and left gaps. I didn’t secure the boards with anything, I just laid them out and that’s it – fortunately, they are heavy, so they practically don’t “walk”. This solution helps me simplify the maintenance and cleaning of the tray. After visiting the bathhouse, the boards are removed, placed on edge and dried. The pan can be washed and the drain cleaned.

The floorboards are laid with gaps - for water drainage and free air circulation

A hot pouring floor in a steam room is a worthy solution to the problem of heavy steam and musty air in a bathhouse

results

As a result, my bathhouse always has warm and dry floors. And also - light steam and quick heating of all surfaces.

The climate in the bathhouse is as follows:

• With the doors closed and the furnace fired, the temperature on the shelf rises to 45°C in 10-15 minutes (provided that the bathhouse is slightly warmed up with the doors open to a temperature on the shelf of 25°C).
• After an hour of bathing procedures, the temperature on the shelf is about 60°C, the floorboards heat up to 50°C. The floor becomes pleasantly warm, almost hot, as do the walls with the shelf.
• The floor in the steam room dries almost instantly, and in the sink area - in a few hours.
• It is easy to breathe in the steam room, as there is an influx of fresh air (which is immediately heated by the stove) through the ventilation duct.
• There is no need for frequent ventilation.
• No musty smell.
• You feel that the air is drier than in the old Russian baths, but, of course, not to the same extent as in the sauna. It’s easy to increase the humidity – you just need to add water to the heater.

There are also some shortcomings, but they are minor, at least for me. Firstly, the efficiency of the bathhouse is somewhat reduced, since fresh air is constantly heated, and the heated portion is discharged onto the street. Secondly, various soaps and shampoos become very hot on a hot floor. You need to look for another place for them or take them outside the steam room during particularly intense steaming.

In general, I like my bathhouse. Warming up in the shortest possible time, fresh air, warm, dry floors. The problem of mustiness, rotting floorboards and cold floors is completely solved.

How to make a floor in a bathhouse on screw piles - sequence with examples

When planning the construction of a bathhouse, everyone strives for it to last as long as possible, and this can only be achieved by building a reliable foundation. One of the most popular and affordable types of foundation is a screw foundation - we will talk about it later in the article. This material is also accompanied by photos and videos illustrating the main stages of organizing a pile-screw foundation.

The invention of the pile foundation belongs to the designer Alexander Mitchell, who first tested this technology during the construction of a lighthouse in Delaware Bay back in 1850. The essence of the method was that the piles were not driven into the thickness of the soil, but were screwed in by giving one of the ends of the pillar a pointed shape. This method was not only effective, but also stood the test of time and is still used today.

The military began to use pile foundations especially actively to accommodate rolling stock. This technology is also extremely relevant in hard-to-reach areas. In particular, in the northern regions, columnar foundations and the method of driving in supports were almost abandoned, replacing them with screw piles.

If we talk about the Russian Federation, then in some areas where the climate is especially harsh, screw piles are used as the most acceptable type of foundation for residential and industrial construction.

If you want to build a bathhouse on your site from laminated veneer lumber or a log frame, then a pile screw foundation is perfect.

Subtleties of construction

In those areas where the soils are non-chernozem, traditional columnar and strip foundations have faded into the background (read also: “How to make a columnar foundation for a bathhouse - types of construction options”). Instead, screw piles are actively used, since they are not only more reliable, but also much more affordable financially for a wide range of buyers.

One of the features of screw piles is that there is no need for additional joining with timber or channels. The lower rim of the log house serves as a grillage.

Many people prefer to build a bathhouse on stilts with their own hands, choosing areas near water bodies or on hillsides. Since in such places the soils are usually alluvial or sedimentary, and sometimes peat, the use of piles in such cases is more than justified.

Technology for constructing a pile-screw foundation

The foundation installed on screw piles primarily affects the type of floors in the future bathhouse. In order to correctly calculate the amount of building materials that will be required to build a high-quality and durable foundation, it is advisable to trust the specialists.

When making calculations, the following factors must be taken into account:

• soil composition and quality;
• average level of snow cover in winter;
• soil freezing depth;
• level of melt water flooding;
• Rose of Wind;
• weight of the finished structure with full finishing.

The construction of a frame bathhouse on screw piles begins only after preliminary marking of the placement of supports on the site. Small pegs are driven in at the required points and string is pulled, with the help of which all other measurements are made. The pile can be screwed in either with the help of special equipment or with the joint efforts of several people. It is worth remembering that the position of the pile must be strictly perpendicular to the horizon. Read also: “Choosing a foundation for a bathhouse - which one is best suited.”

When screwing in, the position of the pile is checked with a magnetic level every 4 full turns. All supports are installed in a similar way, making sure that their position corresponds to the same indicators at the magnetic level.

If a slope is formed during the process of twisting the piles, they are leveled using a rotary level without pulling them out. You cannot unscrew a tongue that has already been driven into the ground, otherwise, over time, the bathhouse will begin to shrink due to the looseness of the soil. The screwed support post must have a height margin of at least 20 cm. Subsequently, this piece can be cut off with a grinder.

As the support piles are installed, gaps form between them and the soil, which are filled with concrete mortar and filled with pieces of reinforcement. This approach will make the foundation for a frame bathhouse on screw piles with your own hands stronger and more durable, and will protect metal elements from rusting.

After installing the supports, take measurements of their location and begin welding the heads. An anti-corrosion compound is applied to the seams.

If you do not want to use metal, beams that are attached with bolts can also serve as jumpers. True, the wood needs to be treated with special antiseptic agents.

Foundation cladding

In order for the support pillars to have a more presentable appearance, as well as to protect them from dirt and dampness caused by melting snow or flooding with water from a reservoir, they should be additionally finished. Various facing materials will help protect the floor in a bathhouse on screw piles, as well as emphasize the appearance of the building itself.

Since the main damage may be caused by snow and floods dirty water in the off-season, Special attention You should pay attention to the waterproofing qualities of cladding materials.

Note that natural and artificial stone is very durable and absolutely waterproof.

Floor design in baths

It makes sense to analyze each type of flooring in detail when we're talking about about residential or public buildings. However, installing a floor in a bathhouse on screw piles is possible even with minimal knowledge and skills.

If a sufficiently high grillage is provided, then a hanging non-leaking plank floor in a frame bathhouse on stilts will be the optimal solution. An additional layer of insulation will allow you to use the bathhouse at any time of the year, otherwise in winter such a floor will be very cold.

A pile foundation allows you to protect the lower part of the deck from any external influences, in particular precipitation, flooding or simply moisture. But from the inside, such a floor is constantly subject to changes in temperature and humidity, because condensation forms in the steam room, and water is also supplied to the washing room.

Therefore, one of the very important questions when building a bathhouse on screw piles is how to make a drain. It looks like a small ladder through which water flows directly into a septic tank or central sewer system (read also: “How to make a septic tank for a bathhouse or choose a ready-made one”).

Note that a drain in a bathhouse on screw piles should be installed not only in the shower, but also in the steam room, where water appears after washing the shelves and floors.

A poured floor in a bathhouse on stilts is the simplest and most inexpensive to implement. To organize it, you will need a base with a height of at least 50 cm.

The installation method for such a floor involves laying joists on a grillage without a slope. The logs are covered with a flooring made of edged boards with 7 mm indentations, so that as you use the bathhouse, water can easily pass through the cracks, even if the wood swells.

Before you make a floor in a bathhouse on stilts, you need to take care of the underground. In this part of the structure, a concrete screed is poured with a slope towards the drainage system so that the water flowing from above does not stagnate and mold does not grow, and also to avoid a musty smell. For the purpose of cleaning and disinfection, the floor must be periodically flushed with running water and treated with antiseptic agents.

Pouring concrete screed

Floors in the bathhouse pile foundation may also have a concrete base.

The preliminary stage before pouring concrete includes the following work:

1. Installation of communications - water supply and sewerage.
2. Laying a ladder for water drainage so that after finishing the grate is located in the lowest section of the floor.
3. Filling sand and gravel cushion, the thickness of which will vary depending on the type of insulation material. As a rule, when insulating with expanded clay, the gravel layer does not exceed 4 cm.
4. Laying a layer of waterproofing in each section of the foundation. As an option, roofing felt will be acceptable, but it is best to use a vapor-permeable film.
5. Installation of insulating material.

If expanded clay is chosen to insulate floors in a bathhouse, then it is desirable that it contains granules of different fractions. In addition, before laying, you should make sure that the expanded clay is completely dry, since it tends to quickly absorb and release moisture very slowly.

Before laying support boards on the skull beams, they, as well as all wooden elements, should be treated with antiseptics to prevent the appearance of germs and other pests. Next, insulation is laid between the layers of frame boards.

The thickness of the insulation layer will be different, for example, if mineral or basalt wool, then the layer will reach 25 cm. If foam plastic is used for insulation, a layer of 15 cm is sufficient, especially if the bathhouse does not have a base, but is intended to be used in winter.

If the height of the laid logs is not enough to lay the insulation in a layer of the required height, additional bars are placed on the beams. In this case, one layer of insulation is located between the beams on vapor barrier material, and the second layer is laid in the spaces between the bars. Next, the entire floor surface is covered with another layer of waterproofing, and the plank flooring is installed on top of the bars.

Ceramic tile cladding

A good facing material for decorating the floor in a bathhouse is ceramic or tile. floor tiles. As a rule, they do not put a solid board under it, but prefer particle boards, plywood and other materials that are attached to the bars in the floor.

On top of such a flooring, you can safely lay ceramic tiles according to standard scheme. In addition, even the organization of “warm floors” is allowed various types– electric, infrared or water.

Principles of installation of screw piles

In order for the installation of screw piles for the foundation to be carried out as correctly as possible, a number of basic rules should be followed.

It is necessary to pay attention to the following points:

1. The distance between separate piles should not exceed 3 meters, otherwise the floor in the bathhouse will begin to sag due to excessive load.
2. If the distance between adjacent joists exceeds 3 meters, additional supports must be installed in the central part of each beam so that the floors do not spring when walking.
3. Since a pile-screw foundation requires a sparser placement of supports than, say, a strip foundation, it is advisable to tie the central row of piles with a channel.
4. If wooden beams are used for piping, the height of the central piles should be made 15 cm lower than the rest.
5. Where the fifth wall adjoins the building, two additional supports should be installed.

Standard height screw piles for a log bathhouse is 6 m. When installing supports, care should be taken to ensure that there is as little waste as possible.

Let us note that if all building codes and support installation technology are followed, a bathhouse on a pile foundation can last for at least half a century, or even longer.

Advantages and disadvantages of foundations on screw piles

One of the main disadvantages of a pile-screw foundation is the fact that materials of rather low quality are often used for the manufacture of piles. However, if when purchasing components you contact proven construction companies, then you can be sure that you will receive a good quality product. Read also: “How to make a foundation for a bathhouse with your own hands - strip construction in practice.”

Another difficulty associated with this type of foundation can be considered the installation of a vapor barrier layer, insulation and plank flooring.

But the undoubted advantages of the pile-screw type of foundation include:

• availability of consumables for the average consumer with low income;
• independence of work from climatic or weather conditions;
• the ability to organize the foundation on your own;
• Not a large number of the time required to build the foundation;
• obtaining a solid foundation by compacting the soil layer around the piles;
• the ability to repair supports;
• absolute verticality of foundation elements, which is achieved through the use of technical means;
• providing underground ventilation to protect it from rotting.

Fluid floors are the simplest solution for flooring in traditional Russian baths. The fundamental difference between pourable floors and other types is that water escapes throughout the entire area of ​​the room through small cracks. The further path of the drained water depends on constructive solutions, we will talk about them below.

Previously, lumber was not considered a scarce and expensive material; during the construction of baths, thick boards and coniferous logs were used. This choice of materials made it possible to guarantee a long service life of the bathhouse, despite the very difficult conditions for wooden structures.

The bathhouses stood for several decades, the structures were rotten - the bathhouse was jacked up, one or two crowns were replaced along with the floor coverings, and the building was used again for several decades.

Modern construction technologies allow us to achieve the same long service life of a bathhouse with significantly lower lumber costs. There is a wide variety of very effective impregnations that reliably protect wood from putrefactive processes.

Let's consider the technology of installing pouring floors for various designs Russian baths.

Shower floors for baths on columnar or pile foundations

Quite common foundations for Russian baths, in terms of cost and operational characteristics satisfy most developers. And for flooring and wooden structures, underground spaces are an ideal option. Provide the highest possible natural ventilation, reduce the likelihood of developing fungal diseases of wood, etc.

Practical advice. When arranging such foundations, take the necessary measures to ensure that the building area of ​​the bathhouse is on a slight elevation, this will ensure that water quickly flows out of the building. This is especially important on heavy clay soils. Do not allow puddles of standing water to appear under the bathhouse.

Step 1. Calculation of quantities and preparation of materials. Measure the length and width of the steam room, find out its area. For covering, use edged boards 35÷40 mm thick, buy them with a small margin. In addition to the boards, you will need a plinth and nails approximately 100 mm long.

Soak the boards with an antiseptic. Impregnate only dry lumber; carry out work in a shaded place and in calm weather. You need to soak it at least twice.

Please note that the boards should absorb the antiseptic and not dry it in the sun.

Floor beams or joists also need to be treated.

It is advisable to lay the floors on beams; if they were not installed during the construction of the log house, they will have to be laid on joists. To do this you need to do preparatory work.

At least two layers of roofing felt must be placed between the joists and posts. After 10-14 days the logs can be laid. The ends of the logs are fixed to the crowns of the log house with metal corners and self-tapping screws.

Step 2. Cut all boards to size.

To avoid deformation, the length of the boards should be 1÷1.5 cm less than the size of the steam room. Before cutting the boards, check the dimensions of the bath; if the width of the room at the corners is not the same, then you will have to adjust each board separately. It is better to cut with a hand-held electric saw. Before working with any electric tool, check its serviceability and the condition of the cutting element.

Step 3. The distance between the boards should be within one to one and a half millimeters; this width of the cracks is sufficient for rapid drainage of water, and small gaps minimize the negative impact of possible drafts. By the way, you should not be afraid of them; a large number of cracks throughout the entire area of ​​​​the room do not allow too high a speed of air movement through them.

It is highly advisable to make the cracks the same throughout the entire floor; for this you should use a template. We recommend using ordinary wooden rulers for these purposes. They are perfect in thickness, and the corners of the boards will not be damaged. Place the rulers vertically along the edges of the board being nailed; after fixing the first ruler, they are removed and installed between the next ones.

Place a ruler or other template between the floor boards during installation.

Start laying the boards from the threshold; as a rule, there is a shelf on the opposite wall, under which you can hide an uneven floorboard.

Step 4. Nail in. You need at least two nails for each board; they should be nailed along the edges and only at a slight angle. In this position, the nail passes through several tree rings, which minimizes the risk of cracking of lumber.

Important. Floorboards, regardless of width, must be nailed with two nails to each joist or beam. Otherwise, they will certainly warp over time, which causes great inconvenience during bathing procedures.

If the last board does not fit the rail, measure the exact dimensions and saw off the excess part. That's all with the boards, you can move on to the baseboards.

Installation of floor skirting boards

The profile of the skirting boards does not matter, choose which one you like best. Skirting boards are nailed with nails 30÷40 millimeters long, the specific values ​​depend on its thickness and width.

Step 1. Take measurements of the steam room around the perimeter. Skirting boards have standard length two meters, and most steam rooms are wider and longer. This means that the moldings will have to be joined. If in ordinary rooms uneven joints can be sealed with wood putty or colored sealant, then in a bathhouse this method of eliminating errors cannot be used; the putty will quickly fall off. Try to make the joints of the skirting boards in inconspicuous places: behind the stove, near containers with water, under a shelf, etc. Of course, be very careful when cutting the skirting boards; the tool must be sharp and in good working order.

Step 2. Check the corners of the bath, they should all be exactly 90°. File the end of the baseboard at a 45° angle. For even cutting, use a factory-made miter box or make the device yourself.

We recommend cutting with a hacksaw - the cut area is much smoother. Always apply the left plinth to the miter box on the left, and the right one on the right, to the side away from you. Otherwise, instead external corner it will turn out to be internal and vice versa. If you rarely work with a chair, we advise you to write on its sides where to install the left and right ceiling and floor plinths on the outer and inner corners.

Video - How to join skirting boards

It is somewhat more difficult to cut the baseboard if the angle of the steam room is different from straight. If you do not have enough experience, we advise you to try cutting any slats for the first time. Install them in the right place so that they rest against the walls. Use a pencil to mark where the slats intersect.

From these marks, draw straight lines to the corners, make a cut along the lines. Check what you got. Everything is correct - excellent, repeat the same operations with the baseboard. A large gap has appeared in the gley - think about where you made the mistake, repeat all the operations again, taking into account the error. This does not take much time and will save expensive material.

Step 3. Start nailing the baseboard from the corner of the bathhouse, step back 2-3 centimeters from the cut point, nail the nails at an angle at a distance of 30-40 centimeters.

Step 4. Using the same method, nail the baseboard on all sides of the steam room. Check their position and, if necessary, remove burrs or lint with sandpaper. If there is a noticeable difference in height at the joints, then first remove them with a sharp chisel, and then correct them with sandpaper.

That's all. In Russian baths, as a rule, the floors are not varnished or painted, but if you really want to, do it finishing coat. Just keep in mind that no matter how durable coatings you use, they will still peel off - the operating conditions are too harsh.

Now let's look at how to make pouring floors in bathhouses strip foundation.

If your bathhouse is located on sandstones, there are no problems; you can lay the drain floor using the method described above. The sand will absorb all the water without any problems. If the soil under the bathhouse is clay or loamy, then preparatory work will have to be done. The fact is that the strip foundation forms a closed space under the steam room; the constant presence of water in it has a very negative effect on all the wooden structures of the building. To drain water, a cement-sand screed should be made.

Preparatory work

Inspect the foundation, check for ventilation and service holes in the tape.

Water can be drained into the ventilation holes only if they are located at the required distance from the upper plane of the foundation strip. This distance should be at least 20 centimeters. If the holes in your bathhouse are located higher, then you will have to make a special one to drain the water.

What does the vast majority of articles on the Internet offer? Under the steam room, make a screed in the form of a funnel with installation in the middle drain pipe. We suspect that this method of solving problems is recommended by those who have not done anything with their own hands. Why? Let's briefly look at this technology and point out its disadvantages.

1. Along the perimeter of the steam room, you need to select soil with a smooth depression in the middle of the room, then pour sand in the same way. Disadvantages - a fairly large amount of excavation work, requiring care and numerous checks of the geometry of the recess.
2. The drainage pipe should be installed in a funnel. The disadvantage is that you need to dig a separate trench under it, make sure that the proper slope is maintained and that it exactly coincides with the existing hole in the foundation strip. Doing this is not just difficult, but very difficult.
3. Make the screed with an inclination towards the center of the funnel. The disadvantage is that it is technically impossible to complete the work in one day; you need to wait until the first half of the screed hardens and only then start concreting the second half. But that's not all. We assure you that such work can only be performed by real professionals. If you only saw the trowel in the photo in the article, don’t even start making a funnel-shaped screed for water drainage. And further. No matter what measures you take, a temporary gap in laying the screed in the middle of the funnel will definitely cause a crack. It is clear where the water will go.

What do we offer? The screed under the pouring floor should prevent water from entering the ground and drain it beyond the perimeter of the bathhouse underground. We offer an option to achieve this task with much less effort and less time wasted. And yet, according to our algorithm, almost anyone can make a screed and drain the water on their own, the main thing is that there is a desire.

Our option - The screed under the pouring floor is flat with a slight slope towards one of the walls of the bathhouse, preferably in the direction where the stove is located. There elevated temperature and the water dries better. The slope of the screed is within one centimeter per linear meter; for a bathhouse 4 meters wide, it is enough to make a slope of 4–5 centimeters.

Advantages of the method:

• there is no need to engage in labor-intensive and complex from a construction point of view work on laying the outlet pipe. Using a simplified technology, you first need to make the entire screed, then make a hole in the tape in the lowest place near the wall just below the level of the screed. Insert a piece of pipe into the hole and seal the gaps between the pipe and the hole made in the foundation on both sides with mortar;
• The volume of earthworks is significantly reduced. You just need to throw a small layer of earth from one wall to the opposite and level it with a shovel. But this can only be done when there is a special vibrating plate or a reserve of time for natural shrinkage. Of course, then a sand cushion is poured and compacted. Less work?

It is this simple option for preparing an underground for a poured floor that we will focus on.

Step-by-step instruction

Step, No. Description of work Illustrations

Step 1	Decide on a specific water outlet location. It is advisable that it be located behind the stove. But this is not always possible - the water must exit from the side of the bathhouse opposite the facade or into a special storage tank. Structurally, it can be difficult to satisfy two conditions at the same time.
Step 2	Use a shovel to slope the area under the steam room and gradually remove the soil in small layers. Using a hydraulic level, check the slope; it should be approximately one centimeter per meter of length. Prepare the site taking into account that a sand cushion up to ten centimeters thick will be poured on top.
Step 3	Add sand and compact it. Level the area with a long lath, sloping towards the water outlet.
Step 4	Install beacons for the screed. The thickness of the screed is no more than five centimeters; take slats of the same width and install them on sandy base. Fix the slats in several places with mortar on both sides. Check the position of the slats with a level and a rope. For these works there is no need to maintain high precision, the main thing is that the water drains from the surface. Problem areas can be easily corrected later. If you are in a hurry, sprinkle the mortar near the slats with dry cement and after a few seconds, remove the damp cement from the mortar. Repeat this operation two to three times. Such simple steps will allow you to work with slats in just a few minutes; their stability will be quite sufficient.
Step 5	Screed with a semi-dry mortar. To make it, you need to reduce the amount of water; when squeezing the solution in your hand through your fingers, no water should appear and at the same time the shape should be preserved.
Step 6	Level the solution with a lath, remove small depressions and elevations with grout. Continue working in this way over the entire area of ​​the steam room.

The semi-dry solution allows you to continue work the next day. Wooden slats-beacons do not need to be removed; they will serve as additional preventers from the appearance of cracks in the screed.

Now all that remains is to use a hammer drill to make a through hole in the foundation strip for water to drain. Make it 2–3 centimeters below the level of the screed; the hole should have a slight slope outward. Insert a pipe into the hole, check its position and carefully seal the gaps between the pipe and the hole with mortar.

The next day, check the base for drainage quality. Pour a bucket of water in the highest place and watch how it goes and in what places it lingers. If necessary, correct the plane of the screed and eliminate places where water stagnates. At the drainage section of the foundation, make a small groove with a slope towards the pipe.

Practical advice. In order for the fresh solution to have good adhesion to the old one, there is no need to use expensive mastics. Moisturize well problem area water, add thin layer cement and use a brush to thoroughly rub it over the surface.

That's all, now you can lay the flooring using the technology described above.

1. Do not nail the boards under the shelves; after taking bath procedures, place them on their edges

At first glance, it may seem that there is logic, drying should speed up. But that's not true. To make sure of this, it’s worth remembering about ventilation, it doesn’t matter what type it is: forced or natural. The amount of air removed from the room depends on the size of the inlet and outlet openings. Removing several floorboards under the shelf seems to enlarge the entry hole, and rightly so. Only the outlet hole remains the same, as much air as came out through it will continue to come out.

The total area of ​​all the cracks in the floor is always greater than the area of ​​the outlet vent; there is no point in removing several boards. This will not improve the drying of the floor, but on the contrary, it will worsen it. If in the normal state air flowed evenly through the cracks throughout the entire area of ​​​​the room and dried the entire floor area, now it will flow mainly through the expanded opening, and most of the flooring will dry much more slowly.

2. Arrange the flooring from separate panels and remove them after the bath to dry

And we don’t recommend doing this; other than headaches and wasted work, there will be no result. Again, due to the fact that the drying of the panels will be very uneven. There is no need to invent a bicycle, believe the centuries-old experience of our ancestors, do normal natural ventilation of the underground and high-quality ventilation of the room.

3. Boards need to be planed on both sides

Flooring materials must be passed through a thicknesser; they must be smooth on both sides - smooth boards absorb moisture less.

Now what's really going on. Planed and unplaned boards get wet equally in thickness; getting the pile wet does not have any negative effect. And during drying, the pile, on the contrary, speeds up the drying time of the lumber due to a significant increase in the total surface area. Next, capillary phenomena are triggered, the roughness quickly sucks moisture from the body of the board and speeds up its drying. Planing on both sides does not improve the drying process, but only reduces the thickness of the boards. You should not convert commercial wood into shavings; do not waste time and money in vain.

Video - Bathhouse and floors in it

Video - About the correct design of a Russian bath

Frame construction is rapidly gaining popularity among private developers. The advantages of this technology can be discussed almost endlessly. A brief summary is as follows: other things being equal, frame buildings are simpler and more financially profitable to construct compared to brick and most block buildings, and there are no complaints about them in terms of quality, reliability, ease of use, safety and durability.

In particular, the well-considered technology has proven itself in the construction of baths.

One of the most important stages in arranging a frame bath is the construction of the floor. You have already read the information about it in the corresponding publication on our website (you can also get information about installing a drain there), so today all attention will be paid to wooden floors - the presence of such in a frame building will ensure maximum preservation of the atmosphere of environmental friendliness and naturalness.

The main components of a wooden floor structure are logs and boards. The task is as follows: to choose the optimal sizes of the mentioned elements and the best material of manufacture.

To determine the dimensions of joists and boards as accurately as possible, professionals perform rather extensive calculations. We will not do this - in private construction conditions it is permissible to use average universal meanings. Use boards 3-4 cm thick, make the finished floor logs from 10x15 cm timber.

Recommendations regarding the thickness of boards for making subfloor joists are as follows: the thickness of the board in millimeters should approximately correspond to the step between the joists in centimeters. For example: logs are installed in increments of 50 cm, therefore, the thickness of the boards should be kept at least within the range of 40-50 mm.

In the case of arranging a thermal insulation layer, the distance between the finished flooring logs is usually adjusted in accordance with the dimensions of the insulation, on average towards a 50-60 cm value. At the same time, even without installing a heat-insulating layer, it is recommended to maintain the installation step of the finished floor lag within 50-60 cm.

Otherwise, when choosing the sizes of source materials and the distance between lags, you can rely on the recommendations from the following tables.

Approach the issue of choosing materials for making logs and boards correctly. Any durable softwood or hardwood will do, with the exception of poplar and other softwood.

Examples of edged boards

The material must be dry. Otherwise, the mounted elements will be significantly deformed as they dry.

The surface of the materials should not have cracks, chips or other external defects. It is better that the boards are from the same batch - this guarantees that the material was prepared under the same conditions, therefore, after installation it will also behave the same and the appearance of the finish will not differ.

Helpful advice! For finishing flooring, use edged or tongue-and-groove boards - they do not need to be sanded additionally. The rough flooring can be made from unedged boards.

Prices for edged boards

edged boards

Floor installation instructions

As a rule, work is carried out in accordance with the technology of arranging a floor on the ground.

Of course, nothing is laid directly on the ground - the logs are attached either to the support posts of the frame, or they are laid on pre-erected support pillars.

Fastening joists without support posts

The finished system will look something like this:

Here the base was waterproofed with molten bitumen. The logs are attached to the frame support posts and the embedded beam.

Important! Before installing the logs, soak them with an antiseptic.

To make the logs, it was decided to use a 50x200 mm board. Proceed in the sequence below.

Step one. Fastening the outer joists. For fixation, 8 self-tapping screws are used on each edge of the board. The correct fixation pattern is shown in the image.

Galvanized self-tapping screws are suitable. Select the length of the fasteners so that they are buried 5-6 cm into the material.

Fix the extreme logs and proceed to further work. Make sure that the logs are level. For convenience, you can drive nails into the racks above the outer joists, stretch a rope between them and use it to guide you when installing the following elements.

Step two. Installation of intermediate joists. The same material is used. Attaching the logs to the lower crown is done using metal corners. Pre-drill holes in them for the mounting bolts. The recommended number of fasteners is as follows: 6 pieces in a shelf adjacent to the embedded beam, 5 pieces in a shelf adjacent to the frame post.

Pull the intermediate logs together with the timber lower crown and frame supports through the corners.

Important! Maintain a 20-30 mm gap between the joists and the walls of the building to compensate for wood deformations.

The subfloor joists are installed.

Prices for wood screws

wood screws

Video - Installation of logs without support pillars

Attaching joists to support posts

This method is recommended for use in cases where the length of the laid logs exceeds 2 m. A system equipped in accordance with this method will be as reliable and resistant to incoming loads as possible. Pits are prepared for supports. We select the length of the side of each pit so that bricks can later be placed on the finished concrete site when laid in accordance with the specified dressing scheme. At the same time, at least 50 mm of free base should remain along the perimeter of the support, as shown in the image in step 1. If subsequent laying of bricks is not provided, we take the side of the support equal to 40-50 cm.

The procedure for erecting supports and installing joists

First step. Planning

The joists will be attached to the support chairs. They can be made from concrete. The composition of the structure, indicating the optimal dimensional characteristics, is shown in the image.

The supports are poured in meter increments. It can be increased up to 1.5 m. The main thing is that the supports are evenly distributed over the area of ​​the future floor. The recommended cross-section of timber for logs with this step is 10x15 cm. The specified value can be increased depending on the expected level of loads.

Second step. Preparing recesses for supports

Do the following:

Helpful advice! Level the fill and save yourself from the need to level the joists in the future.

Important note! If the building stands on a strip foundation, the tops of the supports should be located at the same level with the upper end of the strip. If the base is columnar, the supports are erected to the level of the upper edge of the embedded beam.

Third step. Waterproofing of supports

Waterproofing supports - diagram

Prices for dry concrete

dry concrete

Further actions

Here the developer filled the underground space with expanded clay up to the upper edges of the supports and laid logs on them. Expanded clay will take on the functions of thermal insulation.

But more often they resort to this method.

Brick supports for logs - photo and diagram

The photo shows a diagram of brick laying with the correct dressing of the seams. Recommendations regarding support height have been provided previously. For masonry, a standard solution is used: a share of 400% cement, about 3 shares of sand and water in the volume required to obtain a mixture of normal working density.

Maintain the thickness of the seams within 5 mm. Apply the solution using a trowel. Check each brick for level by tapping the masonry element wooden hammer or with the handle of a trowel.

Waterproofing scheme for brick columns

In this case, the waterproofing is not laid on concrete supports, but on top of the brickwork.

The logs are attached in exactly the same way as in the previous case, i.e. To vertical posts frame and embedded beam. There is no need to fix the logs to the support pillars.

Video - Floor joists on the ground

The boards are laid perpendicular to the joists. A 20 mm compensation gap is maintained between the flooring and the walls of the room.

The sequence of laying flooring boards is shown in the table.

Table. Laying plank floors

Work stage	Description
	The first board is laid on the logs and fixed with nails or screws. The required number of fasteners and the correct diagram of their location are shown in the image. Don't forget to leave a gap between the board and the wall. Important! If the length of one board is not enough to cover the floor, saw off the second flooring element and lay it so that it joins the first strictly on the joist.
	Lay the second board close to the first (not always, if a leaky floor is made, a gap is left between the elements, which will be discussed separately after the table).
	Attach the end of the second board wooden block and hit it several times with a hammer to ensure a tight fit of the decking elements. Secure the second board in the same way as the first. Continue working in this order until you reach the stage of laying the last board.
	The last board is sawn in accordance with the dimensions of the remaining unfilled space and taking into account the 2-centimeter gap between the flooring and the wall. Use a circular saw or other suitable tool for cutting.

When installing a poured floor, as noted, the boards are laid with a gap of several millimeters.

Helpful advice! If possible, try to use high-quality, even boards even for rough flooring - save yourself the hassle of leveling the final flooring joists in the future. If there are visible ridges on the surface of the deck, sand them down.

Laying finishing flooring

Arrangement of the second (finish) tier of the floor allows, firstly, to carry out hydrothermal insulation work, secondly, to ensure an attractive appearance of the surface, and thirdly, to achieve an even distribution of loads on the floor.

The standard layout of the finishing flooring arrangement is as follows.

It would seem that all that remains is to fill the baseboard around the perimeter of the room to hide the gaps between the flooring and the walls.

But we are not in a hurry to finish, we did not take into account one very important nuance. In accordance with the construction technology, the finishing flooring should be installed with a slope in the direction of the drain hole.

If the floor were leaking, all the refinements would be limited to arranging a drainage pit in the underground to collect wastewater and laying a pipe in it to drain the accumulated liquid to the planned location.

With a full-fledged two-layer insulated floor structure, everything is somewhat more complicated. As a standard, the slope is maintained within 1-2 cm per meter of surface. How to ensure it? Trim the joists? Should I initially lay the rough flooring on a slope? Plane finished flooring boards? It’s too long and labor-intensive, and such installation methods cannot be called absolutely reliable. How to solve the problem?

Previously, this method was widely used for this.

The technology involves attaching the logs to pre-glued/stretched supports made from pieces of plywood/timber or simply pieces of timber, the height of which varies in the direction of the drain. Some developers actively use this method at the present time, but it is, firstly, outdated, secondly, labor-intensive, thirdly, relatively inaccurate, fourthly, not the most reliable, because... It is impossible to achieve maximum rigidity of the base with this type of construction.

We suggest using more modern, simple and high-quality technologies that involve the use of U-shaped brackets or adjustable studs.

A 4-5 cm distance is maintained between the outer beams and the walls, and a 40-60 cm distance between adjacent joists. Adjust the length of the joists so that their edges do not reach bath walls by 2 cm.

Important note! Subsequent illustrations may include a concrete floor. In the case of the floor of a frame bath, everything is done in the same way, but the fastening is carried out to the rough flooring.

Table. Installation of logs on U-brackets

Work stage	Description
	The type of product offered is shown in the image. A durable beam measuring 5x10 cm, pre-treated with an antiseptic, is inserted into the bracket. The standard height of the bracket is 16.7 cm. If necessary, additional holes are drilled in height.
	The fastening of the crossbars and joists will be ensured by the forces of such corners.
	The need for preliminary markup was mentioned earlier. In accordance with the lines of the future location of the joists, drill holes in the floor to accommodate the bracket fasteners. First check the diameter of the corresponding holes in the bracket design. Between the brackets placed along one log, a 50-centimeter step is maintained. To ensure the stability of the crossbar, it is sufficient to use one central bracket.
	Install the products along the marking line. Check the evenness of the products. Attach the brackets to the subfloor using self-tapping screws or other suitable fasteners using the previously prepared holes. The first to install are the brackets for the beams placed along the walls.
Installation of insulation	If it is planned not only to install the finishing flooring, but also thermal insulation, install it at this stage of work. Most often, insulation is performed with a 5-centimeter layer of mineral wool. Pre-cut holes in the mineral wool so that the shelves of the brackets pass through them.
	The beam is inserted into the bracket, adjusted taking into account the required slope in the direction of the drain and temporarily secured with a self-tapping screw (the fasteners are not screwed in completely).
	Move to the opposite edge of the joist. Align it in accordance with the slope to the drain. Fix the beam at the required height with self-tapping screws through the bracket. A screwdriver will help you at this stage. Having set the required slope, fix the beacon through each of the installed brackets.
	The gap between the wall and the side of the beam oriented towards it is 30-50 mm, which makes fixing the log with a screwdriver impossible. The solution is the following: In the bracket, 2 6.5 mm holes are drilled through the beam; M6 bolts are placed in the holes; Nuts are screwed onto the protruding ends of the bolts. An ordinary wrench will help you with this.
	The remaining logs are installed in the same sequence.
	The jumpers are mounted in increments of 100 cm. The procedure is the same: First on rough floor a bracket is attached where the jumper passes; The beam is inserted into the bracket and, observing the slope, is attached to the logs with corners and screws; The jumper is fixed in the bracket.

This completes the installation of the finishing floor joists. The further procedure is determined by the features of the technology chosen by the developer. As a rule, first free space Insulation is laid on the frame, after which a floorboard is attached to the beacons on top with self-tapping screws.

Video - Installing joists on brackets

Video - How to make a floor in a frame bath

In contact with

Classmates

Frame construction technologies are gaining popularity and gaining more and more attention among people, those who want to build quickly, efficiently and inexpensively.

Frame structures are simpler and more economical for construction in holiday villages, villages and hamlets.

One of such structures is a frame bathhouse, construction which does not take much time.

Such the structure does not require a particularly strong foundation- to build it, it will be enough to arrange it, fill it, or make do with it.

Features of floors in wet rooms

Considering constant humidity, water ingress, temperature changes, the entire structure of the floor and floor covering in particular must be moisture resistant and resist rotting.

At the same time, it should be warm and comfortable.

in a frame bath begins with the installation of the frame- laying lags. In cases where the bathhouse is supported by piles with a grillage made of metal or concrete pillars, then a wooden beam of large cross-section 150*150 is attached on top of them, followed by attaching a log to it, and which will serve as the basis for the walls. Waterproofing materials are laid in places where wooden parts meet metal and concrete.

As a rule, frame baths are designed according to custom sizes. And sometimes it is necessary to have additional intermediate beams in the frame. In this case, under long logs and additional beams arrange additional support pillars to reduce the load on the elements.

Attention! When constructing wooden structures, it is important to remember that the elements must be treated with antiseptics and fire retardants.

After the support beams and logs have been installed, you can proceed directly to organizing the floor in the frame bath.

Layers

Often general design the floor is called a pie, which includes layers of rough and finishing coatings with additional elements between them.

Black floor in a frame bath they are made of OSB boards 6 mm thick, nailed to the bottom of the logs. Subsequently, layers of hydro- and thermal insulation will be installed on this floor layer. A hole is left here for the drain pipe.

Finish floor when installing a frame bath, they call the installation of the floor covering directly in the form of a finishing layer - most often ceramic tiles laid on a screed.

Kinds

Floors in a bathhouse, unlike ordinary floors in a frame house, have their own characteristics - in addition to reliability and durability, they must ensure water drainage.

That is, the floors in the bathhouse are a unique element of the sewer system. They should also be warm if the bathhouse is used all year round, and easy to clean and ventilate.

In the construction of bath floors, there are two methods of organization:

• leaking floors;
• leak-proof wooden floors.

Leaky wooden floors are most often intended for summer use. They are simpler to construct, but preparation for their installation begins when the foundation is being erected or the piles are being driven in. To do this, a pit up to 700 mm deep is dug in the center of the underground perimeter and a concrete slope is formed towards it from the edges of the underground. This will allow the falling water to flow into the pit, from where it will be drained through a pipe into the prepared cesspool.

Leaking

The design pie in leaky floors is presented as follows:

1. Bottom beams mounted on piles or concrete columns.
2. Bottom crown beams attached to frame beams.
3. Floor boards, screwed to the floor beams in increments of 5-7 mm, with a thickness of at least 20 mm.

Leaking floors in frame baths are usually suitable for small design dimensions. This bathhouse serves as a regular summer shower, only more reliable design. A floor constructed in this way allows water to pass through well and does not retain water, and is well ventilated. In sunny weather, staying in the bathhouse is a real pleasure. However, in bad weather, the blowing wind can cause discomfort.

Leak-proof

Non-leakage floor in a frame bath is a multi-layer structure designed for year-round use.

It is more difficult to install, but is more reliable and durable. In the organization of such a floor, a rough and finishing floor is arranged. The design pie looks like this:

1. Subfloor made of OSB boards 6 mm thick.
2. Waterproofing and windproofing.
3. A layer of thermal insulation (most often ecowool or mineral wool).
4. Protective layer made of OSB 18 mm thick.
5. Two layers of insulation (most often polystyrene foam).
6. Vapor barrier layer.
7. Reinforcing fiberglass mesh.
8. Warm floor system.
9. Concrete screed with reinforcement.
10. Finish floor covering.

One of the main advantages of organizing such a floor is its reliability and comfort in use. In such a bath it is convenient to steam and take a shower both in summer and in cold winter. It is always warm and dry in any climatic conditions.

Design options for different types of foundations

Depending on the type of foundation for a frame bath, we will consider installing the floor on the following basis:

• pile or columnar;
• tape;
• slab

Pile or columnar

The most convenient and easy to install- this is the floor in a frame bath on. He is not afraid of either dampness or frost.

Such a foundation can be easily corrected in case of subsidence (it is enough to jack up the corner and place a pad on the pillar or pile).

The cross-sectional design of all floor elements is the same as that used to organize leaky and non-leaky floors in a frame bathhouse.

Tape

It serves as the basis for a frame bathhouse, which is distinguished by its large dimensions and, as a rule, includes several rooms.

The construction of the floor in such buildings is also capital, most often it is a concrete floor. When organizing flooring The cross-section of the constructive pie looks like this:

1. A sand cushion laid on compacted soil.
2. Waterproofing layer.
3. Insulation (extruded penoplex).
4. Reinforcing mesh.
5. Warm floor system.
6. Screed.
7. Clean floor covering.

When installing such a floor, even before pouring the foundation, you should decide in which direction the water should be drained and the sewer pipe should be laid.

Slab

During construction frame baths It is quite rare, especially in cold latitudes, for a number of reasons:

1. The bulkiness of the structure.
2. Difficulty in laying communications and draining water.
3. Difficulty in heating during the cold season.
4. Significant financial costs when pouring the foundation.

Nevertheless The floor pie with this basis has the following structure:

1. Sand pillow.
2. Expanded clay layer.
3. Reinforced concrete slab.
4. Waterproofing layer.
5. Insulation.
6. Warm floor.
7. Screed layer.
8. Finish floor covering.

Installation instructions

How to make floors in a frame bathhouse with your own hands?

Arrangement of the floor in a frame bath is not particularly difficult however, depending on the seasonal use of the premises, it requires certain skills.

Considering that the most commonly used basis for the subsequent construction of walls are piles and concrete pillars, using their example we will consider basic steps and processes for installing a leak-proof floor:

1. The first step is to determine the location of the water drainage and install a sewer pipe.
2. Load-bearing crowns are laid on piles (pillars) covered with waterproofing wooden beams- harness.
3. Joists and cross beams are attached to the frame.
4. The OSB of the subfloor is screwed to the bottom of the joists. A hole is also made here for the drain pipe.
5. A layer of waterproofing is laid on the subfloor. It should be laid so that it covers the entire area of ​​the subfloor. The joints of the film are fixed with mounting tape. The waterproofing is installed on the joists using wooden slats.
6. Produced using ecowool or mineral basalt wool.
7. OSB sheets are sewn over the logs.
8. A second layer of insulation is laid - extruded polystyrene foam.
9. The drain hole is waterproofed using a special film and sealant.
10. A metal grate is laid and the contours of the heated floor are drawn.
11. The screed is poured over the heated floor.
12. After the screed has completely dried (from 14 to 28 days), the surface is ready for laying the floor covering on it.
13. The floor in the washing area is tiled; in the sitting area you can install treated boards.

Useful video

How to make drainage from a bathhouse on screw piles is additionally described in the video below:

conclusions

In general, installing a floor in a frame bathhouse requires careful consideration, competent and informed decisions, and basic skills in using construction tools. Because a properly organized design is designed to ensure long and comfortable operation of the entire structure as a whole.

The final result depends on how carefully the rules and regulations are followed during construction, how responsible the attitude to detail is, and how high-quality the selection of materials is.

In contact with

After many days of deliberation, it was decided that in my frame (6x4.5 m) the floor would be multi-layered, with OSB lining and an installed electric heated floor system. This will make the surface comfortable and speed up its drying between procedures. Where the stove is installed on the floor, to evenly distribute the load, it is necessary to install a concrete support slab.

I will describe the entire process of installing such a floor. At the beginning of construction there was a columnar foundation and a wooden grillage on it.

Installation of floor joists

First of all, a frame with internal jumpers and joists was knocked together from 150x50 boards. The pitch of the beams along the long side of the frame was 400 mm. Additional beams are installed around the perimeter of the future slab.

Floor covering device

Scheme of the floor “pie” (from bottom to top):

• subfloor rolling – OSB-3 (thickness 6mm);
• waterproofing and wind protection – “Izospan A”
• insulation – ecowool
• OSB-3 shield (thickness 18 mm);
• insulation – EPPS, 5 cm;
• vapor barrier – “Izospan D”;
• reinforcing mesh;
• underfloor heating cables;
• screed;
• tile adhesive;
• tile.

Now let's talk more about each layer.

Step #1 - rolling the subfloor

OSB-3 sheets 6 mm thick were nailed to the bottom side of the joists. They have drainage holes drilled for ventilation. A hole was also cut for the drain outlet.

Installation of a subfloor from OSB-3 sheets

Step #2 - waterproofing the floor

Waterproofing and windproof film “Izospan A” was laid on the roll. All joints were taped with construction tape.

According to the plan, the supply ventilation hole in the bathhouse will pass under the stove. To organize it, a metal hood box was installed between the joists. A drain tee is also installed.

Installation of the supply ventilation duct

Step #3 - insulation with ecowool

The first layer of insulation is ecowool. But since niches were formed in the ceiling between the joists and the lower frame of the walls (where it is difficult to deliver ecowool), they were filled with Rockwool insulation.

“Rockwool” insulation is laid in niches under the wall trim

I beat the ecowool with an electric drill. During the process, the material increased approximately 2.5-3 times its original volume. The fluffed insulation was laid manually between the joists on the waterproofing. The surface was compacted and leveled with the rule flush with the joists. At this stage, the drainage organization is completed.

Laying ecowool between floor joists

Step #4 - OSB-3 sheathing

Next, the ecowool was covered with another layer of OSB-3. The sheets were cut into pieces so that their edges were located on the joists. Between the logs and the lower frame of the walls, wooden inserts are also fixed, serving as supports for OSB-3.

Embedded timber for OSB-3 support

Taking into account possible expansion (swelling), OSB-3 was laid with a small gap of 2-3 mm. They were secured with self-tapping screws to the joists.

Step #5 - insulation with EPS boards

The next step is additional insulation of the floor with a layer of EPS (extruded polystyrene foam). The slabs were laid in staggered order. To do this, entire slabs had to be cut with a construction knife (if you have a jigsaw, it’s better to use it).

The drain has been waterproofed. “Izospan D” is glued around the drain with double-sided tape, and the joints between the pipe and the film are filled with sealant.

Waterproofing the drain using Izospan film and sealant

Space has been left for installing a concrete slab under the stove.

In the place where it is planned to pour a concrete slab under the furnace, EPS does not fit

Step #6 - Placement of Vapor Barrier

A vapor barrier film “Izospan D” was laid on top of the EPS, and stapled to the EPS. The film is laid with an overlap (by 5 cm), the joints are taped with construction tape. To prevent rotting of the lower framing of the frame, the film is placed on the walls (10-15 cm) and connected to the vapor barrier of the walls.

Organization of a vapor barrier layer from Izospan D film

Installation of a concrete slab under the furnace

There will be a metal one in the bathhouse. To protect those steaming from burns and to transform the sharp heat coming from the metal walls into pleasant warmth, it is planned to line the stove with bricks. The total weight of a stove with a brick screen will be quite impressive. It is necessary to install a concrete slab that ensures the stability of the furnace equipment and, in function, replaces the foundation.

The dimensions of the foundation slab are 15 cm larger than the dimensions of the brick screen (around the stove) by 15 cm. First of all, reinforcement is created at the location of the slab. A mesh is laid on OSB-3 sheets, its parts are connected with wire into a single web.

Plate thickness – 50 mm. At this height, along the perimeter of the slab, formwork made of boards was installed. Concrete with crushed stone of a fraction of 5-20 mm is poured inside. The slab was covered with film to maintain moisture and prevent cracking of the concrete. For the same purposes, every day the slab was moistened with water from a spray bottle until completely dry.

The concrete slab must stand for at least 2-3 weeks before installing a stove on it

A week later the formwork was removed.

Installation of a heated floor system

The presence of a heated floor promotes the rapid evaporation of moisture from the heated floor surface. This type of floor dries quickly and mold and mildew do not have time to form on it. And the constantly warm surface is very comfortable for bare feet! These reasons determined the choice of electric flooring for the steam room, washing room and rest room.

To facilitate cable installation, a 50x50 mm masonry mesh is laid on the surface of the vapor barrier. The mesh parts are connected with wire.

The cable was secured with 100 mm ties. A heated floor sensor is installed in the wall.

Laying underfloor heating cables on a grid

Installation of a heated floor sensor on the wall

Before pouring the mortar, the masonry mesh was raised 1 cm from the floor. To do this, pieces were cut from the remains of foamed polyethylene (left over after insulating plumbing pipes) and placed under the mesh. You can use any other material that does not wrinkle, does not bend and holds its shape.

The thickness of the floor screed is 30 mm. In the steam room, relaxation room - without a slope, in the sink - with a slope of 5 mm/1 m towards the drain. To form a flat surface, beacons were used - a U-shaped profile 19x20mm. First, wood grouse were placed on the floor surface using a laser level, and beacons were laid on top of them.

The screed was filled with a cement-sand mixture with a plasticizer (PVA glue) and fiber (reinforcing additive). Mixed in a concrete mixer. The solution turns out to be gray, dense, and almost as strong as metal.

The next day, the beacons were removed from the fresh screed and the wood grouse were unscrewed. The resulting holes are filled with mortar and rubbed flush with the hardened screed. Afterwards, the screed is moistened with water and covered with a film to prevent cracking. The film is removed after the screed has completely hardened. I did it after 5 days.

Screed device for subsequent tiling

Floor tiling

The hardened screed is covered with a concrete primer (I used Knauf “Betonkontakt”). For the floor covering, ceramic tiles with a rough surface and a low level of water absorption (2%) were chosen. This tile is recommended for use in wet areas with high traffic and the likelihood of damage.

The tiles are laid using moisture-resistant glue; in this case, Ceresit CM 11 was used. Using crosses, a 5 mm seam was formed between the tiles. The level of cladding was controlled by the building level.

At the last stage of cladding, the joints were grouted. I decided not to use regular colored grout, due to the fact that it would quickly turn dirty gray on the floor. Therefore, the seams were sealed with the same tile adhesive. It’s a good idea to use regular cement mortar for the same purposes. It turns out neatly, the mixture does not fall out of the seams, and retains its original appearance for a long time. And in terms of strength it is not inferior to the most expensive grouts.

This is the floor I got in a frame bath. The main thing is that it is beautiful, warm, moisture does not stagnate on it, and no foreign odors are observed.