Sauna afterburn-- feeling hot for hours after a good sauna

 I take my saunas in the evening after work. I live in a cold climate with winters-- Minnesota, USA. My sauna ritual is to have friends over to socialize, drink beer, eat food and, of course, sauna. We do 4-6 rounds on average, each round taking 5-10 minutes, depending on the temperature. Some days our sauna is at 190F. Some days 210F. We have a changing room with a table, snacks and beer. Between rounds, we cool down and talk in the changing room. Once we're done for the night, I clean up, shower and go to bed.

I have noticed, several times, that when I go to bed afterwards, the house that may usually feel cooler in the winter, all of the sudden feels warmer. Almost to the point where if I lived alone, I'd lower the thermostat setting. In the morning, when I wake up, I still feel like the environment around me is warmer. This only happens after taking sauna. Somehow, the sauna must truly heat you through to the bone. I don't know where to find a scientific explanation for why this happens, but if you have ideas, let me know in the comments section.

Asking chatGPT for the reasoning, we get this:

What you're describing is actually pretty common after heavy sauna use. A few things are happening physiologically:

---

1️⃣ Your Core Temperature Stays Slightly Elevated

After multiple sauna rounds, your body temperature doesn’t instantly return to baseline. Your thermoregulation system stays slightly “turned up” for hours.

That means:

• Your resting core temp may be a bit higher

• You feel warm in environments that normally feel neutral

---

2️⃣ Blood Vessels Stay Dilated (Vasodilation)

Sauna causes strong vasodilation — blood vessels widen to dump heat.

That effect can linger into the night and even the next day, which:

• Increases blood flow to the skin

• Makes you feel warmer at normal room temperature

• Can make you more heat-sensitive

---

3️⃣ Nervous System Activation

Sauna is a controlled stressor. It activates:

• Sympathetic nervous system (during heat exposure)

• Then parasympathetic rebound afterward

Your temperature regulation center (hypothalamus) can temporarily recalibrate, making typical room temps feel warmer than usual.

---

4️⃣ Mild Dehydration

Even if you rehydrate, you may still be slightly low on fluids or electrolytes.

Dehydration:

• Reduces your ability to cool efficiently

• Makes you feel warmer more easily

---

5️⃣ Increased Metabolic Rate (Short-Term)

Heat exposure can temporarily elevate heart rate and metabolic activity. A slightly elevated metabolism produces more internal heat.

---

Is This Normal?

Yes — as long as you don’t have:

• Fever

• Chills

• Persistent night sweats

• Dizziness or rapid heartbeat

If it’s just “the house feels warmer than usual,” that’s typically just lingering thermoregulation effects.

---

Quick Fixes

• Aggressive hydration + electrolytes

• Cool (not cold) shower

• Light movement the next day

• Avoid stacking multiple long sauna sessions back-to-back

Sauna Steam Generator- Sauna Steam Bucket

 Everyone knows, throwing water on the rocks makes sauna way more enjoyable. The steam makes it feel hotter while making the sauna more humid. Add some great scents to the water, and the experience is that much better. 

When I built my sauna, the first accessory I purchased was a wooden sauna bucket and a wooden ladle. It was expensive and small. The ladle cracked within weeks and was burned in the stove as punishment. The bucket didn't last much longer either. The changes in temperature caused both to lose their shape and fall apart. I needed an upgrade. So, I replaced the wooden ladle with a metal one. I did the same with the bucket. That worked great! Still have both to this day. However, I liked steam so much, I wanted to do better. This is when the Sauna Steam Bucket was born. I wanted to sit on the bench and enjoy as much or as little steam as I felt like at the moment. I didn't want to jump off the bench to throw water on the rocks. 

Today, I have the Sauna Steam Bucket sitting on my top bench next to the sauna stove. When I want steam, I simply open the valve, and the water rushes down the pipe and hits the hot stones instantly and evenly. No more water dripping on the floor past the rocks from putting too much on. No more cooling the stones more than necessary due to pockets of water. I have full control over the steam. If I want the room to be humid, I simply crack the valve open just a bit and leave it for the whole sauna session. The water then drips very slowly on to the rocks providing constant humidity and great aroma smell. If I'm at the end of the sauna session and really want to heat up, I can open the valve most of the way, then a wave of hot steam wraps the whole room. If I want it to stop, I just close the valve, and the steam stops.

Ever since I build the first Sauna Steam Bucket, everyone complements me on how good the sauna experience is. It's a perfect accessory that I think every sauna should have.

Buy Sauna Steam Bucket Now!

Sauna Steam Bucket

Buy Today! https://www.etsy.com/listing/4380624148/sauna-steam-bucket-add-steam-humidity

Sauna Fan - Move Hot Air and Aroma Around the Sauna Hot Room

 https://www.etsy.com/listing/1576365793/sauna-twister-for-aufguss-to-distribute

  You've done saunas for years. This is not your first rodeo. You get it nice and warm, put your favorite aroma oils in the water bucket, go in and get comfortable on the bench, with your favorite music playing. Throw a few ladles of that great smelling water on the rocks and enjoy. You're in your best sauna. But, are you really?

Have you ever had anyone in the sauna whip out their towel and start spinning it to circulate the air around? All of the sudden, the air gets hotter, the aroma scent thicker, and the sauna feeling much much better! The formal history of it, I guess, is that it's a ritual. The formal name-- Aufguss. From German meaning "infusion" as the following site explains:

https://chelsea.lenordik.com/en/2021/10/what-is-aufguss/

If you've read the blog post from the link above, there are professionals that do the towel spinning. They're called the Aufgussmister. But, no need to be that technical, this is your private sauna after all. However, if you don't feel like spinning your sweat-soaked towel around and adding aroma you don't intend, there are sauna accessories that can be purchased online that will help you achieve that next level sauna. 

One such fan was designed and is used in both of my saunas. The Sauna Twister is a fun an easy way to get the air moving and makes the sauna more enjoyable. Give it a try today and support this blog!

Buy Sauna Twister

https://www.etsy.com/listing/1576365793/sauna-twister-for-aufguss-to-distribute

Next time you go for sauna, give Aufguss a try. Then, come back and comment below with your thoughts.

Sauna and Campfires

    One of my favorite aspects of a wood burning sauna is watching the fire flicker in the stove while you're on the bench warming up. Especially if it's freezing outside and everything is covered in snow.

Fire burning in sauna stove

As great as it is, periodically you have to get out of the sauna and cool down. I think sauna is about being social. It's not the same doing it alone. When inside heating up, conversations with friends and family are a big part of the experience. Cooling down outside, the conversations can continue by the campfire. I think a person can watch a campfire burn for hours. The fact that it also gives off heat is a bonus. This heat allows you to spend more time outside cooling down and prolongs the conversations.

 Another benefit of a campfire is the smell. Sure, you get the wood burning smell in the sauna when you open the stove door to throw in a log, but by the campfire, you get to enjoy it longer.

Saunas and campfires go hand and hand

When building your sauna or looking to improve an existing sauna experience, don't forget about your outdoor space. Make sure you make space, have lighting for evening hours and cold winters, comfortable seating and most importantly, a firepit for campfires!

Chicago Bath House aka Red Square Bath House Road Trip From MN

 Unfortunately, Minnesota does not have a Bath House-- at least not a Slavic type with different saunas, steam room, cold plunge and a restaurant with food and drinks. Searching on the map, Chicago is the closest location with multiple such bath houses. Our sauna crew talked about taking a trip to Chicago to enjoy some bath houses for over a year. This year, it finally came to fruition. 

Last weekend, 5 of us piled into a car and drove 6 hours to Illinois. Our goal was to spend the weekend eating good food and trying different bath houses. One such place was the Chicago Bath House, formerly known as the Red Square Bath House. Talking to one of the staff members, the place has quite a history. Originally started in 1906, it even saw Al Capone and Rev Jesse Jackson prior to changing owners and becoming Red Square Bath House. 

Chicago Bath House formerly Red Square Bath House 

Upon paying the cover price, you go down to the changing rooms where you're given towels, slippers and a robe. There are male and female locker rooms/areas. The male side has segregated sauna, cold plunge, steam room and hot tub. Not sure what the female side has :) There is a common rest area that is coed as well as a coed 200F dry sauna. Drinks and snacks can be ordered from upstairs bar via a landline in the room and they are brought down and charged to your account. There's a large selection of beer on tap and in bottles.

After enjoying a few rounds of saunas, hot tub, steam and the skin piercing cold plunge, we were ready to eat. Putting on our robes, we went upstairs to the restaurant. The restaurant serves many great Slavic dishes, both hot and cold. The food was surprisingly tastier than at a lot of standalone restaurants. The staff was great and the cold tap beer hit the spot. They also serve beet infused vodka they make themselves-- a must try!

After a delicious dinner, it was back downstairs for a few more rounds of heat. The men's area also has a hall with loungers, where we enjoyed just laying and watching TV, relaxing after sauna and dinner. Finally, after showering and changing back to street clothes, it was back upstairs for fresh brewed hot tea to end the night as the bath house closed at 12am.

This is my second time visiting the Chicago Bath House and I've enjoyed it every time. Having visited 2 more places that weekend, I would say that this bath house is my favorite and most authentic. It's also clean and has everything I expect in a bath house like this.

Bath House Chicago - Spa - Restaurant - Sauna - Tan - 773-227-2284

Chicago Bath House | Chicago IL | Facebook

Share your thoughts below in the comments of the bath houses you've visited and would recommend. Any idea why northern MN or even MI does not have such a bath house that's a closer drive then Chicago? I look forward to hearing from you!

How to take your sauna to the next level!

 You've done saunas for years. This is not your first rodeo. You get it nice and warm. Put your favorite aroma oils in the water bucket. Go in and get comfortable on the bench, with your favorite music playing. Throw a few ladles of that great smelling water on the rocks and enjoy. You're in your best sauna. But, are you really?

Have you ever had anyone in the sauna whip out their towel and start spinning it to circulate the air around? All of the sudden, the air gets hotter, the aroma scent thicker, and the sauna feeling much much better! The formal history of it, I guess, is that it's a ritual. The formal name, Aufguss. From German meaning "infusion" as the following site explains:

https://chelsea.lenordik.com/en/2021/10/what-is-aufguss/

If you've read the blog post from the link above, there are professionals that do the towel spinning. They're called the Aufgussmister. But, no need to be that technical, this is your private sauna after all. However, if you don't feel like spinning your sweat-soaked towel around and adding aroma you don't intend, there are sauna accessories that can be purchased online that will help you achieve that next level sauna.

https://www.etsy.com/listing/1576365793/sauna-twister-for-aufguss-to-distribute

https://www.etsy.com/listing/1362398949/fan-for-sauna-aufguss-ritual-thermowood

Next time you go for sauna, give Aufguss a try. Then, come back and comment below with your thoughts.

Bread stuffing-- sauna finger food

 This is a snack that's really quick to make and is very delicious. You can create your own stuffing at home from any bread you like. However, I decided to buy the pre-made stuffing bread at the store for a whopping $2.99. 

Once you have the bread, sprinkle a good amount of salt (I like salty stuff with my beer). Add olive oil and garlic paste. Mix well. I think it tastes a little better when it sits in the refrigerator for a bit and soaks in the flavors.

This is a great finger food snack that's easily sharable in the sauna. Having made it last week, I can tell you it goes fast!

Bread stuffing with salt, olive oil and garlic.

Uzbek Plov/Pilaf warms the sauna

 Uzbek plov/pilaf is like the Spanish Paella or the Indian Biryani in a sense that it is loved and argued about who has the best recipe. I've never been to Uzbekistan to try the plov at the source. I have visited Uzbek restaurants and have tried my friends' cooking. Although they all taste different, the common thread is, you can't stop at just one serving! The dish fills you and warms you up and so it is perfect for sauna. As always, the journey is as fun as the destination, so the process of preparing and making the dish is very enjoyable. 

Sauté the onions and meat.

Add lots of carrots!

Add back meat, rice, spices, whole garlic, serrano pepper and water.

Cook until rice is ready.

Mix and share with sauna friends!

Chimney Sweeping and Soot Cleaning

 Searching through my previous posts, it seems that the last time the chimney was cleaned was in 2018. Today, I finally got around to doing the dreaded dirty deed. Running the stove consistently once per week for 4 years, I think it was time.

The two things I hate about sweeping the chimney are:

1. Climbing up on the roof.

2. Taking the pipes apart and putting them back together.

This year, I figured I try and make it easier and sweep from the inside. Since the pipes need to be taken apart going from the stove to the ceiling anyway, as I need to catch the debris, sweeping from the inside was worth a try. This part was definitely a win. Worked just fine and got the pipes clean. No need to be on the roof. Just make sure the chimney brush doesn't knock off the chimney cap. You'll feel when the brush pops out of the chimney.

The separating of the pipes is of course a pain. Partially, because they rust due to humidity. However, my biggest PITA is the top pipe that slides on the collar pipe near the ceiling. It's a very tight fit. To get it to slide, you need to put WD-40 or something slippery on it. The problem is that after a few twists, WD-40 dries up and you're stuck with the pipe being too far in and it doesn't want to move. This is even worse in reverse, when trying to put the pipes back.

Once I was able to separate the pipes and get them out of the way, here's what I found:

Soot inside the stove.

Soot inside one of the pipes- creosote.

Soot inside the dampener pipe.

Soot inside the collar pipe in the ceiling.

Some collected soot along the way.

As much of a pain as this was and always is, I'm glad I got the cleaning done. Now I can enjoy a few more years of sauna without worrying about a fire or inefficiency of the burn.

Do you have any tips that you've picked up which make this job easier? Especially removing the pipes. Please share in the comments.

Pizza and wings satisfy the sauna crowd

Special meals in the sauna are great. Planning what to cook, buying the ingredients, cooking the meal-- all adds to the preparation and excitement of sauna later in the day. However, sometimes, you just want to order out and get the food without putting in much effort. After all, sauna is for relaxing ;) 

My go-to delivery food for sauna are wings in some sort of spicy sauce. The kids, of course, love pizza. Part of the fun is trying new restaurants and finding something new to like. Everyone makes ordering online these days too easy. The delivery staff gets a kick out of delivering to a sauna as well! 

Spicy BBQ Sauce Chicken Wings

Stuffed Crust Delivery Pizza

Of course, not every sauna goer cares deeply about the quality of food, some like these 2 dogs, will take anything they can get:

Sauna dogs Bruno and Tigri

Food or no food, they love sauna. They rush towards the sauna building any time they're outside. They love going into the hot room and getting warm.

Tell me about your favorite delivery food for sauna. What kind of food do you order out for to eat while warming up?

Paella- great dish for sauna sharing

Paella is a Spanish rice dish that is easy to prepare and is made to be shared. Looking up recipes online, you will see that there are many variations. There's also arguments as to which way is the right way to make it. Is using chicken the authentic way, or is it seafood? Each region has their own twist. All the existing variations are what give you the freedom to try and come up with your own version. Post your recipes in the comments below please!

Cooking arguments aside, everyone can agree that sharing is important and that is what makes paella a great sauna dish. Once the paella is cooked, it stays in the pan put on the table to share. Everyone grabs their own plate and work and serves themselves. The spices fill the room and make the sauna even more enjoyable.

The images below are of the paella I made for one sauna night. Yes, it's beef (why not, right?) and it was good. Look for exact recipes online but below is a quick glimpse of how I cooked it. 

Sweat the onions, garlic and sweet red pepper.

Brown the meat.

Add chicken stock and spices.

Add Paella rice and simmer.

Paella is ready to serve to your sauna guests!

Crayfish boil for sauna food

A crayfish boil is a great sauna dish that hits the spot and goes fast! This is finger food at its finest and great for sauna. The dish is easy to make and can have many variations you can try. Add corn on the cob. Add other seafood you want. Maybe other vegetables? Add your variations in the comments section below, we'd love to try something new!

Seafood boil spices are available at most grocery stores. Boil a pot of water with those spices, then add the potatoes and seafood. All sorts of recipes are available online, so find what you like and give it a try! If you find a winner, please post it in the comments. 

Boiling crayfish/crawfish in spices.

Boiled crayfish/crawfish with potatoes and spices.

Is an outdoor sauna a good investment? Is it worth it?

For me, building a sauna was a great investment. No, I don't mean financial. A sauna does not raise the price of your home. But the return on my investment has been huge I believe. 

Bragging Rights:

Back in 2015, I spent about $10000 in materials on this sauna build. The rest was free labor of myself and my friends which I paid for with pizza and beer :) The fact that I can say I did everything from pouring the foundation to roofing, electrical, finishing work and so one is a big bragging right.

Family Pride:

My children are proud of me. They tell their friends that dad built the sauna. They are also proud of the little things they helped with in the sauna build. They're happy they have a special tradition they grew up with, and the hot saunas they've had during cold winter months. I can tell that even my wife is proud of me when she says "You built a whole sauna out there and you can't hang this shelf I've been asking you for months?"

Common Interest:

When you meet other people who enjoy using saunas you have a common interest. It's fun to share photos or share your sauna with them and hear how great of a job you did in the layout and the whole sauna experience you created.

Weekly Use:

I use my sauna every week. I have friends that come once per week to socialize, share stories over drinks and sauna rounds, eat food and laugh. Just as much as I enjoy the socializing, I also enjoy the preparation. To prepare for the sauna night, I need to start the fire and get the room up to temp. I need to figure out what we'll have for food for that night. Sometimes I order out. Sometimes I ask my friends to bring food. Sometimes when I want to make it interesting, I cook myself. I've made chicken wings, cray fish, seafood boil and more. Every week it gives me something to look forward to.

Convenience:

The sauna sits just steps away from my house. It's far enough that the family can't hear the sauna activity, but close enough that if I'm needed at home, I'm there. As an extra selfish bonus, I don't have to drive. Whether being very relaxed after sauna or with the addition of a few alcoholic beverages, I don't  need to get behind the wheel. I'm home in 30 seconds and in the shower before bed.

Stability:

With the chaos of everyday life, you never know what the next day brings. My once per week sauna night is something I look forward to and motivates me all week.

Is a sauna a good investment? For me, the return on investment has been one of the best I've ever had. 5 years after building it, it still gets the frequent use and I still look forward to each upcoming sauna session. In fact, it has been so good that we ended up buying a pre-built barrel sauna for our cabin. 

How to start a fire

Starting a fire, like anything else, can be done in many different ways. I have started many camp fires in my life and stove fires, but what always bugged me is the time it took to get the fire to catch the big logs. You put the paper in, light it up, it seems to burn well, then the fire dies down and the big logs are not burning. You add more paper, it looks good again, then nothing.

At one point, I went to Google to find the answer. Of the suggestions I read, I liked the “Upside Down Fire” the most. The idea is basically you start with big logs on the bottom. Then, you put thinner logs on top of the big logs going perpendicular to them. Finally, on top of these logs, you put kindling going again perpendicular. Finally, some paper on the top and light it.

An example can be found here:

https://lifehacker.com/5144222/the-upside-down-fire-method-creates-long-lasting-flames

Although I found the method to work, it was too much for me to stack so much wood and stuff in to the stove—I wanted something simpler and quicker, so, I think I came up with my own way (at least I didn’t see it anywhere but it worked for me)

What I end up doing is using 2-3 small logs. I put one on the bottom going the length of the stove. I put the other one or two at 45 degree angle to the first log on top. I then put Quick Start Kindling alongside the last 2 logs. I use one to two pieces. An example of the Quick Start Kindling can be found here:

https://www.homedepot.com/p/EcoForest-Quick-Start-Kindling-907488/202279728

I then put a small piece of paper under the Quick Start Kindling and light it. Just make sure the air inlet of the stove is open. I sometimes keep the stove door slightly open as well until the kindling really gets going.

Laying out logs for starting a fire.

The paper burns easily, it then catches the Quick Start Kindling. The kindling lights easily from the paper, but burns long and hot enough to get the smaller logs burning. Once those logs have a good flame, I turn fresh air inlet down on the stove and add bigger logs. 

Lighting paper to light the kindling.

The burning paper lights the kindling.

The burning kindling lights the smaller logs.

All wood completely burning.

This method is effective and quick enough for me. I also noticed that I don’t always empty out the ash from the stove before starting a fire. I found it doesn’t affect it much.

Do you have your own favorite ways of starting a fire? Please comment below!

Sauna cleaning- chimney sweeping and disinfecting

Every year, usually in spring time, we try and spend one day on cleaning out the sauna. After using it one to two days per week over the course of a year, there’s a lot of dirt that builds up on the floors and grime on the benches. Also, it’s been about 3 years since we cleaned the chimney, so we figured it should be done as well. We started with the chimney first.

I looked online and found a local hardware store that sold a 6” chimney brush and chimney extension rods. Two points I should mention here:

1.  The size of the chimney brush must match the size of your chimney. We have a 6” chimney, thus I bought a 6” brush.

2.  We have a stainless steel chimney. Stainless steel chimneys require a poly brush—not metal. Metal brushes will scratch a stainless chimney.

With both the brush and rods in hand, we went up on the roof. While being up there, we also swept the roof clean of branches that have accumulated as well as trimmed a few branches that have grown. With that done, we removed the chimney cap. 

Removing the chimney cap

It was amazing how dirty the cap was. Between spider webs and creosote, it was pretty restricted. The cap was brought down to the ground. Next, we were trying to figure out how best to clean the chimney. We decided it was best to take apart the pipe going from our stove to the support box in the ceiling. After unscrewing the screws holding the pipes together, we tried to get the pipes to move. After being used for 3 years, some rust developed welding them in place. Also, there’s about an 8 inch pipe that sits in the support box. The black pipe that attaches to it, needs to slide up that 8” pipe in order to make room for the bottom pipes to be removed. A trick I learned is to use some WD-40 on that 8” pipe in order to get it slick for the lower pipe to slide on it. That WD-40 will then burn off. After some addition of elbow grease, we were able to get the pipes to move.

Having removed the lowest pipe, we used a vacuum to vacuum out all the creosote that has accumulated inside the stove. We then put a bucket underneath the pipe that was still hanging and used our brush from the roof to push through the chimney and the rest of the pipes.

Putting the chimney brush into the chimney to sweep

The creosote then collected in the bucket. We then used the brush to clean out the first pipe that we took off from the stove as well as the dampener inside of it. Once we could see through the pipes & chimney that all were clean, we assembled everything back together with the help of some more WD-40 on the top pipe near the support box.

Creosote from the chimney

More creosote from the chimney

You always hear that creosote causes chimney fires. We now had a bucket of creosote. I couldn’t help but experiment with it. I took a piece out of the bucket, put it on the ground and lit it on fire. The piece didn’t have a flame but seemed to smolder very well for a good while.

Smoldering creosote

With the chimney cleaning complete, we were on to cleaning the rest of the sauna. First, all the furniture was removed. Then, the rug in the changing room was removed followed by all the benches from the hot room. The floors were then swept and mopped with some antibacterial mixed in to the mop water like Mr. Clean or Pine Sol. The floors were left to dry.

For the benches, I’m lucky enough to have a pressure washer. I once found online an antibacterial solution that’s used for sauna benches. The product is called Super Puhdas Sauna cleaner. Supposed to be safe on wood. I ordered a bottle online the first time I cleaned my sauna. 

Super Puhdas Sauna cleaner

I mix some into a water bucket then using a plastic bristle brush dipped in to the water, begin to clean the benches. This gets rid of the nasty sweat that has accumulated from a year’s use.

Sauna cleaning solution

The benches then get power washed to further remove the grime.

Power washing the sauna benches

I use the same solution to clean and disinfect the folding lawn chairs we use in our sauna for sitting. They also get a course of power washing to hose them down.

Now that the chimney is clean, the floors are swept and disinfected and so are the benches and chairs, it’s time to put everything back into its place. It is also time to fire up the stove to see how much better it works, to burn off that WD-40 which should have been drying for a few hours while we cleaned the rest of the sauna. It’s also a good time to enjoy the sauna. It’s been a long day with lots of physical labor which calls for an evening sauna to relax and have a few beers.

Cheers!

Kids in the sauna-- a great family building tradition

I first experienced a sauna when I was 6 years old. My mother’s friend’s family owned a sauna in the woods and she took me with them in the middle of winter to give it a try. I remember sitting on the bench and getting hot then running outside and throwing snowballs at each other. That was my first experience and it was fun.

Fast forward about 30+ years and here I am, with my own sauna and my own two kids. My son was 3 when I started building the sauna. He enjoyed helping whenever he could—still does. Once the sauna was operational, I wanted to get the kids accustomed to using it with me. My daughter was 7 when she first tried it. My son was 3. The first couple of times, my daughter did not enjoy the hot room very much. The temperature was too high for her, and the steam that would come from throwing water on the stove freaked her out. Regardless of the hot room, both kids enjoyed eating snacks and watching cartoons on TV in the changing room.

After the first few sauna uses, my daughter learned that the steam dissipates quickly, it actually feels good and the spearmint smell is great. The heat was nothing to worry about. I learned to keep the temp around 160F-170F for her as well. What really made the sauna fun for her is that after getting warm, she could go outside in the cold and pour cold water on herself, then run back in to warm up.

My son was 3 when he first tried the sauna. First few times, he’d come in to the hot room, take his shirt off, get on the top bench, spend a minute there and say “it’s hot” and leave. He too enjoyed the snacks and cartoons in the changing room more than sitting on the bench. However, as he watched my friends and I use the hot room as well as his sister, he learned to enjoy it. He’s gotten to the point where I think it’s time for him to come out and cool off, but he wants to stay on the bench and watch cartoons through the candle window. Kids are funny.

Overall, I love the days the kids and I use the sauna. I enjoy doing something with them that started with an idea and was built with my own hands. I love that they enjoy something unique that I enjoy. I’m glad that I could give them the ability to get so warm that going out in the snow didn’t scare even a 3 year old.

One word of caution about kids and sauna. Take it very slow and error on the side of caution. Make sure the kids drink plenty of water and don’t over stay in the hot room. With their small bodies, they heat up faster than adults. Although they may not show it, they will try and stay in there as long as possible to the point of overheating. Make sure they do plenty of cool offs and limit to being in the hot room no more than 5 minutes at a time-- at least until you see how well they do.

We have since had friends over who brought their kids to the sauna and the dynamic is fun to watch. The kids want to go to the hot room with the kids, and adults want to go with adult. My now 8 year old daughter is a sauna professional along with her friends. I looked through the candle window and they had their towels on the top bench, the other girls were laying down, my daughter threw spoons of water on the stove and they were all enjoying the steam and talking away. Yep, I’m definitely happy I went ahead with the sauna build and the money I spent on it is well worth it.

TV in an outdoor sauna? Ohhh yeah!

When I was building my outdoor sauna, I knew I wanted to have music playing during sauna rounds. I always had it in the plans to install speakers. Eventually, I bought ceiling speakers rated for bathrooms use off CraigsList.com and installed 2 in the changing room and 2 in the hot room. All wires lead in to the same junction box in the changing room. I hung a cheap stereo right next to the junction box and hooked it up to the speakers. The first few saunas we always had music, either via radio channels, CDs, or the magical AUX jack that the stereo came with. Anyone could plug in their cell phone and play any sort of music off the web. However, that ended up being short lived.

You see, I have 2 kids and no time to watch TV at home. The sauna for me is a means of warming up in the winter months, but it’s also an opportunity to get away and do what I want. And so, I started thinking about putting a TV in the sauna. I shared my idea with the guys and got a mixed response. Some said it would be good to watch sports while we sauna. Others were sure it would take away from the sauna experience and hinder conversations. I could see both sides, but could not let go of the crazy idea. After again searching for a while on CraigsList.com, I found a person selling a relatively new 24” TV with WI-FI capability for $80. So, I went ahead and bought it.

Next came the install. I wanted the TV to be visible from all corners of the sauna. It needed to hang in a place that wouldn’t get in the way, but would be visible from both the changing room and the hot room. I decided to buy a full motion TV wall mount from Walmart for under $20. This would allow me to hang the TV high and swivel it and move it any direction I needed, then, move it out of the way when not in use. It took about 30 minutes to hang the TV while the stove was warming up one sauna session and after it looked great.

A TV is a great addition to an outdoor sauna.

For the next part, we needed internet. I specifically bought a WI-FI enabled TV (not all of them are) to be able to stream videos from YouTube.com. With YouTube.com, you can stream music videos, which satisfies the music fix. You can also stream some movies, live events and sports. My house is supplied with internet via a wireless WI-FI router which is only about 20 yards from the sauna, but the signal inside the sauna from that router was too weak. Furthermore, as I found out, TVs have a very weak WI-FI receiver in general. Even the cell phones have stronger receivers. While being inside the sauna building, my cell phone could connect to the home WI-FI and stream music, while the TV could not. To resolve this, I bought a cheap WI-FI Extender. It’s a small device that you plug in to an outlet and runs you about $20 used. You first need to configure it to your home WI-FI, but once that’s done, you can plug it in to your sauna’s outlet and it will pick up your home’s weak WIFI signal and amplify it-- giving you WI-FI in the sauna. Voilà!

So far, we have built in speakers in the sauna for sound, we have a great little WI-FI enabled TV hanging in the corner for all to see. The last step is to put the two together. Luckily, the TV had a phono (headphones) style output in the back that allowed me to hook it up to the AUX connection in the stereo in the other corner of the changing room. All I needed was to run a long phono cable from TV to the stereo. I bought a 25 foot cable at www.sweetwater.com for about $10. Once all plugged in, we had the TV streaming YouTube.com through all of the 4 built in speakers. Pretty sweet!

So in the end you may ask, who was right? Was the TV a good addition or did it kill the sauna vibe? I think the consensus is--- it’s great. At the end of 2016, we all spent an evening watching one of the heated 2016 presidential debates while taking a sauna. We discussed the event while watching and enjoyed some steam. Since then, we always have the TV going at every sauna session. Whether its watching stand-up comedy, a funny movie, a sports event or just a video of waves breaking on shore with some great music behind it while the snow is falling outside our window, the TV has really been a great addition to the sauna. It even makes for a great incentive for my kids to go to the sauna when I put on cartoons. They look forward to watching the TV, filling up on sauna snacks and warming up in the hot room.

Ice cubes for steam? That's brilliant!

Sometimes, completely unexpected, an idea is born out of necessity that is just brilliant. As I have previously blogged, we started using bottled gallon water from the store to throw on to the stove to make steam. The city water gave a bad smell. http://outdoorsaunabuildmndiy.blogspot.com/2016/04/a-thought-about-throwing-tap-water-on.html

Sometimes, we have water left over in the gallon jugs so we simply leave it in the sauna until next time. 

With it being winter, the water freezes. Sometimes, by the time the sauna is back up to temp the next time we use it, the water thaws. Sometimes, like last night, we just can’t wait. We needed water and it was all frozen. We ended up cutting the plastic jugs and breaking up the blocks of frozen ice in to cubes. We then put those cubes in to a bucket. That exposed the brilliance of the idea. As it come out, throwing a 4” chunk of ice on to the stove provides the same steam wave as throwing a ladle of water, but, in a much smoother and slower form. There are other benefits to having these chunks of ice that we discovered. First, it provides a place in the hot room to hold your drink and keep it cool. Second, it provides you with cold water and chunks of ice that you can use to pour over yourself in the hot room to cool down without leaving. Of course, there’s room for improvement. Imagine mixing water with your favorite sauna scent like Spearmint and freezing that into preformed chunks of ice prior to your next sauna. Next time you sauna, no need to chisel a block of ice. Simply take out a cube or two of your scented ice and toss them on the stove for a slow release of steam and fragrance. Ahhh, when’s the next sauna?

Use ice cubes to throw on the sauna stove for slow steam release.

Wood stove steamer or kettle humidifier for sauna

If you follow this blog, you know that the sauna was built with the help of a lot of my friends who frequently use it as well. So, it’s not surprising that any addition or alteration to the sauna gets debated by the whole group. One such long standing debate has been about the “Kettle Humidifier” or “Stove Humidifier.” There are different variations of this, but, the idea is the same. A cast iron pot/kettle is filled with water and placed on top of the stove/rocks. As the stove produces heat, it heats up the pot/kettle in which water evaporates and humidifies the air.

After seeing this kettle at a store, I thought it would be a great addition. However, the debate raged on. Some people thought that it would make the sauna a steam room and that’s not what we wanted. Because of that point, I stayed away from investing in this humidifier kettle-- until recently. This fall, I decided to bite the bullet and give it a try. It’s only $15 :)

Wood stove top humidifier for sauna.

I have to say, I’m glad I bought it. It definitely does NOT make a steam room out of the sauna. However, what it does is makes it easier to breath and makes, at least me, sweat a lot quicker. An extra bonus is you can add your scents directly to the kettle water for a continuous release of wonderful Eucalyptus or Spearmint or whatever sauna scent you like. Keep in mind, this is not a replacement for throwing water on the rocks—this is in addition to. Any time you want some Löyly, you can still throw a few ladles of water over the rocks-- the kettle does not get in the way.

So, if you have never heard about a humidifying stove kettle or have been playing with the idea of getting one, I suggest you go and buy one. I know it made my sauna experience more enjoyable and I hope it does the same thing for you.  

Final sauna inspection by the city inspector

About a year ago plus a couple of months, I made the decision to build an outdoor wood fired sauna. I wanted to do it honestly and following the city rules so that I didn’t have any issues down the road. I started my build by talking to my city inspections department and figuring out exactly which permit is needed. In my city, any outdoor structure under 200 sq feet does not require a permit, however, it still needs to be approved by the city as far as where it’s placed, how it looks and such. I learned that my city inspections department had a pretty foggy idea of what a sauna is. One concern they had is there would be too much smoke outside. Apparently, as I found out, they thought a sauna was a wood boiler—the tiny house size oven you see placed outdoors behind a house in rural areas that heats the house in the winter and creates lots and lots of smoke. Eventually, the inspections department told me I needed to pull a stove permit and that the stove needed to be UL approved up to the UL 875. I paid my $90 and got the permit. As you recall from reading the blog, there are only 2 or 3 stove in the country that are even UL listed. From my further research, I found out that the listing my city inspections requested that I get actually applied to “Electric Sauna Stove” once I looked up the particular UL number. (http://ulstandards.ul.com/standard/?id=875) The correct UL listing for a wood burning stove is actually UL 1482 (http://ulstandards.ul.com/standard/?id=1482&edition=7&doctype=ulstd)

Well, I did find and install a great UL listed stove- Kuuma wood sauna stove by Lamppa Mfg (http://www.lamppakuuma.com). I followed the stove clearances and worked closely with my city inspector. When the chimney was first installed, I had my initial inspection and passed. After the stove was installed, I had my final inspection and FAILED. The inspector had some changes for me to make, such as getting half of one of my benches out of the clearance range of the stove, and covering the floor with cement. I complied.

Yesterday, I had my follow up “final” inspection. I am pleased to announce that the inspection PASSED and my sauna is now in full compliance and is ready for official use!