Just as Minnesota Fats, the famous pool player, would advise that there are two ways to hit a pool shot – soft and softer, there are two ways to toss water on sauna rocks: start with a little water, then add a little more.
You can always toss more water as you go.
As Clint points out, all sauna stoves are made to take water. Rocks on sauna stoves are a thermal mass of heat energy. That heat is transferred to steam, as water gets tossed on rocks. That steam then gets transferred to your body as it comes in contact with your skin.
You can toss a liter of water on the rocks and try to “ride it out” but this macho ploy is best reserved for the art of reverse cycling.
Loyly supports the rubber band theory of sauna, great for your skin and breathing.
Steam from water being tossed on sauna rocks, Loyly, is a spiritual thing, involving negative ions. Fire (sauna stove), Earth (sauna rocks), and Water (via loyly) create an aura akin to water falls and rainbows, something beyond this writer’s ability to put into words without any mind altering assistance.
BONUS: Starting with a little water, then adding more doesn’t shock your sauna stove, so in theory, you stove will suffer less fatigue.
OTHER BONUS: Rocks will be less depleted of thermal mass and respond quicker to more water with a smile and a sizzle.
MISNOMER: The temperature in a sauna does not go up when you toss water on sauna rocks. It just feels hotter because heat is transferred via water vapor onto your skin.
JAB: Infrared is NOT a sauna.