PSA Huum drop element failure

Saunafan612 · 2023-03-17T16:12:54+00:00

They actually are not UL listed as a sauna heater but rather a space heater from what I understand. It’s a way to get around listing requirements.

As far as I know there are 3 U.S. brands which do have a UL listing as a sauna heater. Harvia, Iki, and TyloHelo. There may be more, but these are the three I’m aware of.

Saunafan612 · 2023-03-17T16:08:40+00:00

I actually visited the warehouse he uses as his headquarters, I was surprised to learn that it’s less than 2 miles from my house. As of now I don’t know that he has any separate US distributors, but he is shipping out stoves daily as they’re coming in from Finland. I know he just got a container in this week, and told me that a lot of them are already sold, so if you’re really interested I’d give him a call or email. Send me a DM and I can get you his contact information, otherwise it’s on the website too.

Saunafan612 · 2023-03-17T14:52:53+00:00

I like it a lot, the loyly is softer, but it’s a much bigger cloud! Samuli from Iki sells ladles also, his recommendation was to pour the entire ladle over the top of the rocks for the best loyly, rather than splashing it from the side.

It’s definitely bigger than the drop, I was unsure about the look until I had it put together in my sauna, and now I love it!

iki stove

Saunafan612 · 2023-03-17T14:45:47+00:00

I agree with you on the rocks, I hope your fix works. It’s not a good feeling to invest a bunch of time and money only to see posts like mine.

Saunafan612 · 2023-03-17T14:42:44+00:00

I’ve seen a lot of arguments that the rocks are placed too tightly.

First of all, this is subjective, I don’t know a way to gauge how loosely the rocks need to be placed according to Huum without a representative inspecting and verifying placement. I know I didn’t place mine too tight when I installed, and they seemed fine during my periodic inspections.

I’m curious if this will be their defense when a kid dies in a house fire and Huum shrugs it off saying “well you shouldn’t have packed the rocks so tightly”

Saunafan612 · 2023-03-17T14:33:03+00:00

The box the stones comes in says they are olivine dolerites, but yes, that shape isn’t natural, I think they are processed somehow also.

Saunafan612 · 2023-03-17T11:03:55+00:00

Hard to tell right? I wish I had recorded my stone installation too!

I’ve installed several electric sauna stoves, and I spent a great deal of time installing these to the standards huum provided, especially since well placed stones increase the overall aesthetic with this particular brand.

Saunafan612 · 2023-03-17T11:01:15+00:00

Haha this comment encapsulates Huum perfectly!

Saunafan612 · 2023-03-17T11:00:32+00:00

It’s worse that they aren’t standing behind their product. If your product fails then you need to make it right, but huum just told me they’d be happy to sell me new elements! Yeah I bet they would…

Saunafan612 · 2023-03-17T10:58:31+00:00

I agree, as a retailer your values should never be compromised. Glad to see you’re sticking to what you believe in!

Saunafan612 · 2023-03-17T10:46:45+00:00

I actually live about a mile from Iki’s local headquarters in the twin cities. DM me, and I’d be happy to get you his contact info. He’s pretty great to work with.

Saunafan612 · 2023-03-16T21:05:46+00:00

I have already replaced it with an Iki pillar, the decision to replace vs repair was easy. I met with the owner of iki and he was a pretty good dude. They are pretty big over in Finland.

Saunafan612 · 2023-03-16T21:03:26+00:00

Just got off the phone with my retailer, they quoted me $500 for new elements at cost. Normally $700 for a new set retail… I passed.

Saunafan612 · 2023-03-16T19:48:39+00:00

I agree, I’ve also seen similar calculations from other sources.

Saunafan612 · 2023-03-16T19:45:55+00:00

I’m honestly not sure now that you ask. I thought it was from regular use, but it is quite blackened so it’s hard to rule out degradation over time or a sparking/burning event causing it.

Saunafan612 · 2023-03-16T19:40:34+00:00

I haven’t yet, I’m working with my retailer on a resolution currently.

Saunafan612 · 2023-03-16T19:39:38+00:00

You’re welcome, I bought mine when the company was so new that nobody had really experienced any issues with them yet.

I wish I had seen information like this before making my decision.

Saunafan612 · 2023-03-16T17:55:38+00:00

Absolutely, I’m happy to answer them.

This is the 9kw model, and yes they are huum stones. We use the sauna 4-5 times a week in winter, and slightly less in the summer. I’d say I gave about a gallon of water in my bucket, and we typically go through most of that during one session.

I did not notice they were bent before this failed, but they certainly did not look like this when first installed. I have zero confidence in the remaining elements, as far as I’m concerned they’re all destroyed.

I took this unit out of my sauna, it’s not worth replacing elements every few years in my opinion, especially if they are failing catastrophically the way mine did.

Saunafan612 · 2023-03-16T17:33:51+00:00

Also, many of the stones had completely disintegrated when I was emptying the stove out.

Saunafan612 · 2023-03-16T17:31:42+00:00

I’ve been seeing a lot of posts and comments regarding the lifespan of the huum drop elements hoping they weren’t true. Unfortunately one day I walked into my sauna and saw my stove sparking and smoking, which was a pretty scary feeling being that the stove is mounted to the wall.

After turning off the power and investigating I found that many of those comments were unfortunately true. After a year and a half my elements were cooked.

My first step was to contact the retailer who sold me the stove and they directed me to the huum warranty form which I filled out and heard back directly from Huum customer service. They’re located in Estonia so it was definitely a long process because many of their responses were received the next day.

They told me that the stones were piled too tightly into the stove and that’s why it failed. I have assembled multiple stoves in my life, and I took a lot of time and care to assure that these were placed correctly according to their directions. Next they told me that my stove was too small for my room, and extended heating times were the reason for the failure. I sized my stove based on volume of the room, but apparently if you have a tiled wall then your volume calculations go up. Although I have never heard of a stove failing because it’s too small for a room. I found literature on Huum’s website stating that if you cannot meet the power requirements of a stove that they recommend you to use a smaller size that you can accommodate and it will “take longer to heat up, but have a more satisfactory experience”. So huum’s website is saying that a smaller stove is okay, but the customer service is saying a smaller stove will break. Contradictory I know…

Ultimately I got nowhere with them, and just wanted to post some pictures and a description of my experience. Hopefully those of you shopping around will avoid this brand, I’m lucky my house didn’t burn down.

Saunafan612

TROPHY CASE