Saunatimes.com.

I get a lot of emails, folks thanking me for saunatimes.com.  This warms my heart.  One day I may do the affiliate marketing gig, and one day soon you’ll see some of my sauna related products/inventions off to the right hand side of this page.  Yet for now, here it is, free relevant sauna information.  For we are kindred spirits.  We recognize the health & wellness benefits to sauna.  We recognize the importance of having our own authentic escape vs. a light bulb infrared closet or a hot tub petri dish.

Lots of noise out there.

“The other sites I’ve come across are mostly trying to promote their kits, without much useful info.”  He’s right.  And everyone has their self interest.  Mine is to diffuse the noise and be straight with you.  Compounding the noise is the fact that ‘sauna’ is becoming a bigger story. So people are getting in the game.  Infrared hucksters are packaging high margin kits and are working hard to try to sell them to you.  So, here you are, reading this with a keen interest in cutting through the noise in an effort to getting your own authentic sauna.  Welcome.

So, where do I start?

I’ll make this easy: inside or outside?  Not sure?  You are on a hike in the woods and you approach a fork.  To the left is a more used trail, easier in navigation, looks to be less work.  To the right is a less used trail, thicker trees, somewhat more rugged.  Pick a trail, and I’ll walk with you.

• LEFT TURN: You chose a sauna heated by an electric stove, most likely in your house.  You can carve out about a 6′x6′ space, maybe in your basement, maybe convert a closet, maybe go to town and incorporate a sauna as part of your bathroom remodel.
• RIGHT TURN: You chose a sauna heated by a wood stove, very likely outside your house or cabin.  My 8′ x 12′ design is a great starting point, and in most cases will be your ending point as many have adopted this design and nobody that I know of has regretted anything about it.

OK, I know my sauna turn, now what?

CAVEAT:  I’m a right turn guy.  I understand the realities if you chose left turn, and I don’t begrudge your decision.  You deserve your own sauna.  Nice job so far.  If you chose an electric sauna in your house, get a piece of chalk and mark off your space, we’ll come back to you later.  If you chose a wood burning sauna, find 4 sticks and 50′ of carpenter’s string, and let’s mark off an 8′x12′ spot on your property.  Keep in mind:

• Slope: If your spot has slope, you’ll most likely want your sauna building so that the 8′ run is into the hill, the 12′ run along the slope of the hill.
• Exposure: Very important.  Imagine your 8′ x 12′ sauna at different times of the day, relative to sunrise, sunset, etc.  Ideally, I like the 12′ wall with exterior door facing South, but East or West can work just as well – it depends, of course, upon:
• View: Your most critical consideration.  You want the door of your sauna to spill out in a direction that makes most sense, relative to your property.  This is obvious stuff, but the fun thing is after you mark off your 8′ x 12′ sauna/changing room, you can mock up a door, and then think patio, fire pit, a little lawn furniture, and if you need an outdoor shower.

This is how you get started.

A word on building your own sauna and dealing with the sauna floor.

Here’s an email exchange that may offer some guidance:

Hi Glenn
The Saunatimes.com website has me a converted man…I no longer want an outdoor sauna, now I NEED one!
I live in Surrey, BC. Our winters are mild by Minnesota standards but the dampness and rain chill a person to the bone.
I have started to aquire the materials to build my outdoor sauna and have a few questions about the ideal outdoor sauna design.

1. The opposing bench design looks like a good idea on paper but I noticed your portable sauna has L-shape benches. Is there a change of “ideal”?
2. Flooring in the sauna and change area. Any recommendation on how to finish them or does bare plywood stand up alright?

Cheers
Dan

And my response:

Dan..

Wonderful email, and i’m glad to have helped and influenced you.  You ask two great questions:
1. “L” bench is the more ideal… yes, change in “ideal sauna” glad you caught it.
2. Plywood floor.  Yes, start with plywood as a subfloor, then:

1. Paint it or treat plywood with a water sealant.
2. In the hot room, I suggest screwing in a drip edge around your perimeter.  Your first row of t&g cedar can rest on that.  I rip a 2×3 green to get a 45 degree upper edge.
3. cut and install a shower drain in center of hot room.
4. get a couple bags of vinyl cement patch, 40# i believe. it’s cheap.
5. mix that in a wheelbarrow.
6. trowel it down in the hot room floor.
7. 3/4″ around perimeter, down to about 1/4″ at the drain.

It’s a real slick system…. couple points to keep in mind..

1. keep your bottom plate in tact where your door is, or sawzall it and screw it down so your cement has a place to stop.
2. consider patio block where your woodburning stove will sit.  Lay that first, before cement.  trowel up to patio block.
3. chalk line your drip edge before screwing it down to bottom plate, framing, as a trowel mark, guide.
4. You don’t need much of a pitch if you’re sauna building is level.
5. You’ll build cedar decking (1×4 cedar with 1/2″ spacing) on top of this.  this is where you’ll walk.  feet stay dry.

take pictures!  keep in touch.

There are a few different ways to build sauna benches, and here’s a play by play on my favorite.

Keep in mind:

1. Hide the knots
2. Hide your screws
3. Make your benches 1/4″ less than your actual wall to wall dimensions.

Supplies:

1. 2×4 cedar
2. 1×3 cedar
3. 2 1/2″ wood screws

Tools:

1. table saw
2. miter saw
3. drill

Build your frames:  Cut your lengths and ends and screw them together to make a rectangle.  I like 18″ wide benches: two 2×4′s  + five 1×3′s + spacing = 18″.

Cut and screw in a 1×3 inside the two frame ends so that when you set in your decking it will lay flush with your frame.

Rip your cross members:   You’ll want to rip some 2×4′s down the middle, creating 1 1/2″ x 2 1/4″ stock.  This is optimal wood depth for your 2 1/2″ screws.  You will be screwing your decking from underneath.

Set your cross members:  Space out the cross members evenly.  Screw them into your frame recessed 3/4″ below your frame so, again, your decking will lay flush with your frame.

Lay out your decking:  I like to get a total picture of all my lumber stock so I can choose the best sides and best wood match.

Cut your decking:  Measure from inside your frame to the other end.  Cut your 1×3 deck lengths.

Screw your decking from below:  A little wood glue may help.

To set your upper benches,  screw into your wall a 2×4 header at 28 1/2″ from the floor all the way around your sauna where your upper benches go (note the location of your studs, screw through your t&g cedar and into the studs behind.. use 3″ or 3 1/2″ screws for this).  Set your upper bench on top of your header with a couple screws (you’ll be happy you made your benches 1/4″ less than your wall width).

For your lower benches, make a couple sets of legs 12 1/2″ tall.  Under the bottom of your bench feet, screw in rubber thingy’s so the wooden feet are not right on your sauna floor.  This prevents ”wicking” of moisture.  If you are from Jamaica, you can be resourceful and use beer caps for this (very irie how Jamaicans recycle used Red Stripe caps as washers for their corrugated iron fences).

Your lower benches will sit at 16″ (12 1/2″ + 3 1/2″) and your upper benches at 32″.

Andy:

I’ll email you separately regarding drip edge.  Great idea on the 2x space!  Glad you are open to reducing your hot room space.  keep in mind that every cubic foot in your hot room comes at a price: more cubic feet = more BTU’s required.  It’s been an ongoing study for me to maximize sauna hot room size, yet maintain consciousness to it’s BTU cost.  I believe that a 6′ x 7’5″ sauna hot room is ideal.  My Minneapolis sauna can handle 12 people.  http://www.saunatimes.com/2009/04/06/sauna-party-april-2nd-2009-minneapolis-mn-usa/.

Glad you’re moving forward,
Glenn.

for more hot air, click here:
www.saunatimes.com

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From: Andy
To: glenn
Sent: Thu, August 19, 2010 10:28:47 PM
Subject: Re: Wood and drainage

All good ideas! I hear your concern with a 10x sauna room. Might use the 2x space for an outside/ inside loading depot for wood. As for the drainage that too sounds like a good idea. I’m not familiar with vinyl cement, though I assure you I’ll do the research. Love the locker idea. And yea I’ll bite, what is a drip edge?

Shane

Shane…

Good move on venting with a crack along the bottom of the door. it’s easy and functional.

As far as exhaust vent, the first thing to note is that an exhaust vent is really only to allow stale air to escape sauna, say, after a sauna session.  Some purists like to vent during a sauna, but if you are using wood heat, there is enough fresh air pull, just by wood combustion.

But an exhaust vent is a good idea.  You build a sauna once, so may as well put one in.  Your instincts are correct.  Put your vent opposite wall to your door, and I like about a foot from the ceiling.  They’re easy to install.  Drill or jig saw a 3 1/2″ hole in your wall sheeting.  You can buy a vent with the exterior grill already in.  Screw it to a stud and insulate around it.  When you do your t&g cedar, just cut around the round metal pipe.   I like to make a little vent control slot thingy using some t&g cedar, with a little wooden handle. I’ll try to take a picture for you sometime.  it deserves a post.

PS.. If you have already built a sauna without an exhaust vent, no worries, just open the door when you’re done.