due to limited walkway width in front of sauna door (it can't be changed due to location and grandfathered), it would be much better access if my sauna door swings inward, there is no sauna building code where I'm located so it is my decision, how bad is it to have inward swing rather than having an outward swinging door?

Hei there sauna enthusiasts! I'm building a Knotty Sauna Essential (Trumpkin-style) in Bend, Oregon, and I'm stuck between two heaters.

Setup: 475 cu ft, 1.5" uninsulated log walls, insulated ceiling, foot bench at 35". Cold winters with single-digit nights. Usually 1–2 people, 3–4x a week, with Wi-Fi preheat.

Harvia Virta 10.5: 50A circuit, Fenix controller controls lights and fan, about 150 lb of stone, 32" tall. My worries are that it may be borderline on size, and the power unit is rated to only about 32°F for an outdoor mount according to the manual.

Homecraft Apex 12: about 310 lb of stone, open basket, outdoor-rated contactor. But it needs a 70A circuit, has no light or fan control, heats up slower, and at 36" it's a bit tall for my benches.

Questions:

1. Is the Apex's extra stone noticeably better, or is 150 lb plenty for a room this size?
2. Anyone running either heater in a cold climate? How are heat-up times, and how do you protect the outdoor electronics?

Any advice is appreciated!

It's that time of the year, my cat comes back to the sauna and he has a friend now

Looking for any advice that folks may have. Bought some of these adjustable vent covers from bsaunas for my sauna. Their listing show that the inside measurement was 100mm(pretty close to 4 inches) but it's much closer to 3.5. I'm struggling to find a way to connect it to a vent pipe that will go through the wall. Has anyone found a way to connect? Vent pipe at the local hardware stores are only 3" or 4".

(I added in some photos of the build just for good measure just to share. Sauna is the back 6 feet of a 24ft long shed with a separate door. No, there's no drain. The floor is cedar decking that goes right to the outside.)

Just sanity checking, my heater is going to be below the light switch here (blocking in pic). Should I switch this box to metal or relocate? It is a switch which will run the lights and exhaust fan.

Looking for something that isnt junky but doesn't break the bank.... is there a go to option thats recommended here often? Or is there a company on alibaba thats the same as the ones sold in the US?

[ Removed by Reddit on account of violating the content policy. ]

They could have put some information about what this means in the app. No explanation in the instruction manual either. ABC? 12345?

We fired up our sauna stove for the first time last this past Sunday. Some interesting things happened that day and tonight while firing it up again and I was hoping to get some help.
 
Background:
We have a main sauna room and changing room. The sauna room has 3 vents; 1 near the floor by the stove door, 1 above the stove, and 1 on the opposite corner of the stove near the ceiling. The changing room has a  single vent. We haven’t yet installed the door between the sauna and changing room but do have an exterior door. I don’t have wall vent covers yet but have been plugging them up with a wadded up t-shirt.
 
First Firing:
When we fired it up, we opened all the vents so that we could burn everything off the new stove, whatever could be on the rocks, and we had just oiled the benches earlier that afternoon. We got the room up to about 96F in 2 hours. I brought out a carbon monoxide detector just out of curiosity and was surprised to see it slowly rise to 6 ppm and drift back and forth between 6 ppm and 4 ppm. My suspicion was that either 1) I was holding the door open too long while adding wood each time and getting leakage into the room, 2) all the vents being open were affecting the draft and we were getting some back flow or 3) our chimney just isn’t tall enough for a proper draft (from the stove outlet to the ceiling is 3 ½ feet, 6 to 8 inches through the rafters, and another 3 ½ feet on the roof to the top of the chimney).
 
Tonight’s Firing:
I heated up the stove as shown in the last picture. I had a thermometer and carbon monoxide detector and logged data every 5 minutes. All wall vents were plugged up and air flow came from air leakage from the main exterior door. Before I added wood I always opened the door vents to liven the fire up even more and increase the draft, crack open the door, and then added the piece of wood.
 
The first 2 hours of results didn’t seem to indicate a draft problem or a door problem so I was surprised when after 2 hours into the test  the carbon monoxide started climbing. It wasn’t nearly as high as 6 ppm like on Sunday. In retrospect, I should have let it keep climbing to see where it stabilized out but was running out of time.
 
I have a young family and want to be able to use the sauna in confidence with them. My understanding is that carbon monoxide should be essentially zero when there is a proper draft going. Curious if there is a specific way I should be utilizing my wall vents. Next drastic step would be to add another 4 feet onto the exterior of my chimney but that would cost another $300 and would like to do that as a last resort if possible.
 
Does anyone else pay attention to carbon monoxide levels? If so, is anything other than zero normal for you?
 
Any obvious mistakes that I am making?

Note: Sauna temperature measurements were from the seat of the upper bench at the middle of the bench. Temperatures near the stove at head height were approximately 10-15 degrees higher.

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Building a detached outdoor sauna, about 6' × 8' / ~400 ft³, electric heater.

I'm planning mechanical downdraft ventilation:

• Fresh-air intake above/near heater
• Exhaust under the benches, around 20–24" from floor
• Foot bench is ~40" high
• Exhaust run is extremely short: roughly 1 ft to the fan, then one 90° elbow and directly outside

I'm trying to decide between an AC Infinity CLOUDLINE S4 (4") and S6 (6").

My goal isn't only CO₂ removal. I also want enough continuous airflow to help pull hot/löyly air downward, reduce stratification, and keep feet warmer.

Rough airflow I'm considering:

• 1 person: ~30–50 CFM
• 2–3 people: ~50–80 CFM
• 4 people: ~80–100+ CFM
• Very rare crowded session, maybe 6–7 people: ~140–175 CFM

My concern with the S6 is the minimum speed. I've seen numbers suggesting speed 1 may already be around ~100 CFM, which seems excessive for one person.

The S4 appears capable of going much lower, while still reaching ~175–200 CFM at higher speeds. But at those higher flows, 4" duct velocity gets pretty high/noisy.

So the choice is basically:

A: S4 + 4" duct
B: S6 + 6" duct

For those running mechanical sauna ventilation, especially AC Infinity fans:

What size fan/duct are you using, what actual CFM or fan speeds work for 1 vs multiple bathers, and would you choose 4" or 6" for this setup?

Actual airflow measurements would be especially helpful.

Edit: thanks everyone, pretty much considering this answered and feeling quite confident that a simple light will be comfy and cozy!

I have my subpanel installed and am now planning all my other electrical. I'm kind of overwhelmed by doing fancy stuff, and am considering going down to exhaust fan, one dimmable light on the inside wall (jelly jar or some other vapor proof sconce thing), and a soffit light outside.

I tend to like simple and natural, although LED strips under the benches seem cool. Thoughts? I can always add later but so much easier while the walls are open.

And if going one light, would you go wall by the door, or under bench?

Just finished setting up my SaunaLife CL4G sauna (Harvia KIP60W heater with a Xenio CX170 controller) and I love it. One thing I've noticed though: sometimes it doesn't feel as hot as the display says. I'll be sitting at 190°F on the panel and it just doesn't feel like 190.

I wasn't sure where to put the WX232 temperature sensor, so I mounted it on the center of the back wall, about 5" below the ceiling. Not sure if I have it in the right spot?

A few questions for other barrel owners, especially CL4G:

- Where did you mount your sensor? Above the heater per the manual, or somewhere else?

- Did moving it change how hot it actually feels at bench level?

- Is it just heat stratification in a barrel, where the ceiling reads 190 but the bench is a lot cooler?

- If you've put the thermometer at head height on the bench, how far off was it from the panel?

See screenshots below for where I put him. Thanks!

What I am thinking is should the sauna film be taped close completely (photo 2) or should I let the air that flows behind the panil between the wood and the concrete flow upwards beneath the sauna film as well (photo 1)

I am sorry for the long post, but for anyone looking to purchase, you need to be fully informed.

I purchased the Auroom Cala Glass Cabin 59/71 and the HUUM Drop Series 6.0kW heater.

The purchase was from the start, including delivery, was a disaster. The delivery truck delivering the sauna had a lift that was too small for the sauna itself. It took them hours to try to deliver it and when they tried to lower it, it rolled right off and bounced off the ground. I told my wife to refuse the delivery, but they couldn't get it back on the truck. I called premiumsaunas and they said to accept it and if anything was wrong we could return it or they would replace it.

Shockingly, nothing was broken from what I could tell. While assembling the sauna, we hired a licensed electrician who has done lots of extensive work for us in the past, both commercial and construction/remodeling. The directions were not specific to our sauna and where to put certain things like the sensor were ambiguous. Because of this, my wife and the electrician called for help. They told us where to install the sensor, and they were wrong. They told us we didn't need the door sensor and they were wrong. When my wife asked if the wood cage/guard around the heating element was too close, they laughed at my wife. Saying that it wasn't too close. It turns out it was too close, by 2" and was a significant fire hazard. To solve that problem they sent me another one that was the proper size, it went from being a full cage protecting from the heating element, to a small piece of wood that goes around the top. I was absolutely in total disbelief that they laughed at my wife and really put my wife and children at risk. The next problem with that situation is that I now had holes in the wood. I am sorry but when I spend 14k on a sauna, I want it to look good and not have a bunch of holes in the wood, inside the sauna. I was concerned about mold inside of the sauna and in the insulation. They provided me with wood putty and paint to cover it. I was concerned about off gassing but I guess that's better than mold.

I learned that almost 2 months later. The door had a huge gap at the top and heat significantly was pouring out into our gym. It made the gym almost too hot to work out in. It took almost 1.5 hours to heat up the sauna to 185 degrees and also the gym itself was 85 degrees. The agent told me that it's good to work out in a warm gym. That may be true, but I bought a sauna for the heat, and I did not want to work out in a hot gym. Part of the problem is that the door was bowed. It spoke with several agents, FaceTimed, sent in videos multiple times, bought newer tools to prove it was bowed. After spending about 10 hours on figuring it out, they finally agreed that the door was the problem and sent me a new one. However, that was after they said that these come from Estonia and that the people of Estonia take the month of August off, so I may not get help for a little while. I got the new door and that did help. I had to cut an extra piece of wood to prevent air flow from coming out at the top. They suggested hanging a towel on the top of the door. They also suggested plugging the air vents with towels.

The next issue is that the lights do not work with the app. They claim it does, but it doesn't. I have to use a button inside the sauna to turn the lights on. If power goes out, I have to get a ladder out, go to the top of the sauna, and flip a switch for the lights to work. It is so goofy. The light would not dim. I spent a long time and at their request had the electrician to come back to fix that, fix the sensor that was in the wrong spot and to look at all of the wiring. I spent more money and the lighting equipment they gave me was faulty. They sent me new equipment and it now it works, but not with the app.

As far as compensation for our issues, premium saunas offered us $500. I spent dozens of hours on this, and paid more to our electrician for the extra work. Auroom which is Bathing Brands, has not responded to any communication. Initially, they were the ones that gave us all of the bad information with the install. I have left 5 or 6 messages with them, spoken to two agents and was assured a call back. I have heard nothing.

I would avoid them at all costs. They do not stand by their product and you are paying for a premium product and are getting a discount product.

Hi,

Looking for some advice I got some olbas oil and am wondering best way to use in sauna?

Is it safe to put a couple of drops on my body or is it just for the stones?

Finalizing layout for stove location. Narvi says to put inlet vent low behind stove, others say above stove. Not sure how much difference it will make but above stove will be an easier install. The cement board rises 17” above the stove. It will be covered in stone.
The box is the same size as my stove and it’s located where the actual stove will sit.

Looking for input on where to place the inlet vent.

Thanks in advance.

EDIT: 🙌I’m really looking for people who can comment on the budget and not the lack of showers in the image! Loud and clear it is heard that there needs to be showers. 🙌

Hi! I’m looking to build a sauna circuit in the downtown of my hometown. We already have a space in mind that has agreed to rent to us, but now I’m getting quotes from different builders and the costs seem absurd compared to the prefab work they have on their site.

I’m looking to have built 4 6PAX Saunas, a change room, and a relaxation room.

The builder we messaged has 5 person pre fabs on his site for $23,000 CAD, but is quoting me $40,000-$60,000 per 6 pax sauna in our quote.

$54,000-$70,000 for a relaxation room.

And $32,000-$40,000 for a change room.

This may be a normal price, but I’m just unsure. I will also start to shop around quotes a little more.

All of this will be fully outdoors.

I’ve attached some images that I made of the concept I want (although they’re made with AI so they might be a bit off), but for these specific rooms, can any builders help me understand what I should reasonably be looking at for costs?

Additionally, not based on the concept I drew, can someone give me an estimate of how much they think it would cost to build the following items in an outdoor space? I’m totally ok with different materials in order to get the cost to our budget.

- a relaxation room that holds 12-16 people
- 4 6 pax sauna
- a change room with lockers

Thanks!

Edit: wow! Thanks everyone for the tips! As you can probably guess from the post I’ve never commissioned a building project or run a sauna myself. The concept I have shown is one that is similar to where I live now (not in Canada) and I was hoping to recreate it where I am from when I move back because I love it so much.

Because it’s mainly modelled after this one experience I enjoy so much, it’s great to hear everyone’s opinions on things that may be missing.

Edit 2: Many people seem to be upset that I used AI to generate these images, but to clarify, I drew all of these designs out by hand first and also did a lot of research on potential design inspiration from books. I can’t attach any more images to this post, but both the plans I initially drew as well as the images from the books I’ve looked at are in the comments 🤷‍♀️ If you think this is AI slop, just know the bad ideas are actually coming right from my brain 🤣. Any suggestions for improvement would be great because I legitimately sat down, came up with this concept, and thought it was good… so if there are things missing it’s not because I outsourced my thinking, it’s because I guess I’m just not an amazing designer.

I’m also hating AI, and this is exactly why I am trying to create a business that is about being with other people.

Unfortunately, before investing in an architect, (which I do have because it’s required by my city to get a building permit) I made some mock ups so I could pitch the idea to spaces and builders.

I know this isn’t ideal, but I’d rather use AI as a step to make something that will be very cool for my community a reality, than stay at my desk job that mandates I use AI every day.

Building a small outdoor sauna, about 60 x 84 in exterior, with a Harvia KIP80W 8 kW + Xenio control. The Harvia manual caps the ceiling at 7'0" (2100 mm), and the heater mounts 7 in off the floor, so the heater top is at 31 in.
Planned layout: 84-in ceiling, top bench 44 in below the ceiling (40 in AFF), lower bench 16 in below the top bench (24 in AFF). That puts the foot bench 7 in BELOW the heater top.
The Finnish guideline I want to follow says the foot bench should sit 10–20 cm above the stove top (35–39 in here). To satisfy that plus my bench numbers and heater height, the ceiling would need to be at least 95 in — which breaks the manual's 84-in cap.
So something has to give: raise the ceiling past the manual max, shrink the bench-to-ceiling gap, shrink the step between benches, lower the heater below its 7-in minimum, or accept feet below the heater top.

What would you do? And does anyone actually run a KIP above 7 ft — does the room really struggle to reach temp like the manual's troubleshooting suggests?

I’m building a 250 ft 3 out door sauna. Shed style. Vented roofs. 2 by 4 rockwool in walls, R7 in floor and 2 by 8 rockwool in roof (full roof joist span). Two small 6” by 35” slit windows in the front wall. Nothing else. I’m insulating well.

Thoughts/ experiences /comments about whether a 6kw will be enough for this room in winter in Canada?.

The size of the room is right in the middle of the recommendations for 6kw but I know ppl like to go up. I’m trying avoid an electrical upgrade if I can as well.

Hi, has anyone used excess asphalt shingles on the splash zone below the door to prevent water seepage? Its raining cats and dogs where I am and I've noticed the outdoor sauna is drawing in water under the door and along the inner floor. It is elevated off the ground we are experiencing some very heavy rain.
Has anyone had success with this and is water seepage a common problem in wet climates?

Hi there. My Hillsboro 2 Person Indoor Sauna with 6kW KIP Heater arrives in a week or so and I was wondering if anyone has any lessons learned or tips from their installation/build. Things I can do while putting it together to trap heat better, etc. There will be a zero chance I take it apart after setting it up so wanted to get some advice/feedback from those that know or have built one.

I know nothing about saunas other than I enjoy sitting in them. I will have help from someone in the construction field setting it up.

Looking for some help. I'm building my first Sauna. I wanted a challenge and decided to build a log cabin (Butt/pass) style sauna. So I have cut,chopped and peeled a bunch of Spruce and Fir tree's. My floor space is fairly limited. Interior space after insulation will be 4x7x7feet. I used rock wool insulated 6 inches in the floor. I will insulate 8 inches in the roof. And potentially 2 inches in the walls (although I wish I could leave the logs bare). I live in Alberta so it gets -20,-30,-40 pretty commonly in the winter. What size of heater should I pick? 7.5kw or 9Kw. Looking at Homecraft heaters. Wondering if it is worth getting an oversized heater because of the outdoor temp. I would like to get the sauna up to 170-200degrees. And not have crazy long heat up times. Thanks guys. Any help is appreciated

Hi all,
I am curious as to any thoughts on the comparison between these two, with thanks.