Ventilation in the bath - is it necessary and how to do it

We have long gone from the sauna stove "on black" and the lack of ventilation of this room. An integral part of the design of the traditional Russian bath is a ventilation system that ensures the distribution of heat evenly throughout the steam room and the outflow of "spent" air. It is possible to make ventilation with your own hands and with a small material cost, but with the arrangement of this important element the sauna should be

Ventilation in the steam room with your own hands

General principles of ventilation of the

steam room The qualitative ventilation system in the steam room is the guarantee of not only a pleasant and relaxing atmosphere of the Russian bath,and your safety. Incorrectly arranged ventilation leads to numerous unpleasant consequences:

• wood in a bath even under the ideal device of ventilation is exposed to huge loading and does not serve more than 20 years, and bad ventilation will reduce this term several times;
• smell of stagnant air and rotten wood - not the most pleasant addition to the bath;
• if the stale air does not remove stale air from the room in time, use such a bath - rather harm than good for health. In the steam room, gases are accumulated by people exhaled by the operating stove, as well as by fungi and mold, quickly capturing a poorly ventilated room.

An important function of ventilation is to ensure heat transfer. Humid air conducts heat very poorly, so without the circulation of the airflow of the stove, only the space around it will heat. For this reason, the ventilation inlet is most often located behind the stove at a small height from the floor. So the air manages to warm up and spreads the heat through the steam room. Otherwise, too cold air enters the room, violating the temperature regime.

The outlet is located on the opposite wall and at the opposite level with the inlet. This is a very common mistake: place the ventilation holes on one level: they form a closed flow that does not affect much of the room, so the bottom is always cold, and the top of the steam room is too hot and stuffy.

Ventilation scheme in the sauna( steam room)

It is also necessary to consider that the same as the correct choice of the circuit, the value, has a properly selected diameter of the ventilation holes. For each cubic meter of the room, the diameter should be 24 cm, otherwise the air will not circulate.

Another important part of the ventilation system - stubs or latches on the ventilation holes. They allow you to regulate the intensity of air circulation and quickly warm up and cool the room.

It is necessary to lay ventilation shafts at the stage of construction of the bath itself, then the ventilation scheme can be changed only in one way - by including a fan in it. Otherwise, the disturbed ventilation will make the bath not very comfortable.

Ventilation scheme in bath

Natural and mechanical ventilation: pros and cons

The ventilation system can function both due to the natural movement of air, and due to the installed fan. The second option is an order of magnitude simpler: it's very difficult to create a natural ventilation without a great experience as a stove-maker behind the shoulders. It should be understood that any scheme with a different arrangement of ventilation openings is a scheme designed to include in the process of venting the fan air.

1. With natural ventilation, air circulation occurs due to the difference in pressure and temperature outside and indoors. Hot air rises to the upper part of the steam room, passes into the outlet and creates a slight discharge of air in the room, whereby fresh air is drawn into the inlet;
2. In fan-driven circuits, either the output or both are provided by ventilating air. Schemes with two fans allow you to locate the ventilation openings at any point in the room, using a single fan, the inlet, like with natural ventilation, is located at the bottom of the room behind the stove.

Plus natural ventilation - a minimum of material costs, but if the design of the bath does not allow you to locate the ventilation holes in the classical scheme, the only option is to turn on the mechanical component. For ventilation in a thermae, not every fan is suitable, the chosen model must withstand extremely high temperatures and high humidity. A conventional channel fan for working in harsh conditions near the steam room does not work, it will quickly fail, and faulty electronics in a wooden structure can be potentially dangerous. A conventional fan can only be used to ventilate the room after using the bath.

Ventilation schemes in the thermostat

But if the ventilation holes are not positioned properly, the mechanical assistance of the fan will not make the system work. In order not to learn from your costly mistakes, it is better to take one of the ready working ventilation schemes, here are some of them:

Ventilation options in the

1. steam room The natural ventilation above has already been described. In it, the inlet is located behind the stove, the output - in the upper part of the opposite wall. To ensure that the wind does not create a pressure zone and does not prevent the removal of air from the steam room, the air duct is made upright and carried to the roof of the building. If the diameter of the holes is selected correctly, the natural system works without unnecessary interference. The air flow is regulated by means of valves;

scheme above - ventilation by means of mechanical traction. In the first scheme, the inlet is located at a distance of half a meter from the floor behind the stove, the output is as low as possible. The air rises, heats up and spreads in the upper part of the room, then cools and descends to the outlet where the fan is located;

1. scheme B - atypical location of ventilation holes in case they can be placed only on one wall. Air enters the room, hits the stove, heats up, rises and leaves the outlet where the fan is installed;
2. in scheme B The furnace is also used as an extractor, and the only hole is located at the floor on the opposite wall. This scheme works well in the baths, in which the oven is used constantly, and less often used in home baths;
3. the latter scheme provides air circulation not only in the steam room, but also under the floor. The air enters the room, heats up from the oven, falls into the cracks in the floor in the cellar and comes out. This allows you to well ventilate the space under the floor.

Properly equipped ventilation system will help create a unique atmosphere of the Russian bath and will prolong the life of the structure and the finishing materials in the room. The design of ventilation is not such a simple task as it seems at first glance, but it is not even a professional who can work out the ventilation in his or her bathhouse.

Video - ventilation scheme in the thermostat