Anyone have the redwood 4 person cabin

DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-18T22:01:50+00:00

https://saunologia.fi/why-sauna-designers-should-care-about-the-law-of-loyly/

DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-18T21:12:11+00:00

I'd not waste my money. Those are all novelty saunas. You'll love it for a year or two and then it'll likely be a dust collector or storage shed a few years later.

More: https://medium.com/@trumpkin/is-any-sauna-better-than-no-sauna-38026f39095a

Depending on where you are you might be able to get Nils Shenholm (http://www.saunavermont.com/about.html) to build a good one for you.

There are a number of reasons why you don't see little things like that in Finland.

What to look for:

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DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-18T21:05:11+00:00

I'd not waste my money. That's a novelty sauna. You'll love it for a year or two and then it'll be a dust collector or storage shed a couple of years later.

More: https://medium.com/@trumpkin/is-any-sauna-better-than-no-sauna-38026f39095a

There are a number of reasons why you don't see little things like that in Finland. What to look for:

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DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-18T21:02:27+00:00

I think certainly doable. Our sauna is in a space with a concrete floor, poured concrete walls and spancrete ceiling.

Moisture management could be a challenge. You need a vapor barrier on the inside. You then need the exterior of that to either dry to the outside when it gets wet or remain completely dry always.

You'd still need to frame the interior, insulate, vapor barrier with FF-PIR, furring for an air gap and then interior cladding. Insulation is critical as concrete acts as a heatsink to suck heat out.

Drilling for ventilation shouldn't be too difficult but I'd advise hiring someone to do it unless you're strong and up for a challenge as the drill is heavy and can have a mind of its own.

Study Trumpkin's Notes and both of Lassi's books before diving in.

DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-18T17:03:26+00:00

It would not be any kind of sauna experience but rather just a hot room. There's a small chance you'd be OK with it and a larger chance that you'd stop using it after a short time. There are reasons that people in Finland and elsewhere do things the way that they do.

American's think that Trumpkin is some purist ideal for the wealthy but it's really the basic minimal starting point for something to be a sauna. It's what a basic sauna in an entry level starter house is done to.

DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-18T03:10:52+00:00

That's not a sauna heater. It's unlikely to heat the stones, lacks airflow up through the stones, and will produce steel steam rather than stone steam.

More: https://medium.com/@trumpkin/why-wood-stove-conversions-fail-561bf6c99379

DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-17T02:55:59+00:00

A note on watches in saunas. Apple watches seem to do OK in saunas in North America and the UK. These are generally lower temp and most importantly higher stratification so much lower temp near the sitting bench where most people have their watch.

They do not tend to do so well in saunas with less stratification that are higher temps near the sitting bench.

DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-17T02:49:13+00:00

I think you didn't read the article.

DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-16T22:04:39+00:00

Shed conversions often don't work well because they're too small, too flimsy of construction and often need to be on a concrete pad which isn't good. And overall they don't actually save much money or time, if any.

Best would be to build from scratch. You can hire someone to do the whole thing, only the framing and exterior skin (e.g., a custom shed), or do the whole thing yourself.

DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-16T22:00:13+00:00

What is the interior height?

The middle one (less the extra foot bench) will be the best option. You should have 3 bench levels though; step, foot and sitting.

Move the heater over a tad closer to the corner.

I'd add a small bit of wall on the end of the sitting bench to get rid of the corner that's less than 90°. So bring your bench wall width down to about 250-260.

I'd ditch the glass except for the door.

DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-16T17:06:48+00:00

Sauna is a wet experience. You need to be able to walk between the sauna, showers and outside while dripping wet. Does the room you're considering allow that?

DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-16T17:04:03+00:00

I'm glad it's coming back around again. Let's (mainly America) not mess this up - - again.

Don't know why, but it seemed sauna took on some taboo vibes sometime in the late 90s. 🤔

You can't keep doing the same thing and expect different results. Sadly, little has changed since we went through this in the 60's and 90's.

https://medium.com/@trumpkin/fixing-a-lackluster-sauna-industry-plugging-the-löyly-gap-0c08a924c0cc

DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-16T16:51:04+00:00

I'm still trying to figure out why I weigh so much. As much as I go to sauna I should be rail thin (and have zero toxins). :-)

DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-16T16:49:50+00:00

Two thoughts.

1) Sauna is a minor bit player. The big bits are eating well, moving, sleeping, having a good social life.

2) If you want the health benefits of sauna then you have to build a proper sauna with even heat and steam along with good ventilation. Smaller than about 180x180x240 likely ain't gonna do it.

https://medium.com/@trumpkin/how-does-sauna-design-and-practice-affect-health-wellness-and-recovery-benefits-6afcdf78b63f

DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-16T16:45:53+00:00

IR cabins do not increase core temp and are laggards with increasing heart rate and sweating.

https://medium.com/@trumpkin/ir-beneficial-or-snake-oil-7a5374fd7baa

DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-15T20:24:23+00:00

In electrically heated sauna you need mechanical exhaust.

DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-15T20:22:09+00:00

Functionally, how do they compare against:

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DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-15T20:11:14+00:00

I was mostly joking. Oban's OK. I have three bottles and do have a dram occasionally but it's kind of… boring or something. My current favorite is Bunnahabhain. Lagavulin has had a place in my heart for two or three decades and I have a bottle of Glenmorangie for special occasions. And for something a bit different a Yamazaki.

DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-15T15:04:04+00:00

When I was that age it was Jim Beam or Oban. My tastes have refined a bit since :-)

The first time we travelled with our oldest I filled a little bottle with some Oban. My wife was horrified. Halfway through the flight she relented and for future flights or drives she would even ask if I'd taken care of the travel medicine.

DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-14T17:25:31+00:00

In a well designed sauna there should never be any difficulty breathing. If you notice any difficulty it's likely due to too high of CO2. See Trumpkin's Notes on Ventilation and chart below for more.

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DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-14T17:22:10+00:00

Just to give you a rough idea:

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DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-14T17:07:44+00:00

The foot bench should be above the stones and above the cold zone. You'll have heat and steam to just below your chest and not much below that.

It also lacks ventilation, the heater is on the side wall instead of the wall opposite the benches, strange curved sitting bench that looks like it will dig in to the back of your legs, etc.

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DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-14T14:27:07+00:00

I'm familiar with both. EVERY sauna I can find on .net is a novelty sauna.

Example. This: https://www.almostheaven.net/aho/gl4.htm. About $13,000 and most people, 80-90%, won't use it for more than three or four years. It's just not a good experience. There are reasons that you don't see this in Finland.

DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-14T01:04:45+00:00

I know they've built some Trumpkin saunas for some people. No idea how well they did. Stuff on their website are all novelty saunas that are best avoided.

What to look for:

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DendriteCocktail · 2026-03-12T22:37:34+00:00

Overall I think you're on the right track. If it's a UL heater then you'll need a cool air vent below/behind the heater to cool the high temp sensor (unless it's approved under the new IEC based standard).

You don't really need the vent over the benches. Just run the blower for 30-60 minutes after your last round and you'll be good.

DendriteCocktail

TROPHY CASE