Checklist: how to create a comfortable microclimate in a country house

one Make ground isolation

Even at the stage of building the foundation, care must be taken to ensure that dampness and humus smells emanating from the soil do not penetrate into the house.

If a strip or pile-grillage foundation is chosen, sometimes they are limited to removing the fertile layer on the building area. But in marshy areas this is not enough. Coarse-grained sand should also be poured to a height of at least 20 cm above the initial soil level. The water will rise to about half the thickness of such a cushion, and its top layer will remain dry for most of the year.

2 Think underground ventilation

During autumn rains and spring snowmelt, moisture still penetrates the underground. In order for it to dry, it is necessary to provide air in the basement (pickup). According to building regulations, their area should be at least 1/400 of the total area of ​​the first underground, but it is desirable to double this value. If the reinforcement of the tape (grillage) is done correctly, the air will not affect the strength of the foundation. Do not be afraid that the floor will be colder. Practice has shown: an unexploited underground in winter should be intensively ventilated and be cold (in no case should the vents be plugged), while the basement should be carefully insulated.

3 Protect ceilings from fungus

Additional protection against fungus will be the treatment of floor structures and the floor of the first floor with antiseptics. Especially carefully it is necessary to impregnate wooden beams, cranial bars and rough roll boards.

four Consider leakage protection

It is also worth paying attention to protection against leaks. A leaky connection or a pipe damaged during shrinkage processes can cause walls and ceilings to get wet. Worst of all, if the insulation inside the multilayer structure suffers: it dries slowly and an unpleasant odor remains in the rooms for a long time. The installation of water supply, sewerage and heating can only be entrusted to a qualified specialist; revisions should be provided for in places of detachable connections.

5 Isolate insulation and wood boards

Both mineral wool and foam plastics emit harmful substances, the amount of which depends on the age and quality of the material (in the case of chipboard and OSB, the emission class and formaldehyde are important). Therefore, such products can only be used in layered structures, separating them from residential premises with preservative coatings or barriers made of impervious film, foil or foil paper.

6 Make room ventilation

In a wooden or stone house, it is quite possible to confine yourself to ventilation through the windows, but you still cannot do without hoods in wet areas. But in a modern frame building, the walls of which are not able to regulate the humidity in the rooms, a system of forced supply and exhaust ventilation is highly desirable.

7 Protect your home from drafts

Drafts, of course, help ventilation, but at the same time they create thermal discomfort and contribute to the formation of dust (particles of sealants and heaters are blown into the house). Therefore, in a wooden building, you need to pay attention to caulked work, and in a frame (panel) building, to sealing joints between wall elements, installing windproof membranes.

eight Consider a heating system

The greatest comfort will be provided by water (liquid) heating — underfloor heating or radiators under the windows. If it is not possible to install such a system, electric convectors should be purchased. Furnace heating will allow you to heat the house even in extreme cold, but the heat will be distributed unevenly, moreover, the air in the rooms will be too dry.

9 Insulate attic floor and roof

If you save on insulation, in summer you will not be able to live on the second floor (in the attic) because of the heat, and in winter all the heat produced by radiators or a stove will disappear through the ceiling. In the conditions of central Russia, the minimum thickness of mineral wool in the attic floor or roof is 200 mm. To protect them from weathering, they should be covered from above with a vapor-permeable material (polymer membrane).