How to insulate a log house with your own hands. Log house insulation technology from the outside How to insulate a log house

A unique feature of log houses is that they are able to maintain heat in the interior and regulate the humidity of the air within certain limits. But sometimes, with the onset of winter, owners find shortcomings in the level of thermal insulation.

Often this happens if the log house was recently purchased and is not in the best condition. Then there is a need to carry out high-quality insulation of such a building.

Do I need to insulate a log house?

The owners of log houses sometimes notice that a draft appears in the rooms, and the floor and walls cool down quickly after turning off the heating. To prevent this from happening, it is necessary to carry out high-quality thermal insulation of the building. Many elements of the building need insulation. Especially serious heat losses are characteristic of the attic, because up to 70% of the heat lost by the house can go through it.

In addition to the attic or attic, walls and all those elements through which heat leakage can be observed need thermal insulation. The latter include slopes, window sills, windows, entrance doors. Log walls should also be well caulked if there are noticeable gaps in them. An excellent addition to a conventional heating system will be a “warm floor”, which is easy to install even on your own.

The main reason for the rapid cooling of the air in the interior is the insufficient thickness of the outer walls. But here one interesting specificity is observed: the lower the natural humidity of the air, the thinner the walls can be. For those regions where humidity is low, it is enough to use logs with a thickness of about 20 cm. But for most regions of the country, “wet” winters are still characteristic, therefore, in order to obtain decent thermal insulation, it is necessary to build buildings from logs with a diameter of 40 cm or more. When such a moment is not immediately taken into account, subsequently there are problems with the level of insulation. How to raise it? This will be discussed further.

Materials for warming a log house

To maintain a favorable microclimate in a log house, it is best to use natural materials. The so-called "old-fashioned" methods of insulation allow you to get excellent thermal insulation, and are much cheaper. It will be possible to insulate the attic if you fill it with a mixture of earth and clay. Expanded clay and ecowool are suitable for the implementation of such a process. You can caulk the walls using materials such as hemp, moss, jute, tow, and so on. The floor surface can be protected by using expanded clay or mineral wool slabs.

But even such events are sometimes still not enough to make the thermal insulation of a log house high. Then you have to use additional methods to provide thermal insulation. For wall insulation, it is necessary to use materials that are highly vapor permeable. At the same time, the insulation should not accumulate moisture. It is good if it is fire-resistant, environmentally friendly and uninteresting for insects and other pests.

Based on such requirements, it will be possible to name such as suitable heaters for log buildings. It is better to insulate walls with mineral wool or ecowool. The attic will be reliably insulated with sawdust or expanded clay. At the same time, polystyrene foam, polystyrene foam and other materials based on polystyrene should not be used. Their low vapor permeability will cause the wood walls to rot very quickly, as they become covered with moisture.

Stages of warming a log house from the outside

The most correct method is the thermal insulation of log walls from the outside. The reason is that wood is characterized by a unique ability to pass air through itself. When arranging a ventilated facade, all conditions will remain to achieve a good weathering effect. But here it will be necessary to take into account that it is possible to proceed to warming measures only after the log house shrinks. This takes about a year.

1. Log house caulk

Regardless of the chosen method of insulation, the first action of the owner should be caulking. To begin with, the walls must be inspected for cracks. All detected problem areas are covered with hemp or tow. In order to qualitatively caulk all the gaps, you will need to push the material used with a special spatula. It is necessary to do this until the moment when he hits the "obstacle".

2. Device of a ventilated facade

The best method of external insulation of the house is the installation of a ventilated facade. Work is carried out in a certain order. They look like this.

1. Wooden walls are covered with an antiseptic.
2. A crate is installed, the distance between the elements of which is almost the same as the width of the insulation boards. It should be about 1.5 cm smaller.
3. Laying of heat-insulating materials. Plates should fit tightly between the frame elements.
4. Flooring wind protection or waterproofing.
5. Installation of the second crate, followed by the installation of siding.

To create waterproofing, it is better to choose a super diffuse membrane. It allows you to protect the insulation from contact with moisture. But on the reverse side, that is, from the wall, moisture will be effectively removed. So the walls can breathe. But it is important that the superdiffuse membrane is laid with some clearance from the siding. Also, air is left in the upper and lower parts, allowing air to circulate normally.

How to insulate a log house from the inside

Experts advise resorting to internal insulation only in exceptional situations. When placing insulation on the inside, there is a risk that the logs will stop breathing. This will eventually lead to mold growth. During interior work, it is better to lay a heat insulator in the attic and floor, as well as additionally insulate doors and windows.

1. Attic insulation in a log house

In a one-story log house, waterproofing is laid on the attic floor, which is then covered with heat-insulating material so that the insulation layer is about 25 cm. Interfloor floors are insulated so that the protective layer is 5-10 cm thick. Roof insulation involves laying waterproofing, followed by laying a 20 cm mineral wool layer. Thermal insulation is covered with a vapor barrier membrane and hemmed with drywall.

2. Wall insulation inside the log house

The walls themselves should be left without insulation. But you need to get rid of all the cracks and gaps. For these purposes, jute, moss, tow, special interventional heaters are used. It will be possible to increase the thermal insulation if you carry out the inner lining with a wooden clapboard.

3. Floor insulation in a log house

At this stage, the space between the lags is filled with insulation, after which a draft floor is formed. Expanded clay or mineral wool is suitable as a heater.

Thermal insulation of a log house - a complex procedure

Only with an integrated approach to warming a house from logs will it be possible to obtain decent thermal insulation. If the procedures described above still did not give decent protection from the cold, on the north side of the building it is necessary to make an extension in the form of a veranda and insulate it additionally. Then the heat loss will decrease, an additional air gap will appear between the external environment and the internal premises.

From time immemorial, a log house is considered perhaps the warmest of the known buildings. And all thanks to the fact that a traditional log cabin is able to perfectly store heat and maintain balanced humidity. It is known that a wooden wall 24 cm thick gives the same insulation of the internal space as a meter brick wall.

Penofol is a heat-insulating material used to insulate all surfaces of a house, bathhouse, warehouse, pipeline, car, etc.

But a tree is not an ideal remedy for cold weather.

Often, residents in a new wooden house find that with the advent of cold weather, the house does not seem cozy from the inside and unpleasantly strikes with drafts.

And then, despite the natural building material, you have to look for a suitable insulation. To an even greater extent, this problem concerns old houses.

This problem is completely solvable. For example, you can install thermal insulation both inside and outside. But many people want not only warmth in their homes, but also the preservation of the unique log texture of the building. And in order to make the house as comfortable as possible, it is enough to figure out how to insulate a log house from the inside, and bring this idea to life.

Surfaces involved in heat transfer

Log home insulation scheme: 1. vapor barrier system; 2. thermal insulation; 3. waterproofing; 4. clapboard lining.

Before starting the insulation of a house or a bath, it is necessary to determine the areas involved in heat transfer. This list includes the ceiling, floor and walls. They should be checked for heat leaks. On these surfaces, you will have to produce the main insulation if the house is cool.

1. Ceiling. Through it, up to 70% of all heat escapes. To eliminate this problem, it is recommended to insulate the attic space.
2. Walls. Most of all openings are located here - windows, doors. In the places of their installation, as well as in the walls themselves, gaps can form between the logs. To avoid drafts, it is necessary to carefully caulk the joints of the logs.
3. Floor. Checked for cracks. It is insulated as standard, as for all other floors. A good help for warming the premises can be the installation of warm floors. In addition, on the eve of winter, the ventilation of the subfloor should be reduced by closing some of the ventilation openings.

When developing a log house project, it is necessary to take into account in which climatic zone the building will be operated. To determine the thickness of the walls of the future wooden house, the average temperatures of each season and air humidity are of no small importance. So, the more severe the climate of the region, the thicker the walls should be. But low humidity, even with severe winter frosts, makes it possible to build log cabins with slightly thinner walls than in cases with high humidity and a milder climate.

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Tools used to insulate a house from the inside

For insulation work, you should prepare the following tools:

1. Hacksaw.
2. Hammer.
3. Screwdriver.
4. Pliers.
5. Scissors.
6. Blades and accessories for caulking.
7. Measuring ruler (roulette).

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How to insulate a log house from the inside: solutions

Complete insulation of a log house involves the processing of all surfaces involved in heat exchange with the external environment: roofs, floors, ceilings and walls, as well as window and door openings. Often, standard measures are enough to provide a home or bathhouse with guaranteed protection from cold and drafts.

Here it must be borne in mind that usually log buildings, including wooden baths, are chosen for construction precisely because of environmentally friendly building materials. Therefore, a smart and demanding customer traditionally tries from the inside with natural materials. In particular, caulking of log joints in the walls is a mandatory operation when insulating a room - in this case, it is produced by well-known and well-proven hemp, tow, moss, jute, flax-based tape heaters.

When sprayed, ecowool fills all the cracks and cracks, so that subsequently the walls, ceiling and floor of a log house do not need to be caulked.

However, even after all the standard insulation measures, it can be quite cold in a log house. This, as a rule, occurs if the heating system is either improperly arranged in the house, or the thickness of the logs selected earlier does not correspond to the severity of the local climate. Then it is recommended to conduct additional insulation of the above surfaces.

Ceiling (roof) insulation. Produced at the first sign of cold in the room. To do this, a special waterproofing film is first laid on the attic floor, and then a heater is laid (poured) on top. Materials such as sawdust, dried seaweed, ecowool (cellulose wool), standard mineral wool in rolls or slabs can be used in this capacity. For ease of movement in the attic, boards are laid on top of the insulation.

If a residential building is crowned not with an attic, but with an attic, then not only the overlap between the attic and the lower room, but also the roof requires insulation. Usually, in order to make the ceiling heat-insulating, any insulation laid between the base lags with a layer of 50 to 100 mm thick is sufficient. At the same time, the roof slopes are covered from the inside first with a waterproofing film, and then with a heater (preferably mineral wool) with a layer of 100-200 mm (depending on the climatic conditions of the area).

Floor insulation. After preliminary standard backfilling and waterproofing, the wooden floor in a log house is covered with insulation. Mineral wool slabs are placed between the floor joists. The insulation layer should be at least 100-150 mm. From above, it is covered with a rough, and then with a finishing coating.

Scheme of floor insulation of a log house.

Wall insulation. As noted above, the minimum insulation of walls made of logs comes down to caulking joints (slots) between the logs of the wall. Additional thermal insulation of the walls in such a house is provided by one of the options below.

Finishing a wooden house or a log bath from the inside, in order to make the rooms warmer, can be done with a wooden clapboard. This is done without placing insulation between the main and additional walls. Thermal insulation is provided by the air gap formed between them.

Another option is the construction of false walls made of drywall with a depth of 50-100 mm on profiles. Unlike clapboard insulation, this method gives a greater thermal insulation effect and is used in buildings that are located in a region with severe frosts. Stable preservation of heat in the premises is ensured by the presence of multilayer thermal insulation (for example, mineral wool, polystyrene, etc.). However, with this option, you will have to put up with a slight decrease in the useful area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe room.

An environmentally friendly way to insulate a log house or a bathhouse includes wall decoration with oriented strand boards (OSB). Solid insulation consists of 3-4 layers of shavings of different types of wood. It is worth noting that this strong and durable material has a high degree of moisture resistance, which is why when using it as a heater, you can completely do without a vapor barrier. Such plates are simply attached with dowels to the logs of the wall.

In recent years, the thermal insulation of walls, including log walls, has been widely used by means of penofol - a foil sheet based on foamed polyethylene. Along with the properties of a good vapor barrier, penofol perfectly retains heat due to the numerous air bubbles clogged under the plastic wrap. At the same time, the aluminum coating on the reverse side of the foam sheet effectively reflects heat radiation directed from the inside of heated rooms, preventing radiation from escaping through the wall to the outside.

Mounting this canvas on the wall is quite simple. Guide rails are pre-stuffed on the log surface so that the step between them is convenient for attaching the canvas and corresponds to its size. During installation, the foam strips are fastened with an overlap of 10 cm. The gaps are glued with foil tape. A frame is made on top of the penofol, on which the finishing finishing material is attached. It is necessary to ensure that at the same time the air gap between the penofol and the cladding is at least 2 cm.

Log houses are the warmest and most environmentally friendly. Wooden walls perfectly retain and accumulate heat and regulate the level of humidity. On every corner we hear that a wooden wall only 240 mm thick has the same thermal conductivity as a brick wall 1 m thick. Impressive, right? But there are situations when they built or bought a new log house, lived in it, and with the onset of the first serious cold weather, they realized that the house was cool and there were drafts. Then we seriously think about the insulation of the building, even to the detriment of beauty. But there may be more banal situations: they bought an old wooden house, which is already rather "worn out" and requires serious measures for warming. So a serious question arises, how to insulate a log house, what materials can be used, and what absolutely cannot be done.

Why is it cold in a log house - a little theory

What are the most common problems faced by log house owners who complain that it is cold in winter? Firstly, these are drafts in the rooms. Secondly, it blows on the legs. Thirdly, the house cools down quickly if the heating is turned off. Fourth, the walls are too cold. And many related nuances, from which it is concluded that the house must be urgently insulated, and it is imperative to start from the floor, since it is the coldest. Let's see what happens in the room when it is heated.

Imagine that we have a log house that we heat with some kind of heat source. What we have involved in heat transfer: heat source, air, ceiling, walls and floor. How does this happen? Recall the school physics course. Heating up from the heat source, the air rushes up - to the ceiling. Resting against the surface of the ceiling, it spreads over it, giving off heat and cooling. As a result, we get the ceiling - the warmest surface in the room. Further, the air flow reaches the walls and descends along them. Since our walls are much colder than the ceiling, the air cools much faster, and its speed increases. Now the air has already reached the floor, having fairly accelerated, and rushes along it at such a speed that an illusion of such a strong cold draft is created, as if there is no floor at all, and you are standing right on the snow.

If you place a heat source near the inner walls, as is usually done by heating with a fireplace or a portable radiator, then the heat transfer rate increases significantly. There is a constant draft in the room, it turns out that we ourselves are to blame for the fact that it is cold in the house.

No wonder there are norms that heating radiators should be located under the windows. The outer walls are initially the coldest, in contrast to the inner ones, which are quite inert. If you place a heat source near the outer wall, then the air will rise up, then fall back onto the walls, but now not at such a speed and will not cool so quickly. After all, the inner walls are quite warm, so passing them, the air will not cool too much. And descending along the outer walls, it will rest against the heat source again, where it will heat up and rise up. As a result: the room warms up faster, the structures retain heat better, since it is accumulated rather than wasted.

What you need to check to eliminate unnecessary heat loss:

1. Ceiling. The very first outpost to check for leaks, as up to 70% of heat can escape through it. Be sure to insulate the attic or attic floor to retain heat inside the room.
2. Walls. The second outpost is the outer walls and everything that is in them: windows, doors, etc. Incorrectly installed windows and doors are the scourge of log houses. Through them, the lion's share of heat can go away, without even having time to heat the room. Immediately from the radiator and into the gap under / above the window. Plus, do not forget to check whether the walls are carefully caulked, maybe cracks have already formed somewhere.
3. Floor. The last thing that can be a source of cold is the floor. It should be checked for serviceability and insulated in a standard way. Also for the winter it is worth reducing the ventilation of the underground, blocking most of the air.

I would also like to note that in order to make the heating of a log house better, it is possible to equip the house with “warm floors”, in addition to the existing heating system. Then warm air will be distributed more evenly throughout the room, due to which drafts near the floor will disappear and the house will cool more slowly.

By the way, too thin walls can also cause cold in the house. For example, for a climate with a cold harsh winter, but low humidity, walls 200 - 240 mm thick are sufficient. But for regions with wet winters, even if the temperature does not fall below -20 ° C, it is advisable to use logs with a diameter of at least 400 mm, and preferably 480 mm. Such regions, for example, include Moscow and the Moscow region, St. Petersburg and the Leningrad region. Be sure to take this into account when developing a log house project so that it does not hurt excruciatingly later.

What materials can be used to insulate a log house

The standard procedure for insulating a log house includes insulating the ceiling or attic, caulking the walls and insulating window and door frames, and insulating the floor. If everything is done correctly, then no additional measures will be needed.

Taking into account the fact that log houses are built in order to create a dwelling from natural environmentally friendly materials, it would be foolish to use polystyrene for insulation. Then all meaning is lost.

For attic insulation log house can be used sawdust, ecowool(cellulose cotton), seaweed, straw. In extreme cases, you can insulate mineral wool.

Caulker walls produced only with natural materials: moss, tow, hemp, jute, flax-based tape heaters And jute. The main requirement for the material is that it must have properties similar to wood.

For wooden floor insulation on logs you can use natural backfill materials, and you can mineral wool in rolls. And here concrete floor will require a denser material, suitable polystyrene foam, extruded polystyrene foam, Cork And basalt wool in slabs with a density of more than 160 kg/m3.

If, after all the standard procedures, the house is cold, maybe because the thickness of the logs was chosen incorrectly, maybe the house is already very old, or maybe the heating was calculated incorrectly, and you decided that without such a procedure as warming the walls of a log house , you can not do, then you should know some of the nuances.

The material that can be used to insulate log walls should have the following properties:

• To be vapor-permeable on a par with wood or to a greater extent if it is laid outside the building.
• Be moisture resistant so as not to accumulate moisture, which can lead to rotting of the tree.
• Be fireproof and resistant to the appearance of pathogenic fungi.
• It is easy to pass air.
• Have a sufficiently loose structure to fit snugly against a rounded log wall and leave no gaps.

Considering all of the above, to insulate a log house from the outside, you can use:

• Ecowool.

• Mineral wool (although it is not natural, it is easy to install and publicly available).
• Sawdust or sawdust-granules (filling material).
• Expanded clay (filling material).

Wood is an unusual building material. It not only “breathes”, but is also a kind of air recuperator. And if someone will assure you that the vapor permeability of wood across the fibers is slightly greater than that of reinforced concrete, know that you can object. Entering the thickness of the wood across the fibers, then the air is distributed along the fibers and exits through the end. In other words, the tree "breathes" with its ends.

It is precisely because the wooden walls are “living” that the following materials cannot be used:

• Styrofoam.
• Extruded polystyrene foam.
• Polyurethane foam.
• Mounting foam for sealing gaps.
• Sealants.

Using vapor-proof materials will cause the wood to rot, or if you protect it from the inside with a vapor-proof film, you will turn a wooden house into a thermos. In this case, the whole point of building a house from a log will be lost. But the choice is still yours.

How to insulate a log house from the outside

As we have already found out, it is necessary to insulate the walls of a log house only when all other measures for insulation have not brought the desired result.

If you are interested in the question of how to properly insulate a log house from the outside or from the inside, then here is a definite answer for you - outside. This is due to the properties of the tree to breathe, accumulate moisture and give it away. In the case of an external location of the insulation, air and moisture will freely exit the tree and ventilate.

You can start warming only a year and a half after the completion of the construction, when the log house sits down.

Log wall caulk

Even if you have already made the final decision to insulate the house, the first step is to carefully caulk it. We examine all the walls for visible cracks. Then, in calm weather, we pass through the house with a candle, holding it close to the walls. If the flame leans towards the wall, then there is a gap in this place from which it blows in winter.

One of the most effective ways to look for cracks in logs is in winter when the house is heated, you need to go around and inspect all the walls. If you notice frost, it is sometimes also called a “bunny”, which means that heat is leaking from the room in this place.

Caulking should be done in dry, warm weather, using tow, jute, hemp or roll insulation. We put the material in the gap between the crowns and push it with a special tool - a caulk.

Ventilated facade device

Insulation of a log house from the outside is carried out by installing a ventilated facade. This design allows the wooden wall to "breathe" and release moisture.

First, we treat the walls with an antiseptic and flame retardant to protect the tree from fire and mold. On top of the walls we fill the crate, which will hold the insulation. To do this, we use a bar with a section of 50 mm. We fill vertically with a step equal to the width of the insulation boards minus 2 - 3 cm.

As a heater, we will use mineral wool in slabs with a density of 35 - 50 kg / m3, 50 mm thick.

Important! When installing insulation on a log wall, we encounter some inconvenience. The fact is that the wall is uneven, laying the insulation close without gaps is almost impossible. Therefore, we put insulation into the gaps (openings) between the wall and the battens of the crate. To do this, you can use "Basaltin" in rolls or interventional insulation - jute, lnovatin.

We insert mineral wool slabs between the crate, pushing them tightly into the opening. We do this from the bottom up.

On top of the insulation we mount a windproof waterproofing superdiffusion membrane. It must have a vapor permeability equal to at least 1400 g/m2 per day or higher.

Important! Properly selected wind protection for a ventilated log wall facade is almost the most important thing in insulation. This membrane will not allow moisture and wind to pass from the outside into the thickness of the insulation and walls, but at the same time it will release moisture and air from the inside to the outside, thus giving the walls the opportunity to “breathe”.

On top of the windshield we stuff a crate of 50 mm bars. We mount siding on the crate. It can be a vinyl siding that imitates wood, or you can use a block house, then the wall will have the same log profile as the real one.

For the entire thickness of the crate (50 mm), a ventilation gap is formed between the membrane and the facade. Air vents must be provided at the bottom and at the top so that air can circulate freely.

How to insulate a log house from the inside

The option of insulating the house inside must be considered before performing a ventilated facade. Perhaps standard insulation measures will be enough, and you won’t have to spoil the appearance of the walls.

The following procedures can be attributed to the insulation of a log house from the inside: insulation of the floor, ceiling, roof and walls. Moreover, experts are categorically against installing insulation inside the walls, since in this case the tree will dampen and rot.

Ceiling and roof insulation

The first thing, as soon as they found that it was cold in the house, we insulated the ceiling and roof.

If the house is one-story with an attic, then we lay a waterproofing film on the attic floor, pour insulation on top with a layer of 150 to 250 mm. It can be ecowool, sawdust, seaweed or ordinary mineral or glass wool in rolls. It is not necessary to cover the heater. From above, you can lay boards for ease of movement around the attic, but you do not need to equip the floor.

If the house has an attic floor instead of an attic, then it is necessary to insulate both the ceiling between the floors and the roof slope. It is enough to lay 50 - 100 mm of insulation (any) in the ceiling. If the attic floor is wooden, then we fill up the insulation between the lags. If the floor is concrete, then we use basalt wool in slabs or, in extreme cases, foam. To insulate the roof slope, we lay a waterproofing film directly under the roof, then lay the insulation (mineral wool) with a layer of 150 - 200 mm. We lay a vapor-tight membrane on top of the insulation so that the material is not saturated with moisture from the room. We mount the crate and trim for the attic.

The above procedures should be enough to make the house warmer.

Insulation of the walls of a log house

Let's go to the walls. Since it is impossible to mount insulation inside log walls, what we can do is to caulk well from the inside, insulate all window and door openings.

To insulate the openings, we use rolled interventional insulation or, in extreme cases, mineral wool, but in no case do we blow out the cracks with mounting foam, it will quickly become unusable, since the walls of a log house are constantly in motion, and foam is a non-plastic material.

To finish the walls of a log house from the inside, you can upholster them with wooden clapboard. In this case, the insulation between the wall and the finish cannot be mounted. The house will become a little warmer due to the fact that the wall will have a slightly greater thickness, as well as air gaps from the side of the heated room between the flat lining and the curved surface of the log walls.

Insulation of the floor of a log house

In order for the floor in a wooden house to be warm, it must be equipped, observing the entire technology of laying the floor on the ground. Be sure to perform backfilling, waterproofing and insulation. If the floor is wooden, we lay insulation between the lags with a layer of 100 - 150 mm. Top rough and finish floor.

If the floor is concrete, then between the layer of "lean" concrete and the main layer we lay polystyrene foam or extruded polystyrene foam in slabs with a thickness of 50 - 80 mm.

Before insulating a log house with a ventilated facade, equip the house with a “warm floor” system. Perhaps this will be more than enough to ensure a comfortable stay in it. Then you don’t have to sew up beautiful log walls, because such houses are being built because of their primitive beauty. What's the use of covering the walls with siding?

Insulation of a log house is a whole range of measures. If everything is done correctly, start from the ceiling and roof, then caulk the walls well, insulate the windows and doors, the floor, there will be no need to sheathe the house from the outside. If this does not help, there is another way to keep warm in a log house, which is not described here - to build a glazed veranda on the coldest side of the house, thereby expanding the area and forming an air barrier.

The warmest and most environmentally friendly houses are wooden buildings, namely, log houses. As you know, the tree saves and accumulates heat well, so the walls of the house are also endowed with these important properties. There are many sayings that the thermal conductivity of a wooden wall, which is only 24 cm thick, is equal to the thermal conductivity of a brick wall with a thickness of about 1 m. And this is really impressive. Nevertheless, it happens that during operation you notice that in winter your house is not as warm as you would like, and it happens that even drafts are walking. In this case, you need to think about insulating your home and removing all cold bridges so that the heat is kept inside and the house is well insulated. We can say that in harsh regions, each room needs to be insulated. Therefore, further we will consider with you how to insulate a log house, what exactly needs to be insulated, what materials are best suited for this purpose, and we will also consider in detail the stages of insulation work.

Why is it cold in a log house

Before you start fighting the cold, you need to determine its source. Although the tree is quite warm and accumulating material, it can be cold in such a house in winter. Why? Owners of buildings made of logs often face such problems:

1. Frequent drafts in rooms.
2. Cold in the legs due to the breath of wind on the legs.
3. After turning off the heating system, the house starts to cool down quickly.
4. Cold walls.

There are a few other nuances that we will not mention. Still, this is enough to think about the urgent warming of the house. Let's look at what happens in the house when it is heated. For example, you have a log house that you heat with any heat source, be it gas heating or electric. In the heat exchange of the house are involved:

• heat source;
• indoor air;
• ceilings;
• walls;

How does everything function? From the school physics course, we know that the air heated by the heat source begins to rise up to the ceiling. When it rests on its surface, heat transfer occurs, in which the air is cooled. What is the result? The most heated and warm part of the house is the ceiling. Now the air is directed towards the walls, descending down their surface. Please note that the walls are much colder than the ceiling due to the external influence of frost, so the air begins to cool faster, increasing its speed of movement. Further, the air flow is directed to the floor, while gaining sufficient acceleration, it moves along its surface at such a speed that it seems to you that such a draft is blowing through your legs that there are no walls at all. Moreover, if a heat source, such as a portable radiator or fireplace, is installed directly against the interior walls, as is often done, then the flow rate will increase even more. So it turns out that there is a constant draft in the rooms, which is caused by the owners themselves.

To avoid this, special building codes were created, according to which heating radiators should be placed under windows. It is clear that the outer walls themselves are the coldest, while the walls inside are quite satisfactory. It turns out that when the heat source is located under the battery, warm air prevents the penetration of cold, and also, rising and falling along the walls, it will not cool and move quickly. Why? The air flow will go down the inner walls, which are much warmer, and when it goes down the outer wall, it will collide back with the heat source, which will heat it up, repeating the whole cycle. In this scenario, the following happens: the house warms up much faster, and the whole structure retains heat better, because it is not wasted, but accumulated.

But this is not the only reason why the house can be cold. Often, heat loss occurs due to poor-quality thermal insulation and cold bridges. To rule out heat loss, you need to check:

1. Ceiling. The first step is to check it, because it is through the ceiling that up to 70% of all heat goes away. It is important for you to keep the heat in the house and insulate the attic or attic.
2. Walls. All exterior walls and the elements within them, such as windows and doors, account for the lion's share of heat loss. Incorrectly installed doors or windows are the first reason why a house can be cold. Warm air will simply leave the room, and cold air will fill it. It will be very difficult to heat the room. Moreover, cracks in the walls also lead to this effect.
3. Floor. This is the last source of cold in your home. It must be correct and insulated. In winter, the ventilation of the subfloor should be reduced.

Requirements for insulation materials

Thanks to the insulation of the house, you can reduce heat loss, while the cost of heating the room will be significantly reduced. This will make your stay in the house much more comfortable. We invite you to remember how and how our grandfathers and great-grandfathers insulated a log cabin. In their arsenal there were various materials that made it possible to insulate the walls of the building. It was also the so-called "hut", which consisted of straw mixed with clay, as well as shingles of wood, which were used to plaster the walls. Such a simple method helped the residents solve the problem of drafts, moreover, the walls could still "breathe". It is worth noting that this did not spoil the appearance of the building, it seemed more well-groomed and neat.

But, as time goes on, the construction industry is developing, and the use of such old-fashioned methods is no longer relevant. Today we have a lot of insulation materials that are much more efficient, and it is much easier to work with them. Therefore, before you engage in insulation, you need to familiarize yourself with the properties that such materials should have. This will help insulate your home properly and 100% effectively. What qualities should an insulating material have? These are the main properties:

• good vapor permeability. It is important that it be the same as that of wood;
• high resistance to moisture. As you know, wood and moisture are incompatible concepts, so the insulation should not accumulate condensate so that the tree does not rot;
• the material must breathe, easily passing air;
• high fire resistance to protect the house from fire;
• it should fit closely to the rounded structure of the wall and fill the gaps.

Given all these recommendations, you can choose the insulation that will perform its functions efficiently. But the question arises, how to insulate a log house? Now we will consider the ideal options for warming a house made of wood.

What to use

As mentioned earlier, the whole process of insulation comes down to insulating the attic or ceiling, caulking walls, insulating door and window frames and the floor. If you perform all these procedures correctly, no additional work is required.

It is worth noting that most often the reason for building a house made of wood is that it is a natural and environmentally friendly material, so it is stupid to talk about using foam plastic for its insulation, because then the whole point will be lost. Moreover, it does not fit in its properties with those that are recommended. What then to use?

• sawdust;
• cellulose wool (ecowool);
• straw;
• seaweed;
• mineral wool.

If we talk about caulking walls, then it should be made only from natural materials:

• tow;
• hemp;
• jute;
• insulation based on jute and flax.

The main requirement for materials is the similarity of their properties with the properties of wood.

To insulate a wooden floor on logs, use rolled mineral wool or natural backfill materials. As for the concrete floor, a denser material is required here. It could be:

• Cork;
• basalt wool in slabs, the density of which must exceed 160 kg / m 3;
• expanded polystyrene;
• expanded polystyrene extruded.

It happens that even after performing all these basic procedures, it can be cold in the room. Why and what to do about it? The reason may be that even during construction, the thickness of the logs was incorrectly selected. You should also not exclude the fact that the house is already old or the heating was incorrectly calculated. In any case, you will have to insulate the walls. Considering all the requirements for warming a house, you can use to insulate walls from the outside:

1. Ecowool.
2. Sawdust or sawdust-granules (filling material).
3. Mineral wool.
4. Expanded clay (backfill).

Wood is a difficult building material, because it is not only able to “breathe”, but is also considered a kind of air recuperator. When air enters the thickness of the tree across the fibers, then it is distributed along these fibers, leaving through the butt. It turns out that the tree "breathes" through the ends. That is why for such "living" walls you can not use:

1. Styrofoam.
2. Polyurethane foam.
3. Extruded polystyrene foam.
4. Mounting foam to eliminate gaps.
5. Various sealants.

If this advice is neglected, such vapor-tight materials will contribute to the fact that during operation the tree will simply rot. And if you protect the wood from the inside with a vapor-proof film, then the whole chopped house will turn into a thermos.

Ceiling

To begin with, it is important to do everything to insulate your home from the inside. We found out that the lion's share of all the heat goes through the ceiling, so the first thing to do is to start insulating the house with it. Many are not entirely responsible for this event, and do not always want to insulate the ceiling. Still, the undeniable fact is that warm air always rises, and if the top is not insulated, then it (the air) will simply go outside. Believe me, all the funds spent on insulation will fully pay off, since you will save a lot on heating.

So, what do you need to insulate the ceiling? These are the following tools:

• hammer;
• hacksaw;
• electric jigsaw;
• screwdriver;
• tile adhesive.

In order to build the skin and frame, prepare:

• nails or screws;
• glue;
• edged board;
• mounting foam;
• drywall.

As for the material for insulation, it is better to use ecowool or mineral wool. If we talk about mineral wool, then this is a relatively inexpensive material that is distinguished by its positive qualities. Mineral wool does not burn, is tear-resistant, has soundproofing properties and is easy to work with, so even a beginner will be able to do the installation on their own, without outside help. And to ensure good waterproofing, we recommend using glassine.

Having prepared all the necessary tools and materials, you can get to work. The whole process can be divided into the following steps:

1. The first step is to make a frame out of edged boards. Please note that this will affect the height of the ceilings. For those who have them high, it will even benefit. Boards must be fixed in increments of no more than 1 m from each other.
2. To ensure good waterproofing, the space between the boards must be filled with glassine so as not to leave empty spaces. The material should hold well, for this, grease it a little with tile adhesive.
3. Now lay mineral wool on top of the glassine. Make sure that the insulation fits well to each other, leaving no gaps and holes. If the mineral wool does not want to stick, apply a small amount of tile adhesive to it.
4. After the entire ceiling is insulated, it needs to be sheathed with drywall to give it a finished look. Using self-tapping screws and a screwdriver, drywall sheets are screwed to the frame.

That's it, your ceiling is insulated. It remains only to finish the ceiling and make the cladding. Now the precious heat will remain in your room, which will reduce your heating bills.

In order for the insulation work not to go to waste and to be performed correctly, it is important to perform them in the warm period. Moreover, it is impossible to insulate a log house immediately after its construction. The building needs about a year to shrink. Given this, work should be carried out no earlier than 1 year after its construction.

You can’t do without roof insulation, so if you have an attic, it should also be insulated.

Walls

When you decide to insulate the walls inside the house, it must be borne in mind that condensation will form on the walls. This will be especially a problem for those who live in northern places where winters are very cold. Condensation occurs due to a sharp temperature difference: it is very cold outside the house, and warm inside. So it turns out that the dew point will move into the insulation layer. But this is not a problem, since everything can be fixed with a simple vapor barrier film, which is often used with insulation. Another option is to perform good ventilation.

To complete the work you will need:

• roulette;
• plumb;
• screwdriver;
• level;
• chisel;
• hammer drill;
• electric jigsaw;
• mallet;
• hammer;
• dowels and screws;
• screwdriver;
• felt, tow or foam;
• wooden bars;
• insulation, drywall and putty.

We recommend using ecowool as a wall insulation (mineral wool can also be used instead). The advantage of the material is that it fills all the cracks and voids in the walls, preventing them from blowing through. It is worth noting that moisture does not penetrate inside, so the fungus is not terrible for you. Among other things, it is a breathable material.

Now let's proceed to the technology of wall insulation.

1. If there are gaps or potholes in the wall, they should be sealed with mounting foam, tow or linen felt. Choose what you like and what is easier to work with.
2. Make a crate from a wooden beam. Mark the place where the extreme elements of the crate will be installed. Pay special attention to this work, since the fastening of subsequent elements will depend on the correct installation of the first bars. That's why you need to use plumb lines and a level.
3. If you have located the first beam, it must be fixed with dowels and screws. In order for the beam to fit securely against the wall, fasten it in increments of 25-30 cm.
4. Place the next bars with an indent of 1 m from the previous one, parallel to it. Thus, you will make a frame around the entire perimeter of the wall. When there is a window opening on the way, it must be upholstered with bars in a circle.
5. Now you need to mount the intermediate bars. On top of the first vertical bars, screw the intermediate ones, which will be in a horizontal position. Your wall should be divided into squares. To prevent fungus and decay, treat the tree with an antiseptic.
6. Your crate is ready, it remains to lay a layer of insulation between the bars. In this case, you do not need to use glue. Ecowool will hold well between the wall and the crate, the main thing is to place it tightly.
7. At this stage, you should make a vapor barrier using plastic wrap. Lay it on top of the insulation with a slight overlap of 5–10 cm.
8. And in the end, you need to do the finishing. Sheathe the walls with drywall, screwing it to the crate. The plates must fit snugly against each other. All cracks need to be sealed.

Floor

The last thing to insulate in your log home is the floor. To work, you need the following tools and materials:

• hammer;
• electric jigsaw;
• saw or hacksaw;
• knife, pencil and nails;
• roulette and level;
• insulation material (mineral wool).

When you have a concrete floor in your house, its insulation is a must. The work, of course, is not easy, but following the instructions, spending a little time and effort, you can do it.

One of the methods of floor insulation is called "raised floor". The work boils down to raising the floor by 6 cm and insulating it. The stages of work are as follows:

1. Concrete pavement should be leveled and various defects eliminated.
2. Lay a waterproofing membrane on the surface of the concrete, which will not let moisture through to the insulation.
3. Now you need to lay the logs from the bars. The distance between them should not exceed 50 cm. The recommended log size is 50 × 100 mm, with a thickness of at least 50 mm. Do not apply logs more than 30 cm to the wall. It turns out that your floor should be divided into straight lines of bars that serve as a lag.
4. Lay mineral wool between the lags. Again, fill in the empty space tightly so as not to leave gaps.
5. Place a PVC membrane on the insulation.
6. It remains only to lay the flooring, and your insulated floor is ready. It is good to use chipboard or waterproof plywood as a material.

That's all, your house is well insulated from the inside, and you can enjoy comfortable living in a warm room. As you can see, there is nothing complicated, but what a result. But, besides all this, you can insulate your home from the outside. How to do it? Let's find out.

Caulker walls

Caulking is one of the most important activities that every owner of a log house must perform. Thanks to this, you can close up all the cracks, and cold air will not enter the house. This is a process in which the frame is compacted with fibrous materials. All work must be done in warm and dry weather. What needs to be done?

For work you need to prepare:

• hammer;
• scissors;
• chisel;
• caulking blade;
• mallet.

Caulking work must be done first, even before any stages of warming. In addition, caulking can only be done after the building has shrunk. All work begins with the lower rims and as you need to move up. It is important to caulk the seams both outside and inside, and it is impossible to completely process one wall, then the second. Everything should be even and go along the perimeter, otherwise the building may warp.

For example, let's look at caulking with tape insulation or jute. It can be called the simplest. There is no need to cut the tape, which makes the whole job easier. So, the workflow is as follows:

1. You should start with the first lower crown. Put the end of the tape on the ground and unwind it, gradually moving away to the other end. You don’t need to cut the tape, the main thing is to make sure that it goes in a strip and does not turn over. Please note that the material should not be too tight.
2. Go to the beginning of the tape, lift it up and from the end begin to push it between the crowns. As soon as you have caulked the first crown to the opposite end, cut the tape with a margin of 10–20 cm. Use well-sharpened scissors.
3. Now everything can be reliably caulked using a hammer and caulk. Do this gradually so that wrinkles do not form. You won't be able to do everything in one step, so push it inside until it disappears into the log. You need to push the tape through at a slight angle, as if diagonally.
4. Oddly enough, everything needs to be repeated again, between the same logs. There can fit 1 or 2 more tapes, depending on the slots and the density of the tape. It turns out that more material is spent on the caulk than on the initial insulation of the crowns, and keep in mind that this is only on the outside. You need to repeat the whole procedure inside and move up along the entire perimeter.

This is a rather meticulous and long work, but by doing it, you will compact your structure, and the air will not walk inside the room.

How to caulk a log house, you can see in the video:

Insulation of windows and doors

This is another important step in warming the house from the outside, without which it is simply impossible to do. You will be pleased with the fact that it will be very easy to close all the cracks and holes in the window and door frames. To work, you only need an aluminum ruler and mounting foam, which you need to blow out all the cracks.

First of all, you need to determine the tightness of windows and doors. With an aluminum ruler, you can determine the gaps by pushing it into different parts near the window frame. In those places where she walks freely, cold air enters the house. All such gaps should be blown out with mounting foam. In the same way, check the door frames and take all necessary measures.

When you find cracks under the windowsill, you need to eliminate them both from the outside and from the inside. In windy weather, just take a candle or matches and hold it near the windowsill. You can see the blowing by the flame. Eliminate all cracks with mounting foam.

Take a look at your windows. If they are old and have lost their original properties, you should think about putting in new ones that will store heat in the house much better.

By doing all of these, or at least some of them, you can solve the problem associated with heat loss. Your wooden house will perfectly store heat, making your stay more comfortable. It is also important that your heating costs will be reduced. It is not so difficult to complete the work, so even without outside help you can cope with the task.

Video

To insulate houses from a log house, the "warm seam" technology is sometimes used. How insulation is made, see below:

How to insulate an old wooden house from the inside?

It is more economical, and, in general, more efficient, to begin with caulking housing with your own hands.

In square meters, to determine the labor costs of such work, at least, defies logic, as well as for the performer of this type of work, and in particular for the time spent on studying the topic itself.

For the reason that the house can be from a bar 150x150, or 250x250 millimeters, and possibly from logs of THREE hundred millimeters in diameter. If in square meters - then if there is a beam of 150x150, you will have 2 times more seams than in a log house of 300 mm logs.

Once you have decided how much time per day you want to spend caulking logs with your own hands? Then we need to calculate how many per day, without particularly straining, we can caulk the squares. If, it turns out (again, we consider, in square meters, of course) with a beam of 150 mm, we window, in a mediocre mode, 8-9 square meters together, and the cost of this kind of work is $ 8 per square. This is the starting point for entrusting this work to other people or doing it yourself. Well, and so on.

Insulation of an old wooden house from the inside.

The house is old, which means it is necessary to close up all the cracks, without exception, in the floors and windows.

If possible, change old wooden windows to double-glazed windows with selective spraying filled with agronomist. Place seals on the outer door.

Completely change the thermal insulation of the ceiling, before they were covered with any muck from sawdust, up to slag. Basalt can be used for the purpose of thermal insulation of the chimney, this improves draft.

There are other options for how to insulate an old house from the inside. Ecowool plus, cellulose. In addition, flax is similar, according to the formula with a log. Also cellulose, this one is paper, etc.

These heaters, unlike mineral wool-glass wool, are ready to continue to insulate, having absorbed much more moisture.

They are actually excellent at drawing in (and “binding”) and giving back water. That is, the possibility of creating condensate is sharply reduced.

The second positive point is hardboard (or other materials used, the same wood is acceptable), although it is by no means a vapor barrier, however, it has a relatively small ratio of transmission pairs, that is, to one degree or another it will restrain the flow of steam from the room into the insulation . Well, maybe it would be more correct to fill it in 2 layers. Including from judgments of no deflection of the wall.

Of course, there is a limit to everything. The use of these used materials in the absence of a vapor barrier in the bathroom or even in the kitchen will most likely lead to sad results.

The advantage of all this is that you do not need a very thick layer of insulation.

How to do all this, and if there is a desire to insulate further, switch to things in the fresh air. Foam boards, under the filling of the blind area, reduce the heat transfer of the base of the house. To dig a foundation from the outside with a shovel is quite fast if there is a great desire, of course.

If the wooden manor is lined with brick, then the brick itself does not allow the log to dry, as it draws moisture on itself, and according to this fact, the wood smolders under it, and conducts heat from the house to the outside much better. As a rule, the insulation separating the basement and the wall (ordinary roofing material) which had previously been transformed into dust.

In addition, one must always be aware of a simple thing! The movement of steam in the wall constantly passes from the building to the outside, that is, to the street, this circumstance is caused by the difference in temperatures in winter, and the air passes and spreads from the street to the house, through the lower part of the wall and out through the ceiling, this is justified by the pressure difference.

If you arrange a vapor barrier from the inside, so that the inner wall does not have the ability to absorb steam from the room and hide the thermal insulation behind it, in this case it will be hot in theory, HOWEVER, it will become sad to live, something like in a thermos, you will feel the difference instantly, and you will never get used to this circumstance.

This version is quite good for a hunting lodge, where you can stop by for the winter holidays to spend the night. He arrived, in three hours he instantly warmed up the house with an air stove or a fireplace and that's it, and after that the head will be ill not only from a hangover.

And besides, according to the economy, you will not win anything! Due to the fact that the wood and the insulation will be closed from 2 edges, the vapor barrier (steam barrier) from the inside, and the brick on the street, the moisture of the wall will still increase, and with it its heat conductivity of the damp wooden wall, in addition, the wood will become more smoldering . Therefore, you need to seriously think about it, do you need it?

If there is no insulated blind area near the building, then it is necessary to make it, preferably waterproof. And if it is, then make sure that everything is in order. The wall will be drier and will be the best heat insulator. In the attic, pour insulation into the ceiling ceiling, without covering it with anything and without putting anything on it.

Of course, expanded or slab vermiculite is better suited for this.

or perlite can be simple dry wood sawdust, however, large expanded clay for the 1st layer (thick layer) and small expanded clay for the 2nd top layer (thin layer) are also suitable, it would be nice to share them, some, in this case not expensive mesh, so that the small one does not wake up down.

In general, foam plastics and mineral wool are not suitable, in general, each of its varieties will require a fundamental brick or concrete wall and plaster on top of it. This is in order to constantly notice whether there are cracks on the wall, or not at all. Otherwise, this is a defect, and it is very unhealthy! By doing this, you will already feel the result!

Then about the walls: if you are doing internal repairs, then use warm plasters, surprisingly, this insignificant couple of cm will also bring results!

What do you need? I think that convenience and economy are in the absence of problems, so convenience is given not by a temperature meter that demonstrates +22, but by the very feeling of convenience, which is formed from numerous conditions.

And here is the main circumstance: - the temperature difference in the room should not be higher than 3 degrees C. And preferably a high temperature simply must not be under the ceiling, but near the floor!

The walls do not have to absorb infrared radiation! The tree itself is very suitable, however, if you plaster with plaster with a significant density, then you will ruin everything, and in this case it will be preferable to use a special warm one.

In this, the insulation of the walls from the inside of the building will be completed. Then come the windows and the door, directly the boiler and the heating system. The main thing is not to rush and keep in mind the priority: spending money on insulation. You are obliged not only to pay a minimum for heating, but also not to shorten the life of the house itself, and medicines for the treatment of the family are also expensive ... Muck in housing is not required!

According to the materials used, they lie like this: the service period is FIFTY years! This may mean that after FIFTY years they will only become, the original properties are deteriorating, or maybe they will become in a year, and after FIFTY years nothing will remain. Here's another: they prefer to indicate the features in the dried state, indicating moisture absorption, and calculate the real result, they give it immediately after a year of operation, guess who? Naturally to ourselves.

In the practice of insulating buildings from timber, customers often address the issue of high heat loss. Because, between the crowns with temperature differences, there are gaps that form bridges of frost, and a brick with a ventilated opening along the facade provides additional air draft, as well as in the chimney. The solution recommended by construction practitioners is the wet application of insulation on the walls, according to the facing skeleton, no less than 50mm and additional precise insulation with kraft paper.

What is very important in this matter, without exception, all the positive features of a wooden building are not violated, experts do not say that this happens everywhere, there are a lot of situations, as well as different buildings.

The old windows were changed to POLYVINYLCHLORIDE windows, that is, plastic ones. URSA material was fixed to the wall, then a base with a metal profile, then Knauf drywall. After this action, puttying, priming and gluing vinyl wallpaper. Thus, the Isospin vapor barrier film was used only in the bathroom and in the restroom. In other rooms, when installing drywall systems, the film was not used. 3 years have passed.

The building is warm, dry, the walls do not fade anywhere and are not covered with mold in any way. For the sake of interest, he removed the window sill and looked at what was inside the log. The beam is dry, the plaster is dry, the old wallpaper is absolutely dry, the URSA cotton wool material is also dry as gunpowder, the cardboard inside is as if it had recently appeared. Thus, here is the result - whether thermal film is necessary or not. I don't know personally. However, as the skill revealed, the walls were dried up from the inside.