It is well known that warm air rises rapidly. Therefore, in saunas it is always hotter on the upper shelves than on the lower ones. Because of this feature, the floors in the steam room often remain cold.
To overcome this contrast, a warm water floor can be installed. With such a heating system, the heating agent is heated using a furnace.
Underfloor heating installation options
When creating a warm floor, different device methods are used:
concrete screed - a budget and practical option for a bath. Concrete is resistant to moisture and does not require many ingredients to create a screed. The disadvantage of this option is the waiting time - for complete solidification, the floor must be left for a month after pouring;
polystyrene boards - the optimal solution for underfloor heating for two reasons: a reflective foil layer and special recesses for fixing heating pipes. Plates are not self-sufficient - a screed should also be poured over them;
heating pipes in wooden floors - a difficult, but possible option. When installing pipes, an accurate calculation will be required - to determine the holes in the logs for the future pipeline. The advantage of wooden floors is their high maintainability.
Floor preparation
Before proceeding with the installation of the warm floor, it is necessary to prepare the base and equip the drain. Foundation preparation includes several stages:
- remove the soil under the washroom between the foundation walls and tamp the surface. (A sewer pipe is preliminarily laid into the wall of the foundation to remove moisture);
- create a backfill consisting of sand and gravel and tamp it (layer height is 15 centimeters);
- to make insulation with expanded clay (the layer reaches 15-20 centimeters in height - depending on the temperature conditions in the region). Make a slight slope towards the drain.
Heating system installation
When the subfloor is ready, it is time to lay the heating piping. This process consists of several steps:
- lay the waterproofing in the form of two layers of roofing material and glue the joints with mastic. When laying strips in layers, you must adhere to the mutually perpendicular direction;
- lay a layer of thermal insulation on the floor (taking into account the slope towards the drain);
- lay a reinforcing mesh to protect the insulating layer;
- lay the pipes of the heating system on top of the mesh (for this type of heating, pipes of two materials are used - copper or metal-plastic);
- connect pipes, check the serviceability of the system;
- lay a damper tape around the entire perimeter of the bath - to prevent deformation of the floor from high temperatures;
- pour the screed and level it over the beacons. As a screed, a standard cement-sand mortar (+ fiber-reinforced fiber) or ready-made mixtures is suitable;
- wait until the screed is completely solidified (this will take from 1 to 1.5 months) and lay the floor covering.