From the 5th to the 8th century AD, saunas had already appeared in Finland. At that time, the bath was a single-room circular log structure. People burned firewood in the stove, placed several layers of broken stones on top, and poured water on them when the stones turned red hot. Smoke immediately filled the sauna. People would quickly sweat and feel very comfortable in the bath. This bath method was called the "smoky sauna" and became very popular once it appeared.
In the 11th century, people built two different furnaces, one for cooking and one for saunas, side by side. Kitchens and bathrooms were combined, so cooking and steam bathing would not interfere with each other.
In the late 18th century, "embedded" brick sauna equipment appeared, which had two or three separated parts. The bottom layer was used to burn firewood, the middle layer was covered with small stones, and the top layer had a flue with a regulating valve that ran all the way to the roof and connected to the chimney. At that time, most buildings were made of wood, so this "embedded" equipment reduced the risk of fire and was prevalent in the 19th century.
At the beginning of the 20th century, factories in Finland began mass-producing metal sauna equipment, and a new sauna equipment industry emerged. The furnace of this sauna equipment was a separate small room, which still had a flue. Unlike before, flames and water did not directly touch the stones. As long as the firewood burned, the stones could continue to be heated.
Characteristics of different sauna equipment
Traditional sauna equipment
It relies on burning firewood to heat up and has a significant agricultural character. With the development of urbanization, this feature does not match the modern lifestyle. In the 1930s, electric sauna heater for sale were introduced. Thanks to technological advancements, sauna equipment has been continuously upgraded.
Aside from public and private sauna equipment, large companies and institutions in Finland also provide employee saunas, and even the presidential office has a dedicated sauna. Nowadays, many new upscale residences and hotel rooms have a mini sauna heater added next to their bathrooms.
Classic sauna bathing
After it appeared in ancient Rome, people in neighboring northern Europe took sauna baths to sweat because of the harsh climate. They continuously improved sauna equipment and bathing methods, especially with the development of science and technology, where they applied advanced technology to sauna equipment, making sauna baths reach modern standards. Sauna equipment can be divided into dry sauna machine and wet types according to the bath environment and sweating method.
Sauna equipment was introduced to China mostly from northern Europe. Dry sauna baths were transmitted from Finland to China and are therefore called the "Finnish bath," while wet sauna baths were transmitted from Turkey to China and are also called the "Turkish bath."
