The perks of Siberian taiga wood | Blog | Gottsteinsaunas

The Czech market offers many indoor and outdoor saunas made from spruce wood grown in our latitude – we can’t recommend those, and you’ll find out why in our article. Learn how not to swallow the hook and recognize quality sauna lumber.

It applies to all saunas in the Czech market – not just barrel saunas. The best wood for making saunas is Nordic wood from trees growing in different conditions. Czech spruce is more affordable, but it’s not quite suitable for saunas as the wood must withstand being subjected to frequently changing degrees of temperature and moisture.

Why to choose lumber from extreme conditions

Nordic wood grows under extreme conditions; the short summers and long, harsh winters it grows in ensure that the lumber has properties crucial for sauna making.

The thick Nordic wood provides natural insulation, has less knots, and retains heat exceptionally well. Nordic wood is less prone to cracking and swelling, and is less resinous.

This makes Nordic wood perfect for sauna making – a barrel sauna made from Nordic wood will last a long time looking beautiful. Unlike with saunas made from Central European spruce, you don’t need to worry about the wood shrinking and swelling, causing gaps to form between each part of the sauna.

The sauna will withstand ravages of time, serving you and your family for years to come. Nordic wood is also popular for its beautiful grain.

How to choose high-quality wood for your sauna

If you want to make sure your sauna will be made from Nordic wood, all you have to do is look at a simple detail – the tree rings.

Nordic wood has a unique grain; its growth rings are very thin, sometimes even thinner than one millimetre. This is caused by the conditions the trees grow in. Nordic trees take a much longer time to grow into the same height as Central European trees.

If you are not sure of the quality of the lumber used to make your sauna, ask for the name of the producer – you’ll be able to find all the details on the internet.

To make our barrel saunas, we mostly use two types of lumber: Northern spruce from Vologda (600 km north of Moscow), and cedar from Gorno-Altaysk. We choose Russian lumber for its exceptional quality and durability. Its price also allows us to keep our saunas at an accessible price point.

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