What About an Outdoor Sauna
Despite the name, an outdoor sauna is not a sauna bath taken outdoors. It is where the location of the sauna unit is located. Outdoor saunas are particularly popular in warmer climates and are a great option for homes but do not have room inside the house. An outdoor sauna can be built on a deck or as a stand-alone feature.
The first saunas in Finland, where saunas originated, were outdoor saunas. They were typically built into the sloping side of a hill and lined with wood. There was a fireplace inside the room, that would be stoked until only the coals remained, warming the air. As time went on, more and more people began adding sauna rooms to their house when they built it, to now, in Finland; there is almost a sauna room in every house.
However, here in North America, we were late to the sauna party, with them only beginning to become popular in the late 1960's and early 1970's. Because of this, many houses were built with no sauna room in mind, and, while there are kits available for converting a spare room into a sauna, most people are unwilling to give up the space.
For those people, the outdoor sauna is a great compromise. It allows them to have a sauna permanently available, without having to sacrifice a spare room or closet in order to get it. For these people, it truly can be the best of both worlds.
The outdoor sauna is basically an outbuilding, like a barn or a shed that is separate from the main structure. It usually has its own power lines run from the main house and is typically self-contained. Rarely, it will share a wall with the main house in a "lean to" arrangement.
One big disadvantage for the outdoor sauna is that, since it is a separate structure, it needs its own foundation, its own electricity and its own walls and roof, all of which would not be required if it were built in the house in a converted room. Because of this, the cost of an outdoor sauna can be much higher than the cost of converting a closet or other small room.
Another problem some outdoor sauna owners have is that they dislike going outdoors to get to their sauna. Especially in colder weather, it can quickly get old having to bundle up just to walk 20 yards to your outdoor sauna, only to strip down to take your sauna bath.
Even with these disadvantages, for some people, an outdoor sauna is clearly the right way to go.
Thomas Oak writes articles for http://www.hot-sauna.com if you are in the market for a new sauna stop in and take a look at what of all the latest information on new saunas or an outdoor sauna for your hom