Building a sauna with your own hands

construction of a sauna with its own hands is not without collision with a number of problems related to the choice of location and necessary equipment, installation of a ventilation system, compliance with fire safety standards and so on. To the inexperienced, all this seems complicated, but in reality it is quite easy to build a sauna. The main thing is to have a clear instruction and relevant materials.

• 1

2

3 Stage 3. Foundation

• 3.1 The construction of a monolithicgrating

4 Stage 4. Sewerage

5 Stage 5. Frame

6 Stage 6. Thermal insulation

• 6.1 Video - Installation of lining

7 Stage 7. Arrangement

8 Price of issue

Where to build sauna

The sauna can be equipped inany accessible room that meets these requirements: ventilation, low humidity and no drafts. It can be a separate room( a small building) or a room in an apartment building.

Sauna interior

If the sauna is to be built separately( and this article is considered this option), then the place should be chosen so that you can dig a hole under the septic tank.

Below are the characteristics that a proper sauna should have.

1. It must have a tiled floor and separate wiring( if it comes to heating with an electric heater) or a chimney( if you plan to use a wood-fired boiler). Wet tile is very slippery, so to avoid injury, you need to put on the floor wooden boards or grilles, which during cleaning will be taken out to the street for drying.
   

   Sauna interior

2. Suitable sizes of cabins are calculated at a rate of 2.5 m³ per person.
3. In the waiting room there should be a small table, a hanger and benches. If the sauna will be used all year round, then also the heating device.
   

   Recreation room( dressing room)

4. The shelves for the adoption of procedures should be equipped in the form of steps with a width of 0.5-0.7 m each.
   

   Dimensions

5. The main heater, as noted earlier, can be wood or electric.

Pay attention! The sauna differs from the traditional Russian bath and only by low humidity( 10-25%).Any other principle x no differences - steam is extracted through the same moistening of stones, often used brooms, and the "apogee" of bath procedures in both cases is a jump into a snowdrift or a pool with cold water.

Sauna interior

About the size of the steam room

Steam room should be comfortable and, most importantly, safe. Each visitor should have a minimum of 2.5 m³ of space. The height of the room should be 2.5-2.6 m. For wall sheathing, dry absorbent wood( eg pine or poplar) without knots is used.

Sauna project with a terrace.81 m²

Shelves( minimum two) should be located at a height of 40 cm, while the top is installed no higher than 1.4 m from the ceiling. Metal elements and fasteners are excluded, because they can cause burns.

Please note! The volume of the steam room should not exceed 40 m³.At least that's what specialists say.

If we assume that one person will be bathing in the sauna, then its total area( including a room for washing and changing rooms) is 10 m².Heating element is an electric stove - electric stove.

About

Sauna from

You can use brick, bar or even metal for construction( metal frame is built and is siding).Inside the room is covered with boards or lining. With respect to the species of wood, the best option is alder or linden. Of course, conifers are cheaper and still smell pleasant, but under the influence of high temperature, resin is released from them.

Sauna is lined with lime binder

Stage 2. Preparation of consumables

It should be noted at once that it is not necessary to save on building materials, as in the future all costs will be more than paid off by attractive appearance and long operating period. The general list of materials and tools will look something like this:

• support poles( the described construction will be built on a columnar foundation);
• beams 10x15 cm;
• garden drill;
• slats 6x4 cm;
• installation level;
• measuring tape;
• nails or screws;
• reservoir for septic tank;
• primer mixture;
• sand, crushed stone, concrete mortar;
• parchment;
• skin boards;
• polystyrene foam;
• foil for vapor barrier.

After preparing everything you need, you can start working.

Step 3. Foundations

Step 1. First select the place chosen for construction. At the intended angle, a peg is driven in, from which the distance to the next corner is measured. Similarly, two more angles are denoted - the correct rectangle should exit as a result. Between the pegs, a rope is stretched, after which, in the corners and along the perimeter of the walls, racks are put in steps of 2 m. Also, the racks are installed under the bearing walls.

Base plan

With drill holes are made for the rack - for a typical wooden sauna there will be enough and 40-50 cm.

Step 2. At the same stage, a place is prepared for the drain pit. Dimensions of the pit are determined by the dimensions of the septic tank( if this is not provided, then just digging out a pit of 1x1 m depth of 1.5 m).

Step 3. As supports you can use both metal pipes and ordinary logs. If a tree was chosen, then it must necessarily be dense( ideally - pine).The surface of logs should be treated with bituminous mastic to avoid decay, and then give a good dry.

Column foundation

If pipes are used, they are first treated with an anticorrosive primer. The holes are filled with a 10-centimeter layer of crushed stone, after which the posts are installed and leveled with a plumb. Holes are filled with earth( preferably interspersed with sand), periodically moistening with water for a more compact seal. The earth is thoroughly trampled.

Step 4. The top part of the support posts is covered with a roofing material, on top of which beams with a rectangular cross section are laid on top of the perimeter. By means of staples, the beams are attached to the supports. In the inner part of the perimeter parallel to each other additional beams with a step of 25 cm are installed. These beams will serve as a base under the floor covering.

Column foundation

Construction of column foundation

Construction of columnar foundation

Grillcob

Please note! Instead of beams, you can put a reinforcing bar, then build a timbering and pour concrete solution.

Monolithic grillage

Flow charts

Constructing a monolithic grillage

A grillage is a strapping of slabs or beams that connects the pillars to each other above the ground. This is the best option for a skeleton sauna, which, depending on the material used, can be:

• concrete;
• with metal;
• wooden( rare);
• .
  

  Construction of grillage

The grill foundation can be constructed with the help of prefabricated poles clogged with special equipment. In this case, the pillars( necessarily of circular cross-section) are introduced into the ground thanks to the mounting drill, a 30-centimeter sand pillow is pre-laid under them.

Column foundation with grille

Bottom foundation with grille

Bottom foundation with grille

Please note! The simplest version of the grillage base looks like this: the pillars are deepened by 2 m in steps of 3 m, while the grillage should be about 20 cm in the ground. Inside such a base, you can additionally equip the basement with a concrete screed or a "cushion" of sand - in this caseDo not need waterproofing.

Step 1. After geological exploration, a sand "cushion" is formed, which is necessary to strengthen the foundation.

Step 2. Next, a conventional formwork is constructed( as for a tape-type base).If the formwork is non-removable, then in this case the "plate" of extruded polystyrene foam will serve as a "capacity".As a result, the structure will be thermally and hydroinsulated.

Step 3. Pile holes are drilled using special equipment. Further, they are planted with ruberoid( or any other material with similar properties).As a casing, asbestos-cement pipes can be used.

Four reinforcing bars are placed in each hole and connected in such a way that the upper part of the armature is connected to the grillage. After that, the holes are poured with concrete.

Pouring holes with concrete

Step 4. After pouring the top of the pillars is covered with waterproofing material. The fittings coming out from under the ground are connected to the grillage reinforcement to lift the structure above the ground and to level the bottom of the formwork over the piles. Then the formwork is poured with concrete.

Filling of grillage

Please note! The only drawback of this design is that it is not suitable for heavy walls. Although for the frame sauna its strength is quite enough.

For the time of drying, it is better to sprinkle concrete with wet sawdust

Ready foundation with a monolithic grillage

Thermal insulation of a foam grate

Stage 4. Sewage

For the steam room and the washroom, a sewage disposal system is required. To do this, at the lowest point( and the floor, as we recall, should be under the slope) will be left a small gap, under which the trough will be laid. If the floor is crevice, then in the appropriate place leave a 5-centimeter gap, under which a concrete base is built with a slope towards the center. The basis will serve for the collection of sewage.

Sewerage of sauna

Please note! If the steam room and wash are separate, then the gutter can be installed under the wall between them.

Regardless of the chosen flooring method, the sewage system is laid as follows.

Step 1. Lay sewers before laying the floor covering. For this, ditches with a slope of 2 cm / 1 run are broken.m depth from 55 cm to 60 cm

Example of laying sewer pipes

Step 2. Then the bottom is covered with a 15-centimeter sand cushion, which is rammed with a slope.

Step 3. Polypropylene pipes are laid ø10 cm. A chute is connected to the pipes.

Step 4. The plumbing fixtures( wash basin, toilet bowl) are connected to the system, if such are provided.

Drain hole

Please note! A trough may be a plastic or asbestos cement product. In the past, a tree was used, but due to obvious reasons, it quickly collapsed. The minimum diameter of the trough is 5 cm.

Outside, the system is fed to a sewage pit or septic tank.

Example of water supply

Stage 5. Frame

The construction of a brick sauna requires considerable experience and skill, so it will be easier to build and trim the wooden frame with boards. After laying the thermal insulation material, the sauna will not be inferior to the brick. In such cases, a profiled bar is often used.

Components of

Step 1 .At first, the support beams are installed at the corners - they are fastened by spacers, equal and fixed on the base by iron staples. Then the top along the perimeter of the pillars are joined by joists. Vertically fastened intermediate bars( in increments of 1 m), they are connected with iron staples from below and from above.

Construction of an external wall

The window and door frames are fixed in the appropriate places, after which the cross bars are pinned for greater reliability of the structure. In each corner are set braces, which "look" in opposite directions.

Frame

Step 2. Planks are used that are 3 cm thick and are finished with a finished frame. Begin work from the bottom, from one of the corners. The first board is applied to the uneven bars, aligned to the ground and corners, after which it is nailed.

Technology of construction of walls and ceilings

Scheme of insulated wooden floor

Please note! Do not start fixing the boards from the center of the span - they need to be leveled on one of the vertical supports.

Step 3. The rafters are lined up last. There is a small hole in the roof for the chimney.

Frame

Stage 6. Thermal insulation

Thermal insulation

Ceiling insulation scheme

For the insulation of the ceiling and the floor, a foam of 10 cm thickness is used. First, the boards are covered with a polyethylene film with an output of 4-5 cm. Between the logs foam plates are mounted, the gaps are filled with mounting foam. Then you can use one of two options:

• lay a wooden floor;
• pour the insulation with a coupler and lay the tile.

The second option is preferable, because the tile is easy to clean and is immune to increased humidity or temperature.

The purpose of the sauna insulation

The insulation of the ceiling is carried out according to the standard scheme:

• polystyrene is inserted between the lags;
• the gaps are filled with foam;
• with a stapler fastens the vapor barrier material( foil upward).
  

  Steam insulation

  

  Steam insulation

It remains only to lay the wiring, and the walls and ceiling to cover the lining.

Video - Installation of lining

Please note! If electricity is required only for lighting, then 2 kW is sufficient. But if you plan to connect household appliances( washing machine, hair dryer, etc.), then the wiring power should be at least 5 kW.

Stage 7. Arrangement of

Special attention should be paid to the installation of an electric heater. For safety and uninterrupted operation of the system, the device must be installed on asbestos-cement slabs. The heater itself should be located away from the walls or, in extreme cases, install wooden fences around it. The chimney is insulated, the heater body is grounded.

Sauna arrangement

The shelves described in the beginning of the article are fastened - from two to three, depending on the planned number of visitors. For this, you can use the same boards as for the inner skin. The shelves are polished, covered with antiseptic and varnish.

African oak sauna shelves

Doors should open outwards. Today you can buy a model of frosted glass( recommended).Under the door you need to leave a small gap - about 5 cm - for airflow.

Glass door for sauna

From the right selection of stones, all the medicinal properties of the sauna directly depend. Stones are better to choose smooth and round - this will ensure a more intensive circulation of heated air.

Fixture for sauna

Price

It's hard to say exactly how much the sauna will cost. There are a number of factors that affect the total cost. The main one, as noted earlier, is whether the building is being converted or a separate extension is being built. Another factor is the area of ​​the steam room. In addition, the cost is affected by the materials used for plating, the number of lamps, other furniture, doors, etc.

Tiled floor in the sauna

Sauna, recommended temperature and humidity characteristics	Value
Temperature under the ceiling, ° C	100
Temperature in the middle of the room, ° C	60-90
Humidity,%	5-20
Temperature in the relaxation room, ° C	18-20
Recommended procedure duration	no more than 2 hours
Temperature at the floor, ° C	not less than 40
Absolute humidity, g / m3	40-60