Tahoe Sauna Company

Cabin·Electric with Wi-Fi heater·Up to 6 people·Built 2026

A freestanding 8x8 outdoor sauna for a family in Tahoma, on Lake Tahoe's West Shore. They wanted something that could hold a crowd, stand up to Sierra winters, and not ask much in upkeep. We made the whole interior one 64 sq ft hot room, with no changing room or partition, and used an L-shaped three-tier bench to get the seating: about 6 comfortably, up to 8 on the top bench or 12 across both levels. The 7-foot ceiling keeps the top bench up in the real heat without anyone ducking. The heater is a corner-mounted Harvia Cilindro (~8 kW) with Wi-Fi control, so it's hot by the time you walk out from the house. Ventilation is a three-vent system: fresh-air intake just above the heater, a fan exhaust below the foot bench that pulls air down through the bench zone, and a high drying vent for between sessions. Inside is western red cedar tongue-and-groove over R-13 walls and an R-19 ceiling with a foil vapor barrier, plus a sloped floor with a drain. Outside is dark-stained T1-11 siding under a single-slope shed roof with a deep overhang to shed snow, all on a deck-block foundation. Two windows frame the forest and keep privacy from the neighbors, and warm LED strips under the benches keep the light soft.

• Three-tier L-shaped benches
• Wi-Fi heater control
• Mechanical exhaust ventilation
• Two view windows
• Under-bench LED lighting
• Cedar interior
• Floor drain
• Shed roof
• Deck-block foundation

Cabin·Wood-fired heater·Up to 6 people

Our first custom outdoor sauna: an 8x8 cedar sauna in South Lake Tahoe built around a Harvia M3 wood-burning stove. Real fire, water on hot stones and natural convection, with no electrical service needed. We designed it from heater sizing on up: an upper bench in the hottest part of the room with a lower bench for a milder option, safe clearances around the stove and chimney, and combustion air planning so the stove draws well and burns clean. The client was hands-on with construction, which kept costs down. The walls are fiberglass batts behind an aluminum foil vapor barrier, and the interior is western red cedar made from cedar fence boards with shiplap edges cut in, a budget-friendly alternative to tongue-and-groove sauna paneling. The floor is penny tile with a drain, so you can throw water freely. It's been through several Tahoe winters of heavy snow and freeze-thaw without problems. In the client's words, it's a sauna that will last a generation.

• Harvia M3 wood-burning stove
• No electricity needed
• Two-tier benches
• Western red cedar interior
• Penny tile floor
• Floor drain
• Natural convection ventilation

Cabin·Electric with Wi-Fi heater·Up to 6 people·Built 2025

An existing 11x16 shed in Olympia, Washington, taken from bare studs to a two-room sauna suite on a waterfront property. Converting a shed is one of the most practical ways to get a custom sauna: the walls, roof and foundation are already there, which kept costs well below a ground-up build. The layout is an insulated hot room plus a warm room for cooling down and hanging out between rounds. The warm room gets the big windows, aimed at the Puget Sound views. The hot room keeps smaller privacy windows so it holds its heat. Olympia's wet climate drove the envelope design. Constant rain and humidity mean the vapor barrier, insulation and ventilation all had to be detailed so moisture never gets trapped in the walls. The hot room has cedar on the walls and ceiling over fiberglass insulation and a foil vapor barrier, a tile floor, and a Harvia KIP 80 (8 kW) heater with Xenio Wi-Fi control. The warm room has waterproof vinyl flooring, and warm LED strips under the benches light both rooms. We worked directly with the client and his builder through construction, adjusting the plan as site conditions came up.

• Shed conversion
• Two-room layout
• Warm room / changing room
• Water views
• Harvia KIP 80 with Xenio Wi-Fi
• Cedar interior
• Tile floor
• Wet-climate envelope
• Under-bench LED lighting

Cabin·Electric with Wi-Fi heater·Up to 3 people

A 3-person outdoor sauna for a small backyard in a dense residential neighborhood. The owner wanted total privacy, fast heat-up and good air, all in a 5x6 footprint. So there are no windows at all: a solid wood door, cedar on every interior surface, and fiberglass insulation behind a foil vapor barrier. With no glass losing heat, a right-sized Harvia KIP60 (6 kW) gets it up to temperature in about 30 minutes. A windowless sauna needs real ventilation, so we added an AC Infinity CloudLine exhaust fan on the outside wall with speed control from inside. It keeps CO2 down and the air comfortable for longer sessions. The heater, fan and under-bench LEDs all run through Harvia Xenio Wi-Fi controls, so it can be started from a phone. Three tiers of redwood benches in a straight layout, 7.5-foot ceilings, a single-pitch shingled roof sloping toward the house, and T1-11 siding stained to match the existing shed. It sits on a pressure-treated frame over an existing paver patio. A good example of how much sauna you can fit in a small space.

• Windowless for privacy
• Harvia KIP60 with Xenio Wi-Fi
• Mechanical exhaust fan
• Three-tier redwood benches
• Cedar interior
• Under-bench LED lighting
• Built on existing patio

Cabin·Electric heater·Up to 6 people

Where it all started. Before Tahoe Sauna Company was a business, this was a personal obsession: months of studying traditional Finnish sauna design (heat stratification, bench ergonomics, ventilation) before building anything. The result is this 8x8 outdoor sauna in a South Lake Tahoe backyard. The design is about getting people up into the heat. There are three bench tiers so your whole body sits above the stove, under a 7.5-foot ceiling that's deliberately lower than standard to keep the heat concentrated where you sit. Two 16x30 tempered windows give tree views and natural light while keeping the neighbors out of sight. It runs a Harvia KIP 80 (8 kW) with simple built-in manual controls. Inside is western red cedar over fiberglass insulation and a foil vapor barrier, with a tile floor and passive ventilation: intake near the heater, exhaust on the opposite wall. A single-pitch shed roof handles the snow load. Years later it's still going strong through Tahoe winters, and every design we do today draws on what we learned building it.

• Three-tier benches
• 7.5 ft ceiling for heat
• Harvia KIP 80
• Cedar interior
• Two tempered view windows
• Tile floor
• Passive ventilation
• Snow-load shed roof

Other·Electric with Wi-Fi heater·Up to 3 people

An indoor sauna built inside a garage in Reno, Nevada. A 6.5x6.5 footprint was all the space the owner could carve out, so the layout had to fit good bench space without crowding the heater clearances. The make-or-break detail in a garage sauna is moisture. Without a proper vapor barrier, steam migrates into the garage wall cavities and you end up with mold and rot. We detailed a continuous aluminum foil vapor barrier with every seam taped and every penetration sealed, with fiberglass insulation behind it and western red cedar on the walls and ceiling. Indoors you can't rely on natural airflow, so it has a balanced ventilation system with a dedicated intake and exhaust to keep the air fresh and CO2 low. The heater is a Harvia KIP 80 (8 kW) on a 240V circuit with Xenio Wi-Fi control for preheating from a phone, and low-profile heat-rated lighting gives a soft glow. The result heats fast, holds heat, and won't damage the garage around it. In the owner's words: high quality, done quickly, and it heats faster than expected.

• Garage conversion
• Indoor sauna
• Continuous sealed vapor barrier
• Balanced intake and exhaust ventilation
• Harvia KIP 80 with Xenio Wi-Fi
• Cedar interior

Cabin·Electric with Wi-Fi heater·Up to 5 people

A compact 6x8 Finnish-style sauna in South Lake Tahoe, designed by us and built by the owner himself. The goal was a true hot, dry sauna with fast recovery and clean air, in a small footprint that still seats a group. Three tiers of redwood benches in a small L-shape fit 4-5 people comfortably, with the top bench up where the real heat is. The heater is a Harvia Spirit (9 kW) with Wi-Fi app control, so it's up to temperature before you walk out the back door in a Tahoe winter. Ventilation is where we spent the most time. A lot of small saunas get one vent or none and end up with cold feet, stale air and heat stacked at the ceiling. This one runs a three-vent system with mechanical ventilation: fresh air in near the heater, a controlled exhaust, and a return that keeps the air turning over. The result is even heat from feet to head and fresh air through a long session. The windows are small on purpose, enough to let in light and frame the ravine out back without dumping heat. Western red cedar tongue-and-groove inside, pine siding outside under a single-pitch roof, and warm LEDs under the benches. Materials came in around $6,000.

• Owner-built from our design
• Harvia Spirit 9 kW with Wi-Fi
• Three-vent mechanical ventilation
• Three-tier L-shaped redwood benches
• Cedar tongue-and-groove interior
• Small view windows
• Under-bench LED lighting

Cabin·Electric heater·Up to 6 people

A custom 8x8 outdoor sauna in the Myers neighborhood of South Lake Tahoe. The brief was a well-built, well-insulated sauna without overcomplicating the design or the budget. We used redwood for the benches, a little less common than cedar, but it gives the room a warmer, richer look and holds up very well at sauna temperatures. Walls and ceiling are western red cedar over fiberglass insulation and a foil vapor barrier, with 7.5-foot ceilings. A Harvia KIP 80 (8 kW) is sized for the 480 cubic foot room on a dedicated 240V circuit. LED strips under the benches give warm light with no fixtures up in the heat zone. Two small windows are placed for privacy while still catching partial mountain views. There's no floor drain, since it's designed for dry sauna use, which keeps the build simpler and cheaper. Outside is cedar siding under a single-pitch shed roof built for Tahoe snow loads. Materials came in around $4,100, and we connected the owner with a builder we trust. In his words, the attention to detail in the bench layout and lighting made all the difference.

• Redwood benches
• Cedar interior
• Harvia KIP 80
• Under-bench LED lighting
• Privacy windows with mountain views
• Snow-load shed roof
• Cedar siding

Cabin·Electric with Wi-Fi heater·Up to 6 people

This 8x8 outdoor sauna in South Lake Tahoe was designed around one thing: the view. The property looks straight at Freel Peak, the tallest peak in the Tahoe Basin, and the owner wanted to see it from the bench. So a large picture window went on the back wall, and the whole three-tier L-bench layout faces it. It seats 4-6, and the top bench is 24 inches deep so you can lie down and watch the snow come in over the mountains. The heater is a Harvia KIP 80 (8 kW) with Xenio Wi-Fi control, so it's hot by the time you walk out from the house. Inside is western red cedar over fiberglass insulation and a foil vapor barrier, with dark black penny tile and a floor drain for a durable, wet-room-ready finish. Warm LED strips under the benches keep the light soft. It sits right next to the house on deck-block footings (no concrete pour), under a gable roof built for Tahoe snow loads. Materials came in around $5,400.

• Large picture window
• Mountain views
• Three-tier L-shaped benches
• 24-inch lie-down top bench
• Harvia KIP 80 with Xenio Wi-Fi
• Black penny tile floor
• Floor drain
• Gable roof
• Deck-block foundation

Cabin·Electric with Wi-Fi heater·Up to 6 people

Privacy drove this 8x8 outdoor sauna in South Lake Tahoe. The yard has fences and neighbors close on both sides, so the two small windows are sized and placed for light, not sightlines. A three-tier L-bench layout seats 4-6 and gets people up high in the heat, where the top bench can run 30-40 degrees hotter than floor level. The 8-foot ceiling leaves generous heat volume above the top bench. The heater is a Harvia Cilindro (8 kW) on a 240V circuit with Xenio Wi-Fi control, so the owner can preheat it from inside the house. The western red cedar interior panels were shiplapped in-house with a dado blade, a cost-effective alternative to pre-milled tongue-and-groove, over fiberglass insulation and a foil vapor barrier. Hex penny tile with a floor drain makes it a true wet room. Pour water on the stones and the floor without worrying. Warm LED strips under the benches finish it off. Outside, it's stained dark brown to match the house under a single-pitch shed roof built for snow. After the design was done, we connected the owner with a local builder who got it done quickly and at a good price.

• Harvia Cilindro 8 kW with Xenio Wi-Fi
• Three-tier L-shaped benches
• 8 ft ceiling
• Cedar shiplap interior
• Hex penny tile floor
• Floor drain
• Privacy windows
• Under-bench LED lighting

Cabin·Electric heater·Up to 6 people

A good example of our remote design service. The client lives in Minnesota and wanted an 8x12 sauna with a changing room at his lakeside cabin in northern Wisconsin. He and his brother had the skills to build it themselves. What they needed was help with the sauna-specific decisions, and we never had to set foot on the property. We worked through it together over calls: heater choice for the room volume and a cold climate (Wi-Fi control is handy at a cabin you're not always at), raising the ceiling from 7 to 7.5 feet so a proper three-tier L-shaped bench fits with the top bench in the heat, window placement for lake views without losing heat, and ventilation intake and exhaust sized for the hot room. The envelope is built for Upper Midwest winters: 2x4 walls with mineral wool, a foil vapor barrier and cedar paneling, plus an insulated subfloor over a concrete slab with rigid foam between the joists. The floor drain had to be located and routed before the slab pour, so we detailed it early for the concrete contractor. The 3.5-foot changing room keeps cold air out of the hot room, and half-log siding matches the cabin. The package included a dimensionally accurate 3D model, a priced line-by-line materials list, and step-by-step construction instructions. The owners took it and built it.

• Remote design
• Owner-built
• Changing room
• Three-tier L-shaped benches
• Tile floor with center drain
• Insulated subfloor over slab
• Mineral wool insulation
• Cedar interior
• Half-log siding
• 3D model and materials list