How to insulate a doghouse. Preparing the dog house for the cold

How to insulate a dog house for the winter?

In the article, we will analyze the options for performing thermal insulation and try to select materials that will provide warmth to your pet at minimal cost.

Basic principles

Do you need insulation

Let's start from afar - with discussions about whether a dog needs insulation in principle.

On the one hand, wild relatives of domestic dogs - wolves do not look for a warm shelter for the winter, even in severe cold. A typical wolf's lair is a pit, somehow covered with spruce branches or located under an eversion. Yes, after a heavy snowfall, it is comparatively well sheltered from frost and bad weather; however, when looking for shelter, the wolf does not pick up too much shelter for itself.

Caring for your pet, who guards the house, is understandable. However, does it need to create greenhouse conditions for it?

In the humble opinion of the author, warming the booth for a dog is desirable only if you have a short-haired or smooth-haired breed. Dogs with long hair perfectly adapt to the cold: they quickly grow a thick undercoat, thanks to which the dog sleeps well on bare snow.

The booth is an excellent shelter in case of rain and strong winds. However, a dog that lives in the cold is in most cases healthier than a pet.

However: in extremely severe frosts, dogs are usually just allowed into the house.
Remember the proverb about bad weather and a good host?

insulation requirements

When deciding how to insulate a booth for a dog, you need to remember: we are dealing with an animal that obeys, first of all, its instincts. You can’t explain to the beast that you don’t need to tear the rug on the floor, gnaw at the canopy at the entrance and claw at the foam on the walls.

So:

• Insulated dog kennels should not have internal or external walls that are easily damaged..
  Styrofoam padding on the floor or Styrofoam interior lining is not an option.
• Any mineral wool insulation must be reliably isolated from the internal volume of the booth.
  Rock wool fibers irritate human organs breathing - what can we say about a sensitive dog nose! And they will rise into the air with any strong shaking.
• Pole is a good idea. But it must be dense and very durable: the dog will surely play with it. Considering the grip strength of guard dogs, a tarp or insulated vinyl will not last long.

• It is desirable that the heat-insulating material be natural or emit in environment as few harmful substances as possible.

Electric heating

It is possible. We will not discuss its expediency: if it is possible to supply power to the booth, it is quite possible to make it heated.

The advantages of this solution are obvious:

• Even in severe frost in the booth, the temperature will be quite comfortable.
• More importantly, it will always be dry there.

Please note: among other things, this means the absence of mold.
A dog, like any other living being, exhales humidified air, which will condense on cold surfaces. In a warm booth, you can forget about this problem.

The cost of electricity will be more than small: with an area of ​​​​a square meter, a warm floor will require no more than two hundred watts of electrical power.

What's the catch?

There are two problems:

1. Dog activity. If the heating elements are not protected absolutely reliably, sooner or later a situation will arise when the dog scratches the floor or walls and gets to them.
2. Don't forget about humidity too. Yes, underfloor heating film tires are protected with bituminous stickers; however, in a pool of water, a short circuit is still theoretically possible. As a result, we will get not an insulated dog house, but a delayed action portable electric chair.

Where will the water come from if the booth is thermally insulated and heated? There are a lot of options - from snow brought on its paws to a situation where a sick or frightened dog has forgotten where the nearest tree is.

Conclusions?

• As a heat source, you should choose not a film heater, but a heating cable. It has reliable protection against short circuits along the entire length.

• If the heating element is placed on the floor, it is better not to be lazy and pour the screed. Since it is pointless to warm the soil, the screed is poured over the laid foam. Of course, sleeping on concrete is a dubious pleasure, so it’s better to lay a sheet of thin felt on top.
• When laying in the walls, the heating cable is protected by plywood or other durable material. Yes, in this case, a significant part of the heat will be absorbed by the gasket, but the alternatives are simply dangerous.

Thermal insulation options

So, how to insulate a dog house? Let's look at several options of varying complexity.

Felt

In terms of time and money, this option is the easiest and cheapest.

It can be implemented with your own hands in just a couple of hours.

• Mats are cut out of thick felt according to the size of the walls, roof and floor. For cutting, a regular sharp knife is used.
• They are fastened inside the booth with the roof removed with ordinary roofing nails with wide hats.
• The roof is in place.

What is the result? We get a fairly effective insulation that will not be blown by the wind. The material is environmentally friendly and will not harm the health of our pet. No less important - it has good vapor permeability: there will be no dampness in the booth.

The main advantage is vapor permeability.

Mineral wool

Let's be honest: its use is rather doubtful. The design will turn out to be quite complex; in addition, for the sake of high-quality insulation, the walls will have to be made very thick.

How to insulate a dog house with mineral wool?

The instruction for thermal insulation work itself is familiar to anyone who has ever performed insulation of a loggia or balcony with the help of this heater:

• The walls are covered with a vapor barrier, which is attached with a stapler.
• On the walls around the perimeter of each, a crate is stuffed from a bar of 50x50 millimeters.
• Mineral wool mats are cut to size with a knife and inserted into the crate, after which the second sheet of vapor barrier is hemmed with a stapler (see also).
• Outside, along the crate, the booth is sewn up with plywood, OSB or wooden clapboard.

Styrofoam

Against the background of the previous insulation, the foam has several noticeable advantages:

• It provides the same effective thermal insulation with less thickness.
• . Its heat-insulating qualities do not deteriorate over time.

How to insulate a dog house for the winter with foam? Minus the unnecessary vapor barrier - just like mineral wool.

However: you can get by with a much smaller thickness - from 2 to 4 centimeters.
Against the background of heat loss through the manhole, the difference with a thicker insulation will not be felt.

Along with home-made designs, already insulated dog houses can be found on sale. In most cases, it is the foam that is used in them, laid between the two walls of the lining. To look at such a product is quite informative.

The product in the photo is called Max. Its price is 599 euros, which is quite comparable to the cost of a small country house.

Roll insulation

Let's be realistic: with an open hole, thermal insulation will not significantly affect the temperature in the booth. It is much more reasonable not to increase the thickness of the walls, but to reliably protect the dog from drafts.

In this case, you can get by with inexpensive roll heaters.

• Foamed polyethylene provides reliable wind protection and good thermal insulation already at a thickness of 4-6 millimeters. It is attached to the walls, floor and roof of the booth with the same stapler, after which it is again sheathed with any durable material.
  The crate is not needed: short self-tapping screws can be screwed directly through the insulation into the boards, so long as they do not stick out inside.

Useful: on sale you can find polyethylene foam with an adhesive layer. The method of its fastening is familiar to you if you have ever performed insulation of plastic windows or steel doors: after removing the protective glossy paper, the material is simply pressed against the surface. In this case, temporary fastening with a stapler is not necessary.

• Penofol - an advanced version of roll insulation. On one side of the polyethylene foam, aluminum foil is applied, which reflects infrared radiation. Fixed between the inner and outer walls of the booth, the material will further reduce heat loss.

Penofol is an effective and inexpensive insulation.

Conclusion

As you can see, there are a lot of options. If you are still thinking about how to insulate a dog house, in the video presented in this article you will find Additional information on this topic. Warm winters to you and your pet!

How to insulate a dog house for the winter?

In the article, we will analyze the options for performing thermal insulation and try to select materials that will provide warmth to your pet at minimal cost.

Basic principles

Do you need insulation

Let's start from afar - with arguments about whether a dog needs insulation in principle.

On the one hand, wild relatives of domestic dogs - wolves do not look for a warm shelter for the winter, even in severe cold. A typical wolf's lair is a pit, somehow covered with spruce branches or located under an eversion. Yes, after a heavy snowfall, it is comparatively well sheltered from frost and bad weather; however, when looking for shelter, the wolf does not pick up too much shelter for itself.

Caring for your pet, who guards the house, is understandable. However, does it need to create greenhouse conditions for it?

In the humble opinion of the author, warming the booth for a dog is desirable only if you have a short-haired or smooth-haired breed. Dogs with long hair perfectly adapt to the cold: they quickly grow a thick undercoat, thanks to which the dog sleeps well on bare snow.

The booth is an excellent shelter in case of rain and strong winds. However, a dog that lives in the cold is in most cases healthier than a pet.

However: in extremely severe frosts, dogs are usually just allowed into the house.
Remember the proverb about bad weather and a good host?

insulation requirements

When deciding how to insulate a booth for a dog, you need to remember: we are dealing with an animal that obeys, first of all, its instincts. You can’t explain to the beast that you don’t need to tear the rug on the floor, gnaw at the canopy at the entrance and claw at the foam on the walls.

• Insulated dog kennels should not have internal or external walls that are easily damaged.. Styrofoam padding on the floor or Styrofoam interior lining is not an option.
• Any mineral wool insulation must be reliably isolated from the internal volume of the booth. Mineral wool fibers irritate the human respiratory organs - what can we say about a sensitive dog's nose! And they will rise into the air with any strong shaking.
• Pole is a good idea. But it must be dense and very durable: the dog will surely play with it. Considering the grip strength of guard dogs, a tarp or insulated vinyl will not last long.

Such a curtain will reduce heat loss, but it will not last long.

• It is desirable that the heat-insulating material be natural or release as little harmful substances into the environment as possible.

Electric heating

It is possible. We will not discuss its expediency: if it is possible to supply power to the booth, it is quite possible to make it heated.

The advantages of this solution are obvious:

• Even in severe frost in the booth, the temperature will be quite comfortable.
• More importantly, it will always be dry there.

Please note: among other things, this means the absence of mold.
A dog, like any other living being, exhales humidified air, which will condense on cold surfaces. In a warm booth, you can forget about this problem.

The cost of electricity will be more than small: with an area of ​​​​a square meter, a warm floor will require no more than two hundred watts of electrical power.

What's the catch?

There are two problems:

1. Dog activity. If the heating elements are not protected absolutely reliably, sooner or later a situation will arise when the dog scratches the floor or walls and gets to them.
2. Don't forget about humidity too. Yes, underfloor heating film tires are protected with bituminous stickers; however, in a pool of water, a short circuit is still theoretically possible. As a result, we will get not an insulated dog house, but a delayed action portable electric chair.

Where will the water come from if the booth is thermally insulated and heated? There are a lot of options - from snow brought on its paws to a situation where a sick or frightened dog forgot where the nearest tree is.

• As a heat source, you should choose not a film heater, but a heating cable. It has reliable protection against short circuits along the entire length.

The cable is also well protected from accidental damage. But it is still better to hide it from the dog.

• If the heating element is placed on the floor, it is better not to be lazy and fill in the screed. Since it is pointless to warm the soil, the screed is poured over the laid foam. Of course, sleeping on concrete is a dubious pleasure, so it is better to lay a sheet of thin felt on top.
• When laying in the walls, the heating cable is protected by plywood or other durable material. Yes, in this case, a significant part of the heat will be absorbed by the gasket, but the alternatives are simply dangerous.

Thermal insulation options

So, how to insulate a dog house? Let's look at several options of varying complexity.

Felt

In terms of time and money, this option is the easiest and cheapest.

It can be implemented with your own hands in just a couple of hours.

• Mats are cut out of thick felt according to the size of the walls, roof and floor. For cutting, a regular sharp knife is used.
• They are fastened inside the booth with the roof removed with ordinary roofing nails with wide hats.
• The roof is in place.

What is the result? We get a fairly effective insulation that will not be blown by the wind. The material is environmentally friendly and will not harm the health of our pet. What is no less important - it has good vapor permeability: there will be no dampness in the booth.

Mineral wool

Let's be honest: its use is rather doubtful. The design will turn out to be quite complex; in addition, for the sake of high-quality insulation, the walls will have to be made very thick.

How to insulate a dog house with mineral wool?

The instruction for thermal insulation work itself is familiar to anyone who has ever performed insulation of a loggia or balcony with the help of this heater:

• The walls are covered with a vapor barrier, which is attached with a stapler.
• On the walls around the perimeter of each, a crate is stuffed from a bar of 50x50 millimeters.
• Mineral wool mats are cut to size with a knife and inserted into the crate, after which the second sheet of vapor barrier is hemmed with a stapler.
• Outside, along the crate, the booth is sewn up with plywood, OSB or wooden clapboard.

Styrofoam

Against the background of the previous insulation, the foam has several noticeable advantages:

• It provides the same effective thermal insulation with less thickness.
• Styrofoam does not cake and does not get wet (therefore, it is often used to insulate balconies). Its heat-insulating qualities do not deteriorate over time.

How to insulate a dog house for the winter with foam? Minus unnecessary vapor barrier - just like mineral wool.

However: you can get by with a much smaller thickness - from 2 to 4 centimeters.
Against the background of heat loss through the manhole, the difference with a thicker insulation will not be felt.

Along with home-made designs, already insulated dog houses can be found on sale. In most cases, it is the foam that is used in them, laid between the two walls of the lining. To look at such a product is quite informative.

Roll insulation

Let's be realistic: with an open hole, thermal insulation will not significantly affect the temperature in the booth. It is much more reasonable not to increase the thickness of the walls, but to reliably protect the dog from drafts.

In this case, you can get by with inexpensive roll heaters.

• Foamed polyethylene provides reliable wind protection and good thermal insulation already at a thickness of 4-6 millimeters. It is attached to the walls, floor and roof of the booth with the same stapler, after which it is again sheathed with any durable material. The crate is not needed: short self-tapping screws can be screwed directly through the insulation into the boards, so long as they do not stick out inside.

Useful: on sale you can find polyethylene foam with an adhesive layer. The method of its fastening is familiar to you if you have ever performed insulation of plastic windows or steel doors with self-adhesive window insulation: after removing the protective glossy paper, the material is simply pressed against the surface. In this case, temporary fastening with a stapler is not necessary.

• Penofol - an advanced version of roll insulation. On one side of the polyethylene foam, aluminum foil is applied, which reflects infrared radiation. Fixed between the inner and outer walls of the booth, the material will further reduce heat loss.

Conclusion

As you can see, there are a lot of options. If you are still thinking about how to insulate a dog house, in the video presented in this article you will find additional information on this topic. Warm winters to you and your pet!

If the issue of warming the booth for the dog is acute and you need to take some measures quickly, then you can . But this is just a temporary measure, so that the kennel is really warm, you need to use one of the well-known heaters of natural or artificial origin, and also eliminate heat loss through the manhole.

How to insulate the manhole of the booth

The entrance to the vestibule and the booth are from different sides.

Even the highest quality insulation of a dog house will be useless if the hole through which the animal enters its apartments is open. All the stored heat in this case will quickly evaporate. Therefore, the first thing to do is to reduce heat loss through the manhole and prevent precipitation from entering the kennel. Insulation of the manhole booth for a dog can be done in two ways:

• hang a curtain;
• build a vestibule.

Hanging a curtain is the easiest. To do this, you need to take a dense weave or thick polyethylene and fix it over the inlet to the kennel.

The curtain consists of two or more segments, which must overlap each other and be larger than the manhole.

However, this method has some drawbacks. It happens that the curtain does not close tightly after the dog has entered or left the kennel. There are breeds of dogs, for example, german shepherds who do not like curtains at all. You can insulate a booth for a dog by building a vestibule - this is much more effective method. It is important that the inlets in the kennel and vestibule are on different sides. This will prevent the wind from blowing into the booth, and prevent snow or rain from getting in.

Naturally, a dog needs bedding. Many people use old blankets or jackets, but often the dog drags them outside or tears them apart. In addition, the litter needs to be constantly changed, so practice has proven that the best option is hay or straw. If there is a vestibule and a thick layer of scrap, then in a warm winter you can do without additional insulation for the dog house.

If there is a vestibule, the problem arises of how to change the litter. To make the process as convenient as possible, you can make the opening roof of the booth or leave the vestibule attached without rigid fixation. It should also be borne in mind that the temperature in the kennel is affected by its size. The smaller the booth, the warmer it is for the dog.

Materials for warming the booth

Mineral wool can be used to insulate a dog kennel. The main thing is to close access to thermal insulation with interior decoration.

The enclosing structures of the kennel (walls and floor) can be single-layer and two-layer, by analogy with a frame house. If you do not plan any finishing when insulating single-layer walls, then it is better to fix the thermal insulation from the outside. In this case, it is better to use foam. Two-layer structures can be insulated with anything.

How to insulate a booth for a dog with your own hands:

• mineral wool;
• Styrofoam;
• Polynor;
• natural heaters.

Many say that it is impossible to insulate a dog house with mineral wool, arguing this . We devoted a separate article to this topic, they insulate residential buildings with mineral wool and everything is in order, but here is a doghouse.

Insulation of the booth with mineral wool

Even taking into account the fact that you choose the cheapest, dustiest and prickly mineral wool, there are still methods on how to insulate a dog house for the winter so that nothing threatens the health of the animal. The main thing is to lay a vapor barrier and waterproofing. The films will not allow small particles of insulation to leave the heat-insulating cake. Layers from the inside:

• inner wall;
• vapor barrier polymer film;
• mineral wool;
• diffusion membrane advertising outside, and fleecy side inside;
• outer wall.

When insulating the floor, the layers are arranged in the same way.

Styrofoam for insulation of a dog kennel

Peoplast is an excellent insulation for a booth.

Polyfoam unlike mineral wool does not dust and does not shrink. It can be laid on single-layer walls and floors even without finishing. In this case, it is better if it is on the outside, since the dog from the inside can damage the thermal insulation. The foam is attached with adhesive foam, which has excellent adhesion to any surface. It should be borne in mind that the foam is afraid of sunlight, from which it collapses. So you need to at least paint it.

Two-layer walls are insulated with polystyrene foam according to the same principle as with mineral wool. Thermal insulation simply fits into the interstitial space, no additional films are needed. A do-it-yourself insulated dog house will create comfortable conditions at any time of the year. It will be warm in winter and cool in summer. In addition to different densities, there are three modifications of foam:

• in sheets;
• chit;
• extruded polystyrene foam.

Liquid insulation Polynor

- This is a one-component polyurethane foam, which is sold in cylinders. In appearance, it looks like mounting foam, and the same gun is used when applied. For installation, it is enough to wind the cylinder onto the gun, point its nozzle at the work surface and pull the trigger. The layer should be about 5 cm, but keep in mind that during polymerization, the composition increases in volume.

Polynor is insulated exclusively for finishing, so it can only be used for insulating two-layer building envelopes. Polynor has high characteristics, thanks to which the dog house will be warm:

• thermal conductivity lambda 0.025 W/m*K;
• does not pass steam and moisture;
• refers to normally combustible materials;
• does not shrink;
• service life of more than 30 years.

Polynor is an analogue of PPU, only its use does not require special equipment, which is very convenient for warming small areas.

Natural heaters

The opening roof will facilitate the cleaning process.

The use of natural materials for the insulation of a doghouse brings two benefits:

• environmental friendliness;
• low cost.

The fact that there are no harmful substances in the insulation of natural origin is good, but the price is more pleasing. Sometimes a heater can be obtained absolutely free of charge. Possible options:

• expanded clay;
• a mixture of clay and straw;
• pure straw;
• sawdust.

There is an opinion that it is better not to insulate the kennel with hay or straw, since fleas can settle in this material, which subsequently haunt the dog. It is optimal to use expanded clay or sawdust. How to make an insulated dog house using loose insulation:

• build double-layer walls and floors;
• close the outer wall with waterproofing so that it is in contact with the thermal insulation. The membrane will also act as a windscreen;
• put in the heater.

Please note that it is better not to compact sawdust and expanded clay too tightly, this will negatively affect the heat resistance of the building envelope.

All owners of country houses make sure that it is warm and cozy in winter. But what about a pet - a dog guarding the yard from ill-wishers? Is she cold too? Yes, that's why her booth needs to be insulated. So, today we will tell you how to insulate a dog house.

Do you need to insulate your dog house?

Do dogs have enough wool to stay warm in winter? Let's make a reservation right away that at this time of the year the dogs are definitely cold, especially if they are not long-haired, and the booth can not only freeze, but also, for example, leak, drafts may appear in it. And if your dog is really your best friend, then treat him properly and make sure that he has the appropriate conditions for wintering.

First, it is checked whether the booth is located correctly, or whether it needs to be moved. The main requirements are listed below.

1. If possible, the entrance to the booth should be located where there is calm (that is, minimal wind movement).
2. Ideally, the house should be made of natural wood.
3. During precipitation, water should not flow inside the booth, so two options are possible: place the structure on a hill or take care of high-quality insulation.
4. The dimensions of the house should fit the size of the dog: it is important that he is not cramped in it, but excessive spaciousness is also inappropriate.
5. It is impossible that the kennel was unprotected from the sun, but excessive shading is also unacceptable - look for the "golden mean".

How to insulate the hive for the winter

Earlier we talked about how to properly insulate the hive, what materials should be used, in addition to this article, we advise you to read this information.

When insulating a booth, you need to act the same way as when insulating other structures: all the nuances are taken into account, including wind protection, protection from moisture and cold. Internal insulation is advisable for structures that can be easily dismantled / assembled back.

Note! If the kennel is already ready, and there is no way to disassemble it, then give preference to external insulation. In this case, you will need a final finish so that the booth looks good on the site.

Finally, for greater confidence in the results, insulate everything at once - the roof, walls and floor.

Basic requirements for thermal insulation of the kennel

First, one important point needs to be clarified: we are talking about a creature that is guided, first of all, by its own instincts. You can't tell him what to do and what not to do. Therefore, certain requirements must be followed.

The walls of the insulated kennel should not be such that they can be easily damaged.

It is better to give preference to natural heat insulators, which emit a minimum amount of harmful substances into the atmosphere.

A great idea is the arrangement of the canopy. It is important that it is very durable, because the dog will most likely want to play with it. Vinyl or a regular tarp, most likely, will not be able to hold out for a long time (more on the canopy in the next paragraph of the article).

Finally, the insulation should be qualitatively isolated from the interior of the kennel. Mineral wool, for example, irritates the human respiratory system, and there is nothing to even talk about a sensitive dog's sense of smell.

Now let's find out how to insulate a dog house and what materials to use for this.

Installing a curtain (canopy) in a kennel

The hole in the kennel should be protected from the penetration of precipitation - this will require a special curtain. Often, tarpaulin or rubber is used for its manufacture. Also, the curtain should be somewhat weighted so that it does not sway from the wind. You can, for example, sew small pockets to the bottom of it and fill them with sand.

By the way, ready-made canopies or curtains are also sold today, they can be found in many specialized stores.

How to insulate a frame house

Earlier, we talked about several options for warming a frame house and described the whole process in detail, in addition to this article, we advise you to read this information.

Choosing insulation for a dog house

When choosing one or another insulating material, one should be guided, first of all, by what the booth itself is made of (these can be plates, wood, and so on). Consider the possible options.

Option number 1. mineral wool

This is perhaps the most popular insulating material today, which, however, should be used with extreme care to isolate the kennel. This is explained by the fact that the dog can destroy the insulating layer, because of which it will lose its original characteristics. Moreover, it can harm the health of the animal itself. Finally, due to the small size dog house isolation procedure will be troublesome and time-consuming.

However, if you still prefer mineral wool, then use it according to the following requirements.

1. Never use glass wool.
2. The insulation layer must be waterproofed without fail.
3. Finally, there must be a cladding, no matter what the exterior / interior finish is.

Option number 2. Styrofoam

An excellent heat insulator for use in a kennel. First of all, its thermal insulation parameters are not worse, and in some cases even better than those of mineral wool. In addition, the foam is not so susceptible to external influences, therefore, it does not need waterproofing in principle.

If you liked polystyrene foam for warming the booth, then you should know what types of it exist. Here they are:

• penoplex;
• expanded polystyrene.

Although the dog, be that as it may, will gnaw and scratch the heat insulator, which means that you still have to cover it with something.

Option number 3. Roll type heat insulators

Another option suitable for warming the kennel is rolled thermal insulation materials. It can be, for example, ordinary polyethylene, which is quite easy to fix on the surface even with a stapler (although there are also such modifications of the film that are already on an adhesive basis). Penofol has similar characteristics.

All of these materials have excellent thermal insulation properties, but, again, they need additional sheathing.

Option number 4. Felt

It is a material of natural origin, characterized by safety, affordable price. In a word, for a kennel, this is an ideal option.

We also note that it is vapor-tight, which means that moisture will not accumulate (it will always be dry in the booth). It is not blown by the wind. Finally, it does not need to be covered with something, and ordinary nails can be used for fixing (the main thing is that the caps are large).

Video - Thermal insulation of the pet booth

Instructions for warming the booth

Now let's talk directly about how to insulate a dog house. The procedure consists of several stages, we will get acquainted with each of them in more detail.

Stage number 1. Bottom and floor of the kennel

Step one. First, the floor is insulated and the bottom is protected. To this end, the structure is turned upside down, all surfaces are treated with a special substance (it will protect them from destruction) and covered with roofing material (the latter, by the way, can be fixed with wooden blocks). So, the outer floor protection in the kennel is ready.

Step two. The booth is turned back, the warming procedure continues. First, the floor is covered with a waterproofing film (as an option, you can take the same roofing material for this). The material is laid with a slight overlap in order to avoid the appearance of cracks. The joints are shot through with a mounting stapler. It is also desirable that the film be wound up a few centimeters on the walls.

Step three. After that, a layer of insulation is laid, which, in turn, must be closed. If a soft heat insulator or a large volume is used, then it is preferable to fill a miniature analog of lags from the bars so that a finishing floor can be built.

Step four. The finished floor is laid. It can be built from pre-finished boards or, alternatively, plywood, OSB boards.

Step five. It is also desirable to carry out additional insulation work that will protect the kennel from freezing or leakage. Where the structure will be installed, a hole 20 centimeters deep breaks out along its perimeter, expanded clay or gravel “cushion” is poured there, an insulating layer (roofing material or ordinary film) is laid on top with a slight entry to the surface. If the insulation is made from the outside, the film is hemmed under the facing material. When installing the kennel on this kind of base, the freezing of the floor, as well as the flow of moisture inside, is minimized.

Stage number 2. Construction walls

Immediately make a reservation that the procedure for wall insulation depends on the specific material that is used for this. Simply put, you need to act in strict accordance with the manufacturer's instructions. Below is just a short step by step guide.

Step one. The walls are cleaned and processed.

Step two. If necessary, a waterproofing layer is laid.

Step three. Insulating material is installed.

Step four. If necessary, additional material for vapor barrier is attached.

Step five. The walls are finished (if required by the type of heat insulator used).

Note! The main condition for thermal insulation dog kennel is as follows: it is unacceptable to have blown areas in the structure, as well as to allow moisture to penetrate inside.

Stage number 3. Ceiling, roof

The ceiling-roof (that is, a single structure, in one design) is suitable for a kennel, which will be located under a canopy in a special enclosure (where water cannot leak), but if not, it is preferable to build a pitched roof for the booth, but in a mandatory detachable type. This is one of the obligatory moments of how to insulate a booth for a dog.

A kind of "attic" of the roof is insulated in the same way as the floor was insulated. First, a polyethylene film for waterproofing is attached, after which - a warming material. Important point: here the insulation installed in the roof does not need to be protected, since the dog will not have access to it in principle. It is also recommended to protect internal slopes from water and wind - to beat them with insulation or insulation around the perimeter floor.

Can a dog kennel be heated?

Let's make a reservation right away that even the highest quality insulating material is unable to properly heat the booth (although there is an exception - if the design has a door with locks and heat insulators). The curtain will protect the pet from wind and precipitation, but it will also not be able to warm it. Therefore, the question arises: is it possible to somehow heat this house? Of course, given the achievements modern technologies we can confidently say that this is also possible, but this will require special heaters.

There are three main methods that are suitable for this case:

1. using a panel heater;
2. through film;
3. using the underfloor heating system.

Let's get acquainted with each of the options in more detail.

Option number 1. Panel type heaters

Such heaters, intended for dog kennels, are produced in metal cases and are characterized by small dimensions (thickness - 20 millimeters, length / width - 600/600 or 500/900 millimeters). Such devices are safe and environmentally friendly, they are easy to install, and the surface in them does not heat up above 50 degrees. Such a panel can be fixed both on the roof and on the walls of the structure. There are several advantages to such heating.

First of all, these are the several installation methods just mentioned.

• The devices work completely silently, which means they will not irritate the dog.
• They don't burn oxygen.
• They consume a small amount of electricity.
• They do not require special maintenance.

Finally, today there are panels with a thermostat installed inside a protective box (this is required to avoid mechanical damage).

Option number 2. Film type heaters

A unique ultra-thin heater, the principle of operation of which is based on thermal infrared radiation. In fact, this device is a roll of a flexible film, which provides heat transfer of infrared rays. Today, this kind of technology is actively used in a variety of premises, so why not use it to heat a doghouse?

Among the main advantages, the following should be highlighted:

1. increased efficiency;
2. the strips are connected in parallel, due to which the ultimate durability of the unit is achieved (even if one of the elements is mechanically damaged, the rest will continue to function normally after that);
3. film-type heaters are completely safe (they transmit thermal energy, but they themselves do not heat up);
4. heat in space is distributed as evenly as possible;
5. models are very economical;
6. they have a positive effect on work immune system(and this is very important!);

several installation methods are possible at once (same as in the previous version).

By the way, you should know about all this even before you insulate the dog house.

Option number 3. "Warm floor"

If you plan to use a “warm floor” in the kennel, then by doing so you will provide the most comfortable living conditions for your pet. Here you will need to install a heating wire that needs to be connected to the power supply. Tellingly, you can either buy a ready-made design or do it yourself (of course, in strict accordance with the requirements for installing electrical appliances).

Are there alternative heating sources?

There are certainly some. For example, even all convector-type heaters are quite suitable for a dog kennel, it is only important that even before installation you familiarize yourself in detail with the technical characteristics of the selected device (such as safety, heating temperature, and so on). Most of all, the so-called convector-mat is suitable for the booth, the main advantage of which is that during operation it does not heat up to high temperature which means it is completely safe for your pet.

As a small conclusion

As a result, it remains only to add that there are a lot of options, as you yourself were able to see. But if you have not yet decided how and how you will insulate the booth for your dog, then we advise you to watch the video below, which has a lot of information on a given topic. That's all, warm winters you and your pet!

Video - Making an insulated dog house

Pavel Bondarenko, Donetsk.

With the onset of winter, many owners of dogs living in the yard of a private house come to the conclusion that it is necessary to additionally insulate their pet's home. Of course, the booth must initially be made according to all the rules of "booth" architecture, that is, the design itself is made of good quality and warm: the walls have a heat-insulating layer, the outer upholstery eliminates the presence of cracks, and so on. The most logical action in this case is to install a curtain that would close the hole in the booth. The curtain, which is absolutely not necessary in the warm season, turns out to be most welcome in winter. So I had a need to manufacture this, at first glance, a simple product.

There are probably few experts in the matter of making doghouse curtains. So I, not being one, decided to study the issue on the example of the experience of people who have succeeded in this business more than me and posted information about their products on the Internet. As a result of searching and getting acquainted with information on the topic, I realized that most users consider the curtain a product that is very simple and does not require special attention and description. Actually, a piece of some fabric unnecessary in the household, which is nailed on top of the manhole and cut along the vertical - this is a typical design. However, in practice, everything turned out to be not so simple.

At first I decided not to come up with anything particularly unique and, having found a suitable piece of a flannelette blanket, I made a curtain of the simplest design out of it.

What this product was, I will describe a little lower, first I will give the initial data, which determined the design and size of the curtain - these are the parameters of the booth manhole.

The manhole is a rectangular hole measuring 400 (width) X 450 (height) mm in the front wall of the booth. The manhole is shifted to the left side of the front wall and is located at a distance of 65 mm from the outer edge of the left wall of the booth and 540 mm from the outer edge of the right wall of the booth. The manhole has a threshold, so the lower edge of the manhole is located at a height of 115 mm from the lower edge of the front side of the booth. Along the perimeter of the manhole there is a cashing made of a rail 20 (thickness) X 28 (width) mm. Now directly description of the design of the curtain.

A piece of a flannelette blanket measuring 530x1240 mm and about 1.5 mm thick is doubled in length. The result was a two-layer blank with a width of 530 and a length of 620 mm. Along the length of the workpiece in the center of the canvas, a cut 520 mm long is made - the entrance. The cut is made in the direction of the inflection of the workpiece tissue and does not reach the inflection, respectively, by 100 mm. The upper part of the workpiece (above the cut, in the place of the inflection of the fabric) is sandwiched between two wooden slats 60 wide and 530 mm long. The thickness of the rails is 12 mm. The curtain is fastened with 2 self-tapping screws above the upper rail of the manhole trim using two wooden linings 12 mm thick to prevent deflection of the curtain fabric when touching the upper rail of the manhole trim. It is simpler - two linings must be placed under the structure at the attachment point so that the curtain fabric hangs freely down without touching the manhole trim. That is if you have cash. In the absence of such, it is clear that nothing needs to be laid, moreover, the lower rail of the structure, adjacent directly to the wall of the booth, should be as thin as possible to prevent the appearance of a gap between the curtain and the wall of the booth. It may even make sense to exclude this rail from the design in general, but then the installation of the curtain will become more complicated and the curtain itself will lose its mobility and completeness of the structure. The height of the curtain is set in such a way that its lower edge is 50 mm below the upper edge of the manhole threshold.

I draw your attention to the fact that the material for the manufacture of curtains should be exactly a flannelette blanket or a fabric similar in parameters: on the one hand, the material is thick enough with satisfactory heat-insulating properties, on the other hand, it is soft. In this case, you can get minimal clearances around the perimeter of the curtain, even if you have a dog on a chain. By the way, when using it is not enough soft tissue and the absence of special measures to neutralize the action of the chain, this chain greatly complicates the work of the curtain, clinging to it and partially dragging it inside the booth, thus creating gaps incompatible with satisfactory thermal insulation.

The manufacture of the above curtain took quite a bit of time. Perhaps this is the main significant advantage of this design.

The product was installed and worked well for a while. The only thing that I immediately did not like was the presence of a gap between the shutter doors. However, immediately after installation, the gap was very small and, compared with the obvious general improvement in the thermal insulation of the booth - the hole is much larger than a small gap - could be considered an insignificant trifle. However, over time, this gap gradually increased. After some time, its size already called into question the effectiveness of this design. In addition, a flannelette blanket, even folded in half, does not inspire much confidence as a heat-insulating material. There is a desire to replace it with something denser and thicker, especially in frosts from 8 -10 ° C.

Nevertheless, such a simple curtain, despite its shortcomings, performed its functions satisfactorily, and its design and parameters were used by me as a guideline in the manufacture of a more advanced curtain design. The curtain was dismantled, having honestly worked for one season. This is what the fabric used in this curtain looks like.

The gap between the doors of a simple curtain for a booth

The gap between the flaps in the picture is slightly smaller than that formed on the real curtain during one season of operation and the shape of the hole is different, but still the photo allows you to get an idea of ​​​​the product, albeit an approximate one.

A more solid curtain will be described later. But is it worth it to "bother" with its manufacture - decide for yourself. The simplest curtain that I talked about is already a good solution to the problem. Yes, there are small gaps around the perimeter, the wind blows on the sides, yes there is a gap in the center, but in general the device works satisfactorily. If you want to have a better thing and you can spend a few evenings after work not talking to the TV, but tailoring, locksmithing and carpentry - read the article below. So,

High quality dog ​​kennel

To begin with, let's decide how a high-quality curtain should differ from the previously described simple design, which, despite its shortcomings, is a quite decent basic model, on the basis of which we will create our new product.

First of all, it is necessary to eliminate the static gap between the leaves in the center of the booth manhole and minimize the possibility of the appearance and subsequent increase of this gap.

Why can this gap increase during operation? The dog constantly pushes the fabric to the sides, the fabric is wrinkled, stretched and remains deformed. If the dog is powerful and wide enough, like mine, for example, and the coat is periodically wet from rain or snow, which is inevitable, the process of deformation of the curtain passes quite quickly. As a result, instead of an inconspicuous gap, we get a hole of significant size - in my case, something about 120 mm in the widest part - resembling an inverted U in shape.

How to deal with it. First of all, the curtain should not be made from one piece of fabric cut in the middle, but from two independent pieces connected into a single structure with an overlap, an overlap. In my curtain, the overlap is 50 mm. Enough, but you can do a little more. In this case, the fabric should be sufficiently rigid, that is, if possible, it should succumb to deformation as weakly as possible.

The weighting of the lower parts of the sashes has a very positive effect on reducing the gap in the center and in general on the operation of the curtain. But more on that later.

What does static clearance mean? This is the gap when closing the curtain manually, when the flaps hang down freely, without catching on the threshold of the manhole or the chain that the dog is tied to. With a chain, of course.

It is much more difficult to deal with gaps that arise directly during the normal operation of the curtain. When testing experimental samples of curtains made of various materials, it turned out that it is often quite difficult to achieve a clear, high-quality closing of the manhole. The dog will not correct the stuck sash. Yes, and she breaks into the booth at different angles, from different directions and at different speeds. Again, the chain is stretched differently and pulled into the booth. All this leads to the fact that the quality of closing the curtain, that is, maintaining relatively the same and minimum gaps at each closing, strongly depends on how the dog enters the booth at one time or another.

This problem is solved in several ways, the first and simplest of which is the use of soft fabric for the manufacture of curtains, as in our basic model. Moreover, even if one or two wings are pulled into the booth by a chain or a dog, the gaps will be quite tolerable. In addition, soft shutters cannot get stuck, catching on the threshold of the booth, which easily happens with long (below the threshold) hard curtains and leads to the formation of a huge gap in the manhole zone. However, soft fabric is in most cases not the best thermal insulation and wind protection. Of course, we mean available materials - it is quite possible that you can find a soft fabric with all the necessary properties among high-tech modern products, but this is not our case.

The second way, which, in combination with the weighting of the lower edge of the shutters, allows you to achieve a clear closing of the curtain with minimal dependence on the actions of the dog and the presence of a chain, is to set it in height so that a gap of 15-20 mm is obtained between the lower edge of the curtain and the upper edge of the booth threshold . The shutter closes normally, but the presence of a significant gap calls into question the appropriateness of using this method. High-quality closing of the manhole with such a curtain device does not work - the gap cannot be called minimal. Nevertheless, I have met similar designs, however, without weighting the curtains, in practice. Even with gaps far exceeding 15-20 mm. I would characterize such an option as "better than nothing".

And finally, the third way. Separate sashes are made of dense fabric. The curtain is suspended as suggested for the second method, namely, 15-20 mm above the threshold of the booth. Four are sewn to the lower parts of the flaps - two for each flap, from the front and back sides of the flaps - flaps made of soft fabric. These valves close the gap between the threshold and the curtain.

This variant of the design of the curtains showed good quality of closing the manhole during operation with minimal dependence on the actions of the dog and the presence of a chain and was adopted as the main one for the manufacture of high-quality curtains.

The next step in finalizing the basic design will be to improve the thermal insulation and windproof properties of the product. In practice, I realized the improvement of these properties by replacing the curtain material and applying measures to eliminate side gaps.

Regarding the material, the following was done: instead of two layers of a flannelette blanket, he used four layers of woolen. The result fully met expectations - the design turned out to be solid, inspiring confidence.

Side gaps take place in the case when the curtain is attached only above the entrance to the booth, as is done in most cases in practice. In principle, in calm weather, these gaps may be absent or insignificant, but in the presence of wind, blowing into the booth is inevitable. In strong winds, due to significant fluctuations in the curtain, the entrance to the booth can periodically open almost completely. Improves the situation, but does not eliminate the problem of the weighting of the lower parts of the valves. The way to save the dog from blowing into the side cracks is very simple. The curtain is made with a certain margin in width and is nailed on the sides through a wooden lath with small nails to the wall of the booth.

Self-tapping screws can be used instead of nails. This is if the dog likes to tear off the slats between times. Well, or just for reliability.

And the last stage of refinement. A noticeable improvement in the quality of the work of the product can be achieved by applying the weighting of the lower edges of the valves. The weighting agents keep the sashes in a taut state, which contributes to a significant reduction in their deformation during operation and prevents the appearance of a gap between the sashes. The clarity of the manhole closing increases due to the increase in the closing speed and, as a result, the tendency of the leaves to catch on an obstacle, for example, a chain, and “hang” on it, leaving part of the manhole open, decreases. In fact, weighting leads to a noticeable decrease in the dependence of the curtain on how the dog entered or left the booth at the moment. However, as for the exit from the booth, the weighted curtains close in this case almost always equally well.

Structurally, the weighting agent is a set of steel plates 28x28x2 mm in size, sewn into the sash along that part of its lower edge, which is opposite the manhole. A set of plates, rather than a single steel strip or rod, is used to keep the sash flexible, which has a positive effect on the quality of the blind as a whole.

The photo shows the lower edge of the right sash with weights sewn in.

So, by deep modification of the basic curtain model, we got a product of the following design (the dimensions are indicated for the booth, the parameters of which are described in the first part of the article).

Two flaps measuring 675 (height) X 490 (width) mm are made of a woolen blanket. The sashes are four-layer, which provides good thermal insulation.

Each sash has two flaps in the lower part made of a bike measuring 270x140x1.5 mm.

Each sash has weights in the lower part from a set of steel plates 28x28x2 mm - 6 pcs. on each sash.

The sashes have a mutual overlap in width equal to 50 mm in the middle of the curtain.

The upper edges of the sashes are located on the same line and are clamped with three self-tapping screws between two wooden slats measuring 530x60x12 mm so that the center of the curtain web - two sashes folded overlapping - coincides with the centers of the slats.

This design is mounted above the manhole so that the center of the curtain coincides with the center of the manhole, and the distance between the lower edge of the curtain part made of woolen material and the upper edge of the booth threshold is 15-20 mm. That is, the height adjustment of the installation is carried out with the bike valves raised up.

Between the lower mounting rail and the front wall of the booth there is an adjusting rail 12 mm thick to eliminate the grazing of the curtain by cashing the manhole.

The structure is attached to the wall of the booth with two self-tapping screws, the length of which, as far as I remember, is 70 mm.

The outer vertical sides of the curtain and the horizontal parts of the upper edge, which are not clamped by fastening strips, are nailed to the booth wall with nails 20 mm long through a strip of plywood 4 mm thick and 20-25 mm wide.

The result is a design similar to the one shown in the photo:

Here are the product specifications:

1. good thermal insulation and wind protection (windproof curtain fabric, no gaps on the sides and top of the manhole);

2. closing the manhole while maintaining minimal gaps in the center and at the bottom of the manhole even when the dog is on a chain;