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The ventilation within the sauna is actually more effective the greater the temperature gradient between the entering low-CO2, cold air and the stale, hot air i

The ventilation within the sauna is actually more effective the greater the temperature gradient between the entering low-CO2, cold air and the stale, hot air in the sauna. You want the entering air "falling" on the stove because it's colder i.e. denser than the surrounding air. It then heats up and mixes with the hot air in the sauna. That being said, almost any real implementation in a cold climate place like Finland would have a heat exchanger at the building level for a mechanized ventilation system. It's of course still not 100% efficient so the circulation system within the sauna still works.

Ekaros 3y ago
Also to remember is that amount of moisture added in usual sauna session is not insignificant. Throwing at least couple of litres of water on stove is entirely normal in addition to whatever is perspired. Handling this level of possible condensation might need additional considerations.
Thorrez 3y ago
What does "at the building level" mean? Is the sauna only part of the building and not the whole building? The article says it's a backyard sauna, which to me sounds like the sauna is the whole building.
- distances 3y ago
  Can't speak for this article, but an electric sauna in Finland is almost always inside the building/apartment, accessed via the bathroom. A separate sauna building would have a wood heated stove.
- vesinisa 3y ago
  Depending on configuration, either on the apartment unit, single-family house or apartment building level. As the other commenter said, nowadays sauna in Finland is usually inside your house and the mechanized ventilation is connected to the overall ventilation system of your house. Hence the original article[1] explored the optimal positioning for mechanized air in/outlets in a sauna. The current Finnish building code incorporates the recommendations from this study (as document RT 91-11260). I guess you could apply the same principles to an electric sauna in a separate building. Just use two fans (one pulling, one pushing) instead of an AC system. Most often a separate sauna building in Finland however has a wood-fired stove, which doesn't need as much consideration for ventilation as an electric sauna. My understanding is that the wood-fired stove itself creates a strong continuous draft which takes care of ventilation in the sauna room (pulling fresh air from outside through the stove and by combustion into the chimney). [1]: https://publications.vtt.fi/pdf/tiedotteet/1992/T1431.pdf https://publications.vtt.fi/pdf/tiedotteet/1992/T1431.pdf

Ekaros 3y ago

Also to remember is that amount of moisture added in usual sauna session is not insignificant. Throwing at least couple of litres of water on stove is entirely normal in addition to whatever is perspired. Handling this level of possible condensation might need additional considerations.

Thorrez 3y ago

What does "at the building level" mean? Is the sauna only part of the building and not the whole building? The article says it's a backyard sauna, which to me sounds like the sauna is the whole building.

distances 3y ago
Can't speak for this article, but an electric sauna in Finland is almost always inside the building/apartment, accessed via the bathroom. A separate sauna building would have a wood heated stove.
vesinisa 3y ago
Depending on configuration, either on the apartment unit, single-family house or apartment building level. As the other commenter said, nowadays sauna in Finland is usually inside your house and the mechanized ventilation is connected to the overall ventilation system of your house. Hence the original article[1] explored the optimal positioning for mechanized air in/outlets in a sauna. The current Finnish building code incorporates the recommendations from this study (as document RT 91-11260). I guess you could apply the same principles to an electric sauna in a separate building. Just use two fans (one pulling, one pushing) instead of an AC system. Most often a separate sauna building in Finland however has a wood-fired stove, which doesn't need as much consideration for ventilation as an electric sauna. My understanding is that the wood-fired stove itself creates a strong continuous draft which takes care of ventilation in the sauna room (pulling fresh air from outside through the stove and by combustion into the chimney). [1]: https://publications.vtt.fi/pdf/tiedotteet/1992/T1431.pdf https://publications.vtt.fi/pdf/tiedotteet/1992/T1431.pdf