How to independently install heating in a bathroom in a private house
Would you like to add heating to your bathroom? Can't decide which option is better? Are you interested in the topic of underfloor heating, convectors, infrared heaters or other ways to heat a bathroom? Then read on - why do you need heating in the bathroom, types of bathroom heating, the advantages of different types of heating, how to independently arrange heating in the bathroom of a private house.
The content of the article
Why do you need heating in the bathroom?
If you want to add heating to your bathroom, then most likely you know why. But just in case, let's explain:
The bathroom is usually the wettest room in a room, be it a house or an apartment. A large amount of moisture that is not dried and does not evaporate from the room will lead to mold and mildew in the corners, on the walls, and on the handles of the room. Also, the heating problem is relevant in winter - in order not to get out of the shower, shrank from the cold, the bathroom must be heated.
That is, heating in the bathroom is needed to dry and evaporate moisture, which can cause mold and mildew to form, and to create comfortable conditions in the room in winter.
Heating your bathroom helps combat mildew, mold, and other growths in winter. In the summer - when heating is not used - excess moisture is removed from the room.To do this, ventilation is installed in the bathroom. Ventilation may not be the usual shaft with a grate and a fan, leading to the street. Ventilation in the summer can be considered a simple window or even an air conditioner. Yes, air conditioning. Over the past 5-6 years, there has been a trend to install air conditioners in the bathroom. This is explained by their convenience - air conditioners (usually split systems) can ventilate and heat the air. In this case, they act as a ventilation system and as heating equipment in winter. What about security? After all, electrical equipment in the wettest room doesn't sound very safe. There are moisture-resistant models - they can be used in the bathroom. They will not break or cause a short circuit. If the model is moisture resistant, the manufacturer writes this on the packaging and in the instructions.
Types of heating for the bathroom, their advantages and disadvantages, how to make heating in the bathroom yourself.
There are a total of 6 ways to heat a bathroom:
- Batteries, radiators and convectors
- Heated towel rails
- Infrared heaters
- Warm floor
- Warm ceiling
- Air conditioner
Below we will analyze in detail each of the types, their pros, cons, and features.
Batteries, radiators and convectors
Batteries, radiators and convectors are the standard heating method. They are usually hung on walls, but they can also be hung on other surfaces - the floor, window sill or even the ceiling. Batteries, radiators and convectors can be electric and operate from an outlet or transfer heat from a central coolant. The coolant is usually water. Hot water can be supplied from the central network or from a private heating network.
Non-electric radiators/batteries/convectors.Essentially, these are several devices connected by pipes through which hot water is supplied. In them, the water gives off heat to the room. To make such a heating system, you need:
Apartment - submit an application to the appropriate service, turn off the water supply, lay pipes through the radiator, legalize the installation.
House – lay pipes, connect a radiator/battery or other device.
It seems that this is easier to do in a private house, but it has its drawbacks. Firstly, to connect to a central heating system, you need to submit several documents and spend a lot of money, time and nerves. Secondly, if you are installing a private heating system, you need to order a boiler/stove, buy a barrel, insulate the barrel to reduce heat loss, connect the boiler to the barrel with two pipes, which are also connected to each other by one pipe and two pumps, install a chimney on the boiler, run two pipes from the barrel to the house, install pumps on them, make a pipe system in the house, install convectors/radiators, connect pipes to them, connect the inlet and outlet to them, repeat the operation in each room, connect everything with the second pipe from the boiler, draw water into the system, run it to remove air from the pipes and radiators, bleed the remaining air from the radiators themselves, close and seal the system.
Electric convectors, radiators. Electric models are simpler in terms of installation and operation - just install the models in the selected location next to the outlet, insert their plug into the outlet, and turn on the device. The disadvantage of electric convectors is the price and cost of their use, however, such models can be installed anywhere - a wall, floor, ceiling and even a window sill.
Heated towel rails
Brezhnevkas do not provide heating for the bathroom.Instead of batteries, they installed one curved pipe as a heated towel rail. He also heated the bathroom. They decided to modernize this idea - you can install a powerful electric heated towel rail in the bathrooms, which will both dry towels and heat the room. As you understand, the advantages of this method are versatility, fast heating, easy installation, and no need for additional documents. The downside is the price and cost of use (electricity costs for heating are too high in some areas).
When choosing a heated towel rail for heating a room, pay attention to its power. For a comfortable temperature in the bathroom, the power of the device should be 100 watts per square meter of the room.
To install an electric heated towel rail, choose a suitable location near an outlet. Attach your device. Use a level to level the appliance. Make marks in the mounting holes. Remove the heating device. Drill holes at the marks for the mounting bolts. Insert the dowels from the kit. Attach a heated towel rail with washers and rubber bands, if there are any and they are provided for in the instructions. Thread and tighten the bolts. Insert the plug of the heated towel rail into the socket and check how the device heats up.
Infrared heaters for the bathroom
Not the most popular way to heat a bathroom. Most often they are installed in private homes. Infrared bathroom heaters are electric heating equipment with high resistance to moisture. The principle of their operation is no different from conventional infrared heaters - there is a heating element (carbon fiber, halogen, heating element, ceramic), a current is passed through it, from which it heats up.The generated heat falls on the reflector - a special plate/coating that reflects up to 97% of the total heat received. A reflector directs and concentrates heat onto one area/group of objects. The peculiarity of infrared heaters in spot heating is that they do not heat the air; the reflected heat is absorbed only by objects in the room. Thus, objects in the room turn into secondary heat sources - they give off heat to surrounding objects, people, air and the entire room. Because of this same feature, their heat heats only a certain area, while the other remains cold. Also, heat during spot heating cannot avoid obstacles - if you have a sofa in front of the heater and a chair behind it, the heater will heat the sofa, but the chair will remain cold.
Warm floor for the bathroom
Like radiators, batteries, convectors, heated floors can be independent (electric) or water (a system of pipes with hot coolant that transfers heat to the floor).
Electric heated floors come in:
- cable,
- film.
Cable electric heated floor – lay the cable on a prepared surface (the concrete of the room is covered with insulation and covered with foil to reduce heat loss). The cable itself consists of a heating element, a coolant (water or an aqueous solution), and two layers of insulation. The heating element has a cartridge, wires or plug that connects to the temperature controller. The regulator itself is connected to the electrical network. The cable laid on the floor is covered with a 5-7 centimeter layer of concrete. Concrete is covered with laminate, boards, tiles or tiles. Electricity turns the heating element into a filament. It heats the coolant.The coolant transfers heat to the concrete and coating. This is how you get a warm floor. The heat from it heats the air, which, rising, warms the entire room. Only the effectiveness of such heating will be small - less of the heat reaches the air, but the legs will be warmed. The floor will rise by ±10 centimeters.
Film floor differs in base from cable - if in cable it is a special cable, then in film it is a thermal film with a set of plates. The plates are made of graphite heating elements. When current passes through them, they heat up. Two wires come out of the thermal film, which are connected to the regulator, and the regulator to the outlet. Film electric heated floor consists of:
- Primary floor (clean concrete)
- Insulator (film)
- Reflective material/foil
- Thermal films
- Protective film
- Coatings (laminate, carpet, linoleum)
The advantages of film models are ease of installation, higher heating temperature and the fact that the floor does not rise so high (2-3 cm).
Pipe heated floor – a set of pipes with coolant passing under the coating. In private houses, there is a barrel of water and a boiler outside the house or in the basement. Fuel (wood, gas, pellets, oil, diesel fuel) burns in the boiler, heating a portion of water. After reaching a certain temperature, circulation starts between the boiler and the barrel, and all the water is heated. Hot water flows through pipes into the house, where it heats the room through a network of radiators/radiators and/or heated floors.
To install this type of heating, lay an insulator on the primary floor. Next, lay down foil or another reflector. Make a pipe system along the entire surface of the floor. There should be an equal distance between them for high-quality heating. Install wooden support boards.Fill the surface with concrete with a layer of 5-7 centimeters - do not forget to leave exits for the pipes. Wait until the layer has completely dried, remove the wooden boards, and cover the concrete with the prepared coating. Connect the pipe outlets to the laid system from the barrel. Apply water to the system to remove all air from the pipes.
The advantages of this method: it is cheap, no additional documents are required, it warms up effectively. Cons: difficult installation, compared to other options, the floor will rise by 10-12 centimeters, it takes a long time to warm up the room.
Warm ceiling
This is probably the most unusual way to heat a bathroom, but it cannot be ignored. Users install thermal film on the primary ceiling. Typically, self-tapping screws with dowels or construction staplers are used. They like to install a suspended ceiling under the film. The thermal film is connected to the regulator, which is connected to the outlet. Electricity heats up the elements in the film. The air receives heat from them and remains at the top, slowly filling the room from top to bottom. Warm ceilings are not popular either in the CIS or in Western countries. This is explained by its low efficiency and difficulty of installation. The top of the room is warmed up while your feet remain cold.
Air conditioner in the bathroom
Another nonsense is air conditioning in the bathroom. Usually they try to equip a bathroom with as little electrical equipment as possible or at least with moisture protection for obvious reasons. Therefore, installing an air conditioner in the bathroom will seem nonsense to many, although this has its advantages. It was already mentioned above that the air conditioner (split system) is multifunctional: in summer it can be used for bathroom ventilation, in winter for heating/air heating. Air conditioning is installed in large bathrooms where there are no windows.Outside the house, through holes are made and brackets are installed to secure the street block. Tubes are run through the walls, and wiring is also run to this location to power the device. Install the indoor unit of the split system. Connect all tubes and wires to it.
When choosing an air conditioner for your bathroom, make sure it is a model with IP24 moisture protection or higher.
