You can turn a walk-in closet into a sauna.
Installing a sauna at home is a straightforward task once preliminary decisions have been made regarding the size and location of the sauna. Installing the sauna yourself rather than hiring a contractor will lower the overall cost of the project by about 35 percent. Couple that savings with the benefits derived from having a home sauna, and it is easy to see why home saunas are becoming increasingly popular as a do-it-yourself project. The most common sauna installation is the conversion of a walk-in closet to a small custom-built sauna. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
1. Plan your custom-built sauna project carefully. Decide which room will be converted into a sauna. The size and location are important considerations since they directly affect the cost of the project. Be sure the room you select has an electric outlet already installed (or at least shares a wall with an existing outlet). Custom saunas can be designed to fit into almost any size and shape room, so you can be creative. Custom-built saunas may be ordered from one of many manufacturers; all you must do is provide a complete set of measurements using a standardized order form supplied by them.
2. Choose the room (usually a walk-in closet) you wish to convert to a sauna. Carefully fill out the custom sauna order form by taking exact room measurements, then answering all questions about the room on the order form. Order your sauna using the manufacturer's suggested measurement techniques and ordering procedures, without deviation. This usually includes filling out a standardized measurement form with seemingly repetitive questions, then adding or subtracting some specific dimensions to the overall room size to accommodate their chosen building materials. Additional items to note on the standardized order form are left- vs right-door swing, number of benches to include, and a few other options. Take your time with the ordering task, since the entire success of the project depends on your attention to detail when ordering the sauna.
3. Prepare the room to accept the sauna kit. This involves removing everything from the walls, floor and ceiling. All that should remain are the concrete (or wooden) floor, clean drywall walls and an opening where the sauna door will go.
4. Cut individual furring strips to length. They should be as long as the room is high (usually 8 feet). The number of strips needed with be approximately 1 strip for every 18 inches of wall space to be covered (remember to cut enough for all the walls). Cut enough to also cover the ceiling at 18-inch intervals.
5. Attach the furring strips on top of the existing wall studs throughout the room, using 3-inch nails spaced every 12 inches. Studs may be located by very lightly tapping on the wall with a hammer. When the sound the hammer makes changes from hollow to solid, then the stud is behind that spot. The ceiling should be outfitted with furring strips as well, along all the ceiling joists. Locate them the same way as wall studs.
6. Follow the sauna manufacturer's instructions when installing the sauna kit. The basic concept is that the pre-cut sauna pieces will attach to the the furring strips that have been placed throughout the room. Most kits recommend that the ceiling be attached first, followed by the walls and then the door. Benches are usually installed after the heater is attached (near a wall outlet).
Tags: furring strips, order form, walk-in closet, cost project, custom-built sauna, every inches, have been
