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A sauna is a room made from softwood and that incorporates a heater — either electric or wood-burning — that is capable of reaching 185° Fahrenheit and up. An average healthy individual can tolerate that kind of heat because it is a dry environment with extremely low humidity. This is called a dry sauna experience. However, one other integral traditional sauna component is sauna stones. These are placed in or on the heater, and when they’re good and hot, you sprinkle some water on them to create a burst of steam. This is called a wet sauna experience because it generates humidity. So to summarize, a sauna is a wooden room with an exceptional heater that is capable of producing either dry or wet heat.

Take water. Apply to hot rocks. Voila, wet sauna. That’s it. A wet sauna experience is simply when you pour water over the heater rocks, thus producing steam. Thus, a dry sauna is the absence of any humidity.

Taking a sauna is traditionally a rotation of dry, wet, dry, wet, etc. with cool-down breaks in between. A cool-down break can be anything as basic as sitting outside the sauna until you’re ready to enter again or it can be something as crazy as jumping in an icy lake. However, sitting in the sauna for an extended period of time with no breaks is not recommended. The rest is up to you. Some say that the rule of thumb for sauna usage is whatever makes you comfortable. The moment it ceases to be comfortable, it ceases to be the proper way to take a sauna.

By definition, a sauna is a room where water is used to generate steam, so technically the infrared experience is not a sauna at all. Infrared does not warm the room but instead penetrates the body with infrared rays. It does so at a low temperature and is helpful in relieving sore joints and muscles. The proper definition for the infrared experience is to refer to it as an “infrared therapy room.” The wet/dry effect of a traditional sauna is a total body experience, providing joint and muscle relief as well as a host of other health benefits.

Any health benefits attributed to sauna usage are linked to the fact that sauna rooms get hot. These benefits include improved circulation, lower blood pressure, enhanced immune system, respiratory relief, detoxification, burned calories, better skin tone, and joint and muscle pain relief. Heart Health Benefits of Sauna

The overall experience is similar whether heating with electric or wood. An electric heater is standard with every sauna we sell, and we also have wood-burning options. The wood heater will require that you vent the heater out the top or back of the room as well as provide an appropriate firewall around the heater. Installation should be done in compliance with the heater manufacturers’ instructions as well as applicable building codes.

Every Almost Heaven Sauna kit comes with all the pieces you need to assemble your sauna room, a heater, stones, and a light. We also have some optional accessories that you can purchase to include with your order: bucket and ladle, backrests, leg rests, roof kits, magazine racks, wooden doors, sand timers, scented sauna oils, and more. You can inspect a full lineup of our options and accessories on the Accessories Page of our website.

You’re the one in charge of assembling your new sauna, although we do a lot of pre-assembly ahead of time. All of the panel, ceiling, bench and end sections are pre-assembled at the factory, and all of the holes are pre-drilled for your convenience. Generally two or three people can put a sauna together in just a handful of hours, so grab someone you love and have fun bonding over the building of your new sauna. A complete assembly manual comes with every sauna.

The unit operates on an efficient 240v heater and draws no more than 40 amps of power. Furthermore, it only draws power when you use it. You turn on the heater, let it get nice and hot, use the sauna, and then shut off the heater when you’re finished. As a result, the operational costs are negligible under normal use, much like the cost of a clothes dryer or electric oven.

How hot or cold is it where you live, on average? The time it takes a sauna to heat up is contingent upon the ambient temperature surrounding the sauna. So if you have an outdoor sauna and you live in a northern climate and it’s the dead of winter, give your sauna a little more time to heat up. Furthermore, some people like their sauna hot and some like it blazing, and that’s a factor that will influence heat-up time too. However, as a rule of thumb, the sauna will heat to 165F in 30–40 minutes and to 185 in less than 60.

If you are not a licensed electrician who knows how to do wiring according to local electrical codes, please hire one. He or she will have to hard-wire the heater to an electrical source. Here’s what you’ll need to tell them: “It will require 220v power. The 4.5kw and 6.0kw heaters require a 30 amp breaker and 10/2 wire (for runs up to 90' from the breaker box), and anything beyond in kW's requires a 40 amp breaker and 8/2 wire. The light will require 110v, 15 amp service.”

Very little, actually. If you purchased an outdoor barrel sauna, you may need to tighten the bands or add additional filler staves after a period of time, usually within the first few months. Depending on the humidity and weather conditions in your area, the wood will either shrink or expand based on the amount of moisture absorption. The desired effect is to have the wood expand into the bands. To keep the inside clean, you can periodically scrub the floor or benches with a mild solution of water and baking soda.

Yes. Our barrel saunas are designed with the outdoors in mind; the barrel shape sheds water and snow, and the lumber is weather-resistant. But it works equally as well indoors as it does outdoors.

We give you the choice of selecting from three types of lumber for your sauna: Rustic Fir, Rustic Western Red Cedar, and Clear Western Red Cedar. You’ll be able to get the exact look that you want for your new favorite home retreat! Whichever you choose, you will find the craftsmanship to be unparalleled.

You really don’t have to treat it. Over time the lumber will weather naturally as a result of sun and rain, but this doesn’t harm the wood or impair the sauna’s performance. But if you wish to retain the natural color of the wood, you can apply a stain with a UV inhibitor that resists weathering. Your local paint professional can help you pick the right one. Note: never treat the interior of the room, and never apply paint or varnish to the exterior.

Two rules: firm and flat (a slight taper for run-off is fine). You can place your sauna on a deck, concrete, paved stones, pressed gravel, etc. Our barrel saunas comes with molded cradle supports that protect the sauna from moisture when it is placed directly on the ground.

Your indoor sauna can go on almost any surface — concrete, tile, laminate, etc. We do not recommend placing it on carpet.

Each Almost Heaven Sauna comes with a Limited Lifetime Warranty against manufacturing defects on all components. We will replace any component of the sauna room that fails due to a manufacturing defect at no charge to you in accordance with our Limited Warranty. The Heater Warranty is will cover damaged heating elements for 1 year, and the other components for 5 years.

Nordic Spruce lumber is a beautiful softwood lumber that is ideal for sauna use and is suitable for both indoor and outdoor applications. Since it is a conifer lumber it will have a very small amount of pitch (sap) in the lumber that will vary from board to board. While it is unlikely, if you see pitch seeping from any part of the wood, don’t be alarmed… it is perfectly normal and can make itself evident in the high temperature off the sauna. However, once it seeps from the wood it will not return. You can simply scrape any accumulated pitch from the wood with a razor blade and clean any residue with a rag and rubbing alcohol, which will not stain the wood.