Content
Traditionally, in private courtyards, we are used to building a rectangular basement. A round cellar is less common, and it seems to us unusual or too cramped. In fact, there is nothing outlandish in this repository. The walls of round basements are much stronger than rectangular counterparts, they are erected faster, and less material is consumed. Now manufacturers began to produce round plastic caissons, equipped for a full-fledged cellar.
Plastic round cellar
A plastic round cellar is an ordinary vertical basement for storing vegetables and preserving. You can't do it yourself. Only factory made caissons are used. A person buys not just a round barrel, but a ready-made cellar with all the furnishings. The caisson is equipped with shelves, an aluminum ladder, a ventilation system, electrical wiring and lighting. Typically, the height of the chamber is 1.8 m. The sealed hatch is located at the top, but there are models of caissons with side entry.
According to the production method, the round plastic cellar is divided into two types:
- Suture cellars are made of plastic sheets. Separate fragments of the caisson are connected by welding.
- Seamless cellars are made by rotational molding. Such caissons are considered the most reliable, since the possibility of depressurization at the seams is excluded. For the manufacture of a round cellar, a special form is used, inside which a polymer is poured. Special mechanisms begin to rotate the mold, while it is heated. The molten polymer spreads evenly to form a perfectly round caisson.
Among the well-known manufacturers of plastic cellars, one can single out the firms "Triton" and "Tingard". For example, let's take a quick look at the caisson from the Triton manufacturer.
The plastic cellar of this brand is characterized by 100% tightness and long service life. The seamless technology made it possible to obtain a solid structure that will not burst at the joint due to soil pressure. The walls of the caisson are made of food grade plastic 13–15 mm thick. Stiffeners help withstand soil pressure.
The video shows a plastic cellar:
Positive features of a plastic cellar
In many cases, using a plastic caisson is more profitable than building a stone vault. Let's look at the positive aspects of such a repository:
- Cellars are made of food grade plastic that is harmless to humans. Cheap caissons of unknown manufacturers are produced from poor raw materials. Low-quality plastic constantly emits unpleasant toxic odors that stored vegetables can easily absorb. It is better to refuse such products.
- Rugged chassis up to 15mm thick and additional stiffeners help withstand earth loads. The round plastic caisson is not inferior in strength to brick storage.
- All wooden shelves and other parts are treated with a special impregnation that protects the wood from the harmful effects of moisture and insect destruction.
- The round plastic box is easy to install. It can be used even in an area with high groundwater levels.
- The store is equipped with efficient ventilation. It prevents the appearance of condensation, and draws out all unpleasant odors if the vegetables suddenly go bad.
- Thanks to ventilation and food grade plastic that does not emit bad odors, the caisson can be used to store food.
The disadvantages of plastic storage are its high cost and fixed standard size.
Requirements for the installation of a round plastic cellar
Before you start installing a round plastic cellar, you need to consider several important points:
- When marking the dimensions of the pit on your site, you need to take into account that they must be larger than the dimensions of the caisson. Usually the depth of the pit is about 2.3 m, and a gap of at least 25 cm is left between the walls of the pit and the cellar.
- Despite the fact that the caisson is plastic, it has an impressive weight. Lifting equipment is required to lower the round cellar into the pit.
- From above, the caisson is covered with soil. To maintain a constant microclimate inside the storage, it must be insulated before filling it.
Having mastered these few rules, you can proceed to the installation of a round storage.
Plastic caisson installation process
Despite the fact that the storage resembles a large plastic barrel that you can install yourself, it is better to entrust its installation to specialists. They know all the weak points of this design. The caisson installation process looks like this:
- a pit is dug in the selected area;
- the bottom of the pit is poured with concrete or a reinforced concrete slab is laid;
- the caisson is lowered into the pit using a crane;
- with slings and anchors, they fix the cellar to the concrete bottom;
- backfill with a sand-cement dry mixture.
Once again, it should be recalled that we have covered the basic details of the installation. In addition, there are many more nuances associated with setting up ventilation, supplying electricity, etc. All these issues should be dealt with by specialists.
And finally, two important questions:
- Is it necessary to insulate plastic storage? This is a personal matter, and there are a lot of opinions on this matter. The caisson need not be insulated, but then temperature changes will be observed inside. Natural ventilation may not be able to cope with the exchange of air, and condensation will appear inside the store. In general, plastic walls perfectly let the cold coming from the ground. If vegetables are stored in the caisson, then it definitely needs to be insulated.
- Can the ventilation be redesigned on my own? Then the second question must be asked. What for? The manufacturer has provided for a natural ventilation system, consisting of a set of air ducts. An unreasonable design change will lead to depressurization of the caisson. In some cases, it happens that when a large amount of vegetables is stored inside the store, condensation forms. The natural ventilation system is not doing its job. In this case, specialists are hired to install forced ventilation.
You cannot make any changes to the plastic caissons on your own. If you have any problems, it is better to consult with specialists.
Stone round cellar
You can build a round-shaped cellar with your own hands only from a stone. Moreover, the hole can be made from above according to the principle of a plastic caisson. Although for homemade cellars, a side entrance is more acceptable, as shown in the photo.
So why sometimes the owners prefer the round shape of the stone cellar? To answer this question, let's look at the positives of this basement:
- round brick walls withstand more ground pressure;
- the construction of a round basement requires 12% less building material than a rectangular cellar;
- the absence of corners allows the storage to evenly maintain the required temperature and humidity;
- It is easier to lay out a circle of bricks than to expel the corners of a rectangular basement.
Before you figure out how to make a round stone cellar, you need to decide what requirements are imposed on it. Firstly, the area and volume of the storage must contain all the stocks, plus a free approach to the shelves is needed. For example, four family members need a storage area of 6 m² and a volume of 15 m³. The thickness of the walls must be able to withstand the ground pressure. When using bricks, this figure is at least 25 cm. Secondly, it is necessary to provide for the location of the entrance, stairs, artificial lighting, ventilation and other details that facilitate the use of the storage.
You can independently build a round cellar from cinder blocks, bricks, or pour monolithic concrete walls. The most profitable option is to use red brick, since all work can be done alone.
The only drawback of all round cellars is the inconvenience of making shelves. In the factory caissons, they are already provided for by the manufacturer, but inside the brick storage the shelves will have to be made independently. But, if the owner is satisfied with this, the round basement can be safely installed on your site.
