When building a bathhouse, many owners strictly adhere to all requirements for the configuration and size of the future structure.
The optimal size of the bathhouse ultimately determines the quality of health procedures.
What should be the optimal dimensions of the steam room and shelves? What ceiling height is important to observe when designing a bathhouse?
Some more popular sizes
6 by 4
6 by 3
8 by 8
Pay attention to the photo of the layout of the 8 by 8 bathhouse - you can immediately see that there is a lot of useful space inside, which requires only one thing from you: use it wisely! It is obvious that such large baths today are rather an exception to the rule. Accordingly, the more possibilities, the more difficult it is to ultimately come to the only correct decision. In this case, it is advisable to turn to professional specialists who can carry out the layout of such a bathhouse to the highest possible quality. However, you can get some good ideas from the photos below.
As a rule, in such large baths you can create a hammam: set aside a separate room for this purpose, equip it with the necessary sun loungers, and put a massage table. Women love the Turkish bath!
Layout and overall dimensions
A classic Russian bathhouse consists of a steam room, a washing room, a dressing room and other utility rooms. An electric or wood-burning heater is used as the main heating.
The minimum dimensions of a bathhouse designed for 2–3 people are 1.9 x 2.1 meters. It is equipped with one large bench for performing procedures in a sitting or lying position.
The average bathhouse has the following parameters - 2.6x2.5 meters. For ergonomic use of free space, benches are placed in an L or U-shape around the entire perimeter.
It is important to maintain the optimal ceiling height; the lower it is, the lower the fuel consumption for heating the room.
As a rule, the rest bench is placed at the level of the top of the firebox - 100 cm, therefore, for maximum comfort for vacationers, the optimal ceiling height should be at least 2.4 meters. The height of the bathhouse is determined by the technological features of the project and the overall dimensions of the future structure.
Bathhouse projects made from building blocks
A building block is a piece of building material endowed with shape, features and certain linear dimensions.
cinder block
The filler is usually granulated slag obtained by quenching a hot blast furnace with water. Not a very good material in terms of environmental safety. Good strength characteristics, durability and thermal insulation qualities.
A big advantage is the ability to independently produce cinder blocks with a minimum set of equipment and technological skills. The construction of walls from such material is easier than brickwork. Due to its fairly high specific gravity, it requires a good foundation. Absolutely non-flammable. It has moderate water absorption.
Aerated concrete
An innovative material that is distinguished by thermal insulation characteristics and low specific gravity. The load on the foundation is much lower than that implied by the use of brick, bentonite or cinder block. It is distinguished by fairly simple installation and is satisfactorily cut into smaller elements.
The material is expensive; in addition, the construction of a number of individual sections with a radius profile, for example, arches, is associated with objective difficulties.
A feature of the use of all mineral-based building materials is the use of reliable hydro and vapor barriers. In addition to their tendency to form condensation, such materials often have a high level of water absorption, which requires mandatory response measures. Taking into account the fact that aerated concrete blocks are a promising building material, we provide a summary information table of the main standardized sizes:
| product name | Thickness, in mm. | Height, mm | Length, mm |
| Straight block | 200 300 200 | 250 250 300 | 625 625 625 |
| Block with handles and tongue-and-groove interface system | 375 400 | 250 | 625 |
| Straight block with handles | 300 375 400 | 250 | 625 |
| Straight gas silicate block with tongue-and-groove interface system | 300 375 400 | 250 | 625 |
| Straight aerated concrete partition block | 150 | 250 | 625 |
| Unified partition gas block | 100 | 250 | 625 |
| U-shaped block for lintels and monolithic chords | 200 300 400 | 250 | 500 |
Possible projects
All the projects presented are very similar to each other - a slight change in the layout, removal of a couple of windows and here is a new option. But pay attention to important things - the type of foundation and the materials used.
Project “A”
This option will be built for you in a week for no more than 100 thousand.
At the same time, it has very good characteristics:
- foundation - columnar (blocks 20 × 20 × 40);
- wall thickness - 12 cm;
Already the appearance suggests that the price for this “object” will be small, although inside there is everything that is necessary for true connoisseurs of the steam room (project “A”)
- insulation between the timber – fiber jute;
- fastening the beams - on nails, which should be the subject of your control; for bathhouses you must use only galvanized fasteners;
- finished floor - on joists, tongue and groove, not sanded;
- floor insulation – along the perimeter;
- 3 compartments - locker room, washing room and steam room;
- doors – wedge 1.80 × 0.60 m;
- two windows - 0.6 × 0.6 m;
- internal height – 2.05 m;
- galvanized roof;
Please note that the standard sauna package does not include a boiler, stove or firebox. This feature of almost all small baths must always be kept in mind.
Project “B”
This option is very similar to option “A”, the only difference is in the roof design material. Here, this is a more advanced option - metal tiles. As usual for this option, you can always choose its color - red, blue, brown, green.
2x2 baths have many implementation options - the area is small, so they are often very similar to each other (project “B”)
Project “C”
And these are the advantages of a small carriage-type bathhouse.
Having a ready-made external concept, you can focus your efforts on the interior layout - two different ones are presented:
- complete set with washing and steam room and
- the second option is with a shower and steam room.
It’s still the same columnar foundation, but the structure itself sits entirely on the pillars without any problems.
Another project of the so-called carriage type - here you don’t even need instructions to successfully assemble even a beginner (project “C”)
Where to place the sauna
Fundamentally, there is no difference in which place in the apartment or house to build a sauna. The only thing that needs to be provided is the ability to arrange ventilation and power supply. Also, the room must match the size of the planned sauna. Electric heaters can allow you to place the steam room anywhere, because there is no need to start a fire and provide a chimney system.
Consequently, a sauna can appear in the basement of a house, in the attic of a bathhouse, and even on a balcony in a high-rise building. Many will say that it is very dangerous to build steam rooms in a house because of the humidity. In fact, a sauna is a very dry room, so no special measures are needed to install waterproofing.
Detailed layout of a sauna with a kitchen and living room.
A sauna can also be built separately from a residential building.
Brick, a bathhouse made of profiled timber, and frame structures can be used for construction. This will lead to significant costs, since it will be necessary to draw up a plan for the sauna and make a drawing of a bathhouse with a toilet and shower, but the developer will have a free hand in matters of planning. It will be great if the sauna is located near a body of water, even an artificial one. The opportunity to plunge into cool water between gatherings in the steam room will bring a lot of pleasure. In cases where it is possible to make a sauna as an extension to the house, you can significantly save on laying water supply, electrical wiring and sewerage.
Classic log bathhouse
A real Russian bathhouse should be built from logs. A properly built log house can stand without repair for at least 15 years. Moreover, the walls of a one-story building are often not even insulated according to the design, only the facade is periodically updated, and the joints are minted on the windows and lower crowns of the building.
As an example of a project made from a 3x4 m bathhouse log, you can use the photo below.
This is exactly the case when the developer managed to invest in the project important construction solutions that are usually ignored by non-professionals:
- The entrance to the bathhouse, locker room and steam room are on the same line. There are small windows in each of the steam rooms and locker rooms, as well as in the entrance door. This means that in case of heavy smoke or gas poisoning, you can always leave the room without any problems;
- The roof of a one-story building was built according to all the rules of science. For bathhouses - log houses 3x3 m or more, the roof overhangs are made very long. This allows you to effectively retain heat, get rid of condensation and protect the building from rain and wind;
- At the entrance to the bathhouse there is a covered platform under a canopy. For a small bathhouse there is no point in building a full-fledged terrace, but a canopy over the entrance will help organize summer gatherings in the evening, after the steam room.
In general, the project turned out to be successful, durable and, like all good things, very expensive; on average, the construction of a small one-story log bathhouse will require at least 300 thousand rubles.
A more affordable project for a 3x3 m log bathhouse is shown in the diagram below.
As in the previous case, the box of a one-story building is assembled from 200 mm logs.
The room is divided in a classic way into three sections:
- A dressing room combined with a rest room;
- Small washing room;
- Steam room with an area of 3.5 m2.
The disadvantage of this one-story bathhouse project is the poor roof design. If you build a steam room, as they say, in an open field, then it is best to use a roof, as in the photo.
Arrangement of bath floors
The construction of the steam room must begin with upgrading the floor. When purchasing materials for finishing, it makes no sense to overpay for their thermal insulation properties, because this will not affect the performance characteristics.
insulation of floors in the sauna
In the sauna you can find not only wooden floors. Granite or other artificial materials are often used for finishing. Often, in order to save money, the floor in the sauna is finished with ceramic tiles with a rough surface to prevent slipping. Another option for sauna flooring is Thermowood. It withstands high temperatures and also has an “anti-slip” surface.
A wooden floor requires a backing for the joists. It is best to use well-treated boards, about forty millimeters thick. They are fastened with self-tapping screws, hiding the caps flush, and covering these places with plugs.
