Almost every owner of his own personal plot sooner or later decides to build a bathhouse in his yard, but because any Russian person loves to take a steam bath with a broom in the company of relatives and relatives. A log bath is the most preferred option of all existing ones, and you can build it yourself.

Pros and cons of a bath from a bar

Such a building has a lot of advantages over other analogues, but there are also disadvantages. The pluses include:

1. Environmental friendliness of the material. The bathhouse, like no other building, must meet these requirements, because it is being built to maintain health, to benefit the body and spirit. Since ancient times, it was built of wood, and modern people are trying to preserve this tradition.
2. Ease of installation. A wooden bath is a building, for the construction of which special knowledge in construction is not needed.
3. Erection speed. A wooden bath can be folded in the shortest possible time.
4. slight shrinkage. Each material gives it, but timber in this respect is preferable to other structures, including wooden ones.
5. Good thermal insulation. Wood perfectly retains heat and does not freeze through in winter.
6. Low cost. A bath from a bar will cost less than analogues.
7. Opportunity to abandon the reinforced foundation. This simplifies and reduces the cost of the construction process.

Of the minuses, it is worth noting:

1. Fire hazard. Wood is a flammable material, and given that there will be a stove inside, the risk of fire remains high.
2. The formation of cracks in wood due to temperature changes.
3. High humidity, which in the absence of proper ventilation can lead to the formation of mold and mildew.

What beam to use for a bath?

There are a variety of types of timber, but for the construction of simple structures, a regular, square shape and side sizes from 100 to 250 mm are used. Such log blanks have planed lateral semicircular edges, but this is where all the advantages end. It is difficult to work with this material, because it still needs to be finished clean, and then insulated and impregnated with a special fire-fighting and antibacterial composition.

A bath made of glued laminated timber in this respect is a more preferable option. Such material has a calibrated cross section, and the joints look like a comb or spike. The composition of each individual element includes several wooden plates glued together. A house-bath made of glued laminated timber does not require additional finishing, does not crack, does not undergo deformation and does not shrink. There is another material from which you can build a steam room. This is a profiled beam that provides tight adhesion of individual elements, but it takes time to shrink.

Types of baths from a bar

There are many varieties of such a building, the design of which is limited only by the imagination of the owner. If desired, a wooden bath can have two or more floors, on which you can place lounges, a large dining room, a billiard table and other entertainment and leisure facilities. The owner can independently design the steam room of his dreams or entrust it to specialists. Even on a small “patch” of 3×4 m, you can fit a functional bath, where there will be everything you need for a small group of friends.

Bath with a porch

Such a structure made of timber has a finished look, because without a porch any building looks dull and faceless. The owner may refuse it, but it is better to provide steps with railings, especially if you plan to go out into the open air to take a breath and get some fresh air. On a wet floor, it is easy to slip, and the overflow will prevent falls and save you from injury. Even with a small size, a carved porch gives a bath from a bar originality and archaism.

Bath with an attic

If the owner is not very tight on money, then he can build a bathhouse with an attic. This will already turn out to be a full-fledged house where you can accommodate unexpectedly arriving guests, having previously steamed them well in the sauna. Two-story log baths require strengthening the foundation, but heating costs can be easily reduced, because the heat from the first floor will spread higher.

However, it is worth taking care of a good drainage system and ventilation, otherwise mold will quickly appear in the premises. If you plan to operate the bath only in the warm season, then you can organize a summer kitchen upstairs with a beautiful view from the window and thus save space on the site. However, this should be foreseen at the stage of construction and settlement.

Bath with a terrace

The owner, who has long dreamed of building a beautiful and cozy gazebo on his backyard, can kill two birds with one stone if his project is a log bath with a terrace. Here you can sit with friends over a cup of tea and a samovar, sitting in comfortable chairs and enjoying the peace of the silent nature, the silence that can only be outside the city.

The open terrace can be used only in the warm season, but if it is glazed and heating is provided, then a spacious and comfortable living room will appear, where family members and their guests can easily settle down. In fact, this is a separate room for a bath from a bar, but at the same time requiring much less significant costs, typical for the construction of a separate room.

Bath with a veranda

Another popular option. Actually, the terrace is not much different from the veranda, but the latter can serve as a kind of dressing room, where you can undress, leave things, change into comfortable open shoes, and leave street shoes outside the threshold. An excellent solution for those whose area does not allow building a spacious steam room with a large dressing room. A log bath with a veranda provides an opportunity to plan your vacation without regard to the weather. You can sit here even in the rain, because the roof reliably protects from precipitation, and the openings in the walls do not interfere with enjoying the beautiful view.

Do-it-yourself log bath

Any building, whether it is a bathhouse made of profiled timber or any other, requires careful preparation. In general, the stages of construction look like this:

1. Drawing up a project. Those interested in how to build a bath from a bar should start from this stage by making a drawing on paper or using the help of a special computer program.
2. Calculation of the amount of material. With a plan in place, it’s easy to figure out how many pieces of wood you’ll need.
3. Foundation construction. A light structure will save money at this stage, and a two-story log bath will require a reinforced base.
4. Waterproofing between the frame and the foundation.
5. Walling.
6. Warming, caulking cracks.
7. Roofing.
8. Facade decoration and interior work.

The foundation for a bath from a bar

This step depends on the type of foundation:

1. Column Foundation. It is chosen for light construction. Brick pillars are installed around the entire perimeter and corners, and concrete inserts are made to protect against subsidence, maintaining a distance between the supports of 1.5 m.
2. Strip foundation beam baths. It provides for the execution of formwork and filling them with concrete. The foundation should rise above the soil level by 0.5 m or more. The cavities should be covered with sand and gravel and the structure should be left to dry completely.

Timber walls

Their construction is carried out as follows:

1. The construction of baths from profiled timber provides for the installation of the first strapping crown. For these purposes, ideally even material and level are used.
2. For the first few rows, the largest bars with dimensions of 200×200 mm are taken. When laying the first crown, the material should be treated with an antiseptic.
3. Lay a layer of insulation and install a second crown. Then proceed by analogy, fastening the bars with wooden dowels, metal pins or nails without hats.
4. Provide space for window and door openings.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHOal8k_MnA

Floors in the bath

It is necessary to think about this even at the stage of building the foundation. It is not enough to build a bath from a bar with your own hands, you also need to think about what the floor will be like in it. Here are two main options:

1. Pouring concrete screed. A reliable foundation, but requiring a lot of time, physical and material costs.
2. Installation of logs and installation of floorboards on them. Cheap and easy way, but short-lived.
3. Leaking floor. Ideal for wood. All he will require is the implementation of a drainage pit in the underground.

Timber bath roof

The roof project may include one or two slopes:

1. shed roof — a simple and budget option. The construction of baths from glued beams with such a roof should be chosen by the owner of a summer or small bath.



2. Gable roof suitable for large buildings. You can not do without it and in the presence of an attic or living quarters on the second floor.

Construction is carried out in the following stages:

1. A support for the roof structure is installed.
2. Ceiling beams are installed.
3. The truss structure is being erected.
4. The roof is insulated and waterproofed.
5. Lathing of the truss system is installed.
6. Roofing is installed.

Finishing a bath from a bar

If the material has already been pre-prepared, then it is not necessary to finish the facade, especially since this is its main advantage — in the appearance of natural, beautiful wood. Internal design is mandatory when the construction of a bath from a bar is carried out. As a rule, the same wood is used for these purposes, for example, lining.

Having the appearance of panels, it facilitates installation work and hides all irregularities and defects, if any. It is better if it is made of linden, larch, aspen, birch or poplar. Coating with varnish or paint is excluded to prevent toxic substances from entering the air when the temperature rises. Additionally, it is worth equipping the steam room with lamps in protective wooden shades.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xPMUA9VnSM