Sauna questions, answered.

A timber-lined room heated to around 70–100 °C, with a heater and a load of stones. In Finland it's not a luxury, it's the most important room in the house: where you relax, unwind and reset.

The heater warms the stones and the air, and the timber walls hold and reflect the heat. Throw water on the hot stones and it turns into löyly, a soft wave of steam that makes the heat feel deeper.

There's the traditional Finnish sauna (electric or wood-fired), and the hybrid, which adds infrared panels to a proper sauna. Then there's the infrared cabin, which Finns will politely insist is not a sauna at all. A steam room is a different thing again: tiled, wet heat. More on hybrids.

Most Finns are happy somewhere between 70 and 90 °C. Start lower if you're new, and use the löyly, not just the thermostat, to make it feel hotter or softer.

Usually 10 to 20 minutes a round. It's not an endurance test: come out when you've had enough, cool off, and go back in if you feel like it.

As often as you enjoy it. Most Finns go at least once a week, and many go daily. Regular use is what makes it part of your life.

For most healthy adults, yes. Drink water, skip the alcohol, listen to your body, and talk to your doctor first if you have a health condition.

In Finland, nothing. In a shared or public sauna, a towel or swimwear. Either way, sit on a towel.

Yes. Plenty of Finns do. Just keep it enjoyable and drink enough water.

A sauna is a timber room with dry heat that you can make humid with löyly. A steam room is tiled and stays at close to 100% humidity at a lower temperature, around 40–50 °C. Steam rooms.

A timber room with a heater and stones, where you throw water on the stones for löyly. Simple, and very hard to beat.

Say "infrared sauna" to a Finn and watch one eye twitch. Strictly speaking it isn't a sauna at all: no hot stones, no löyly, no proper heat. It's an IR cabin. Infrared panels warm your body directly instead of the air, so it runs cooler, around 45–60 °C, and plenty of people love it for longer, gentler sessions. Nothing wrong with that. Just don't call it a sauna at a Finnish dinner party.

A traditional sauna heater and infrared panels in the same room. Use one, or both together. See our hybrids.

A sauna heated by a wood-burning stove. More work to light, but the soft heat and the crackle of the fire are something special. Wood-fired heaters.

The everyday choice: switch it on (or set a timer) and it's ready in about 30 to 45 minutes. Same heat and löyly as a wood-fired sauna, with much less effort.

The one you'll actually use. If you love proper heat and löyly, go traditional. If you want gentle warmth, an IR cabin. Can't decide? That's what a hybrid is for.

They're different things. A sauna gives you the high heat and the löyly; an IR cabin gives a milder, longer warm. Many people end up wanting both, which is why hybrids are popular.

An IR cabin typically runs at around 45–60 °C. The panels warm you directly, so you still get a good sweat at a lower air temperature.

Sometimes. Infrared panels can often be added to a traditional sauna to make a hybrid, but turning an infrared cabin into a proper hot sauna usually isn't practical. Tell us your plans early and we'll build for them.

A traditional sauna where you throw plenty of water on the stones for a more humid heat. It's still a timber room, not a tiled steam room.

Most people simply feel more relaxed and sleep better. Research, much of it from Finland, has linked regular sauna use with heart and general health, but it's not a medical treatment. Enjoy it for how it makes you feel.

Many people find it helps sore, stiff muscles feel better. A sauna after training, plus water and rest, is a classic Finnish combination.

Some long-term Finnish studies have linked regular sauna bathing with better cardiovascular health. If you have a heart condition, check with your doctor before you start.

A little, as your body works to cool itself, but it's not a workout. Most of the weight you lose in a session is water, and it comes straight back when you drink.

Your liver and kidneys do the detoxing. A good sweat does leave you feeling clean and refreshed, though.

Heat widens your blood vessels and gets the blood moving, which is part of why you feel so warm and relaxed afterwards.

For a lot of people, it's the best part of the day: phone off, heat on, nowhere else to be.

Heat relaxes tight muscles, and many people find it eases stiffness after a hard day.

Many people sleep better after an evening sauna. Your body cools down afterwards, and that helps you feel sleepy.

A good sweat and a wash afterwards leave most people with clean, glowing skin.

Some studies have measured short-term changes in hormones during heavy heat exposure. The effects are temporary, and sauna shouldn't be used as a treatment for anything.

Not on its own. The weight you lose in a session is water. If sauna helps you relax and sleep better, that can support healthy habits, but it doesn't replace diet and exercise.

Research has linked regular sauna use with healthier blood pressure over time, but blood pressure also drops briefly in the heat. If yours is low or unmanaged, ask your doctor first.

Yes. Many athletes use sauna for relaxation and to get used to heat. Keep hydrated, and don't do a long, hot session right before a big effort.

Some studies suggest regular sauna use may help, but the research is still developing. Most people just know their body feels better.

Ask your doctor first if you're pregnant, have a heart or blood pressure condition, or take medication that affects your heart or sweating. And never after drinking alcohol.

It can be for some people with a stable, managed condition, but only with your doctor's OK. Start gently.

Yes. If you feel wiped out rather than relaxed, go shorter, go cooler, or skip a day.

Headache, dizziness, nausea or feeling unwell. Get out, cool down slowly and drink water. There's no prize for staying in.

Many people do, but it's safer to have someone around, especially at first or if you have any health concerns. Keep sessions sensible.

You can lose half a litre or more of sweat in a session. Drink water before and after.

No. Alcohol and heat don't mix: it dehydrates you and hides the warning signs. Save it for later.

The heat lowers your blood pressure a little. Sit up for a moment on the lower bench before you stand, and move slowly.

Sit or lie down on the lowest bench, then leave the sauna slowly, cool down and sip water. If you don't feel right, get help.

Not with a fever. With a mild cold, a short, gentle session may feel good, but listen to your body.

After is usually better. Before a hard session it can leave you too relaxed.

Give yourself 10 to 15 minutes and a good drink of water first.

A glass or two before you go in, and more afterwards. Between rounds, keep sipping.

Water, yes. Plenty of people take a bottle in.

Something light. A big meal and a hot sauna don't mix well.

After a long or very sweaty session, an electrolyte drink can help. For most normal sessions, water and a meal are fine.

One cup is usually fine. Just remember to drink water too.

Heat, cool, rest. Shower, go in for 10 to 15 minutes, cool off with a cold shower, swim or plunge, then sit and rest. Repeat once or twice.

Two or three is typical. Stop when you've had enough.

Yes. It's good manners, and it keeps the benches clean.

Yes, to wash off the sweat and cool down.

No, but many people love it. A cold shower or a swim works too. The contrast between hot and cold is a big part of the Finnish ritual.

Until you've stopped sweating and your heart rate has settled, usually 10 to 15 minutes.

Yes, it's the Finnish way, just with a lake or snow instead of an ice bath. Go in and out carefully, especially at first.

It's a great time for it. Many people sleep better after an evening sauna.

With rounds, cooling and resting, allow 45 minutes to an hour. Don't rush it.

Absolutely. Start with shorter, cooler sessions and build up as you get used to it.

Yes, but never pour oil straight onto the stones. Add a few drops of a sauna scent to the water in your bucket, then throw it on the stones as löyly.

Always. It keeps sweat off the benches and keeps the timber looking good for years.

The wave of heat and steam that rises when you throw water on hot stones. Every sauna has its own character, its own löyly.

It depends on the size, the heater, the timber and where it's going. Every FinnSauna sauna is custom, so the best way to get a figure is to send us rough measurements and a photo of the space. You can attach plans and photos right in the contact form.

A spare room, a bathroom, a garage, a pool house, a walk-in wardrobe (really), or a separate building in the garden. You need the right power supply and proper ventilation.

Even a small sauna works well, as our cabinet sauna shows. If you want to lie down, plan for a bench around 2 metres long.

Both are great. Outdoors gives you the walk out into fresh air, and suits a wood-fired heater. Indoors is right there whenever you want it.

Spruce is the traditional choice for walls and ceilings. For benches, aspen, abachi and thermally modified alder or aspen are popular because they're comfortable in the heat. Read our sauna timber guide.

It depends on the room volume, and on any glass, stone or tile in the room, which all need extra power. Undersized heaters are one of the most common problems we see. Here's why it matters.

Less than most people think. With power at around 40 cents per kWh, an 8 kW heater running flat out would cost about $3.20 an hour. In practice it doesn't run flat out: once the sauna is up to temperature, the heater switches on and off to hold it there, so a typical session costs less.

A well-built electric sauna with the right heater is usually ready in 30 to 45 minutes.

Some people do. The parts that matter most are the ones you can't see: the right vapour barrier, heat-rated cable, insulation and ventilation. Get those wrong and you can damage your house. Here's what can go wrong.

It stops moisture and heat getting into the walls. A proper sauna vapour barrier is aluminium foil, not plastic. Try the lighter test.

Standard cable can melt or burn inside a hot sauna wall. We use heat-resistant cable, and prefer to run it in conduit behind the insulation.

Fresh air needs to come in low, near the heater, and go out higher up or under the bench on the other side. There are several ways to do it, and the right one depends on the room. We can advise.

A well-built sauna, looked after properly, should last decades.

No. Every FinnSauna sauna is custom designed and built for its space. We do sell heaters, timber and accessories if you're building your own.

Sit on towels, let it dry out after use, keep the floor clean, treat the benches now and then, and change the stones once a year if you use it regularly.

If you use your sauna regularly, once a year. Crumbling stones block the airflow and burn out your heater elements. Read the stone guide.

Warm water, a soft brush and a mild sauna cleaner. No bleach or harsh household chemicals.

Wipe or vacuum the floor regularly, and give the benches a proper clean every month or so, more often in a busy sauna.

Not much survives the heat, as long as the sauna dries out properly after use. Leave the door open for a while afterwards.

Over time, yes. Sweat darkens and stains the wood. A towel and a coat of Supi Sauna Wax or Sauna Paraffin Oil prevent most of it.

A penetrating product that soaks in, not lacquer or varnish. We stock clear Supi Sauna Wax and Sauna Paraffin Oil. Sauna care.

Sand them back, starting at 160 grit if they're in bad shape, finishing at 200–220, then wax or oil. See how.

Good ventilation and letting the sauna dry out are the best cure. A light clean and a sauna scent in the water bucket help too. No air-freshener sprays.

Only if the sauna doesn't dry out. Mould is a sign the ventilation needs looking at.

Shower before you go in, sit on a clean towel, and leave the door open after use so the heat dries everything out.

All over New Zealand, from our workshop in Whangaparāoa, Auckland. We've built saunas from Northland to the South Island, and as far as the Maldives.

Yes, whenever our schedule allows. Stone changes, bench repairs, ventilation, new heaters and more. Our own customers get first call on our time, so it may take a little longer to fit you in, but we're always happy to help where we can. Maintenance.

Yes. We import our own and keep a good range in stock in Auckland. Browse products.

We import it ourselves from Finland and Estonia.

Yes, please call ahead, as we're often out on site. The workshop.

Send us rough measurements and a photo of the space, or a drawing if you have one. That's usually enough for us to tell you what's possible. You can attach your plans, sketches and photos (images or PDF, up to 10 files) straight to the message on our contact form.