Keep your sauna looking great

Routine care guidelines

#1: Do not paint, varnish, or stain the interior surfaces of your sauna.

The wood needs to breathe (absorb and slowly release heat and humidity). Also, artificial finishes make the wood surface much hotter, create the possibility of fumes from the wood treatment, and take away some of the “softness” of heat and steam penetrating the wood.

#2: Do treat door handles and floor boards.

Door handles and floor boards are an exception to guideline #1. These two points of the sauna can get dirty easily. To make cleaning easier, you can treat the handles and floor boards with a good wood sealant or polyurethane finish.

After-use care guidelines

#1: Lightly scrub your sauna after each use.

The simplest method of sauna maintenance is to keep a hand brush in the sauna. The last person out dips the brush in the water bucket (plain water), and does a quick scrubbing of the benches, walls, backrests, etc. This 30 to 60 second ritual will keep your sauna looking great for years.

#2: Allow the sauna to dry out.

After you’re finished using the sauna, and your cleaning process is complete, prop the duckboards off the floor. Leave the sauna door open and air it out completely. The heat remaining in the rocks and in the wood should dry the sauna completely.

#3: Address dirt / stains as they appear.

If you get any dirt or sweat stains developing, use a hand brush and warm water with a mild detergent in it.

To get the benches looking like new, you can lightly sand your benches about once per year. It will lighten them more to their original condition.

If you have mold develop anywhere (on duckboards, for example), you can clean with warm water and bleach.

#4: Occasionally wet-mop.

Depending on how often you use your sauna, occasionally wet-mop with a liquid deodorizing cleaner such as Lysol or Pine-Sol.