All about the baptismal font

For many centuries, the tradition of bathing in the cold river after the bath is alive and still relevant today. It is believed that such a procedure cleanses the body, starts the cell regeneration process, relieves stress and restores strength. However, not every bath can be set up near a river or body of water, and often you want to reproduce the whole procedure in the warm season. The best solution to this problem is a font. Its main difference from the pool is that the water in it is always fresh, as it can be easily and quickly drained. Installing and choosing a font is not too difficult, but requires a serious approach to itself. All about what a font looks like, how to use them, the nuances of choice and much more read in this article.

Obviously, the installation of a pool for the sauna or bath is not always the best solution. ЗBuying all the necessary parts and installing the pool can take a relatively large amount of money and time. A compact alternative is a font. It is a large bowl of water. Manufacturers experiment with different bowl designs, but the most common type is a vessel shaped like a large barrel with metal hoops. It is convenient to use at home or at the cottage. Less often a font is used as a complement to the pool, but more often it is an essential attribute of the bath. Widespread and installation of the bowl on the street. In cold weather the font is filled with both warm and hot water, but, of course, more rarely it is still filled with cold water.

There are also pouring basins - they are a bucket, attached at about 2 meters above the floor. They are equipped with a float. When it jerks the water out of the bucket pours. Used for pouring cold water after the bath. Usually installed next to the shower.

It is necessary to understand the distinctive features of different types of fonts in order to choose the right model. It is worth remembering that the material of manufacture and method of installation significantly affect the price of products.

The material of manufacture can be chosen both independently (when making to order or by your own hands), and starting from a selection of available or popular models. Now the most part of the assortment are composite fonts. These are ready-made bowls, equipped with ladders, heating, lining and hydromassage. It will be enough just to install them, immediately after that they will be ready for use. They are made of different materials. In case you want to make a font yourself, the list of available materials is also extensive - you can make from concrete, various metals and, of course, from wood and other materials.

The largest models are concrete bowls. Externally they are similar to small pools. The inner surface of such models is covered with a mosaic, a film with a mosaic pattern. Quite often the color of the inner surface is blue. To the bowl set a metal ladder or steps. Such models are characterized by durability and ease of use. Installation of such fonts is labor intensive - installation of waterproofing, reinforcement, and before all this - the preparation of the pit. In order to reduce the installation period of the font, it is allowed to use concrete rings. Usually you need two rings. The diameter of such rings can be 80 cm and larger. It is not recommended to take rings more than 1.5 meters in diameter. Concrete ring fonts also require tiling, but allow you to reduce the time it takes to pour the concrete. The average drying time of a concrete font is about a month. Brick models are also built in the same way. Stones or bricks are laid out in the desired shape, and then poured concrete. This is followed by tiling and other final steps.

Other popular models are bowls made of fiberglass and polypropylene. They are lightweight, affordable, resistant to temperature changes, relatively durable (service life up to 50 years), retain color. Most models have stiffening ribs, which allow the bowl to keep its shape and withstand water pressure. Are relatively budget models and suitable for those who are not going to engage in laying tiles or mosaics. This is a ready-to-use bowl. Often plastic models can be decorated with wood, which creates a special atmosphere and provides style integrity.

Wooden fonts have been used for centuries, if not millennia. But you need to understand that they require special care. You can not leave such a bowl for a long time without water - boards made of natural wood can crack. It is recommended to opt for ready-made products of thermo-wood, which is not subject to desiccation and rotting. If you decide to make your own font, it is best to use moisture-resistant wood - oak, beech, cedar, larch. Especially valuable models are made of larch. It is believed that the font from this wood when heated emits a characteristic aroma, tones and cleanses. Bathing in a larch bowl rejuvenates.

Cast-iron fonts, as well as those made of stainless steel or other metals, are often installed outside. They can be quite massive and oversized. It is not easy to heat them electrically, and the result is unpredictable, it is better to do it by natural method. For this purpose, ordinary firewood is used. To ensure that the water in the stainless steel font was heated evenly, and the bottom did not become hot, its base is covered with pebbles. Rarely, such models are installed indoors, in which case the heating takes place on the side of the unit.

For those who want to simplify the installation of the font as much as possible, spending a minimum amount of money, inflatable models have been created. They look like inflatable pools, but are equipped with heating, hydromassage or other additional functions. However, they can not be used in the cold season.

The very name "bowl" suggests only a round or, at best, oval shape. However, fonts can also be square, angular and rectangular. Especially elegant are the metal models in the form of a bathtub. Like most products, models of any shape are now made to order. By far the most common form is the barrel.

Typically, the depth of a standard font reaches 1.2-1.5 meters. The average volume of water held varies from 1 to 3 cubic meters. Models up to 45 cubic meters, but more than 3, are considered great fonts. Fonts, which hold a volume of liquid more than 45 cubic meters are considered a swimming pool. It is not recommended to buy and install too big fonts, one-bath has the same functions as the large counterparts. However, the care and expense of the latter can be significant. It is best to buy a font with rounded inner edges. This is especially true for square and corner models. This little trick will help the interior surface dry faster and more evenly.

Bowls can be installed either open or closed. Closed bowls are deepened, "buried" in the ground, and open bowls are installed on a pallet. The first requires careful and high-quality installation, because after its completion, the structure is poured concrete. It will not be easy to get to the pipes that are in the ground and poured with cement. Such structures are not portable. If necessary, they are destroyed, and a new one is erected in another place. It is a metal font is often suspended. This is done in order to make it possible to heat the font in a natural way - with firewood.

As a rule, various additional units are installed on large bowls more often than on small ones. They can be decorated with small waterfalls. These are the models that are most often available with a shower and whirlpool. The most popular option for such bowls is LED lighting of different colors, shades and levels of brightness. At the request of the customer inside the font can be installed seats for both adults and children. Quite often there are handles, leather armrests, headrests and all kinds of supports for accessories and even for food inside and outside the basin.

Sometimes the water heating devices are located right inside the fonts. They are separated from the rest of the bowl with a special fence. Often, this fence can also serve as a bench. Such a baptismal font will resemble a Japanese ofuro bath. Water in it is heated with an iron stove, located directly in the bowl. Another device used in conjunction with the font is a filter for purifying water. It is purchased quite rarely. For those who have not had the opportunity to conduct a drain to the font, special pumps are often on sale. After bathing, with their help, the water is pumped outdoors or into another container. However, this process is not quick and easy.

It is worth noting right away that the usual font is installed in the shower room or in a separate room next to the bathroom. This is due to the fact that it must be connected to the water supply and sewage. If the bowl will be far from the pipes, you will have to fill and empty it manually with the help of a pump. In such conditions, to keep fresh and clean water all the time will be quite time consuming. In order to install a font in the apartment, you need to have a bathroom, the area of which will be more than 3x4m. Otherwise, it may simply not fit. The same applies to the bath. If the area of the bath room is small, it is better to install an outdoor font near the bath.

If you plan to install a font at the site, you must remember that it must be at least 10 meters from residential buildings. And also the font on the street should be further than 20 meters from the water source. It is best to locate the font on a site with a slight rise and on a terrace - this will provide a natural drainage of water. Another important factor when choosing a place for the font is a surface that is resistant to moisture. In this regard, the font on the veranda is not the best option - such a surface may not always well tolerate the constant humidity and exposure to water when it pours out. For the same reason, it is not recommended to put the bowl near the furniture or rest room. The traditional option remains a wooden font with iron hoops, installed in the bath. This model is the easiest in terms of maintenance and use.

Outdoor baths are available with or without heating. Heating can be either electric or made with ordinary wood. Fans of hot tubs often use the latter method. For heat preservation, there are also greenhouses that are installed directly over the bowl. For those who prefer not just cold, but almost icy water, there are models with a chiller. They are capable of lowering the water temperature to almost zero degrees. Or you can buy the chiller separately. The unit is not small and therefore will require additional space. Some heat generators are very large and can also take up a lot of space.

As already mentioned above, the best option is considered to be a wooden font. It does not heat up much in hot rooms, keeps the water warm in winter. Simply put, natural wood retains the original temperature of the water, while it itself does not freeze and does not heat up much. Metal bowls are the worst preservative of the original temperature of the water. For outdoor bowls you must buy a cover or coverlet. Not only do they help reduce the "loss" of water temperature, but they also protect against debris.

A special care requires a font made of natural wood. It is undesirable to leave such a product under direct sunlight. The sun's rays destroy the wood. Just as badly affects the safety of the material and the location in close proximity to heat sources. First of all, this applies to the underfloor heating. But this does not mean that in a room with a font, the floor should be cold, which is very uncomfortable. It is necessary to use an insulating podium for the bowl. The catwalk is made of plywood with rubber pads and a foam polystyrene layer. Wooden font, if it is made of boards, tightened the metal rings, you need a year or two to "strengthen", that is, tighten the clamps on the rings tighter.

If the font is installed outdoors, you can not allow the water in it to turn into ice. This applies to all models, not only wooden ones. During especially hot summer time, the water in the outdoor font may be left for no more than 5 or 6 days. After this period, the water begins to bloom.

It is important to wet clean the font. It is easiest to do this with plastic bowls.

In conclusion, it is worth noting that it is not recommended to shower in the font. Foam from products such as shampoos, shower gels, masks and even soap leave a mark on the surface of the product and spoil it. A font drain is usually not designed to clean out debris such as hair and other debris.