Inside the latest Thermal Suite Designer.

This is the best Thermal Suite Designer we have built to date.

Every build teaches us something, and the last few months of changes all landed on this one. The owner ordered a Thermal Suite Designer and knew what he was getting on paper. He didn’t know about the recent upgrades. We put all of them in and let him find out on delivery day.

Here is what changed, from the ground up.

Trex on the deck

The porch used to be cedar. Cedar looks good on day one, but a deck sits out in the weather all year: rain soaks it, then it freezes, then it thaws, and it does that over and over. Over time that cycle wears wood down.

This deck is Trex. It holds up far longer under rain and freezing temperatures, and it doesn’t need the upkeep an exposed wood deck does. It is the first thing you step on and the part that takes the most weather, so it is where we wanted the most durable material.

A steel base underneath

The suite now sits on a steel base. For us this has been a game changer, for two reasons.

The first is longevity. Steel gives the whole structure a stable, flat foundation that won’t give over the years. The second is delivery. A rigid base makes the suite easier to move and set, and the two installs we have done on it so far were the cleanest we have ever had, with no movement in the structure at all.

It also looks right. The metal reads as clean and industrial under the wood, which suits the lines of the Designer. The Craft covers the base and the rest of the build in detail.

A sturdier door

The door is upgraded too. It is a more robust wood-frame door, and it holds shut. That matters more than it sounds: a lot of our saunas go into open, windy sites, and a door that blows open lets the heat out and takes a beating on its hinges. This one stays closed until you open it.

Thermally modified cedar inside

Inside, the walls and the floor are cedar, and the cedar on this build is thermally modified.

Ordinary lumber still holds sap and moisture. Put it in a sauna, heat it hard, let it cool, and repeat, and that trapped sap and water expand and move inside the wood. That is what makes boards warp and crack. Thermal modification bakes the wood until the sap and moisture are gone, so there is nothing left inside to push the boards out of shape. It stays flat and whole through heat cycle after heat cycle.

Cedar was already the right wood for the room. It is naturally antimicrobial, so it resists mildew and mold and stays clean in a space that is hot and damp by design. And people love the smell. The cedar scent when you open the door is one of the things owners mention most.

A layout for lying down

The owner wanted to get the most out of the space, so we added an L-shaped bench. Running the bench around the corner gives the room more seating and enough length to lie down.

To make that work, the heater slid into the corner, tucked away from the doorway. You can walk in without brushing past it, and nobody has to sit right next to it. The room is set up for stretching out or for hanging out with a few friends, with everyone on the bench and no one sweating over you.

Watch the walkthrough

See every upgrade, from the deck to the bench.

If you are planning a sauna and plunge of your own, The Craft lays out the materials, and the Thermal Suite Designer page has the layouts and options. When you are ready, book a consultation. We reach out within 2 business days.