Using linden in a bathhouse: pros and cons, options for use for interior decoration, care and protection

Peculiarities

Linden has technical characteristics comparable to aspen. It belongs to hardwood and has a uniform density. The raw material does not retain its geometry when dried. It may crack and warp.

Linden dried to a moisture content of 6-10% becomes stable, so only dry finishing material is used to decorate the bathhouse.

Density of dry material – 495 kg/m3. The wood may be white, pale yellow, light brown or pinkish in color. In order to give a white linden a yellowish tint, it is enough to hold it in the sun for a short time. The treated wood surface has a moderate natural shine.

Knots and other defects are rarely found in the smooth texture of linden. The material has low wear resistance. This property allows it to be bent and polished without consequences. The strength of linden dried to a moisture content of no more than 15% for compression along the fibers is 39 MPa and for bending 68 MPa. The specific gravity of dry wood is 0.53 g/cm3.

Pros and cons compared to other breeds

But in order to understand something, you need to compare it with alternative options. Since a steam room with deciduous wood, most people will call aspen an alternative to linden. So let’s look at the comparative merits of linden or aspen in a bathhouse. And one more - a little less common - comparison of linden or alder for a bathhouse - which is better?

Which is better: linden or aspen?

In another article, where the properties of linden and aspen lining were considered, we already compared the properties of these two types of wood. You can either follow the link and read the entire article, or stay here and see the table on which our conclusions are based, and, in fact, the conclusions themselves.

So here's the table:

From the columns that show the coefficients of shrinkage and swelling , that is, the change in dimensions under the influence of moistening and loss of moisture, we see that aspen is better than linden for a bathhouse. Although the difference here is not so great as to call aspen a clear favorite.

Because it darkens in the bathhouse faster than linden. Otherwise, their properties are very similar. Even if other sources give slightly different densities, they are still fairly close to each other.

Aspen darkens from water

In the store, linden will cost more than aspen, but also not by much. Therefore, go through your priorities - you will have to look for high-quality aspen wood and spend your time on it. If you are ready for this, bet on aspen, and linden will remain for those who prefer the option that is not much worse, but faster, albeit more expensive.

IMPORTANT! In a bathhouse, any(!) wood rots, only the conditions and timing vary. If you are dry after the procedures (see the section on ventilation), then linden will last longer than larch for someone who neglects drying.

And so, of course, linden is practically unable to resist rotting, unless you help it with impregnations. But this also applies to aspen. Yes, it gains hardness under the influence of water, but its resistance to rotting is low.

In general, these two species have very similar characteristics, we recommend aspen , but if you have problems with a good aspen or you just like linden, take it.

Linden or alder?

But of this pair, we prefer linden. Alder is best at the harvesting stage, because linden is often discarded during the initial drying - this is when its warping occurs. Dried linden is quite stable and does not create problems. Alder exhibits minimal warping even at the initial drying stage.

But if you are an ordinary buyer, then it is enough to check the moisture content of the purchased lumber and the presence of warping - any differences from the correct geometry, for example, bends or twists.

Otherwise, these are also two types of wood quite similar to each other. Alder is as inelastic, soft, easy to work with and not resistant to rotting as linden.

ATTENTION! Alder and linden are damaged by metal-wood contact in a humid environment. Therefore, it is advisable to protect screw fastenings from moisture, or abandon them in favor of classic carpentry joints.

If you have a choice, then from black and gray alder you should choose black, it has better technical characteristics.

What else could be the basis for choice - alder has reddish shades and looks darker than linden. If you are interested in achieving just such an effect, you can use alder wood. Linden lighter in color and yellow, but there are pinkish and reddish varieties. Linden smells nice , but the smell is weak. Alder is neutral.

As you can see, it all depends on personal preferences, and there are no significant disadvantages or advantages in either breed.

IMPORTANT! Please note that for now we are talking exclusively about wood for the steam room. If there is a desire to use any of the mentioned breeds outside of it, the chances of longevity are increased by the ability to use antiseptics.

Application of linden

The material is widely used in interior decoration. Most often, lining made from it, imitation timber and block house are used for these purposes. Recently, the popularity of wall parquet has been growing. This type of material is used for finishing bath walls and ceilings. Less often, edged and unedged linden boards are used.

Linden is ideal for styling antique rooms. In addition to finishing materials, furniture and decorative elements made from this type of wood are widely used in the bathhouse.

Experts recommend making the entire interior trim from linden only in small-sized baths. In large-area baths, combined finishing is used.

Oak houses

Oak is one of the most delightful materials for construction. It has a large number of positive characteristics and, in addition, is one of the largest types of trees used for summer cottage construction.

The peculiarity of oak is the difference in shades of wood depending on the distance from the core. For example, rings located closer to the core will be light yellow or beige, but those further away have a richer brown tint.

The top layer is insignificant and therefore can be easily removed if desired.

The fact is that the core is considered the strongest part of the tree.

And for oak this figure is several times higher than the outer “shell”.

By using trees only over 30 years old in construction, it is possible to obtain wood with a mysterious wide pattern. But it’s worth remembering that an oak house is an expensive pleasure. And in order to get all the desired qualities, you need to invest a fairly large amount of money.

Humidity has little effect on oak. And this characteristic is quite comparable with the stability of larch.

But the strength of oak significantly exceeds all other tree species. Oak may crack, but if treated correctly it will be practically unnoticeable. And this process will occur evenly and accurately.

How to build a wooden house from rounded timber

It should be noted that oak itself is used in many construction industries and therefore finding suitable finishing materials and additional accessories made from oak is not difficult. So, creating a great building with really good performance will be a piece of cake.

Oak is a centuries-old tree and houses made from it are noble: durable, not exposed to moisture, neat and most importantly very beautiful. By choosing the right shade of materials, you can create a simpler style or give preference to a more sophisticated project.

How does he behave in the bathhouse?

Dried wood can withstand temperature changes typical for a bathhouse. The finishing material made from it is not chemically active. Unlike conifers, when heated, it does not emit harmful substances that can cause toxic poisoning in humans. It does not crack or deform.

The high density of the material helps it dry quickly after getting wet. Linden does not absorb heat from the heated air of the steam room, so it does not heat up too much and it is impossible to get burned on it. When heated, linden releases a medicinal aroma into the steam room. It has a relaxing effect on a person.

Experts recommend that if there is no linden finish in the bathhouse, use products or decorative elements made from this wood. Wood is not of interest to rodents, but after 6-8 years of use it must be replaced. This is due to the fact that linden is prone to rotting and quickly darkens.

Important! A bathhouse trimmed with linden must have a high-quality ventilation system.

Each time after taking a bath, it must be well ventilated. In a poorly dried room, linden becomes covered with fungus, which is very difficult to remove. The problem is complicated by the fact that the process of decay of the material begins from the inside and cannot be detected immediately.

In the bathhouse, linden material is used for cladding walls, ceilings and canopies. It is better to make floors from larch.

Varieties - what kind of wood is used?

Of course, it is correct to understand the word “varieties” as grade. But in this regard, everything is quite simple: when the tree is cut and dried, this is followed by sorting, identifying fragments without defects and with defects. The latter are further divided. This is how we get the highest (or first) grade, first (=second) and second (=third) grade. Here you need to clarify which system is used to label this or that manufacturer.

In this sense, suitable varieties of linden for a bath are the highest and the first. The Supreme goes to the surfaces that are best visible and with which your body is in contact. Where it is not so noticeable, you can use the first one.

Now let’s try to understand the word “varieties” differently. After all, this can be said about linden species - botanical and geographical varieties, as well as about linden that has undergone special processing.

Heart-shaped, large-leaved, European

The woodworking industry has long decided which types of trees are most suitable for its purposes. cordate and were distinguished , the trunks of which produce less waste when cut. A very long ago bred or self-formed hybrid of these two was the European linden.

However, even between these types there is a difference. Linden wood is on average soft and ductile, but that of the European linden is a little harder and denser than that of those that gave it its origin.

In addition to this, there are other types that are also sometimes used for making lumber.

Caucasian

Unfortunately, manufacturers who create a legend from the “Caucasian linden” do not bother to clarify whether it is one of the three species mentioned above, simply grown in the Caucasus, or whether it is a species called Caucasian linden.

We do not have comparative information on how much wood from the Caucasus differs from wood grown in other areas. But sellers claim that Caucasian linden is the best tree for a bathhouse, because it resists rotting more successfully than its European relatives. You can take this at its word, or you can consider it a simple PR stunt.

Thermo-linden

Finally, let's talk about the moisture content of wood and its role in construction.

The wetter the wood used on a construction site, the more problems the owner will have when it dries naturally. Free-drying wood tends to bend and twist, breaking fasteners, and it also dries out, forming cracks.

Therefore, it is extremely important that the wood is dried at the time of purchase. According to the rules - up to 12%. Such a tree can already be used without fear. But in reality, they will most likely sell you wood with higher moisture content.

On the other hand, there are technologies that make it possible to expel almost all bound water from a tree, after which its properties change radically: that wood, which until recently was not resistant to rotting, acquires increased resistance, not to mention the fact that it is no longer swells from moisture and does not dry out when dried. It becomes light, hard, durable... almost perfect.

Polok Lipa Thermo "Extra". Photo: Pech-grad.ru

But its price also increases. But thermal wood is much better than even wood that has been well dried to the above-mentioned 12% of ordinary wood. Its humidity of 8% is an excellent indicator.

ADVICE! In general, if you want to extend the life of the steam room decoration or shelves, use thermo-linden for the bath.

Interior decoration

The best option for finishing the interior of a bathhouse is lining.

3 types of profiles of this finishing material are made from linden:

eurolining (products with grooves on the reverse side and a compensation shelf at the joint);

softline (eurolining with rounded edges);

calm (planed panel with a semicircular chamfer).

The most widely used profile in bathhouse finishing is eurolining. It has optimal thickness and width, and can have different lengths, which contributes to economical consumption of material during finishing. Installation of eurolining is carried out on a wooden frame specially constructed for this purpose. It is made from guide bars with a cross section of 50x50 mm or 40x50 mm, which are attached to the walls.

The frame cells are filled with heat-insulating material. For these purposes, you can use “Rockwool Light Bats”. Aluminum foil for Teraspan saunas with a thickness of at least 100 microns is placed on it.

Slats with a cross section of 20x50 mm or 30x50 mm are fixed on top of the foil. The distance between adjacent slats is from 40 to 60 cm.

Important! The bars should be installed when installing the frame perpendicular to the planned location on the lining walls.

The profile is attached to the slats using clamps.
This is a special hidden fastener, thanks to which the profile can be easily removed during dismantling and does not have to be broken. The same method of installing lining is used for lining the ceiling in bathhouses. It is better to purchase thermolip for finishing a bath. This is material dried to a moisture content of 6-12%. It is resistant to rotting and does not change its geometric shape when exposed to temperatures and moisture.

Installing a canopy in a steam room

Linden is ideal for arranging multi-tiered wooden benches, which are convenient to place in a steam room. They should be free of knots, have a surface that is pleasant to the touch, and not heat up too much so as not to cause a burn to the human body. Linden meets these requirements in full.

This tree has hypoallergenic properties, under the influence of steam it releases phytoncides into the air that have medicinal properties, has a smooth surface without knots and a pleasant texture. The frame for the canopy can be made to reduce the cost of the structure from a coniferous bar with a cross-section of 50x70 mm. It consists of 3-5 support posts and cross members.

For waterproofing, rubber gaskets are installed at the ends of the racks. The canopy boards are fastened with self-tapping screws from inside the frame so that the metal caps do not burn a person when they are heated in the steam room. A gap of 1-2 cm wide is left between the canopy boards for water drainage.

To improve the performance characteristics of the canopy and increase its service life, the linden is coated with a layer of heat-resistant wax such as “GNature 290 Hartwachs”. It can also be used to treat walls and ceilings lined with linden material. A coating of two layers of wax lasts for about a year.

To install a canopy in a steam room, a rounded profile of category “A” or “B” is used, having a length of 1 to 3 meters. The optimal width of the boards is 90-92 mm, and the thickness is 26-28 mm.

Doors and windows

Linden doors are most often installed only in the steam room. Due to their low thermal conductivity, they retain heat well in the room. Properly processed material cannot be deformed. A linden door leaf can consist of either a vertical or horizontal profile. They make the door to the steam room only one-leaf.

Linden windows are rarely installed in bathhouses. Most often these are small windows in the steam room. To extend the life of wood, it is coated with antiseptics, fire retardants, oil or wax impregnations. Linden windows, due to the porosity of the material, are capable of letting air through and creating natural ventilation in the bathhouse.

Larch house

This material occupies a special place among all tree species that are selected for construction.

First of all, it is worth noting the insignificant sapwood, which, when removed, allows you to simplify the task as much as possible with the possibility of blue discoloration. She will simply be absent.

The heat that larch provides in a house is slightly higher than that of spruce and significantly higher than that of pine. That is why this wood is recommended for use in areas with frequent frosts. It will allow you to maintain comfort and warmth in the owner’s home even in extreme cold.

Another advantage of this type of wood is its high resistance to water. Even if water constantly falls on the tree, it will not become wet and significantly absorb moisture.

But quite the opposite - it will only become harder. This feature allows the material to be used in areas with high precipitation and high humidity. Its positive properties will eliminate any problems for the long-term operation of the building.

In addition to the above characteristics, larch is also minimally susceptible to various pests. In particular, its additional processing with special compounds is simply not required. That is why it is used in areas where there are a large number of different insects that can destroy the structure of the tree.

There will be no savings, since wood is quite expensive and not every buyer, unfortunately, can afford to use larch as the main building material for a house.

But if the customer wants to become the owner of a truly amazing structure, then the final amount will be fully recouped over many years of use.

In addition, larch is minimally susceptible to fire. That is why it is recommended to use it in areas with too high temperatures in summer, because... it is almost twice as fire resistant as pine logs and timber.

Larch also has a rather original wood pattern, which allows it to be used to build the most unusual and exclusive houses. The color can vary from light brown to dark, almost black, depending on the age of the tree.

We should also not forget about the beneficial qualities of wood, such as its beneficial effects on the human body. All residents of the houses noted a positive mood, increased tone and also improved blood circulation. According to the advice of doctors, it is best to live in such wooden houses for those buyers who, first of all, want to restore their level of health, improve their condition and, of course, raise healthy children.

Why are sauna logs rarely made from linden?

Despite the fact that linden is considered an ideal tree for a bathhouse, log houses are made from it extremely rarely. The reason for this is the high cost of wood and its fragility. Linden buildings maintain a good microclimate and a pleasant honey aroma is felt, which repels rodents from the structure.

Making baths from linden was common in Rus'. Peter I had such a bathhouse made from a simple solid linden tree. The advantages of linden log houses include the rare occurrence of cracks in the material and the minimum percentage of its shrinkage. The linden structure is lightweight, which reduces the requirements for foundation construction. It is easy to retain heat in it.

Other advantages of the material include:

Medicinal properties of wood. The substances it releases into the air help cope with colds, cellulite and prevent liver diseases.
The material is easily amenable to all types of processing.
The fibers have a low density, which allows the wood to “breathe”.

Expert opinion

Lovkachev Boris Petrovich

Bath master who knows everything about steaming

All these advantages are offset by serious disadvantages. The lack of resin in linden wood causes increased interest in it from tree pests. Linden log houses require frequent treatment with antiseptics and are subject to rapid rotting in regions with a humid climate.

All this forces lovers of linden bathhouses to limit themselves only to interior decoration from it, and make log houses from other types of trees.

Spruce houses

Spruce also belongs to the coniferous species and therefore its qualities differ slightly from the pine discussed above. But there are also some other properties.

For example, the looseness of the material is slightly higher, and this is worth remembering when starting construction. However, a large number of modern processing compounds will also make it possible to reliably protect it from fungus. But the most interesting thing is that houses made of spruce are somewhat warmer than pine buildings. The fact is that the material itself, due to its “looseness,” allows external cold to pass through much worse in winter, and is also “reluctant” to give off coolness in the summer.

The cost of spruce is slightly higher. And the difference will become noticeable only if the structure being built has a really large area. For small houses the difference will be almost imperceptible.

Susceptibility to fungal diseases and bluing is as common among spruces as it is among pines. But there is a panacea for this - an antiseptic. And besides, the level of diseases among this tree species in conditions of high humidity, as well as various additional factors, is somewhat lower. And if the problem with the appearance of sapwood paint frightens the buyer, then it is worth giving preference to this particular material.

Construction, as in the case of using pine, is best carried out in winter, but using exclusively high-quality dried materials.

How to distinguish it from aspen?

It is difficult for an ordinary person to distinguish one type of wood from another.
Most often, linden is confused with aspen. Both types of trees are considered ideal for a bathhouse, but have a serious difference in cost. Aspen is much more expensive than pine needles, and linden is more expensive than aspen. Unlike linden, which can have various shades from white to coffee, aspen stands out for its snow-white surface.

Linden exudes a characteristic sweetish aroma, and aspen exudes a bitter odor reminiscent of birch sap. If the surface of linden becomes silky after processing, then a slight roughness may be felt on aspen. There are also dark falling knots on the surface of aspen.

Pine houses

Traditional wooden houses built from pine have long come into use. And the reason here, perhaps, lies in certain customs that the people have adopted since time immemorial.

In addition, this material has a low price category.

The density of pine is sufficient to ensure living in a truly warm and reliable house. But it is worth remembering that all coniferous trees can succumb to blueing due to the appearance of various harmful fungi. In particular, this can be avoided if, before construction, reliable protection of the wood from various harmful effects is ensured.

It is also necessary to remember that if this ailment does appear, the problem can be solved locally and there should be no reason for concern. By treating wood with special compounds, you can completely eliminate blue stains and bring it back to its original, normal appearance. In addition, these compositions will not affect humans in any way. But if the owner still does not want to carry out the treatment in the presence of the family, you can take a short vacation and go on a trip during this time.

The most important is the ubiquity of pine, which has become a significant indicator of its price category. A large number of companies offer to purchase this material at a discount or initially at a low cost.

But it is worth remembering that the construction process from pine is optimal in winter. Thus, any problems with the appearance of fungus will be nipped in the bud - this is a significant advantage of the material.

Recommendations for processing

The surface of the finishing material is covered with various means to protect it from environmental influences and insects, as well as for decorative purposes. Properly treated linden can last in a bathhouse for up to 100 years.

Modern manufacturers produce a wide range of products that can be safely used for treating wood in a bathhouse.

The most popular among them are:

ship varnish

linseed oil

wax mastics

Steam room products must have natural compositions, water or oil base.

Cedar houses

First of all, it should be noted that this material becomes the most optimal option when building houses with a large area.

The fact is that the height of the trees is sufficient to select materials for the construction of a large structure.

Also particularly important is the variety of wood shades. In particular, it can be either a light yellow tone or an amber one with a pink tint. All this allows you to build your dream home, which will be both beautiful and reliable.

Due to the lightness of wood, it can also be used with foundations with a smaller overall structure and simpler construction. In particular, when considering small buildings, you can resort to using cheaper, but no less durable foundations.

Cedar also has a fairly soft wood structure, which allows it to be used in a variety of forms. Processing is easy, given the scope of cutting and giving unusual and even non-standard shapes. In particular, decorating a cedar house with various transitions and other original additions will not be difficult. And even platbands can be cut out of cedar in a minimum period of time. This will allow you to create a building in a more folk style or choose a modern high-tech design direction and completely follow the drawn up project during construction.

Cedar is just as useful for the residents of the house as larch. It allows you to bring your body back to normal and feel not only cheerful, but also do your favorite things and hobbies enthusiastically at any convenient time.

Questions and answers

Why is it better to use eurolining for cladding the interior of a bathhouse, rather than imitation timber or a block house?

This choice is driven by economic considerations. The cost of cladding with eurolining is significantly lower than the cost of imitation timber or block house.

Can cracks appear in a linden log house over time?

No cracks appear in linden log houses during operation until the moment when the wood begins to rot.

Where is it better to install linden doors in a bathhouse?

Linden doors can be installed in any room. They do not absorb moisture, do not deform and do not change their geometric dimensions over time.

How does fake eurolining differ from regular lining?

On the inside of the eurolining there are grooves to remove moisture condensation, which a conventional profile does not have. Eurolining is thinner and has a larger tenon (8-10 mm). This allows you to connect a profile that meets European standards with virtually no gaps.

Is it possible to use linden boards with natural humidity to decorate a bathhouse?

It is not recommended to use such material for finishing work. When it dries, it will become severely deformed.

Products

The fact that wood can be used as a wall or finishing material will be discussed further, but you can also find certain linden products What are they? These are mainly shelves, windows and doors, and it can also be dishes, but we won’t talk about them.

Linden doors

Doors (as well as windows) made of linden have become widespread due to the observation that they do not warp or swell after intense moisture during bath procedures. This property is in great demand in the bathhouse, because many have to deal with the problem of doors that do not want to fit into doorways. Or the doors dry out, forming cracks and crevices. And the most unpleasant option is when there is a bend.

However, the coefficients of shrinkage and swelling (you saw them above in the table) do not differ significantly, and in some ways they are even inferior to other breeds. From this we can conclude that if linden is suitable for bath doors, then this also applies to other types of wood with similar or better shrinkage and swelling characteristics.

ADVICE! If you choose a door, take it from a solid wood panel, from a furniture panel. But it must be well dried and with the correct geometry. During operation, problems may only get worse, but not appear.

We wrote in detail about fake doors in this article.

Shelves

Shelves, of course, are difficult to buy ready-made - they are designed for the dimensions of the room in which they will be placed, but since this is a piece of furniture, we considered it possible to classify it as a product.

Shelves can be made independently or to order. It is best to purchase stronger wood for the frame, such as pine. And then cover it with linden boards.

In the photo: the shelves are mounted on pine bars and metal pipes

Linden for bathhouse shelves is sold in the form of a board with rounded edges. Usually this is a plank with a thickness of 20 mm and a width of 80-90 mm. However, different manufacturers may cut the wood differently and give the resulting board different names. We came across boards called “shelves”. There are boards that are thicker, almost timber (in thickness).

In general, linden is good for shelves, except for one thing - the shelves are exposed to water, so they need especially careful drying in order for them to serve you as long as possible. In addition, impregnation with water-repellent compounds will extend the service life, but not everyone likes to use them in the steam room, especially on shelves.

A detailed article about linden shelves is here.

Double-glazed and plain windows

Let's start with the fact that nowadays they don't install windows in a bathhouse at all without double-glazed windows. Well, maybe someone does, but it’s not advisable. Because heat loss from windows is the greatest, and their area is usually included in the formula for calculating the power of your stove. There, the area is multiplied by a certain coefficient, and the product is added to the power calculated by cubic capacity.

IMPORTANT! Therefore, if you do not want to increase the power of the furnace, install windows with double-glazed windows; a layer of air or inert gas, or vacuum between the glasses serves as a heat insulator.

The number of glasses in the package may vary, it all depends on your climate. The colder the winter, the more glass there is. But they usually don’t put more than 4.

Now about the frame. You need to know that internal and external frames can be made of different materials because they are exposed to different influences. The conditions in the steam room are different, and the conditions outside are different. The linden frame can only be placed inside.

The combination options are varied - a double frame (each can have a double-glazed window), and the material can be any: inside, of course, we choose wood, outside - another tree, aluminum, plastic.

You will find detailed material about wooden windows in the bathhouse at this link. Everything that is said about the tree applies specifically to the linden tree.

What is better to pay attention to

When choosing a material, in addition to price and tactile perception of the wood surface when touched, you need to pay attention to two important points:

Wood workability;
Resistance of the material to moisture and high temperature;
Decorative qualities and smell.

All three categories have their leaders and outsiders. For example, linden and aspen have the best workability, cedar and larch are considered to be moisture-resistant, alder and abash are considered the most beautiful and comfortable to touch.

Of course, there are universal types of wood, the qualities of which are no better than those of the leaders, but they can be used to a certain extent for any parts of the bathhouse. Such materials include aspen, larch and cedar.

Wall parquet

We can say that wall parquet is a type of lining for walls. To lay linden parquet, a lathing is used, to which parts of the wall parquet must be attached. Most often, bathhouses are arranged this way.

However, wall parquet has also found application in everyday life. To style houses as antique, as well as to create environmentally friendly apartments, parquet is used to cover the walls of literally any room, including corridors, kitchens and balconies.

The installation method resembles brickwork. The length of one element, most often, with a stable width and thickness, ranges from 15-20 centimeters to a meter. Using linden wall parquet, you can hide significant wall imperfections (unevenness, fungal damage), while creating a cozy and environmentally friendly room. Installation is quick and simple, the appearance is stylish, and the price is usually reasonable. Rating 5.

Characteristics and properties

Any large manufacturer must produce lining according to state standards. Requirements for finishing materials are specified in GOST 8242-88.

There are separate standards for eurolining, which are specified in the document DIN 68-126/86.

There is no mention of clapboard in government documents. This lumber is called sheathing board.

Standard characteristics for wooden lining:

width - from 76 to 200 mm;
thickness - from 12 to 40 mm;
length - from 20 cm to 6 meters;
spike size - up to 5 mm.

Standards for eurolining:

thickness - 19, 16, 13 mm;
width - 120, 110, 100, 80 mm;
length - from 50 cm to 6 meters;
spike size - from 8 to 9 mm.

Technical characteristics are indicated in the accompanying documents, which the seller must issue when purchasing lumber.

How to compare materials correctly

Of course, there are financial resources and time, quite realistically, and universal solutions. For example, build a log bathhouse from cedar, preferably Canadian, and use African oak to decorate the steam room. Even with a successful design, steaming in such a bathhouse is not much better or more comfortable than in a regular one, but it will last ten times longer than a log house made of aspen or even larch. But such a box will be very expensive. Perhaps, with the money spent on arranging such a bathhouse, it would be better to build four full-fledged wooden saunas made of cedar pine and linden.

Wood used in bath construction is divided into three categories:

Finishing material for steam room walls, shelves, bath accessories;
Material for arranging the wettest parts of the bathhouse;
Wall block or timber.

This division did not arise by chance; as a rule, a certain type of wood performs best under certain conditions. For example, oak or larch are better suited than pine or alder for a bathhouse when it comes to constructing a log house or building frame. At the same time, heavy oak, acacia or birch are never used for wall decoration of the steam room. The denser the wood, the more it burns the skin, and birch board also produces bitterness.

Use of linden in the national economy

The wood of this fragrant tree with high humidity and a pronounced texture is sometimes used as round timber, sawdust and even shavings are used.

Most often, linden wood is used to make:

works of sculpture;
crafts carved from bark;
turning blanks;
furniture board and a wide variety of furniture, including expensive ones;
drawing boards;
guitars and their soundboards and piano keys.

Barrels, pencils and even matches are also made from wood. Shelves for books and bookcases are made from linden. Doors made of linden wood are considered durable and never “suffer” from distortions. Lime tree charcoal is also valuable for humans. It makes some of the best water filters. And before, even seals were made from linden.

The interior parts of the premises are made from linden using timber and lining. Most often these are baths and saunas, but it is even used in living rooms. The main thing is to know which part of the tree is best used where.

What is inconvenient about aspen for arranging a bathhouse?

The main disadvantage of aspen wood is the difficulty in selecting quality material. Aspen, like no other material, must be carefully selected and discarded. The better the screening, the longer the bath lasts. If you come across a log with foulbrood, it can infect the entire structure before the aspen becomes dense and insensitive to rot.

The second disadvantage is considered to be the darkening of the surface under the influence of air and sunlight. To return an aspen bathhouse to its original light appearance, it is best to sand the surface or sandblast it.

Reviews

Boris Nevelov, 42 years old, Novosibirsk

I hesitated for a long time between linden and aspen, but in the end I made the traditional choice: linden. It costs more, but for a steam room, I think, you won’t find a better one. The wood is warm, silky, and does not heat up. And the smell in the steam room will make you pumped.

Nikolay Morozov, 35 years old, Omsk

There used to be a bathhouse on the site - made of pine. The inside of the steam room was lined with linden. But something went wrong: it began to rot. And in the bathhouse there was always mold or something else. They dismantled and built a new one - from aspen. It has been standing for more than 6 years, nothing rots, there is no trace of fungus. But, of course, it took me a long time to choose a tree. I went to the base three times to take away the barrels.

Alexander Fedorov, 52 years old, Ufa

A bathhouse was started on the site as soon as the house began to be built. I chose aspen: the price is lower than cedar, and it is not afraid of water, if it is good. Banya is already 15 years old. The color, of course, is not the same, it has become gray, but the tree is like stone. During all this time there was never mold in either the steam room or the dressing room.

Bath traditions or why linden is so good for a bath