The door to the steam room is a kind of checkpoint, thanks to the correct operation of which the necessary bath microclimate is created. Therefore, it is so important, when planning to install a door to the steam room with your own hands, to take into account all the nuances and features of the technology of this process. Content:
- Primary requirements
- Material selection
-
Wooden door
- Manufacturing
- Installation
- Glass door
Bath is not just a complex of premises for hygienic purposes, it is a whole philosophy of relaxation. Therefore, it is so important to equip it correctly, taking into account every nuance to create optimal and most comfortable conditions for bathing procedures. Especially if you want to start building a bath with your own hands. Here we will analyze one of the key points of the right steam room - how to install a door to the steam room so that your stay in it is both productive and safe.
Basic requirements for the door to the steam room
When creating an ideal bath complex, such a structural element as a door to a steam room plays an important role, since it helps to keep it warm.
To cope with this task, such a door must meet the following requirements:
- Tightness, that is, it must completely block the exit of heat from the steam room.
- Resistance to deformation, because it will be constantly exposed to the "onslaught" of high temperatures and humidity.
- Security: opening the door to the outside, lightweight material that does not heat up and cause burns when touched, including handles and locks, simple design.
At the same time, the optimal height for the door to the steam room is considered to be 170-180 cm, width - 60-75 cm.
The choice of material for the door to the steam room
A variety of modern building materials and a flight of design ideas offer today 3 options for the door to the steam room - wood, glass and combined (wood with glass inserts). Let's consider the main characteristics of each of them:
- Wooden doors … "Eternal" classics are not losing ground, despite the constantly growing competition with modern materials. Wooden products are an excellent heat insulator with such important performance characteristics for a bath as resistance to high temperatures and humidity. It is impossible not to mention how comfortable the wooden material is perceived by our psyche and the body as a whole. Usually, the door leaf is assembled from a grooved board, followed by upholstery with clapboard. It can be a simple design with no frills, or you can approach it from the artistic side and decorate it with carvings. With regard to the specific type of wood for the door to the steam room with our own hands, we recommend staying on linden or aspen - they are affordable, have all the necessary performance characteristics and are easy to use. You can also consider more expensive but equally suitable materials - abash and Canadian cedar. If you decide to install a door made of wood, be sure to treat it with an antiseptic. Linseed oil and varnish cannot be used for this, so as not to breathe after "fragrant" toxic fumes.
- Glass doors … A modern, increasingly popular version of the door to the steam room, especially in cases of arrangement of saunas and Turkish baths. The advantage of this design is not only in the external showiness (especially in the sliding version). Such a door is able to withstand serious temperatures (up to +300 degrees), has water-repellent properties, it is easy to care for it in terms of cleaning, it does not deform. In addition, it is safe in several respects - in terms of getting burns and in terms of visibility of the steam room. It can also be noted that it cannot be called an expensive product. Please note: taking into account what temperature loads this product will have to withstand, you should choose only impact-resistant tempered glass with a thickness of at least 8 mm.
- Combined doors … This option combines the main positive qualities of both of the above materials. In this case, everything depends only on your preferences: you will need to choose the material for the canvas itself and decide on the size and design of the glass insert.
Wooden doors to the steam room
In the previous section, we did not indicate the main advantage of wooden doors - you can make them yourself. At the same time, it is the doors to the steam room made with their own hands that, in the opinion of many connoisseurs of bath procedures, are the most durable and functional. And it is not surprising, because with a diligent approach to business, three important components are combined here: quality material, diligence and spiritual participation.
Making a wooden door
We present you with step-by-step instructions on how to make a door to the steam room with your own hands in the form of a single-layer structure:
- Determining the required parameters … Take measurements of the doorway - these will be the necessary parameters of the product, while we recommend adding a couple of centimeters to the measurements (it is better to remove them than during the assembly process it turns out that you have "missed" somewhere in the calculations).
- Selection and preparation of material … You can buy ready-made grooved boards of the selected breed, or you can make them yourself, but keep in mind that their thickness should be 50 mm. Finished boards should be aligned with each other, grooves should be made in them, dowels should be inserted (no thinner than 50 mm).
- Assembling the product … Assemble the door (better - using glue) and check the correct assembly and comparability (diagonal, density). There are recommendations to additionally strengthen the structure at the top and bottom with transverse boards, on the sides - with beams.
If you are an adherent of a two-layer door for entering a steam room, reduce the size of the finished canvas taking into account the sheathing. After that, prepare the material (lining) and proceed with the sheathing. Often experts recommend numbering the parts before plating to avoid confusion, and try to minimize the gaps between them.
Installing a wooden door to the steam room
How the door to the steam room will be installed is no less important than what the door is made of. Since it will depend on the installation how much the design will cope with its tasks. If the doors are installed in a log house, you need to either wait six months or a year until complete shrinkage, or mount them in a box. And do not forget that the door must open from the side of the steam room, that is, out!
There are no fundamental differences in installing doors in a steam room from installing interior doors, but there are nuances:
- In order not to let heat out of the steam room, it is recommended to equip the threshold (from 14 to 30 cm) and heat insulation of the door (mineral wool, felt, etc.).
- To avoid further jamming of the doors, the latter should be narrower than boxes.
- For greater safety, door handles are best made of wood.
- To extend the life of the hinges and protect them from rusting, the hinges must be placed outside.
Now we collect the box (if you will make the box with your own hands) and insert it into the doorway (if it is a log wall, for the box you need to provide grooves 5x5 cm in it). We put the door leaf on 3-4 hinges, for which we first try on the vertical part, where we will attach the leaf, to the side of this very door leaf, and mark the location of the hinges (3 or 4, respectively).
Then, with the help of a cutter or self-tapping screws, we make grooves according to the marks, we lay hinges in them and already with a drill we prepare niches for self-tapping screws (slightly less than the diameter of the latter). Ready-made doors are installed using wedges made of wood and polyurethane foam.
After installing the structure, we adjust it vertically and horizontally, check it for tightness and ease of opening.
Installation of a glass door in the steam room
The installation of a glass door in the steam room also has no cardinal differences and consists in the following:
- Preparation … If you yourself will apply the accessories to the product, then there should be a “mother” on the canvas, which is better to fasten with small fasteners. However, keep in mind that working with a glass cutter with such durable glass will require effort. "Pope" will need to be fixed on the vertical rail of the door frame. Important: the size of the door leaf should differ from the size of the doorway in width by 3-5 cm downward.
- Assembly and installation of the door frame … Since in the case of a steam room, it is necessary to provide for the arrangement of the threshold, the box will consist of 4 components. Working with the frame, periodically check the vertical (level) and the presence of distortions (by hanging the door leaf).
- Final work … Fill in the gaps between the wall and the box (for example, with foam), cut off excess filler (if any) and mask visual defects with additional strips (self-tapping screws or small nails), install a decorative lock.
Video review of the installation of a glass door in the steam room:
Installing a door to the steam room with your own hands is a rather troublesome business, but it has many positive aspects. Firstly, you have the opportunity to show all your imagination and skills (or, at least, try yourself in something new). Secondly, you yourself will control the quality of material and work, time and costs. Thirdly, if you approach the process responsibly, you will have a source of pride that will serve you for a long time and faithfully.
