Insulate the floor in the country. Do-it-yourself floor insulation in the country house is quick and easy. Alternative ways to solve the issue of warming the floors of a country house
A country house is associated among urban residents with a building designed for recreation and pastime outside the city in the summer. Almost every owner of a country house building in cool and rainy weather thought about the issue and expediency of floor insulation in the country house. Consider how this can be done, and what materials are best used for this.
Validity of the work
Some gardening enthusiasts work at their summer cottage not only in summer, but also in autumn. And they usually start work in early spring. However, a country house, as a rule, is not insulated, which can cause discomfort in cool weather.
In the absence of home insulation, it is problematic and expensive to heat the room, especially if many communications in the country house are absent. Attempts to heat the dacha end with the fact that the heat from the heating devices comes out through the floor and ceiling.
You can do the work on warming the floor in the country with your own hands. To reduce the cost of purchasing materials, as well as in order to reduce labor costs, it is possible to insulate only one or two rooms. However, the insulation of the entire room will be much more comfortable for spending time in spring and autumn.
When planning measures for warming, it is necessary to schedule work for the summer period, this will improve their quality.
Selection of materials
The most inexpensive materials for insulation are sawdust, earth and moss. But such materials are classified as obsolete, they have their own characteristics and disadvantages. Consider the main materials that can be used as a heater:
- Sawdust. The most rare material, it is cheap, easy to install and light in weight. The disadvantages of sawdust are the formation of decay processes, as well as combustibility;
- Expanded clay. It has a similar principle of insulation with sawdust. It is resistant to burning and the occurrence of decay processes. The disadvantage is the significant weight of the material;
- Penoplex or extruded polystyrene foam. This slab insulation is resistant to fire, practical, lightweight, easy to install. He is not afraid of moisture, insects and rodents. Penoplex often insulate the foundation of the house and the facade. An additional plus is the fact that when insulated with foam plastic, condensation does not form;
- Styrofoam. Somewhat similar to foam, however, these two materials have different characteristics. It burns well, is afraid of rodent attacks, but is most popular due to its attractive cost. Since rodents are frequent guests in the garden house, a special fine mesh should be used to protect the thermal insulation from mice;
- Polyurethane foam. It also has many benefits. Very practical and durable material;
- Mineral wool. Refers to practical materials for warming not only floors, but also the facade in a country house. This material has been used for many years in construction work as a quality and affordable.
For your information. If mineral wool is chosen as a heater, it must be laid with a thickness of 10 mm. For porous materials, the thickness should be 10-12 cm.
Also, when using rolled insulation, it is necessary to remember that it is mandatory to cover them with moisture-resistant material on both sides.
An excellent option would be to simultaneously insulate the floors with your own hands using organic and mineral heaters. They should be laid on the principle of a layer cake. It is necessary to dry the material before laying, this will avoid rotting.
Sequence of work
If the country house has one floor, it is enough to insulate the floor of the first floor and the attic. When it comes to a cottage of two floors, the task is somewhat more complicated.
The process of warming floors in the country is largely determined by their design. In most cases, the design consists of one row of boards on logs. A clean floor covering is laid over the boards. As a result, even at high temperatures outside, cold enters the house from the ground.
When the basis of the house is a strip foundation, the design of the basement implies the presence of air. They are essential for ventilation. In winter, it is recommended to close these holes with insulation, opening in the summer.
The process of floor insulation will be as follows:
- It is necessary to dismantle the old flooring and the top layer of boards. Insulating materials are laid in the space between the lags. When insulating the floor with your own hands, you should not forget about laying a vapor barrier film above and below the insulation. You can fix it with a stapler, it should cover the entire surface of the floor;
- We close the structure with the help of draft floors. It can be plywood or chipboard. As advice, professionals recommend replacing nails with self-tapping screws, they are more practical and durable;
- The work is completed by laying the floor covering.
Now in a country country house it is warm, cozy and comfortable. And the video material presented below will allow you to get acquainted with the process of work in a visual way.
Attic floor insulation
If the dacha is planned for winter living, be sure to take care of warming the attic floor, since a significant amount of heat escapes through the ceiling. These works can be done with your own hands, or you can use the services of qualified specialists.
When choosing materials for attic floor insulation, one cannot but take into account the peculiarities of the region of residence. The insulation itself must be harmless to the body and durable.
The attic floor insulation process includes checking and rejecting all wooden elements and beams. Rotten and damaged elements should be processed and replaced. Next, the warming process begins directly.
It is recommended that the first step is to lay a vapor barrier material, on top of which lay a heater, covering it with a second layer of vapor barrier. Sheet materials require leveling the base. Since irregularities can lead to the formation of cracks in the sheets. When using polyurethane foam, the construction of a structure of several layers is not required.
If the room is not used or it is used to store various things and objects, then the arrangement of the attic floor with your own hands can be completed. When it is planned to use the attic as a room, the ceiling of the room should also be insulated. On the video you can clearly see the procedure for insulating the attic by applying liquid insulation.
Warming in a two-story house
If it is intended to use a country house in winter for recreation, it is necessary to determine what territory of the country house will be needed. For a two-story house, it will be enough to work on the insulation of the first floor. Whereas the second tier can be blocked, which will keep the heat only at the level of the first floor. Doing it yourself is quite simple. You can use improvised materials. It can be plywood and a layer of insulation.
Preservation of heat in a residential area is one of the main components of comfort and healthy life for the whole family. In this, the floor insulation in a private house, which has its own subtleties and features, plays an important role. It is worth paying attention to it first of all, without postponing work until the onset of cold weather.
Features and Benefits
In a private house, unlike city apartments, there is almost always no central heating, so the tasks of providing heat and dryness indoors have to be solved independently. Even with powerful batteries in winter, it is not possible to maintain a comfortable temperature in the rooms if reliable thermal insulation is not installed under the flooring.
Sometimes, during the construction of a country house, after pouring the screed, some simple thermal insulation is hastily made and a finishing coating is mounted. And then, with the onset of cold weather, they are surprised: why it’s cold in the house, you can’t walk barefoot and, in general, it blows from under the floor. Therefore, it should be insulated carefully, knowing all the subtleties of the process, the properties of materials and other construction tricks.
In a multi-storey building, the floor is partially heated by the lower apartments, and even if the apartment is located on the first floor, then there is a basement below, where it is always warm due to the placement of hot pipes and heating systems there.
In a private house, under its foundation, there is simple earth, which tends to freeze in winter, therefore, all the tasks of ensuring reliable thermal insulation of the floor lie on the shoulders of the owners.
The decision to reliably insulate the floor in a country house before the onset of the cold season has several advantages:
- reduction of heat loss in the room, expensive heating becomes more efficient and is not wasted;
- many floor heaters also have vapor and waterproofing;
- the atmosphere in the house becomes more comfortable, you can walk barefoot, including children;
- reliable insulation keeps the fresh finish in the house for a long time - laminate, parquet and others;
- if high-quality materials are used and everything is installed correctly, then the thermal insulation will last for many years in a row.
There are different ways to insulate the floor, but the coating itself, on which the insulating layer is placed, can be of several types. And it also affects the choice of insulating material.
Varieties of coatings
The solid base of the floor has several varieties depending on its material: wood, concrete, screed.
A wooden floor on logs of thick beams is one of the most ancient varieties of building the foundation of a house. The schemes for fixing the crossbars, tools and technologies are changing, but the general principle has remained unchanged for many centuries. There are two ways to fix the lag: in the foundation of the building or on supporting pillars.
Logs are walled up in the foundation of the building, if its area is small, so that the length of the bars is enough for a reliable bond of the structure. Otherwise, or if the horizontal supports can no longer be fixed to the base, a "floating" floor is used on the support pillars.
Supports for logs are made of brick or concrete at a distance of 70 - 100 cm from each other. First, holes are made for them in the ground, the depth and width of which depend on the height of the pillars themselves. Crushed stone or sand is poured inside with a layer of 30 cm, well compacted, then the supports themselves are installed from brick or cement mortar with the construction of formwork and reinforcing cage. A waterproofing of 3-4 layers of roofing material is laid on top, then horizontal bars are attached to the pillars using threaded studs or anchors.
Wooden logs are good because you can successfully create a draft floor from them by nailing solid boards to the lower cut of the beams, smearing the gaps between them with clay and placing any kind of insulation on top. Then the upper boards are nailed, and a finishing coating is installed.
The tree itself retains heat a little, it is a natural environmentally friendly material.
The concrete base of the floor eliminates the need to make a frame of lags, build supports under them, and use a lot of wood. But even here, not everything is simple - for reliability, pouring must be carried out in several layers, and the cost of a high-quality solution is high. For a concrete base, it is necessary to select the top layer of soil, fill in a pillow of sand 10-15 cm thick, pour water over it and carefully compact it. A 10-centimeter layer of crushed stone is poured and rammed onto the sandy one.
The next layer of a reliable concrete floor is a rough screed of expanded clay or crushed foam, gravel, sand and cement 10 centimeters thick. After laying and leveling, you must wait until the mixture dries and lay the waterproofing. For this, ruberoid is best suited. It is necessary that it also captures the walls by 10-15 cm. The joints must be additionally glued.
A heater is placed on the waterproofing, a reinforcing mesh is placed on top and, finally, a finishing screed is made. Due to its multi-layered concrete floor, it is durable, warm and reliable. On top of it, you can make any decorative coating: linoleum, parquet, laminate.
An earthen floor is usually done in a garage, bathhouse or outbuildings of a private house. It does not have a monolithic base or frame made of beams; natural soil is located immediately below it. Nevertheless, there are effective ways of warming for it: gravel, expanded clay, penoplex.
Types of insulation
There are several dozen varieties of heat-insulating material for a private house. It is worth considering the most popular of them, their properties.
Expanded clay is porous granules of baked clay. Due to the voids inside, they prevent the penetration of cold air, absorb moisture well. A layer of expanded clay with a thickness of 10-15 cm has excellent thermal insulation. Of the advantages of this material, one can note its low cost, environmental friendliness without chemical impurities and ease of installation. The granules are simply scattered with a shovel in an even layer on a horizontal surface.
Penoplex can effectively insulate an earthen floor, but it is also perfect for concrete or wood. Created from extruded polystyrene, the material is supplied in slabs with a smooth surface from 20 to 100 mm thick. It has high thermal insulation even in severe winters, is very light, relatively cheap, and does not emit harmful substances. Mounting sheets is easy, they are cut with a simple mounting knife. Among the disadvantages of penoplex, relatively low fire resistance can be noted (during combustion, it emits acrid smoke), and vapor permeability, instability to ultraviolet radiation and poor adhesion to other materials due to the smooth surface.
Styrofoam insulates any kind of floors. This material is widely known and time-tested. It has all the same advantages as penoplex, but it adheres better to other surfaces. Sheets can be crushed and added to the screed solution as an additional insulation. It is very successful to use foam plastic in warming a wooden floor on logs, it will perfectly protect both from cold and from moisture.
Insulation of the floor in the country with penofol or tepofol will also be effective. This is a thin polymeric material covered with foil with a thickness of 2 to 10 mm. Closed pores do not allow air or moisture to penetrate, and the micron foil layer has reflective properties. The insulation is universal and suitable for any conditions, combined with many materials. Penofol is sold in rolls, which are cut and rolled out on a horizontal surface, the joints are sealed with special foil tape.
Insulation with expanded polystyrene gives excellent indicators of thermal insulation, vapor permeability and moisture resistance. This polymeric material, consisting of 98% air, is stronger than foam plastic, with a static bending strength of up to 1 kg per square meter. see This means that it can withstand almost any weight of the top layers of the flooring. Expanded polystyrene sheets with a thickness of 10 to 45 cm are easy to install, do not enter into chemical interaction with other substances, and are resistant to deformation.
Izolon floors are often insulated in combination with other effective insulators: polystyrene foam, polystyrene foam, mineral wool. It is produced in rolls, the thickness of the layer can be from 2 to 100 mm, inside the foil layer there is foamed polyethylene. Izolon has high sound absorption, waterproofing, can be operated in a wide temperature range - from -80 to +80 degrees.
Polyurethane foam is available in the form of rigid plates, it is a fairly durable material. But it does not have high waterproofing, so it must be used in combination with other polymer insulators.
Thermal insulation boards consist of a solid polymeric material with properties similar to expanded polystyrene. But unlike it, their surface is covered with a layer of foil, thanks to which these materials effectively reflect heat, are fireproof and resistant to mechanical stress.
Popular are heat-insulating plates from the manufacturer "TechnoNIKOL".
Warming of walls and floors with mineral wool has been used for a long time. This material, produced in rolls and plates, has a thickness of up to 10 cm, a high degree of heat and noise insulation, cheap and easy to install. A huge advantage of mineral wool is its incombustibility. Of the shortcomings, it can be noted that over time it shrinks a little.
This inorganic insulation is of three types: stone wool, glass wool and slag wool. The difference is only in the feedstock, there are practically no differences in physical properties. With mineral wool, you should work carefully, with gloves and preferably in a respirator, since its small particles floating in the air have a harmful effect on the skin and respiratory tract.
Due to its porous structure, wood fiber board (MFB) saves heat well, but it is better to mount it in combination with other effective heat insulators: penofol, isolon, mineral wool. The most popular grades of fiberboard used for floor insulation are M-20 and PT-100. This material is also used for finishing the flooring, its surface is even, has pleasant natural textures.
The draft floor between the lags can be insulated with sawdust. This method is the cheapest, especially if you have a lot of this waste from wood processing on hand. Sawdust retains heat well and does not emit harmful substances, but over time they dry out and shrink, forming voids, and can rot. It is not excluded the appearance of harmful insects in them.
What material is better?
The choice of material depends on many factors: the type of floor, climatic conditions, the type of soil on which the house stands, and financial possibilities. If you want to save on thermal insulation, then you should choose expanded clay or polystyrene as cheaper ones. If you don’t feel sorry for the money to ensure long-term comfort in your home, then you need to make multi-layer protection from penofol, penoplex or expanded polystyrene.
For a concrete floor, in order to avoid a too thick layer of screed, it is worth choosing thin foil polymers in rolls, the thickness of which does not exceed 1 cm, and warm the capacious draft floor on the logs with massive mineral wool or expanded polystyrene slabs.
Sawdust will not work for a too humid environment, mineral wool also tends to absorb water.
Polymer and foil based heaters are the best and most versatile, they provide any protection - from cold, moisture, decay, insects, wind and fire. In addition, they are easily cut into even pieces and mounted. The leader among materials for floor insulation in a private house can be considered heat-insulating boards from various manufacturers.
Ways
Almost any of the above insulating materials can be covered or spread over logs. This method is suitable for any of them - loose or laid. The first draft coating is attached from below, then an insulator is mounted on top of the boards and closed from above.
The second method - on a concrete base requires laying each layer in stages, after each it is necessary to level and check the level. If the layer is liquid, then you need to wait a certain time for it to dry. In addition, it is necessary to maintain an appropriate temperature inside the room, since the cement mortar does not set well in the cold and loses its useful properties.
How to do it yourself?
Any person familiar with construction work can independently insulate the floor in a country house, in a cottage, in a rural house, the type of building and dimensions do not matter, the laying principle is the same everywhere. Installation requires a small set of hand tools. If dry mixes are used, an electric mixer is required for mixing. The work area should be well lit, and solutions may need to be maintained at a suitable temperature to cure.
If the base in a country house is located on logs, then it will not be difficult to make internal insulation. To do this, you need to build a draft floor. You will need the following tools: a hacksaw, a tape measure, a level, a hammer and nails. Boards can be selected from different types of wood, as long as they are dry and even.
Most often, the following sizes are suitable for them:
- length - from 2 to 6 m;
- thickness - from 2 to 4 cm;
- width - from 15 to 20 cm.
The boards are nailed to the joists from below the entire width of the floor, the gaps between them must be closed, for this you can use clay, acrylic sealant or wood putty. After drying, the selected insulating material is placed inside. For the rigidity of the entire structure, at a distance of 0.7 - 1 m, it is necessary to install transverse fasteners from boards or metal profiles. The finishing layer is placed on top. If everything is done correctly, then the owners of the house receive a warm and dry floor for many years to come.
It will not be difficult to independently put a cement screed with insulation in a country house. Before laying, it is necessary to install beacons; in hardware stores you can find special types just for this. Metal profile pipes can also be suitable as them. For alignment with beacons, a metal building rule 1-2.5 m long is used. Each layer after laying is checked by a horizontal level and left to dry.
To insulate the floor on the veranda, it is best to use foam sheets with additional waterproofing, such as plastic film or penofol. Since this room does not need to retain heat so much, you can get by with an earthen floor with expanded clay, laying a rough board.
For most people, a dacha from temporary housing, which is used only in the summer, becomes a real country house, to which they come even in deep winter. But in order to be comfortable and warm in the country house even in frosty weather, you need to know how to properly insulate the floor in the country house, choose the most suitable technology. It is only necessary to do the whole complex of work even before the arrival of cold weather, so that it becomes much warmer in the country.
Which technology to choose
Floor insulation can occur in different ways. Choosing the right technology, you need to decide how the work will take place:
For concrete;
According to the lags.
Insulation along the logs can be done on a concrete and wood floor base. A clear advantage of this technique is the ability to eliminate the load on the thermal insulation layer. Therefore, when choosing this method, it is possible to lay various types of heaters, mineral wool and bulk materials.
If the insulation is laid on a concrete base, then it experiences heavy loads. This may cause deformation of the insulation material. To prevent this, when insulating on concrete, it is necessary to use materials with good density characteristics.
Attention! To decide how best to insulate the floor in the country, you can watch the video. It quite clearly shows the sequence of the work process, the tools and materials used. In this case, it will be much easier to understand the technology.
As a rule, in the country the floor is made of wood and very rarely poured with concrete. Therefore, in this case, it is better to do insulation along the lags. In this case, the execution time is significantly increased.
Which material to choose
If the question is being decided what material to make the floor insulation in the country, the cost of the insulation plays an important role. The better and more affordable the insulation layer, the better for the owners. Also, great attention should be paid to how durable, reliable, moisture resistant the material is, what thermal conductivity it has, how quickly insulation work takes place with it. Both the quality of work and the operating time of the heater depend on this. There is a fairly large selection of heaters on the market. For a summer residence buy:
Expanded polystyrene extruded;
Styrofoam;
Styrofoam;
Basalt wool;
Expanded clay;
Technical traffic jam;
Mineral wool.
Each of the materials has its own advantages. The choice of insulation depends on the individual characteristics of the cottage and the effect to be achieved. Having chosen how to insulate the floor, you can begin work.
Warming along the lags
First you need to dismantle the old coating, in many houses it is made of boards. After removal, you need to evaluate the integrity of the subfloor. If it is normal, the lag is laid. The distance between each bar can be chosen up to a meter.
Then, when the logs are fixed, thermal insulation is laid in the space formed between them. As a rule, preference is given to fiberglass, expanded polystyrene, expanded clay, mineral wool mats.
When laying flexible mats, it is necessary to control that the surface, which has a perforated paper layer, is on the underside. The installation of hydrophobized mineral wool materials is done in such a way that the hard side is on top. To avoid problems during installation, the hard side is painted blue.
Attention! When laying thermal insulation, you need to take care of the waterproofing layer. It must be on both sides and be up to 250 microns thick.
A vapor barrier is attached over the lag. Then the flooring can be installed. You can install the same boards that were dismantled at the initial stage.
If there is a second floor, then work also takes place. However, in this case, in addition to two layers of waterproofing, it is necessary to perform the same number of layers of vapor barrier.
Watch video
concrete floor insulation
The concrete floor itself is very cold. If it is he who is at the dacha, then even a fireplace will not make it possible to make the dacha warm and cozy without a certain set of works. As a rule, in this case, floors are installed, during the laying of which a cement screed is made.
Usually, extruded polystyrene foam is chosen as a heater, it has a good density. Durability, moisture resistance and sufficient strength of the material makes it possible to provide a sufficient level of thermal insulation. In this case, the arrangement of a multilayer cake is carried out, which includes:
concrete base;
Polystyrene layer;
Finish coating.
Also, the concrete floor can be insulated with expanded clay. To do this, a flat base is covered with roofing material or glassine and covered with a layer of expanded clay. The layer thickness must be at least 15 cm, otherwise it will not work to create the necessary level of thermal insulation. From above expanded clay is covered with two layers of a film. It is installed in such a way that there is an overlap on the walls. All connections are sealed with tape. From above, as in the embodiment described above, a screed device is made and the floor covering is mounted.
The phrase "cottage in summer" sounds magical, and for a city dweller, it is associated with outdoor recreation. But not all people think so - for some summer residents, a suburban area is an additional source of income and even a place of permanent residence. Agree, in order to live permanently in a house, at least it should be warm and comfortable. There is only one way to get such a country house - to make a heating system in it and insulate it well to reduce heat loss. Quality is a whole range of measures that provides for thermal insulation of walls, ceilings and even floors, which will be discussed in this article. Together with the website, we will deal with the question of how to insulate the floor in the country house with our own hands, we will study modern technologies in detail and get acquainted with their features.
Do-it-yourself floor insulation in the country house photo
How to insulate the floor in the country with your own hands: thermal insulation of wooden flooring
The question of how to insulate wood is the easiest to solve - unlike concrete or cement bases, it seems to be designed for such operations. The most interesting thing is that even an old wooden floor can be insulated. Yes, it will have to be redone (disassembled and reassembled), but there is no need to invest in a new wooden flooring. Unless, of course, the floor in your country house is rotten and does not require replacement - we will proceed from this, studying the technology of warming the country wooden floor. If we deal with this issue in stages, then its solution can be presented in the form of the following sequence of works.
In conclusion of the question about the insulation of a wooden floor, I will add a few words about heaters. By and large, any heat-insulating material can be used here - both foam plastic and polyurethane foam are suitable, but the best option is still mineral wool, which is a vapor-permeable material that allows the wooden floor to "breathe". In addition, mineral wool does not deprive the underground of the ability to ventilate - as a result, the board lasts longer. More information about floor insulation in the country can be found in this video.
How to insulate a concrete floor in a country house: two options for resolving the issue
A concrete floor, no matter where it is located (in a country house or in a residential building), is more problematic in terms of insulation. If it is already made, then it is almost impossible to insulate it with high quality. In such a situation, only a partial solution of this issue can be expected. To perform a full-fledged warming of such bases, the old screed will have to be torn off and a new one will be poured in its place. Let's take a closer look at the various technologies for insulating concrete floors.
In principle, the options for floor insulation in the country house described above are not the only solutions - other material can also be used as a heater. For example, loose granular slag or expanded clay can be driven into the underground or under the screed, which will cost a little less. In addition, there is an alternative to the standard floor screed.
How to insulate the floor in a country house photo
Alternative ways to solve the issue of warming the floors of a country house
Two technologies can be attributed to alternative methods of floor insulation in the country house - their main drawback is a decent investment, without which one simply cannot do here. It is for this reason that these technologies can only be used in capital buildings, and not in some semblance of country houses. Let's consider them in more detail.
In principle, that's all, and there are no other options for resolving the issue of how to insulate the floor in the country with your own hands - or rather, there are, but their essence is almost the same. They simply involve the use of other heat-insulating materials.
Good thermal insulation of a country house will not be superfluous in any case - whether you live in the country all year round or come only for the summer season. Equipped insulation makes staying in a home more comfortable at any time of the year. It also protects your home from excessive moisture and other external factors that can accelerate the process of destruction of the structure.
Expert opinion
Konstantin Alexandrovich
Ask an expertYou need to start from the foundation. If the floors in the house are cold, heating will take a lot of time and energy. So, let's consider floor insulation in the country house without removing the old floor, and options if there is no black floor.
Selection of materials for thermal insulation
The choice of building materials with which insulation work is carried out is distinguished by a wealth of choice. In addition to modern ones, traditional materials, which have become familiar and well-proven, do not slow down among summer residents. 
Expanded clay
The granules are light in weight and contain many pores to effectively retain heat. The material is not attacked by rodents and insects and has a high level of environmental friendliness. In order for the heat-insulating layer to work with maximum efficiency, its thickness should be about 30 centimeters. In addition, the insulator must be reliably protected from possible exposure to moisture. 
Sawdust and wood shavings
Natural material is quite inexpensive, and you can apply for its purchase at any enterprise engaged in wood processing. Chips have excellent heat insulating qualities, but are too susceptible to moisture and must be protected from water ingress. 
In addition, there may be problems with the appearance of rats and mice, as well as insects.
Slag
This method of insulation can be implemented directly on top of the ground. Like many others, it requires the arrangement of waterproofing. The material has a significant service life, is not subject to fire and does not attract rodents. 
glass wool
Fiberglass-based wool has an affordable cost, qualitatively insulates heat and muffles extraneous sounds. It is not subject to damage by biological organisms. Of the minuses, one can note the likelihood of a decrease in the initial volume during operation and the need to use personal protective equipment when working with it. The latter is due to the fact that the fibers of the material are thin and easily damaged. They create an invisible suspension in the air, which can irritate the skin layer and mucous membranes of the respiratory tract. 
Styrofoam
Very easy to install and moisture resistant. Its service life is very long, but only under the condition of the complete absence of rodents. Rats and mice have a special weakness for this material and easily damage it. 
The use of modern industry materials in thermal insulation makes it possible to carry out all work with minimal labor and time costs. The insulation is very high quality and has a long service life. They are not cheap, but this drawback fully pays off within a few seasons by considerable savings on space heating.
Extruded polystyrene foam (EPS) or polystyrene foam
Penoplex is produced in a convenient plate format. They are resistant to moisture, are not afraid of temperature fluctuations, do not freeze through. The material is distinguished by high density, due to which its shape remains unchanged throughout the entire service life. The insulation has a low weight and convenient locks to improve the quality of installation. Installing it is no problem. 
Extruded polystyrene boards can be produced in various formats. They are distinguished by a high level of wear resistance, reduced hygroscopicity and a long service life. There are varieties of material coated with foil, which effectively reflects heat and increases the effectiveness of thermal insulation several times.
Penoizol
This type of insulation is applied to the floor surface, without disassembling it, by spraying. The result is a seamless high-density layer that actively resists the influence of external factors. The structure of the insulation consists of many pores, which reduces the level of stress on the building structure. Penoizol is ideal for thermal insulation of floor slabs on the second floor, attic or attic space. A significant disadvantage is the inaccessibility of self-application of the insulator. 
It is sprayed only when using special equipment that supplies mass under high pressure. Such an installation has a high price tag, and you need to be able to handle the unit.
Ecowool
The insulation consists, to a greater extent, of cellulose fibers, and its thermal conductivity coefficient is very small. Ecowool has a high environmental friendliness and excellent soundproofing performance. Installation of insulation in the space under the floor is carried out using a specialized installation. 
When doing work with your own hands, it is almost impossible to control the uniformity of the distribution of the layer and it is very difficult to produce its high-quality compaction.
Vermiculite
One of the varieties of heaters that have a loose form. Its structure consists of grains with scales. The weight of such a material is less than that of expanded clay, and the sound-proof and heat-insulating properties, on the contrary, are higher. If we compare it with mineral wool or extruded polystyrene foam, it turns out that vermiculite is not affected by microbes and biological organisms, and is not interesting for rodents. 
Its main disadvantage is its high price; according to this indicator, it clearly loses to mineral wool materials and expanded polystyrenes.
Do-it-yourself step-by-step instructions for arranging the thermal insulation of the floor with your own hands
This method is the most common and is suitable for isolating all types of bases. The advantage is that there is no load on the insulation material, which makes it possible to use materials with a loose structure or with increased fragility.
List of required tools:
List of required materials:
- membrane with the effect of isolation from steam (glassine);
- the insulating material itself;
- scotch tape for construction with a coating based on rubber;
- protective composition for wood treatment against fire, mold and insects.
How to prepare the base?
Waterproofing
Glassine may well serve as a material for insulation from moisture. It has sufficient density, good service life and is not too expensive. It is laid on the surface of the log and distributed between the bars. For a tighter fixation of glassine, you can fix it on the inside of the log using a construction stapler. Strips of material must be laid in such a way that an overlap of 10 to 15 centimeters is formed. The seams are sealed using metalized adhesive tape or specialized mastic. In addition, it is also necessary to waterproof part of the wall surface at a height of 15 centimeters from the floor plane. 
In serious savings mode, plastic sheeting can be used, but it can be easily damaged by rodents living under the wood floors in a ready-made seasonal home. The principle of its fastening is similar to laying glassine.
Insulation installation
Budgetary materials, such as mineral wool, glass wool, expanded clay, sawdust or foam plastic, can often be used as thermal insulation for the floor in the country house. Laid in compliance with the technology, such materials will serve no worse than expensive, high-tech insulators.
If for objective reasons it was not possible to leave enough space for ventilation, and the heat insulator is on the same plane with the lags, an additional crate is arranged. To do this, the slats are attached cross to cross at a distance of 40 centimeters from each other. The draft floor will be fixed on this surface.
Final stage
When all the necessary materials are laid, you can proceed with the installation of wooden flooring. Pre-numbered floorboards must be laid as close as possible to each other, fixing them on self-tapping screws. The resulting gaps are easy to eliminate with putty or by driving thin wedges. In the process of work, it is necessary from time to time to control the horizontalness of the coating. Otherwise, the floor may go "waves". When all the floorboards are in place, skirting boards are installed and excess waterproofing film is trimmed. 
When finishing a newly built house, you can refuse to lay the board, replacing it with OSB or chipboard sheets. The material must be cut according to the size of the rooms, laid on top of the log and fixed with self-tapping screws. It is important to monitor the displacement of the plates along the length in order to prevent the coincidence of the joints. Tile joints are easy to remove with putty. The finished surface can be sanded. Be sure to clean the dust and prime it. Laminate, linoleum or other type of coating can be used as a finish.
Underfloor heating system
Installing a warm floor system is the easiest way to create comfort while staying in the country in the cool season. The system can operate both on electricity and on a water heating circuit. 
Most often, such systems are equipped by professionals in the process of building a summer cottage. This is due to the fact that the independent installation of such structures is quite laborious and requires the exact sequence of installation instructions.
Finally
You can enjoy your vacation in the country not only in the summer season. The production of simple events will make it possible to make an insulated floor of a country house and feel comfortable at any time of the year. It remains only to choose the right material and lay it with high quality.
Video about floor insulation in the country on their own
