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SPN OCT 2011 Sauna&Steam
www.swimmingpoolnews.co.uk
THIS & BELOW: Harvia’s standard range of Finnish saunas and infrared cabins is now one of the widest in the marketplace
There are in the region of two million saunas in Finland from a population of around five million. While it’s clearly an established part of the Finnish culture there are signs over the past two years that high quality saunas in the UK are in demand in luxury homes and alongside swimming pools in record numbers. It’s part of a maturing and growing sauna, steam and shower market which is succeeding on quality and design
By Karen Witney
he word ‘Sauna’ is a Finnish-Sámi word. A temporary cover would be assembled over a mound of heated rocks where the bathers gathered in a similar fashion to that of Native Americans in their sweat lodges. There is evidence that Stone Age man used sweat baths similar to saunas as long ago as 6,000 years. It’s generally believed that the Finns built the first wooden saunas in the 5th to 8th centuries and these original single room log cabins were heated by fire and smoke, serving as both a home and a sauna.
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SAUNA AND STEAM APPEAL We have certainly come a long way since then yet as little as 20 years ago sauna and steam rooms were not something that we saw too much of in Britain, particularly in domestic situations. Commercial premises were coming around to the idea of installing dry or wet heat facilities in their designated leisure area, but even this was happening very slowly. Pools and hot tubs were making considerable impact on the domestic market but sauna and steam did not seem to have the same appeal. The reason for
this was partially our good old British reticence in taking on something untried but also the fact that we were really not too keen on stepping into a small room where the temperature could reach 100°C. Of course this in itself would be scaldingly intolerable but what we did not appreciate then was the saunas ability to reduce and control humidity.
Now the sheer luxury, style and design of the new generation of saunas, steam rooms and showers products has seduced consumers in a way which could never have been expected. Saunas, steam rooms and showers are part of the day-to-day wet leisure experience and are in demand as luxury items.
They have attracted luxury home builders, luxury hotels and spas who not only want to offer the health benefits the often bespoke facilities bring but package them in luxury surroundings.
The fundamental difference between saunas and steam rooms is simply that a sauna uses dry heat and a steam room uses moist heat. Saunas have very low humidity, which means they can be much hotter than steam rooms and are usually run between 80°C and 100°C, which is perfectly safe because they use dry heat.
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