SAUNA PRICES
Sauna Prices
The price for installing a sauna depends on a number of factors and can vary significantly depending on the size of the sauna, the materials used for construction, the type of sauna (e.g. infrared, traditional, hybrid, combi-bio), the type of heater and controls chosen, the location of the sauna in relation to the property (how easy or difficult is the access to build), and the features and accessories that are desired.
In general, the cost of building a new standard indoor sauna of good quality (assuming that there is reasonable access to where the sauna is to be fitted) can range from around £10,000 for a small traditional Finnish sauna to £40,000 for a large 12-seater climate controlled facility, excluding any builders work or flooring / drainage / electric connections. Dry Infra Red (IR) saunas are typically less expensive, with prices ranging from about £8,000 (IR saunas are quite easy to install and don't need any drainage or electrical supply upgrade usually).
Outdoor Saunas, built like a garden room, and not like a garden shed, start from £15,000 for a standalone sauna and can go up to wherever you want, as you can have a sauna with a steam room, changing space, seating, shower, WC, pantry, bar and even a gym. If you are considering building a new sauna or refurbishing an existing one, it is important to carefully consider the available choices and get professional advice to ascertain what would suit your property and your lifestyle.
Other things that affect the price of a sauna are mood lighting, glass front and side panels, music systems and degree of connectivity required (it is possible to monitor and control your sauna remotely via wifi controllers). If the sauna is installed outdoors, it is necessary to build a good quality attractive weatherproof enclosure, preferably with a sheltered changing and cooling off space (not the typical barrel sauna or log cabin sauna) so that the sauna is inviting and gets actual use. In our line of business we have seen our fair share of garden storage sheds that started life as a sauna.
We reckon that the difference between a “good traditional Finnish Sauna and a great Combi-Bio Sauna” is around one and a half times, so you can spend £12,000 and get a nice looking 4 seater traditional sauna with decent timber, standard lighting and a manual on-off heater, while £18,000 would fetch you an excellent, fully programmable, premium timber, feature LED lighting and remotely controlled sauna of a similar capacity. In case the sauna is being installed outdoors, a good quality sauna enclosure would add another £7,500 to £15,000 depending on what look you want.
* All prices exclude VAT
Now that you know what affects the price of your sauna, let's have a look at the major components individually (some things like insulation, ventilation, basic frame are common for all saunas).
Sauna Wall Claddings
Internal sauna cladding has a large impact on how your sauna room will look, smell and feel, whilst external cladding ensures a pleasant overall appearance along with resistance to outside influences including harsh weather and destructive wildlife. We offer various cladding widths which can be selected to perfectly fit the size and style of your sauna. Your cladding choice will depend on the sauna space, perspective and visual interest.
Choosing your panels is all about your personal preference and we’ve styles to fit the atmosphere and interior specs you wish to create. When it comes to timber cladding thickness it is imperative to only use boards that are at least 14mm thick. It’s the minimum thickness allowed by law in Finland, and for good reason: cladding thinner than this will invariably warp and become damaged within the sauna’s harsh environment. As for the width of the wall cladding, the budget and standard sauna ranges come in 90mm width, while the premium, hybrid, bio, and climate controlled saunas come in 120mm width. For bespoke projects,, 140mm and 160mm width is also available.
Following are the popular wall cladding timbers, and we have more ranges available for special projects:
Sauna Bench Boards
Once you have chosen the wall panelling for your sauna, the second choice obviously is the bench timber. While traditionally the preference was to go with the same colour for both wall cladding and benches, we are now observing that clients like to have a contrast in order to get a unique look, and it's entirely your choice. But functionally we suggest you use hard-softwoods that are generally resilient, yet not too dense. The higher the density, the hotter it would feel when sitting on the benches. This is why low density timber types like Western Red Cedar are far more preferable than hardwoods like Oak, Ash and Beech. Sitting on these would feel as hot as steel in a sauna!
The thickness of the bench boards is important to prevent warping and twisting over time and we only work with 28mm thick as a standard for the most resilient sauna benching timber. As for the width of the bench boards, as standard we use 90mm width, but for bespoke projects, 120mm is also available.
Following are the popular bench boards, and we have more ranges available for special projects:
