Installation of an electric stove for a sauna and bathhouse, placement and installation options (100 photos)

What is important in choosing a sauna stove

Installing an electric heater in a sauna or bathhouse is the dream of every country house owner. This move brings the home sauna to a higher level of comfort and makes it possible to enjoy the steam at a convenient time. Proper operation of the stove requires proper planning of the entire sauna arrangement, installation according to the rules of the ventilation system. Sauna models of electric stoves differ in the type of installation; this should be taken into account when choosing a model and in arranging all sauna equipment.

According to the type of installation, the user prefers wall-mounted or floor-mounted units with a cylinder shape - tall and narrow. It will fit well in any sauna room and will not take up much space. When the steam room area allows, buyers choose from any variety of models.

Structure of the outer furnace body:

open;
closed.

An open-type electric sauna stove retains heat for a long time and releases steam effectively. A closed-type oven is used when the owner prefers a well-heated room with as dry air as possible. An important parameter when choosing a furnace is its power. In the store, the buyer must be ready to answer the seller’s competent questions about the area of the steam room, the available electrical connections, their cross-section, the desired shape of the unit, and the type of its intended device. A store consultant will help you calculate the power based on the area of the steam room. According to physiological and technical parameters, a sauna stove can optimally warm up a steam room, calculating the consumption of 1-1.5 kW of energy per 1 cubic meter of area.

Consultants recommend purchasing units “in reserve”, with a temperature control function. Then the unit will confidently withstand the specified operating loads and will fulfill the warranty period given by the manufacturer without any problems. A powerful stove for a home sauna or bathhouse will require a new electrical wire, with a separate line, with a cross-section required according to the power of the selected unit indicated by the manufacturers.

The choice requires taking into account the volume of the internal chamber where the stones are placed for heating. An electric stove for a small sauna will effectively warm the room if its volume is 20-26 kg. For large steam rooms, you need to purchase models with a volume of more than 50 kg in order to get enough warmth and comfort.

It is important to arrange high-quality thermal insulation in the sauna, initially to build it with thick load-bearing walls. This eliminates heat loss and allows the furnace to operate at normal temperature conditions. When a steam room is installed in an old bathhouse, it is recommended to purchase a stove with a large reserve of power, which can cover heat loss and provide comfort to those who like to steam.

Buyers choose the stove manufacturer and brand in advance. European-made units are of the highest quality, but are in the highest price category. Models from domestic brands are much cheaper; our manufacturers offer technologically simple, high-quality electric ovens. Chinese manufacturers offer cheap models, and among them you can also find reliable options for budget stoves.

Operating principle of an electric heater

A traditional sauna stove contains three main components. This is the fuel compartment, chimney and heater. If firewood is used for heating, then it must be loaded into the stove in a timely manner, ignited, maintained, and the ash removed. It's a little easier with a gas oven. In this case, there is no need to bother with firewood and ash. However, the design still requires a separate combustion chamber and chimney.

In this aspect, electric furnaces have a clear advantage over wood and gas ones. There is no question of a chimney here at all; a combustion chamber is also not needed. Therefore, the heating elements can be located in the same compartment with the stones. This greatly simplifies the design and makes servicing the furnace much easier.

Small portable electric heaters have another advantage - mobility. If wood-burning stoves are attached to a chimney, then an electric one can be easily rearranged indoors or even moved to another bathhouse.

An electric heater with a steam generator has a slightly more complex design. When using it, there is no need to add water to the stones. The electric heater automatically regulates the steam supply. There is also functionality for temperature control. In this case, the user can choose a temperature regime that is convenient for themselves.

Let us note an important point. When choosing an electric heater with a steam generator, you need to pay attention to the characteristics of the steam it produces. For a Russian bath you definitely need fine, light steam. However, some models generate heavy steam, which is not suitable for a steam room.

How to choose an electric heater for a mini sauna

“Mini” is considered a sauna with a small room of no more than 1.5 cubic meters. It is designed for the simultaneous presence of 1-2 people in the steam room. The recent trend is to install small bathhouses directly in the apartment of an urban building. They consume little electricity, the main thing is to ensure reliable thermal insulation. The heaters in the mini-sauna are small in size. Manufacturers put the words “Mini” and “Compact” on these devices.

The market presents mini-heaters with the following trademarks:

Sawo; Mini and Mini-X series;
Harvia; Vega Compact, Delta series.

These are the most common brands of mini ovens. Other manufacturers have them too. The positive and negative aspects of using mini-ovens are common to all electrical units installed in a home bathhouse.

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pros

making electric heaters from different metals;
electricity is converted directly into thermal energy;
mobility of devices, possibility of installation anywhere in the steam room;
the power of small heaters installed in apartments is compared to an electric kettle, the device consumes less energy than home steam irons;
Proper grounding ensures fire safety.

Minuses

using electricity is quite expensive;
the mini-sauna is designed for no more than two people present;
difficulties with wires; you need to invite an electrician to install a three-phase wire when the heater consumes 380 volts; for proper grounding.

There are mini-heaters that are designed to operate from networks with standard 220 volts; if the owner knows how to do grounding, he can connect such a stove himself. It is important to be sure that the wiring is secure.

Design features of the electric heater

The main component of any electric heater is the heating elements. The most commonly used heating elements or tape heaters.

Heating elements for electric heaters

Most models on the market use heating elements. They are distinguished by their simplicity and unpretentiousness. A closed tube contains a metal spiral, which heats up when an electric current passes. Due to the simplicity of design and manufacture, heating elements are widely used in household appliances (heaters, kettles, washing machines).

Heating elements have also proven themselves well in heaters. But they have certain disadvantages, which become more pronounced when used open. So, in the process of laying stones, the heating element can be damaged. And if you fill it with water, it will completely fail. Therefore, you need to handle them quite carefully.

Tape heaters

The design of such heaters differs in that the spirals are laid inside a ceramic tape. Thanks to this, they are better protected and much more difficult to damage. The second advantage of strip heaters is their higher efficiency. With the same power, they are capable of heating a room 1.5 times larger in volume compared to heating elements. This is also facilitated by their design, which provides higher efficiency.

Tape heaters are more expensive than heating elements. Therefore, the cost of heaters equipped with them is usually higher. However, they are more likely to fall into the middle price category. There are models with heating elements that are noticeably more expensive.

Safety rules for using electric stoves in a sauna

When installing an electric heating unit in a home sauna, you must comply with the requirements of the Operating Instructions, fire and electrical safety rules. Then the furnace will operate with a high level of efficiency, which is what a prudent owner requires. The stones are laid out so that they completely cover the heating elements, this prevents splashes of water from getting on them. This is especially important for tubular type heaters, it extends their service life.

Installation of devices requires reliable fixation of the output terminals. If the owner follows the established rules and is confident in his abilities, he does not need to involve specialists and does everything with his own hands.

Connecting an electric furnace

There are no specific requirements for the cable used to connect to the control panel. For a three-phase network you need a cable of five cores, for a single-phase network - of three cores of the NYM or VVG-ng type.

There must be a protective grounding conductor.

As a rule, the oven can be connected using plastic boxes.

Cables with vinyl insulation should not be used in saunas.

You can use a cable insulated with heat-resistant rubber or single-core RKGM. To protect the wiring from negative factors, it is better to use a pre-grounded metal pipe or metal hose.

As an alternative to expensive heat-resistant wires, you can use a junction box installed one meter from the electric furnace. The height from the floor should be at least half a meter. Wires are connected to it, to which heating elements and a steam generator are connected. Heat-resistant wires are installed directly from the box.

To connect the sensors, the cables that come with the oven are used. They must not be extended, twisted or used for intermediate connections. The sensors are installed in accordance with the instructions, which must be followed unquestioningly. Most often, sensors are installed above the shelves, the exit from the sauna and directly above the electric stove.

Features of the construction of a bathhouse with an electric heater

When designing a bathhouse with an electric heater, special attention must be paid to the reliability of electrical networks and properly equipped grounding. If the room is large enough, then you definitely need to choose an electric oven powered by 380 volts. This means that you need to lay wiring with a wide cross-section of cores.

The electric heater in the steam room can be placed on the floor or wall. More powerful models require floor placement. In a small steam room, the heater can be mounted on the wall.

Another important point is room ventilation. Although there is no open fire, as in a traditional oven, oxygen will be vigorously consumed. Therefore, the issue of reliable ventilation of the steam room is very important for your health and safety.

Installation of lamps

One of the features of installing lamps in a bathhouse is the correct choice of their location.

Many people attach the lamps in the steam room to the ceiling, but this is wrong. They are allowed to be installed only in zones 2 and 3 (see zoning above). That is, lighting fixtures should be placed no closer than 30cm to the ceiling, where the hottest air collects. In the second zone, decorative lighting fixtures are often installed at a distance of up to 0.5 m from the floor. In zone 3, main lighting fixtures are installed. A good choice would be lamps with a ceramic base and a frosted glass shade with a degree of dust and moisture protection IP54.

In the rest room and vestibule there are no restrictions on the choice of lamps, and there you can install any that you like in the store.

Control

Electric heaters that vary in price have different sets of functions. Standard functionality includes the ability to adjust the temperature, automatically turn off after a certain period of time, as well as delayed start (usually up to 9 hours). Electric furnaces with a steam generator also provide humidity control.

The electric heater is controlled from the remote control. There are two main options here. The remote control can be built-in or remote. Built-in, together with all control keys and indicators, is located directly on the furnace body. Using the remote control, you can control the heater remotely.

A brief history of one hygiene procedure

Finns love saunas very much. This is their pride, their national passion. Meanwhile, for them such a pleasure was quite elitist. Only wealthy Finns had their own baths; the rest were content with public ones.

After the Second World War, the country was in deep depression and a program of action was needed that could bring the people out of their stupor. The sauna is recognized as such a national medicine. They just decided that people should be given an accessible bathhouse. In every apartment. In every house.

How to make a sauna cheap? The path will be directly in the house, and not in a separate building. How to make it cheaper? Make electric stoves for baths and saunas without a chimney.

There were problems with electrical safety at that time. I had to give up water. We got a myth about dry steam, which has taken root in many countries.

Meanwhile, dry heat is destructive to the body! The Finns understood this long ago. But in our country, the laws of commerce still prevail over reason.

By the way, many people complain of headaches in modern dry steam rooms. And this is understandable. Dry heat burns your lungs worse than cigarette smoke.

Advantages and disadvantages of electric heaters

Let us highlight the main features of electric sauna stoves.

Advantages:

• Easy to maintain, there is no need to load and light firewood or remove ash. • Automatic control, the ability to accurately regulate temperature (and humidity for models with a steam generator), start and turn off at a given point in time. • Compactness, mobility, the ability to rearrange the heater or move it to another room. • Wide selection of models with different power and user characteristics. • Ability to quickly set the desired temperature and humidity. • The smallest models can be used to organize a steam room even in a city apartment. • Simplicity of design, absence of fireplace and chimney. Saves construction time and costs compared to a traditional wood stove.

Flaws:

• Most inexpensive models do not provide conditions suitable for a Russian steam room (combination of temperature and humidity, correct steam consistency). • Difficulty in achieving optimal parameters even when using advanced electric heaters.

A flat floor is required

The sauna is installed directly on the floor in the room.

In this regard, the presence of sharp slopes, steps, etc. is not desirable.

If there are tiles on the floor in the room, this can only be welcomed.

Even if a slope is required for water drainage, the perimeter of the sauna should preferably be in a horizontal plane.

In a steam room, the water evaporates quickly, so unless you flood the floor too much, there is no need for a drain hole in the sauna.

Heater type - open and closed

A standard electric stove requires an open heater type. In this case, the stones are located between the heating elements and are not closed from above. This method of producing steam is the simplest, but has disadvantages. Stones located on top heat up less than those located below. The result is low quality steam.

In a closed heater, the stones heat up much better and more evenly. Thanks to this, such a stove produces good, finely dispersed steam, optimal for a Russian bath. But this has its own problems - to obtain high-quality steam, you need strong heating of a sufficiently large number of stones, which means high power of the electric furnace. But such an electric heater is not suitable for a small bathhouse.

Therefore, owners of small baths should consider the option of a steam generator.

Electric heaters with steam generators

The design of such electric furnaces involves autonomous steam generation. Due to the use of electricity for steam generation, the stones do not need to be heated as strongly as in traditional heaters. This allows you to save on power consumption.

There are steam generators that can be purchased and installed separately. If the steam generator is combined with a furnace in one housing, then such a design is usually called the term combi. Typically, models of electric heaters with a built-in steam generator have this word in their names.

Reviews

Despite the rather long history of using electric heaters, reviews about them are often exactly the opposite. A number of users believe that a real Russian bathhouse should be heated only by a wood stove. At the same time, it is argued that an electric heater is, in principle, unable to provide high-quality finely dispersed steam and the correct ratio of temperature and humidity.

There are also similar opinions among experts. True, it is usually noted that there are still models on the market that provide the conditions required for a steam room.

There is also an opinion that only with the help of an electric heater can you achieve precise parameters and maintain them offline. Therefore, such models are often chosen not only by private users, but by owners of commercial establishments.

As for ordinary users, many of them note the convenience of electric heaters, quick heating of the room and the absence of the need for complex maintenance.

Popular models

At 220V

Electric bath stove 220V is used for saunas if the required design power does not exceed 7 kW

Please note that most 220V models can also operate on 380V, if the need arises

SAWO SCANDIA SCA-60NS-Z

Price - from 8,000 rubles
Power, kW: 6
Voltage: 220V / 380V
Control: remote
Heated volume, m3: 5-8
Dimensions, mm: 410x290x450
Weight of stones, kg: 22
Case material: stainless steel
Country of origin: Finland

Harvia Vega BC-45

Price - from 13,600 rubles
Power, kW: 4.5
Voltage: 220V / 380V
Control: on the body
Heated volume, m3: 3-6
Dimensions, mm: 480x310x540 mm
Weight of stones, kg: 25
Case material: stainless steel
Country of origin: Finland

Tulikivi Huurre Black

Price - from 79,900 rubles
Power, kW: 6.8
Voltage: 220V / 380V
Control: remote
Useful volume, m3: 5-9
Dimensions, mm: 380x380x950 mm
Weight of stones, kg: 60
Case material: ceramic
Country of origin: Finland

Tylo Sense Combi + Elite Remote Control

Price - from 130,000 rubles
Power, kW: 6.6
Voltage: 220V / 380V
Control: remote
Heated volume, m3: 4-8
Dimensions, mm: 480x310x540 mm
Weight of stones, kg: 25
Case material: stainless steel
Country of origin: Sweden

Harvia Cilindro PC-70 F

Price - from 28,000 rubles
Power, kW: 6.8
Voltage: 220V / 380V
Control: remote
Heated volume, m3: 6
Dimensions, mm: 320x320x930 mm
Weight of stones, kg: 80
Case material: stainless steel
Country of origin: Finland

At 380V

An electric sauna stove 380V is used for saunas designed for more than 5 people. The optimal heating volume for such installations is from 5 m3. Power - from 6 kW.

IKI Pillar 6 kW