In the land of heated cabins
Tools, experience and passion: Building a smoke sauna in Finland
How exactly do you build a sauna? No, not an electric one – we mean a traditional smoke sauna in a log cabin. Sawn, planed and built, log by log, by a team of fully committed men and women, and their machines. It will easily outlive its builders; some are still standing after centuries. So, what is the secret to successfully creating a smoke sauna that is built to last? We met with three brothers who are sure to know: Johannes, Martti and Ilkka are in charge of Hirsityö Heikkilä, their company specialising in sauna construction. We were allowed to join the team on a project – in the homeland of the sauna, of course: Finland.
When Johannes says it's hard work, he means it: You need every ounce of your physical stamina when building a smoke sauna. The process starts with sourcing the wood that is predominantly used to build the log cabin. Firstly, the trees are traditionally felled, the bark is removed and, then, after being left to season for more than a year, the timber is chosen and loaded onto a forklift. Aspen and pine are used. "The timber must be really dry and of the highest quality", Johannes – who took over the firm from his father Heikki in 2009, along with his two brothers, Martti and Ilkka – explained to us. "Otherwise, it won't be able to withstand the load and the weather conditions over a long period of time. The wood comes exclusively from locally-cultivated forests, in a 60-kilometre radius."
"Somewhere you can let your mind wander"
The timber is transported from the sawmill to the company's base in Karstula, around 200 kilometres from the capital, Helsinki. Forests dominate the landscape. As we travel, we have some time to learn more about sauna culture in Finland. "The sauna is a sacred place for us Finns. Preparing for the afterlife, giving birth, cleansing and protecting the body from disease – everything is connected to the sauna", recounted Johannes. "When our forefathers used to go the sauna to cure diseases, they used trees which had fallen in a thunderstorm. Today, the sauna is a place where relaxation is key. It is a whole body experience. But, of course, the framework has to be right for this: A stable construction, good ventilation, and, of course, the sauna itself must be in a beautiful location, somewhere you can let your mind wander."
"The sauna is a sacred place for us Finns. Preparing for the afterlife, giving birth, cleansing and protecting the body from disease – everything is connected to the sauna"
Johannes, sauna builder and co-owner of Hirsityö Heikkilä
Traditional minimalism
The timber used for log cabins has the ability to retain and then release moisture. "This traditional construction has proven its merit over thousands of years. All the walls are made from one material, and one material only: Wood. This construction also fits with our Finnish sauna culture, known for its minimalism", said Ilkka. The individual logs are connected with traditional dovetail joints. "This has two advantages: Visually, the joint is attractive; it is also highly durable and stable, with good tensile strength. Dovetail joints are also used for furniture across the world, albeit in a slightly modified form." This construction makes sense from both an economic and environmental standpoint. "A sauna consists almost entirely of wood, and we source all this wood locally. Of course, we also use some modern power tools; without these aids, we wouldn't be able to produce at the same speed and have a viable business. Most importantly, cordless tools with powerful batteries provide us with much greater flexibility than previously."
Teamwork plus experience
"Building a smoke sauna is a team effort, because it requires a large amount of manual labour. Everybody has their own role to play, with the work all coming together in the end. We build between five and ten saunas each year", Johannes proudly stated. Then he gets to work with his brother, Ilkka: Firstly, the logs are sawn to size – lengthways and widthways – with a chainsaw. Then, notches are sawn into the logs, to allow everything to be fitted together without any play. It becomes clear just by watching: Custom-fit saws require an experienced and sensitive hand. At the same time, a drawknife is used to remove the bark from the wooden boards which will later be used for the benches, and these are worked with a plane. Then, they are sanded with the ROTEX, Festool's geared eccentric sander. "Nobody wants to sit on a bench with splinters, so, of course, we go over these very thoroughly", winks Johannes, laughing.
An island, no power – and now what?
At the end of the day, a tour still needs to be undertaken of the site where the sauna will later be installed. Some preparations have to be made at this site before installation can take place. The team gets the power for the tools and lighting from the Festool SYS-PowerStation, which they proudly show us. "We're lucky this time. A lot of the saunas we build are installed on islands. This means there is usually no power supply so we used to be dependent on diesel generators. They are easy to use but bulky and noisy, and disturb the wildlife out here in the natural environment. The SYS-PowerStation was therefore one of the most important purchases we made this year", said Johannes, as he works the logs with the HL 850 planer. Then it is time for the last item on this week's agenda: The drive home and a visit to the smoke sauna. The two of them cut the wood for this in the spruce forest on their own doorstep. It's time for us to say goodbye to our friendly sauna builders – Marianne calls out, laughing, from the cab of the forest vehicle: "That's just the standard post-work routine here in Finland!"
Editor's note: This article was produced in full by our locally-based colleagues from Festool Finland – no air miles, with their corresponding CO2 emissions, were incurred.
