Floor insulation plays a very important role in the overall insulation of the house. It is best to do this even at the construction stage, then for insulation there is no need to dismantle the existing flooring, and the time, effort and building materials consumption will be minimized. If you need to warm the floor in an already lived-in house, it will be somewhat more difficult. First you need to decide what will be used as a heater for the floor in a wooden house, which one is better to choose to create high thermal insulation.
The choice of material for insulation
The selection of thermal insulation materials should be treated with the utmost responsibility. In many ways, the choice will depend on the financial well-being of the home owner, but you should not save on insulation. Remember that heat loss is the consumption of excess electricity for heating a home, which means additional financial expenses.
What kind of insulation for the floor in a wooden house is better? You can learn this by considering the advantages and disadvantages of each type of insulation materials.
The most common materials for floor insulation today are:
- mineral wool;
- ecowool;
- wood chips;
- polyurethane foam;
- penofol;
- Styrofoam;
- expanded clay.
Each of these materials has its own characteristics, as well as the nuances of installation. In order to choose the better to warm the floor in a wooden house, consider the following parameters:
- indoor conditions – the average humidity and temperature of the air, the extreme values of these indicators and the frequency of their differences;
- estimated thickness of the insulating layer;
- anticipated floor loads and general operating conditions;
- estimated weight of the entire floor construction.
Vapor barrier for the walls of a wooden house: materials and installation features. The main materials used for vapor barrier, their pros and cons. Features of vapor barrier installation.
Using ordinary wooden sawdust to insulate the floor is one of the easiest ways to increase the level of thermal insulation. Sawdust has a number of advantages:
- relatively low cost of material – sawdust will be cheaper than mineral wool or expanded clay;
- environmental friendliness – wood sawdust is absolutely safe for human life and health, does not cause allergies;
- simplicity of installation – in order to warm the floor with sawdust, it is enough just to fill them with an even layer under the floor covering;
- It is easy to fall asleep in hard-to-reach places – sawdust can be used to insulate gaps, dips and other places where it is impossible to install other types of insulation.
You can also use a variety of building materials that have sawdust in its composition. This includes sawdust, arbolit, wood blocks and pellets of sawdust. But most often used sawdust in pure form.
Helpful advice!When choosing a heater for the floor in a wooden house, sawdust should be used only if you are not afraid of increased fire risk. Otherwise, it is better to opt for less combustible material.
If the question arises, what is the best insulation for the floor in a wooden house, then mineral wool is one of the most popular options today. First, mineral wool is an optimal combination in terms of price and quality. Secondly, it has a lot of advantages:
- low thermal conductivity, so that heat loss in the house during the cold period is minimized;
- high water repellency, that is, mineral wool does not pass moisture, so this type of insulation can be installed in homes with high humidity;
- incombustibility of the material, which greatly reduces the risk of fire in a wooden house;
- durability – insulation of floors in a wooden house from below using mineral wool guarantees you a long service life of insulation, much longer than sawdust or other similar materials;
- ecological safety – mineral wool is absolutely safe for human health, does not cause allergies;
- high level of resistance to decay – this type of insulation can withstand the effects of an aggressive chemical environment, tolerates temperature changes and other adverse effects;
- reasonable price – mineral wool is more expensive than sawdust, but cheaper than many other heaters;
- high level of sound insulation. By warming your house with mineral wool, you not only reduce heat loss, but also minimize the noise level entering the house from the street.
A number of material disadvantages stem from its merits. One of the main factors is low vapor permeability, which can cause water condensate to accumulate on the insulation. If you are planning to warm the floor with mineral wool, then you should take care of a good vapor barrier.
In addition, mineral wool cracks over time, and the insulation decreases. Therefore, when weathe wood flooring in the private house below with the help of mineral wool, it is necessary to mount several layers overlap.
Mineral wool is mounted without gaps, and a vapor barrier is placed on top of the insulation layer with the obligatory gluing of seams. This will protect the insulation itself from condensation on it of moisture from the warm air from the house.
Penofol is used for floor insulation relatively recently, and has not yet enjoyed great popularity. It is a roll of material, which consists of several layers: insulation and reflective aluminum foil. When you insulate the floor with penofol in a wooden house, you get the following benefits:
- Simplicity and ease of installation – penofol can be mounted even without special skills in the field of construction.
- High resistance to mechanical stress – the material can withstand great pressure, shock and much more.
- The high density of the material, so that it can be mounted not too thick.
- When insulating the floor with penofol, you do not have to install additional vapor barrier, since condensate does not concentrate on this insulation.
Helpful advice! When buying penofol to warm the floor in your house, do not be afraid of its relatively high price: the excellent performance characteristics of the material more than compensate for it.
How to properly warm the floors in a wooden house with penofola? To do this, follow these steps:
- First mounted waterproofing layer. This may be a special film or just an additional layer of penofol.
- Then the insulation itself is laid, all joints and joints are filled with foam.
- Wooden lags are mounted on the top of the penofol layer. The distance between them should be at least 50 cm.
- Penofol is placed between the lags again, and all the joints and gaps are filled with polyurethane foam.
- Top stacked wooden boards or sheets of chipboard.
Polyfoam is another type of insulation that is almost on the same level as mineral wool. It compares favorably with the latter in that it does not absorb moisture, does not clot and, accordingly, does not lose its insulating properties over time. In addition, when you warm the floor in a wooden house below with foam, you get the following benefits:
- The high level of strength of the material, it is well tolerated by mechanical stress.
- A low level of thermal conductivity, that is, even a relatively small layer of foam will prevent heat loss in your home.
- Resistance to fire.
- Resistance to all sorts of negative environmental influences. Polyfoam successfully resists aggressive chemical environments, temperature extremes.
- Foam is not afraid of rodents, so if you need a type of insulation for the floor in a wooden house against mice, then it will be an excellent option.
- Does not decay and does not grow moldy.
When you warm the floor in a private house with your own hands with eco-wool, it should be borne in mind that this will be less efficient and will take longer than installing the same insulation using special blowing machines. Nevertheless, it is possible to warm the floor with ecowool without the use of specialized equipment. To this end, sheets of material are stacked between the pre-mounted wooden logs.
The advantages of ecowool are a high level of thermal insulation, impressive durability and resistance to adverse environmental effects. The minus of the material is its high cost and the need to use specialized equipment for high-quality installation. Video of floor insulation in a wooden house with the help of mineral wool with their own hands greatly simplifies the process, so do not be lazy to view it before starting work
If you do the insulation of the wooden floor of the house penoplex, then the layout here is the same as in the case of mineral wool. First, a layer of insulation is laid, then the seams are poured with foam. If necessary penopleks can be laid in several layers. The advantages of the material are as follows:
- When insulation penoplex does not need a vapor barrier, as it does not accumulate condensate.
- Penoplex is not afraid of rodents and insects, it does not need to be additionally protected from moisture or mechanical damage.
- The material boasts a solid service life, while over time its insulating properties do not change.
The only significant minus of penoplex is the relatively high price of the material. It is more expensive than mineral wool or foam, but it has better performance characteristics.
If you want to use the most advanced technology, then the “warm floor” system comes to the rescue. This may be a network of hot water pipelines, which is mounted under a layer of insulation or filler floor.
However, it is much easier to install and use the option – it is electric underfloor heating. You can buy such a system in any specialty store, and mount it without having specialized skills in the construction industry. The price of insulation for the floor in a wooden house on the basis of such a system will be quite high, but its efficiency is worth it.
After completion of the installation process of insulation, you should regularly carry out measures for the maintenance of the floor. This will help to extend its service life and maintain high thermal insulation properties. To do this, follow these guidelines:
- Do not walk on warm floor with outdoor shoes – small stones, dirt and solid particles act like sandpaper on the floor;
- for cleaning it is best to use a powerful vacuum cleaner, it will effectively remove all dust, even in the most inaccessible places;
- direct sunlight is bad for the wooden floor, so you should protect it from their effects;
- where it is assumed the maximum level of load on the floor, it is better to protect it with rugs.
Helpful advice! The biggest enemy of the wooden floor is moisture. Therefore, much attention should be paid to waterproofing. To do this, in places of the proposed exposure to water, you can lay a moisture-resistant coating.
It doesn’t matter whether you use floor insulation in a wooden house with expanded clay, mineral wool, foam plastic or using a “warm floor” system, compliance with these recommendations will allow you to significantly extend the service life of insulation and prevent loss of thermal insulation properties.
In the modern market of flooring materials manufacturers, there are several popular brands that are most often used for thermal insulation of private houses:
- Rockwool – one of the most popular brands, produces basalt insulation for walls, roofs and floors, characterized by high quality, density, non-inflammability. Available in slabs. The price per square meter of insulation can vary from 135 to 200-250 rubles, depending on the brand.
- Euroisol is a mineral wool-based insulation that is non-flammable, with high compressive strength, and low water absorption. The price per cubic meter is about 4,000 rubles.
- Laynrok – a ventilated non-combustible insulation, is implemented in the plates, used for insulation of facades and the floor. Price – from 140 to 170 rubles per square meter.
- Izover is a glass wool based insulation material, which is characterized by a high separation density, durability and resistance to physical stress. The cost is about 150 rubles per square meter.
In addition, such brands as Ecover, Ragos, Techno, Knauf and many others are used for insulation. In order to learn how to warm the floor in a private house with your own hands with the help of each of them, it is recommended to watch the video instructions on the Internet or read the advice of experienced builders.
