Modern Sauna

2023 Author: Douglas Hoggarth | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-05-24 11:23

The pleasant warmth of the sauna warms up in the cold season and balances the state of mind and body. All the arguments in favor of baths and saunas are also relevant in the summer: this is physical and mental relaxation, cleansing of toxins, improving the emotional state, as well as blood circulation, increasing efficiency and strengthening the immune system. Sauna regulars train their blood vessels and thus ensure a stable state of health. By the way, the so-called "bath effect" is manifested precisely due to the constant, at least weekly, steam in the sauna.

Those for whom the classic sauna is too hot or dry can easily adjust its microclimate by choosing the desired temperature and humidity.

By the way, if you wish, you can take a steam bath at home, having previously installed a sauna cabin there. The smallest commercially available saunas measure no more than 0.8 x 0.8 m. The height of home saunas usually does not exceed 2.1 m. So, only technically favorable conditions are needed. It is advisable to allocate a separate room for the cabin, in which at least one bench can be placed. In addition, the room should have a separate exit to the street, so that after the procedure you can immediately cool off in the fresh air. It is also rational to have cold water and a shower unit nearby. The equipment must be selected in such a way that it is safe in the bathhouse and the person feels comfortable. By the way, the basement does not have to be the place for the cabin. The attic floor is also suitable for the installation of a sauna. A great solution if,of course, the area of the land allows - a separate house in a secluded corner of the garden.

A modern sauna is a rather complex engineering structure that requires compliance with many standards, special calculations, and has a number of design features.

The sauna cabin is an inverted glass structure that is installed on a floor covered with ceramic tiles or, more rarely, wood. The base / plinth is usually made of anodized aluminum and is a frame structure. The plinth can also be made of a wooden block, necessarily treated against decay with antiseptics, which prevent the passage of moisture between the floor and the wall. The structure of the walls is as follows - usually it is a two-layer panel with effective thermal insulation, the paneling of the panel is "SUPER" class Euro lining made of linden, aspen, North American spruce, abachi, cedar or pine. Aluminum foil 0.068 mm thick is used for vapor barrier. The walls are sometimes made of a solid, carefully processed and polished bar (solid wood), with a section from 50 x 100 to 75 x 150 mm. The design of the ceilings is similar to that of the walls.

The shelves are usually made of African abachi wood, which has a unique property - not to heat up: at a sauna temperature of 90-110oС, its surface temperature is no more than 40oС. Supports for walls of a special design are made again from abachi, less often from linden. The design and shape of the backrest create the best conditions for resting the whole body. The waterproof heat-resistant lamps are covered with special decorative wooden shades that create a special feeling of peace in the sauna. The frame of the bench is assembled on special dowels and is designed for maximum loads and durability. Nails or screws are buried below the level of the seat surface and closed with plugs. Air supply and outlet hatches are closed with decorative grilles.

For the glazing of the sauna windows and doors, double-glazed windows with double tinted glass can be used. The thickness of the walls can be easily calculated according to the formulas of the Construction Norms and Regulations "Construction Heat Engineering" and according to the formulas of classical thermodynamics. According to experts, the optimal layer thickness of an effective insulation should not exceed 50 mm.

Particular attention must be paid to the design of the ventilation system in the steam room or sauna. There are several approaches to ventilation of saunas, but all of them are based on natural air exchange due to the difference in pressure of the air columns of the incoming and outgoing air streams.

An important issue in the process of designing saunas is the correct choice of the power of the heater. In recent years, electric heaters made in Finland, Germany, Sweden and Russia have become widespread. The stove must be properly loaded with stones of a certain type, the coefficient of linear expansion of which is equal to zero (diabase, overdotite, talc-chlorite). It is forbidden to use other types of stones, since when heated they expand and thereby destroy the electric heating elements and the furnace body.