98.6% of us are not professional builders. And most professional builders are overly intimidated (and don't return phone calls) from homeowners looking to have a sauna built. And for good reason. When it comes to building a sauna, there are big issues such as venting, moisture, insulation, off gassing, and Aufgussing. If building an electric sauna, we have high voltage and water splashing. (220/221 volts, whatever it takes). If building a wood burning sauna, we have clearances to non combustibles (even though fire good). So, because most contractors want no part of sauna building, 98.6% of us undertake our own sauna builds. Obstacle is The Way. We are not professional builders. We have motivation and resources, like the Googlator and the book DIY Sauna Build Start to Finnish, but our time is scarce and choppy! We have our day job. We have kids' baseball practice. We have our inbox, and our social media feed. How do we build our own sauna given all the demands … [Read more...]
Ben builds an awesome backyard sauna and his only regret may surprise you
Guest post series continues. We first heard from Ben here, who shared the now famous "Ben Square sleeper method" concept for sloping a sauna hot room floor. Well, good news: Ben has completed his sauna, and we are excited to share his story with you. Enter Ben: What compelled you to build your own sauna? We have had a sauna at our deer camp north of Orr, MN since 1983. It is a rare night that we don't sauna when we are there. I have always wanted one at home, and this summer we didn't have any large projects to do on our house, so I decided that this was the year to build it. How did you find saunatimes? Give us a few examples where the DIY ebook helped you out. I started planning the sauna last fall. I bought several books and read them cover to cover, but none of them told me HOW to build a sauna, just what some of them looked like. What I needed were details such as how much insulation, how to slope the floor, how to make a vapor barrier, etc. I started looking for … [Read more...]
Your own backyard sauna: are you ready yet?
The outdoor backyard authentic sauna experience is being enjoyed RIGHT now by many hundreds of people. How do I know this to be true? I have helped hundreds of people build their own authentic backyard saunas. But that's not important. What IS important is that our own backyard outdoor free standing sauna buildings are significant structures. They don't have steeples, but they are our churches. And our health clubs. And our Doctors (both mental and/or physical). Our own backyard saunas are health and wellness sanctuaries. It doesn't matter who we are or what is going on. For some of us it is a bad day at work, or we can't set down our cell phones, or we are back from a shitty war and are trying to get our life back together. We have made the commitment and we are enjoying a better life. We have our backyard sauna. "Other than diet and exercise, I can’t think of anything else that will benefit your life in a more positive way. And, that’s not just sales talk. It’s the … [Read more...]
Straight scoop from a sauna builder who has built hundreds of saunas
Guest post series continues. Pleased to welcome Matt Bergstrom from Finnleo. Matt has most certainly built more saunas than anyone in North America. What comes forward is not just Matt's knowledge of authentic sauna building, but a true joy and appreciation of his craft. Within this post, we will follow along with a recent sauna build of Matt's. This sauna build was for renowned ex NHL player and current NHL Assistant Coach Darby Hendrickson. Darby is an authentic sauna fan who understands the value of a backyard retreat, the virtues of wood burning, and the health and wellness of sauna - both physical and mental (mental in that after a tough Minnesota Wild loss, Darby can often be found with his eyes closed, sweating it out on the upper bench of his backyard sauna, in anticipation of a cold plunge and Wim Hof style control of his autonomic nervous system. Enter Matt: How long have you been building saunas? Over 15 years now. Ever since I have worked at Finnleo. How many … [Read more...]
Does the sauna changing room need a new name?
As we know, sauna is more than a hot room. The hot room is where we have our sauna stove and benches, where we enjoy heating up, tossing water on the sauna rocks to create steam, ahhhhhhh (loyly), and as we sweat it out on the bench and consider when to exit (when a cold plunge is about the best idea we've ever heard). So, we leave the hot room to ideally jump into a cold lake or hit an outdoor shower enjoying the clean rinse. Then what? Brrrr.. the wind is cold but our body is warm! We are conscious sauna bathers. We listen to our core, not our skin. We want to equalize and feel that endorphin rush. We want to enjoy our cool downs, where do we go now? The changing room In winter, the changing room is where we can seek shelter from the cold, stretch out our sauna rounds, chat with others enjoying sauna, or simply reconnect with oneself. One need not seek a waiver from the President of the International Sauna Society to enjoy music as part of our sauna sessions. The best … [Read more...]
What I Learned from Building an Outdoor Sauna with a Wood Burning Stove
Guest Post Series continues. Part II with Russ, who first shared his corbel system to support sauna benches here. And given his building skill and meticulous attention to detail, we thought it a good idea to bring Russ back to share: What I Learned from Building an Outdoor Sauna with a Wood Burning Stove Plan the whole space, not just the sauna footprint. You’ll need a deck, patio or other lounging area to rest between rounds in the hot room. You may also want to install an outdoor shower of some sort – and that should be easily winterized if you live in a cold climate. Plan the interior of your sauna carefully, so that windows from the hot room see the outdoors directly, or indirectly through a window in the door to the hot room, which is aligned with a window on the world. Also consider cross ventilation in the changing room, including retractable screen doors that work well in confined spaces. Carefully consider whether you want to build an outdoor structure out of … [Read more...]
Built from reclaimed and collected materials, this DIY sauna build will make you want to step right in
Guest Post Series continues: Welcome Ken from the beautiful and awesome sauna climate of Whidbey Island, Washington USA Ken shares with us how sauna design and construction is an expressive opportunity to exercise one's right brain and creative design ambitions. Ken is a poster child for the saunatimes formula of WIT/M = :)2. With your own Will, Information, and Time, you can create your own authentic sauna. This will allow you to dig yourself for many years. Ken's sauna is a wonderful example of a backyard health and wellness retreat. Enter Ken: I was introduced to the sauna in high school through one of my best friends. His father grew up in Finland and had built a fine basement sauna. His family decided it was a shame I had no connection with my own Scandinavian heritage and set about schooling me in the ways of steam. My personal sauna journey began in college, when I acquired a canvas wall tent and thin walled wood stove which occupied an unused part of our driveway- … [Read more...]
Sauna Talk: Terry DeGroote. He’s one of those rare breeds who can build or fix anything
Terry is a career handyman and caretaker. His territory is the islands of Lake Vermilion, Tower, Minnesota. Terry was brought to Pine Island in diapers. He endured small stretches of time away from Lake Vermilion, with his family living in Hawaii for a few years and a career with the Duluth News Tribune in Duluth. Yet, primarily, Terry has spent his life on the lake. He has been an invaluable help to many dozens of Lake Vermilion cabin owners. His skills as a handyman and builder are infinite. He has hands in 40-50 different cabin projects. He manages 40-50 cabins, which includes such tricky annual work as docks in and out, water systems shut down and opened up, plus the myriad of things that come up from roof leaks, to bees nests, to, well, you name it. If you've had anything weird go wrong at your home, chances are Terry has encountered exactly this, and many times over. Terry, just like myself, has built about a dozen saunas himself. I've learned some tricks … [Read more...]
Building your own sauna creates incremental goodness that may help with your day job
There's something beneficial about taking a deep breath and considering these two terms: scarcity abundance Conventional thinkers practice the attitude of scarcity. You are required to show up at a certain time and leave at a certain time and, if in sales, bring in a number every month that is on plan with the companies high performance sales targets. We grow sales by taking shelf space from the other guy, and there's a limited amount of trade funds available so fill out the payment request form completely or it'll get rejected. Creative thinkers practice the attitude of abundance. We use our time productively and wisely and, if in sales, we think about how to help our customers in beneficial ways. We care about high performance sales targets only in the sense that when we help others and think creatively, the numbers will follow. We abhor payment request forms. 74% of sauna builders who started their project as conventional thinkers change their ways to become … [Read more...]
Enjoying the sauna building journey with a cold one in hand
FROM THE MAILBAG: Hi Glenn Despite the sauna like temperatures lately the sauna is progressing. Enjoying a cold one after working on the sauna today. Finished up the corner and gable trim. Next up...the Douglas Fir door (made with extra rafter boards.). Thanks for your help on the sauna construction. Everyday is a different little problem to solve. Sometimes challenging but always fun. Even during construction, it's great to hang out in the sauna and have a few cold ones. Hope you are having a great summer. Gary EDITORS NOTE: Building your own sauna need not be a stressful project. One of the great things about building your own sauna is that along each phase of the project, one tunes into the satisfaction of their progress, hanging out in their new space, living in the now with a brewski in hand. At the same time, it's fun to plan the next phase and to start visualizing the Finnished product. BONUS: recent studies report that 85% of sauna builders … [Read more...]