Ventilation in the steam room with your hands. Do you need ventilation in the steam room?

The dream of any homeowner or summer resident is a private bath. Here you can pleasantly relax and steam, and also improve your body after a hard day. However, this is only possible if normal conditions are observed in the steam room. In the steam room there should be no drafts, there must be a certain level of humidity and a fairly high temperature.

Lack of humidity in the room, excess carbon dioxide can cause irreparable harm to health. Do you need ventilation in the steam room? To ensure the required circulation of fresh and hot air, one can not do without it.

Do you need ventilation in the steam room?

Let's imagine the picture: in the steam room there are several people with brooms. They soar with great pleasure, breathe actively, thereby giving off carbon dioxide, which, in turn, is mixed with hot steam and air. Gradually it becomes harder to breathe, the flow of fresh air is absent. To swallow it, you need to get out of the steam room. Is there enough power for this? What needs to be done to ensure comfortable conditions in the steam room?

Variants of ventilation in the steam room

Properly executed ventilation creates comfortable conditions in the steam room. This is due to the effective movement of the air flow, which comes from the furnace and from the outside, and also exits through special openings to the outside. In most cases, ventilation in the steam room is based on the principle of natural withdrawal from the room of exhausted air saturated with vapors and fresh inflow. This is very important in buildings made of wood, because excess moisture leads to rapid damage to the walls of the structure.

A parquet room with a small area does not require special expensive equipment. If the walls of the steam room are laid out of bricks, and in the room can easily accommodate 10-12 people, then you need to install a supply valve or exhaust fan. With the help of forced ventilation, it is possible to automatically control the temperature, humidity and air circulation in an automatic mode. Ventilation in the steam room is necessary for the following reasons:

• The appearance of an unpleasant odor in the room.
• Mold and fungi on wooden structures.
• Appearance on the surface of walls and ceiling of condensate.
• Mechanical ventilation - the inflow and outflow of air is carried out with the help of fans. Such a system allows creating a comfortable air exchange in any premises. But in a therma it will be associated with a great financial cost.
• Combined ventilation - outflow of exhaust air is carried out with the help of an exhaust fan, the influx of fresh air through the intake opening in a natural way.

Mechanical or natural ventilation - which is better?

The mechanical ventilation of the steam bath room can be used, but its application is associated with some inconveniences:

1. To increase or decrease the intensity of air exchange, you need to cover the outlet valve to create additional load on the fan.
2. The air extraction can be carried out with such intensity that in order to maintain the required temperature of the steam, it will be necessary to additionally heat the sauna stove.

Therefore, we will dwell in more detail on natural ventilation. How to make ventilation in the steam room without spending a lot of money?

Ventilation device in the steam room

The simplest version is a supply and exhaust opening in the foundation or walls. In this case, the location and size of these holes plays an important role. Sometimes, for more active air exchange, ventilation equipment can be installed.

There is no single ventilation scheme for the steam room, as they are different not only in the features of the structures, but also in the materials from which they are built. In this case, there are some rules, adhering to which, you can choose the most optimal ventilation for a particular case.

The size of the ventilation opening must be calculated based on the volume of the steam room: so for 1 m3 of ventilated area the opening size should be 24 cm2.

The main task in the bath is ventilation in the steam room, which is necessary to maintain a sufficient level of temperature and high humidity, but do not make the ventilation holes too small, as a result, the required level of air exchange will not be provided. The size of the exhaust holes must match the size of the supply air, otherwise the air exchange will be disturbed. In some situations, for quick drying of the bath and rapid removal of the exhaust air, it is allowed to make two exhaust openings.

Arrangement of supply and exhaust openings

In most cases, the oven is in a steam room. The inflow hole should be placed near the oven at a distance of not more than 30 cm from the floor. This is the most popular, however not the best variant of the organization of ventilation for a steam room. In this case it is much more effective when the inflow holes are located under the floor in the foundation. To avoid the penetration of rodents, these holes are desirable to be equipped with metal gratings.

Such ventilation in the thermae will simultaneously solve two tasks: deliver fresh air to the bath, and also effectively dry the walls and floors after the procedures are completed. In this case, the floor boards should preferably be laid with a small gap in order to ensure free passage of the air flow.

Ventilation apertures

To ensure the required air conditions during the heating of the steam room, the ventilation ducts are equipped with special plugs (covers) that can be closed (opened) from the steam room, thereby controlling air exchange, temperature and humidity.

Effective moisture removal

For ventilation in the steam room to be effective, it is forbidden to do the following:

• Install vent vents that are smaller in size than designed.
• Place the exhaust and inflow holes opposite each other - after all, the incoming air flow is withdrawn almost immediately, without having had time to give oxygen, as a result, a draft is formed, which is contraindicated for a steam room.

Ventilation scheme in the steam room

Let's consider the most popular variants of ventilation systems in the steam room:

1. This option is a system of natural ventilation. The vents are located on opposite walls. The inlet hole is located at the bottom behind the heater, the exhaust - opposite the air inlet on the wall above. However, this scheme is not the most efficient: the air flow passes near the furnace, heats up, rises and immediately leaves the exhaust hole. Thus, there is insufficient movement of air masses, poor oxygen saturation, and inefficient drying of walls and floors.
2. The following ventilation method is much more effective: the inlet hole is located behind the stove, the exhaust - opposite the air inlet, down on the wall. In this case, it is recommended to equip the exhaust hole with a fan. The cold air stream heats up from the stove, then rises, where it cools down and gradually descends. Due to the airflow created by the fan, the cooled steam is discharged outside.
3. On the opposite wall from the stove there are ventilation vents. The inflow hole is located opposite the stove at a distance of 30 cm from the floor, exhaust with a fan - on the opposite wall, at a distance of 30 cm from the floor. As a result, cold air is sent to the steam room, hits the stove, then heats up and rises, descends, gradually cools, leaves outside through the exhaust port.
4. Overheated exhaust air is discharged through the furnace sump. For this option, one vent hole is required, located near the furnace. This scheme works only when the furnace is heated.

Ventilation in the steam room of the bath, the circuit - which one to choose?

The above schemes are most often used in steam rooms, but there are many of their combinations and variations. Based on the above options for ventilation systems, you can develop your own scheme for a particular version of the steam room.