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90+ sauna sounds painful. Are you actually throwing water? Because even with 80 the steam is pretty hot

trhway 6mo ago
Whether sauna is hot or not depends on whether you enjoy the cold water plunge afterwards :) The typical preset on dry saunas in Bay Area is ~165 F (73 C). Which is cold. Waste of time and money :). Usually, by closing or pouring cold water on sensor, one can make it to 180-190 F (82-87 C) - this is where you start to feel like you are in sauna, though it takes prolong time to heat you up enough to enjoy the cold plunge. If you're lucky enough, you can get to 200, 210, 220 F (104 C) - this is where you start to feel relaxed like as if the heat is working inside you. >Are you actually throwing water? Because even with 80 the steam is pretty hot Of course those numbers would be impossible to enjoy in steam sauna. The only steam sauna that had a wall thermometer that i've visited in recent years was showing 55 C when it already felt pretty well and hot. Note - steam sauna and "throwing water" are 2 different things. The steam sauna is a machine generating a lot of steam, so the room is close to 100% humidity. The "throwing water" is like Russian "banya" - it is in-between of dry and steam, though frequently is more close to dry Finnish sauna - wooden walls, stove, etc. where in addition to the heated air, you'd throw a water on the heater/stones thus adding a hit of hot steam to that air (in some "banya" configurations if you happen to be close to and in the immediate path of that steam you can sometimes get light burns).
- distances 6mo ago
  Just a clarification as it may not be clear from your message. A Finnish ("dry") sauna always includes throwing water on the stove, which is called "löyly". People have different preferences for the warmth of the sauna -- as low as 65°C for some elderly folks, all the way up to 120°C for more hardcore people -- but water is always thrown on the stove. You won't get burns, but it can have a real sting. It's enjoyable, but may feel uncomfortable as a new experience.
  - euroderf 6mo ago
    When a swimhall has two saunas, a "hot" and a "hotter", I'd guess they are at about 70°C and 90°C.
    - nextlevelwizard 6mo ago
      70-90 seems reasonable, 90 is already over my comfort which is around 80, but the post talked about >90 degrees which just seems stupidly hot
      - euroderf 6mo ago
        I don't know anyone who wants sauna that hot - steam is involved. Numbers over 90 sound like dry heat only. My 0,02€.
- nextlevelwizard 6mo ago
  Since when has Finnish sauna been dry? As a Finn I have never been in a dry sauna. We always throw water on the stones.

Whether sauna is hot or not depends on whether you enjoy the cold water plunge afterwards :) The typical preset on dry saunas in Bay Area is ~165 F (73 C). Which is cold. Waste of time and money :). Usually, by closing or pouring cold water on sensor, one can make it to 180-190 F (82-87 C) - this is where you start to feel like you are in sauna, though it takes prolong time to heat you up enough to enjoy the cold plunge. If you're lucky enough, you can get to 200, 210, 220 F (104 C) - this is where you start to feel relaxed like as if the heat is working inside you. >Are you actually throwing water? Because even with 80 the steam is pretty hot Of course those numbers would be impossible to enjoy in steam sauna. The only steam sauna that had a wall thermometer that i've visited in recent years was showing 55 C when it already felt pretty well and hot. Note - steam sauna and "throwing water" are 2 different things. The steam sauna is a machine generating a lot of steam, so the room is close to 100% humidity. The "throwing water" is like Russian "banya" - it is in-between of dry and steam, though frequently is more close to dry Finnish sauna - wooden walls, stove, etc. where in addition to the heated air, you'd throw a water on the heater/stones thus adding a hit of hot steam to that air (in some "banya" configurations if you happen to be close to and in the immediate path of that steam you can sometimes get light burns).

distances 6mo ago
Just a clarification as it may not be clear from your message. A Finnish ("dry") sauna always includes throwing water on the stove, which is called "löyly". People have different preferences for the warmth of the sauna -- as low as 65°C for some elderly folks, all the way up to 120°C for more hardcore people -- but water is always thrown on the stove. You won't get burns, but it can have a real sting. It's enjoyable, but may feel uncomfortable as a new experience.
- euroderf 6mo ago
  When a swimhall has two saunas, a "hot" and a "hotter", I'd guess they are at about 70°C and 90°C.
  - nextlevelwizard 6mo ago
    70-90 seems reasonable, 90 is already over my comfort which is around 80, but the post talked about >90 degrees which just seems stupidly hot
    - euroderf 6mo ago
      I don't know anyone who wants sauna that hot - steam is involved. Numbers over 90 sound like dry heat only. My 0,02€.
nextlevelwizard 6mo ago
Since when has Finnish sauna been dry? As a Finn I have never been in a dry sauna. We always throw water on the stones.