5 Useful Home Sauna Design Tips
September 8, 2020Adding a sauna to your custom home design can enhance your quality of life in a significant way. Aside from providing a place to relax and recharge, saunas also provide a number of health benefits. If you’re considering a sauna for your custom home, here are some useful home sauna design tips to consider for yours:
1. Decide Between Pre-Made or Custom
Choosing between a pre-made and truly custom-designed sauna will be an important decision. There are several options available with a pre-made sauna, so you may be able to find one that suits your needs. Depending on what you want, a custom option may be the better fit.
Whether a pre-made or custom sauna is the right choice for your home will depend on a variety of factors and having a discussion with your custom home builder will be an integral part of ensuring that you choose the right option. They can help you determine the best fit in terms of materials, components, etc.
2. Consider Whether You Want an Indoor or Outdoor Sauna
There is a lot to consider when it comes to the pros and cons of in-home saunas. Indoor saunas provide a great deal of convenience and comfort for all-season use. They can also be a little easier on those monthly energy bills. But, they can also take up space you don’t have in the bathroom. This could make an outdoor sauna a better option.
There are plenty of benefits to choosing an outdoor sauna. Outdoor saunas are often great options for homes with other outdoor living area enhancements, such as pools, large patios or decks, etc. This makes it one of the landscaping ideas to turn your backyard into an elegant retreat.
Whether you choose an indoor or outdoor sauna will depend upon various factors, such as your lifestyle, how and when you plan to use the sauna, and even your budget.
3. Research Your Options for Materials
The material your sauna is made of is an important factor. Cedar is a classic and traditional choice and has long been one of the most popular materials for sauna construction. Hemlock or spruce woods are also good options.
Stamped concrete or tile flooring is a durable, long-lasting choice for flooring and is easy to clean and maintain. At Custom Home Group, we can lay out all the options and help you to decide on the best fit for your sauna.
4. Think About the Heat Source
The heat source for your sauna is another one of the home sauna design tips and is an important consideration. Different heat sources will have differing installation and operating costs associated with them.
Electric or wood-burning heat sources with stones are the more traditional ways to heat a sauna room. But, there are more modern options that allow for efficient and exact temperature settings, which are used in infrared sauna rooms.
5. Figure Out What Size You Need
Determining the size of the sauna is also an important step, especially when you are planning to incorporate it into the bathroom or another interior area. Saunas are a great way to make a cold bathroom warmer and can be made to fit just one person. If you wish to have a sauna that can accommodate multiple people, you will need to include enough space for it in your layout.
Seven-foot ceilings are typically the maximum suggested height for a sauna. If you are planning a sauna for multiple people, 4 feet by 6 feet is a common size, and 6 feet by 10 feet will allow the sauna to be used by several people at once. Smaller saunas are also designed if they will be used by one individual in the home at a time.
In some cases, when an individual sauna is all that is desired or required, a steam shower is an option. This is a bathroom design idea that involves installing steam pipes in the shower. It allows you to turn your shower into a sauna. It can provide many of the same benefits of an individual sauna without the need to allocate additional square footage in the bathroom or other area of the home to a sauna unit.
These are just a few useful home sauna design tips to help you work through some considerations for yours. Discussing the options, your ideas and goals, and any concerns you might have with your custom home builder will help you get the right options fr your needs.
If you are ready to plan your new custom home, give us a call at 717-284-4090. We can help make each step of the process efficient and stress-free as we bring your dream home to life!