This Will Be the Hottest Room in Your House

December 29th, 2010

You just gotta have one of these at home!
More Americans are making space for sauna rooms, clearing out basements, converting closets and even partitioning off backyard sheds. Sauna sales this year are up as much as 40% over last year. One company says sales of its handmade barrel-like outdoor saunas have been climbing about 6% a year for the past four years. Another sauna dealer says sales were up 50% this year.

Nothing new
Saunas are nothing new. They have been at the core of Finnish culture for thousands of years, a traditional toasty respite in a cold and snowy climate, according to the nonprofit North American Sauna Society, whose members are fans and merchants.

It costs
Leslie Kahn, an architect in Bethesda, Md. Says, “I’m interested in seeing whether our American friends will sauna in the nude.” She and her husband are remodeling a basement bathroom in order to add a sauna. Her husband believes sauna sessions he experienced overseas helped with aches and pains. The couple also enjoys the social aspect and hopes eventually to entertain guests with sauna parties. The cost of the sauna, including installation, will be around $5,000, on top of about $12,000 for remodeling the bathroom, she says.

Popular
Besides the Euro-cool factor, saunas’ growing popularity also is due to their practical appeal. They are less fussy to install than other spa-type amenities. The source of their intense, radiant heat is simply stones placed inside and on top of an electric heater. Some outdoor units are set up with a traditional wood-burning stove, requiring no electricity for heating. Whether indoors or out, saunas typically are built using a light-colored wood able to withstand wide fluctuations in heat and humidity. Western red cedar is popular and releases a pleasant scent.

Dry or humid
Although saunas can be enjoyed dry, many people like to add humidity by sprinkling water on the rocks. This is the only connection to water in a sauna. No connections to water pipes are necessary.

The Sauna Party Kit
The sauna: An 8-by-10 foot sauna can comfortably seat seven to 10 people. Towels: For guests to wear, or, if going au naturel, everyone can place them over the bench seats. Water: It’s important to stay hydrated between ‘innings,’ or re-entry visits. Snacks: Serve post-sauna. It’s not a good idea to sauna on a full stomach. Finnish fare includes smoked salmon and herring. Also beverages like beer, vodka or fruit juices. Cold dip: For the full Scandinavian experience, a dip in an outdoor swimming pool or a lake is refreshing after a hot sweat.

How much will it cost me?
A sauna can be relatively affordable. Converting a closet into a two-person sauna might cost as little as $3,000, not including installation, while a “designer deluxe” model with digital controls and high-end lighting could climb to $10,000, says Keith Raisanen, president of Saunatec Inc., a Cokato, Minn., manufacturer and distributor. Most saunas, he says, fall in the $4,500-to-$8,000 range and seat from four to seven.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 29th, 2010 at 6:17 am and is filed under Finance, Money, Personal / Internet. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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