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A wood-fired sauna has a unique atmosphere. With the sauna master's instructions, anyone can heat a wood-fired sauna successfully, and you'll fall in love not only with bathing but with heating the sauna too.
Heating a wood-fired sauna the sauna master's way ensures great löyly and keeps the sauna heater in good condition
Heating a wood-fired sauna takes a little effort, but it creates a unique atmosphere even while it heats up. A living fire rewards the person heating the sauna, and a well-heated stove gives heavenly soft, moist löyly.
Particular attention must be paid to fire safety in a wood-fired sauna, but the right heating method is also important for extending the life of the sauna heater.
Ehta has done a lot research into wood-fired outdoor saunas, to ensure a successful sauna experience and the best löyly. Sauna master Ville Laitila now shares his best tips for getting it right.
How to heat a wood-fired sauna successfully – the sauna master's step-by-step instructions
- Open the damper. Make sure the chimney has been swept and the sauna heater's flue passages cleaned on time. You can read more about sauna maintenance here.
- Empty the ash pit. Too much ash can block airflow through the grate and cause the grate to overheat and break.
- Stack the wood in the sauna heater. Use dry, finely split wood and stack it loosely. Fill the firebox no more than halfway.
- Check that there is sufficient draught. While lighting the fire, the ash-pit door that regulates the draught should be wide open.
- Light the fire. Use birch bark, feather sticks or firelighters as kindling. Dry, finely split wood is best lit from the top, so that combustion is clean and environmentally friendly from the start. Placing the kindling under the wood isn't a bad idea either, especially if the wood isn't completely dry.
- Add more wood. You can use thicker logs than when lighting and fill the firebox up to 2/3 of its height. Make sure the draught is right. When the wood burns cleanly, the glass in the door stays clear and the smoke rising from the sauna chimney is almost colourless. Don't let the fire die down too much while you're bathing either.
- Add a few logs to the firebox after bathing. A little heating afterwards ensures that the sauna dries out.
With the sauna master's pro tips, you're sure to succeed and your sauna heater will stay in good condition
Dry wood is the first important thing. That way the wood catches more easily and the sauna heats up quickly. The sauna master is clear that you shouldn't heat the sauna with damp wood. The type of wood, on the other hand, doesn't matter that much.
”Many people like to heat the sauna with birch. But other woods work just as well. Lighter types of wood just need to be burned a little more. It's the total mass of the wood that counts.”
”You can make sure the wood is dry by bringing it indoors, ideally a couple of days before heating the sauna. This is especially important in autumn and winter.”
For heating a wood-burning heater, the sauna master has a couple of principles that extend the heater's life:
”Always empty the ash before heating the sauna heater, and don't pack the firebox too full of wood.”
”It's best to keep the draught moderate, especially if you're using birch logs with a high calorific value. Too big a fire will quickly burn through even a good heater.”
At the end of the sauna session, the sauna master throws a few logs into the firebox, so that the heater's warmth dries the sauna:
”In winter, you can even open the window a little for a while to improve ventilation. And remember to empty the water.”
