Glass doors for bath

The bath is a unique, almost cult place for millions of our fellow citizens. Visiting the steam room has a long tradition. However, modern trends have spread to them. Glass bath doors are becoming increasingly popular.

For centuries, the steam room was considered the centerpiece of the Russian bath. The door to it was traditionally made of oak, aspen, alder, and other powerful breeds, since it was subjected to serious loads from high temperatures, steam and moisture. In addition, it was believed that it was impossible to break the exotic aromas of heated wood, which is a miracle of the bath and in many respects - a condition of healing procedures.

However, as the era of comfort and design in the baths began to increasingly use glass doors. At first there was the opinion that this was an attribute of a sauna only. However, soon the innovation was actively introduced into classic bathhouses.

One of the clear advantages of a glass door is its durability. It looks stylish, visually expands the space of the room, preserves the microclimate of the steam room and sauna, as it does not change its size under the influence of extreme temperatures.

The glass is well washed, not afraid of rotting and fungi. Easily misses the rays, with it you can not worry about the lamps in the bath. Glass models do not threaten with any fumes or radiation. Add to this the advantages of an environmentally safe material, hygiene, and relative simplicity during installation, and it will become clear that it is already difficult to find an alternative to such an instance.

For the sake of justice, let us call the weak points of such a door. Glass cannot boast the same thermal conductivity parameters as wood. The wooden door in this issue, as well as in the comfort of tactile sensations, beats glass. The price of glass will also be higher.

Manufacturing technology of glass bath doors for at least several decades, so that it uses the most advanced ideas and approaches. The glass used in production is hardened, thereby acquiring special strength. To do this, use the method of alternate heating to 700 degrees and cooling by blowing air. The process covers the entire plane uniformly. The method provides a heat-resistant material characterized by high mechanical strength.

You have to be very clever to break such a door. Imagine for a moment that this happened. Any cuts are excluded: heat-resistant glass will shatter into small and absolutely dull fragments. The usual, as is well known, threatens with sharp and dangerous fragments.

Experts form the door blocks of high quality materials. Geometry and absolute dimensional accuracy meet specific requirements for the assembly method. Computer control of the process ensures full compatibility of the box and the glass door leaf.

Domestic manufacturers are equal to European, and today their products are already quite competitive. Some artistic glass trim elements are made by hand.

To such a specific texture, like glass, the attitude of the manufacturers is reverent, every step in production is a kind of test for aesthetic perfection. That is why great attention is paid to the accessories. It is distinguished by its functionality., allowing to combine simplicity in installation of a door, convenience when opening and the color harmony shading gloss of glass.

The market for bath doors offers many types of them. In the range of transparent, translucent, matte, patterned specimens. The range of colors is gray, greenish, "bronze", others, each choice is interesting in its own way for decoration. The combined options look unconventional: wood plus glass. The inserts of these materials, the various transformations and the play of such components give rise to a stunning design product.

Some consumers like transparent doors.They consider them aesthetically light, “airy” and of practical importance. Behind such doors you can see how children or elderly parents feel in the bath.

Other masters of the baths full of transparency strains. However, such a “flaw” is easy to eliminate. This can be done even with your own hands. Here are some guidelines:

• Use a sandblaster to “dust” glass, turn it into matte;
• Apply the drawing with special waterproof paints (if you do not feel in yourself a sufficient talent of the artist, it is better to use a stencil);
• Buy a film and paste over the door;
• Order spraying.

The most common offers on the market are glass doors with a door block. These specimens have a glass thickness of 6, 8, 10 and even 12 mm. Thicker cloths are made in the form of a double-glazed window and placed in a frame.

The dimensions of the door frame are classic: from 180x60 cm to 200x90 cm. However, depending on the manufacturer, the range of sizes of doors for the bath varies. Usually, each new size is 10 centimeters behind the previous one.

Here it is important to bear in mind that catalogs often indicate the dimensions not of the door, but of the whole opening. It’s necessary to navigate here. Directly the door with the box will be 10 mm smaller in the vertical direction and in the horizontal direction. That is, with the parameter 8Х20 it is necessary to understand that the size of the opening is indicated (800Х2000). And the door itself will be 790Х1990.

By analogy: for example, the Akma Harvia Doorwood brand offers a volume collection of sizes: 7x19, 6x18, 6x19, 8x19, 8x21, 7x17, 8x20, 9x19, 7x18, 9x21, 7x19, 13x21, 7x20, 14x21, 7x21, 15x19, 8x19, 15x21, 8x20, 16x21, 8x21, 17x19, 17x21.

An important point. The door for the steam room must be selected taking into account that steam rises to the ceiling. Therefore, he needs to “reserve” a place. If, for example, the ceiling has a height of 280 centimeters, then it is necessary to retreat at least 70 centimeters and install the door only at such a height. Thus, the height of the door in the named room will be 205-210 centimeters.

For lovers of high quality doors with glass, you can recommend the products of Finnish companies. At the same time it is better to resort to someone's help during the installation or even to entrust the work to a professional. Without experience to master the installation is difficult.Yes, and the glass cloth weighs even with a 7-mm glass thickness of 25 kilograms, try to lift it alone!

Be sure to consider the features of the box. The metal box is installed at the beginning of installation, and wooden - at the end. When installing, consider which way you should open the glass door.

When you disassemble the packaging with glass, do not throw away the wooden slats. They will serve as a good "flooring" for glass cloth. The glass is removed after the fastening screws are loosened. They need to be bent in the opposite direction.

At installation of a box for its dense fixing special wedges are applied. At installation of a glass cloth - hinges. Check the verticality several times, gradually tightening the screws more tightly and more tightly.

Do not take lightly to the latch. If the ball latch, it will often seize. This can happen at the most inopportune moment when, for example, you decided to run out of the steam room and throw yourself in cool water.

Much more reliable magnetic latches.If they are constructed of three or four elements, this means that their safety margin will ensure high performance without failures.

Glass sheets are usually sold complete with wooden handles. Your job is to check that the pens fit you in height. For better reliability and comfort between the handles include gaskets made of a special material - silicone.

As for the reviews on glass innovations, then having studied them on websites and forums, we can conclude: there are many fans of this design, but the critics have not been translated. Some people think that the door with glass in the bath is unnatural and they are of the opinion that everything must be made of wood, otherwise the “spirit of the steam room” will erode.

In stores, domestic and foreign manufacturers offer all sorts of doors. As for the glass sheet itself, you can afford to decide on such a list of examples: patterned glass, frosted glass with dusting, frosted glass without dusting, homogeneous. As well as glass mirror and very transparent.

Now according to the color of the box (edging of the door): gray doors, "bronze", green, with elements of wood (combined).

Options depending on the method of opening:

• swing (only in one direction, outward);
• sliding (open sideways and save space);
• pendulum (open in all directions).

Additional aesthetic and reinforcing elements for glass are made of the following materials:

• stainless steel;
• glass;
• brass;
• natural wood;
• special anti-corrosion alloys.

To install the glass door yourself, follow the following work sequence:

• Fix the height of the door and add 10-15 centimeters to the result, get the overall height of the structure. At this height, start making markup. Draw the marking line horizontally and parallel to the floor.
• Now it's the width's turn - choose which one is convenient and leave 5 cm gaps on all sides.
• On the markup, determine the guides. Do not “stick” the gutter against the wall - nothing should interfere with the glass while moving.
• Prepare roller carriages, do not tighten the bolts, and bait.

• Get the mechanisms in the guides.
• Secure the brackets to hold the glass sheet.
• Insert the glass into the carriage at the top, then into the slots, then tighten the bolts.
• Do not forget to place the gasket between the bolt and the glass.
• Adjust the smooth installation of the glass.

Remember that the finished structure can not be filed or fixed. All count immediately. Tempered glass is an extremely durable material, but still make sure that it does not crack. To protect the glass on the sides in the finished version using matched design wooden strips.

Pendulum doors with a box of light wood will look great. Beautifully look matte canvas with a large floral pattern: leaves, flowers, branches. Finnish designers are widely used glass for doors with original coating - bronze, silver.

Many users liked absolutely transparent doors to the steam room. Although skeptics believe that in a bath you can relax to such an extent that you do not accidentally notice the invisible doors and open them with your head, fans of clean glass are sure: it adds space in a room that is not the most spacious.

You have to experience everything on their own experience. Replacing a heavy wooden door with a light, stylish glass in a bathhouse is like taking a step right in the “pair case” from Russia to Europe.

How to install a glass door in the steam room, see the following video.