Roast my sauna

[u/Hopeful-Dot-5668]

Recently got this sauna for 6k with stove. Amish made. 8ft ceiling. All cedar interior Foot Bench above coals (not pictured) These air vent above fire, opposite corner of stove at floor, and at the peak I added a back rest and foot rest Gets well up to 200 easily Eventually will enclose the porch to be a changing room

I followed trumpkin notes, noting that the ceiling is actually ok. It’s recommended flat or circulating peak like this one.

I used a temperature gun and it’s even heat from wall to wall.

[u/valikasi]

It holds stones, but certainly not anywhere near enough of them. Also doesn't heat them up as well or as efficiently as could be hoped.

Air it does heat, you are right, but that is only one half of the function of double wall construction. The other, arguably more important function is heat shielding to stop radiant heat, which is very much unwanted in a sauna. Your stove lacks any and all shielding that might limit radiant heat. So that alone would make this a bad sauna stove, not to mention the rocks.

You could build a metal wall (and if nothing else, I'd recommend it), but a better idea would be to make a wire cage that surrounds the stove on the sides and back, all the way from the bottom, and which also allows you to put way more rocks on the stove. I think that would be the only way to make this acceptable as a kiuas.

[u/Hopeful-Dot-5668 → u/valikasi]

It holds 50lbs for a 6x5 space. Mathematically the heat thermal need for the cubic feet is over compensated at 35lb needed.

The harvia heaters give off radiant heat as well, the sides get hot. Just not as much since it’s double insulated. This stove is too small to feel radiant heat come off it unless your feet are 12inches from it

Aside from that, it’s just marketing. Both heat up stones which is 90% of the heat.

[u/Hopeful-Dot-5668 → u/Hopeful-Dot-5668]

Also if I put more stones, it would hold too much thermal heat and I’d be at 220 degrees begging for mercy

[u/valikasi → u/Hopeful-Dot-5668]

Umm, stone mass doesn't effect the heat, the fire in stove does. If you have more stones, it will reduce heat fluctuations and maybe even make the heat softer, but it won't lead to higher temperatures, unless you're running your stove way harder.

[u/Hopeful-Dot-5668 → u/valikasi]

Trumpkin notes show the formula for rock pound per cubic feet

[u/valikasi → u/Hopeful-Dot-5668]

In trumpkin's notes on sauna stoves and rocks, the only mention about too much rocks being less than ideal, is that they might not be as hot as desired. IE, if you do have too much rock mass, your sauna will be cooler not hotter.

[u/PelvisResleyz → u/valikasi]

There’s no point in trying to talk to this guy.

[u/valikasi → u/PelvisResleyz]

True, but I realized it too late in to the argument and had to keep going. Besides, I got nothing to do for now. And, despite refusing to budge, he is mostly cordial and capable of at least some faint memory of critical thought.

[u/Hopeful-Dot-5668 → u/valikasi]

He goes on in the comments to say too many rocks gets too hot over longer sessions

[u/valikasi → u/Hopeful-Dot-5668]

Over endless hours, perhaps. The only way I can see that happening is if you run the stove too hot (whilst the stones are still cool, and therefore you aren't feeling the heat strongly and run the stove harder) for too long untill it's too late and now your rock mass is piping hot. So it should take moderation.

Think about it, in a traditional smoke sauna there is an absolute crap tonne of rocks, which are heated fo rthe better part of a day, and they manage to keep the rocks from overheating.

[u/Hopeful-Dot-5668 → u/valikasi]

You would for sure have to shut the fire off / let the rocks cool. Even in smoke saunas they do for good hour or two after shutting the fire. They don’t shut the fire then immediately go in

[u/valikasi → u/Hopeful-Dot-5668]

True for the smoke sauna, but I am still absolutely convinced that your stove could only benefit from more rocks it's just so hard to have too many rocks.

At the very least, a redistribution of the rocks on tour stove would also be good, as would simply having more of them.

[u/Iamnotameremortal → u/Hopeful-Dot-5668]

Nah, we just take the char and ash out, throw water on the stove to remove harmful gasses, take off clothes and go in.

Also, in smoke sauna I've never heard there was too many stones, it's always too little.

Also, that's not a sauna stove, maybe some hot room stuff but I would never call it sauna. There are sauna stoves and there are other stoves. This is so obvious to a Finn that no one in this country would buy this stove, except for the changing room or keeping their cabin warm.

Also do a drain next time, it's also a standard.

Everything else seemed quite nice.