Wood is one of the most important raw materials of the earth and one of the few that regrow. Sustainably attached and dismantled, one can enjoy the wood construction sauna with a clear conscience. Time to take a closer look at the stuff the sweaty dreams are made of.
Actually, the sauna deserves the first place among the wellness treatments when it comes to ecological and economic relaxation. The short version reads quite quickly: The basic construction consists of a few materials, more precisely of wood and an oven, which in turn uses wood to heat or electrically conduct the stones inside. Once the sauna stones have been baked hot, only fresh water is needed for the infusion. Naturally, relaxation can hardly be.
Material wood
But wood is not the same as wood and sauna is not the same as sauna. Because the highest priority should be when buying a cabin, from which wood the sauna is made and how it was processed. In this country you get almost only cabins that are made of harmless wood species, especially popular are spruce, aspen and the European fir and the Canadian hemlock. „Wood – whether as a building material or in the form of a tree – stores CO2 in the context of photosynthesis. When using wood as a building material, CO2 is bound further, and CO2 is released into the air only when it is incinerated, „says Josef Hummel of the sauna specialist Block-Hausbau Hummel enthusiastically recommending the use of wood as a natural material:“ The 2004 Charter for Wood prevailed also the federal government for the increased use of wood. „According to this, the consumption of domestic wood is to be increased by 20 percent in the next ten years. „In Germany, and this is also underlined by the results of the new Federal Forest Inventory, far more timber is growing than we currently use. Wood is a self-renewing resource with many uses and many environmental benefits. Renate Künast, the former Federal Minister for Consumer Protection, Food and Agriculture, explained the natural advantages of using sustainable forest management more effectively. In Germany, but also in other parts of Europe, the forest areas and the wood supply are increasing. In other parts of the world, on the other hand, there is still depletion of forests. Sustainable management of these forests, too, can secure the provision of raw materials for increased use of wood throughout the world. The importance of environmentally sound wood removal has been recognized by the sauna manufacturers, as market leader Klafs also insists, as Managing Director Stefan Schöllhammer explains: „The use of wood from sustainable, certified forestry has been a matter of course for years.“
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But not only the cultivation of the base material for the sauna is important, also how the wood is processed later. The processing processes in the timber industry are generally comparatively low in energy and environmentally friendly. Within the overall cycle, the raw material is partly recycled several times, for example as waste paper or waste wood, until at the end of the product chain the components flow back into the natural cycle via controlled disposal, for example through energetic use and composting. After rough processing, the raw material is passed on to specialists for sauna construction. In addition to Blockbohlenensaunen, which consist of 5 to 7 cm thick wooden planks, is found as the second major design variant of the elemental sauna. The walls of a sauna in element construction usually consist of a wooden frame construction, on the thin profiled wood slats are nailed. So that not too much heat is lost to the outside, the interstices are insulated with thermoactive substances such as mineral wool or cork. A particularly environmentally friendly example of a sauna wall is „S-Press“ from Rohol. The high-quality biocomposite meets both the technical and all ecological requirements of sauna construction. The wood panel on the inside of the wall ensures minimal emissions, and the special cork center layer is a biologically sound, dimensionally stable insulating material that absorbs and releases moisture from the sauna, thus ensuring a balanced climate in the cabin. So that not too much heat is lost to the outside, the interstices are insulated with thermoactive substances such as mineral wool or cork. A particularly environmentally friendly example of a sauna wall is „S-Press“ from Rohol. The high-quality biocomposite meets both the technical and all ecological requirements of sauna construction. The wood panel on the inside of the wall ensures minimal emissions, and the special cork center layer is a biologically sound, dimensionally stable insulating material that absorbs and releases moisture from the sauna, thus ensuring a balanced climate in the cabin. So that not too much heat is lost to the outside, the interstices are insulated with thermoactive substances such as mineral wool or cork. A particularly environmentally friendly example of a sauna wall is „S-Press“ from Rohol. The high-quality biocomposite meets both the technical and all ecological requirements of sauna construction. The wood panel on the inside of the wall ensures minimal emissions, and the special cork center layer is a biologically sound, dimensionally stable insulating material that absorbs and releases moisture from the sauna, thus ensuring a balanced climate in the cabin. A particularly environmentally friendly example of a sauna wall is „S-Press“ from Rohol. The high-quality biocomposite meets both the technical and all ecological requirements of sauna construction. The wood panel on the inside of the wall ensures minimal emissions, and the special cork center layer is a biologically sound, dimensionally stable insulating material that absorbs and releases moisture from the sauna, thus ensuring a balanced climate in the cabin. A particularly environmentally friendly example of a sauna wall is „S-Press“ from Rohol. The high-quality biocomposite meets both the technical and all ecological requirements of sauna construction. The wood panel on the inside of the wall ensures minimal emissions, and the special cork center layer is a biologically sound, dimensionally stable insulating material that absorbs and releases moisture from the sauna, thus ensuring a balanced climate in the cabin.
manufacturing process
Now that the material has been taken care of, the sauna farmer’s turn is to make a sweat booth from the basic elements. Here, too, sustainability is in demand. „For log cabin saunas, we only use solid beams for the walls. The painting is done with solvent-free paints, „explains Josef Hummel. And also in the production one can spare the nature „The responsibility towards humans, environment and society for us already for many years naturally and important. This is already happening in the buildings at Klafs. For example, we heat our production halls and the administrative buildings with a total area of 15,000 square meters with renewable energies and generate part of our electricity ourselves, „says Stefan Schöllhammer.
Alternative steam room
But what if you opt for a steam bath instead of a sauna? Again, manufacturers can do a lot to protect the environment. As in all other buildings, good thermal insulation helps to reduce heating costs. However, this should – depending on the type of cabin – be planned appropriately. „Too much heat insulation can cost additional energy in the steam bath: In order for mist to form in the steam bath, the room must cool down before the steam flows in. If it is insulated too well, more energy is used for cooling than necessary, „explains Helmut Hilpert from the company of the same name, expert in ceramic production and steam bath construction. „Lower insulation saves energy in this case, as the room cools faster, the heat escapes through the walls and is fed to the building – so it is not lost. „For heating, the proportion of electrical energy should be as low as possible. There are good alternatives: For example, Tecaldarien can be operated with pellet heating. In addition, there are heat recovery systems that capture the energy and return it to the cabin. This should not be saved on the amount of air that is circulated during the process, because it contributes significantly to the pleasant climate.
Eco-
friendly perspiration Sauna & Co. are complemented with environmentally- friendly amenities and sophisticated energy-saving concepts. For example, when purchasing, it should be noted that the sauna walls do not fall below the standard of 55 millimeters. Again and again, black sheep can be found under the finished cabins brand Bauhaus, which have only a wall thickness of 38 millimeters. What looks like a bargain when buying avenges in the long term in use: energy is lost over the ceiling and the upper wall elements. This is best prevented by an extra-strong insulation, in which the sauna ceiling with a double-strong frame construction and a reinforced thermal insulation is performed.
Text: Patricia Pfister