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SaunaThe word sauna is an ancient Finnish word referring to the traditional Finnish bath as well as to the bathhouse itself.
A sauna is a small room or house designed as a place to experience dry or wet heat sessions, or an establishment with one or more of these and auxiliary facilities. These facilities derive from the Finnish sauna. The word sauna is also used metaphorically to describe an unusually hot or humid environment. First SaunasThe oldest known saunas were pits dug in a slope in the ground and primarily used as dwellings in winter. The sauna featured a fireplace where stones were heated to a high temperature. Water was thrown over the hot stones to produce steam and to give a sensation of increased heat. This would raise the apparent temperature so high that people could take off their clothes. EvolutionEventually the sauna evolved to use a metal woodstove, or kiuas, with a chimney. Air temperatures averaged around 160-180 degrees Fahrenheit (70-80 °C) but sometimes exceeded 200 °F (90 °C) in a traditional Finnish sauna. Steam vapor, was created by splashing water on the heated rocks. The steam and high heat caused bathers to perspire, thus flushing away impurities and toxins from the body. The Finns also used a vihta (Western dialect, or vasta in Eastern dialect), which is a bundle of birch twigs with fresh leaves, to gently slap the skin and create further stimulation of the pores and cells. The Finns also used the sauna as a place to cleanse the mind, rejuvenate and refresh the spirit, and prepare the dead for burial. The sauna was (and still is) an important part of daily life, and families bathed together in the home sauna. Indeed, the sauna was originally meant to be a place of mystical nature where gender/sex differences did not exist. Because the sauna was often the cleanest structure and had water readily available, Finnish women also gave birth in the sauna. When the Finns migrated to other areas of the globe they brought their sauna designs and traditions with them, introducing other cultures to the enjoyment and health benefits of sauna. This led to further evolution of the sauna, including the electric sauna stove, which was introduced in the 1950s and far infrared saunas, which have become popular in the last several decades. TechnologiesToday there are a wide variety of sauna options. Heat sources include wood, electricity, gas and other more unconventional methods such as solar power. There are wet saunas, dry saunas, smoke saunas, steam saunas, and those that work with infrared waves. The Finnish word for a sauna heat source is kiuas. There are also two main types of kiuas: continuously heating and "always on"-type. Continuously heating kiuases have a small heat capacity and can be heated up on an "on-demand" basis, whereas an "always on" kiuas has a large heat capacity and can take up to 24 hours to heat up. Smoke Sauna
Continuous FireA continuous fire, instead of stored heat, is a recent invention. There is a firebox and a smokestack, and stones are placed in a compartment directly above the firebox. It is much hotter than a smoke sauna, even 100 °C, is clean and doesn't smell of smoke. It takes shorter time than the smoke sauna, about 1-2 hours. A fire-heated sauna requires manual labor in the form of maintaining the fire; the fire is also a hazard. Electric HeaterThe electric continuous heater offers virtually identical service to the continuous-fire type kiuas, and the prices do not differ either. The main difference is that only a click of a switch is needed for heating it up, and the fire hazard is mitigated.
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A sauna session can be a social affair in which the participants disrobe and sit or recline in temperatures of over 80 °C (176 °F). This induces relaxation and promotes sweating.
Smoke sauna (Finnish savusauna) is the original sauna. It is a room with a pile of rocks, with no chimney. A fire is lit directly under the rocks, then fire is put out, and the heat stored in the room and in the rocks is the heat source. Following this process, ash and ember are removed from the hearth, the benches and floor are cleaned, and the room air is allowed to freshen for a period of time. Temperature is low, about 60 °C, and humidity is high. Heating can take about five hours, but with modern combustion technology, a heat-up time of two hours can be achieved. The tradition nearly died out, but was revived by enthusiasts in the 1980s, and is considered by many to provide the highest quality sauna experience.
Always-on