Sauna room cleaning

A good sauna should always be clean hygienic and safe to use.

Even with modern saunas made from kits regular cleaning is an important and sometimes neglected task. Ultimately a sauna is no different to any other room in a house and it accumulates a range of dirt and grime that needs to be removed and disposed of.

Where to start and what to use

The equipment and cleansers that you require to clean a small sauna are very basic. A soft bristled brush for the floor, a vacuum cleaner, some cloths and wipes and a mild detergent which you can easily dilute (and a bucket to hold it).

As a general rule the dirtiest part of any room is the floor and the floor in a sauna room is no different to any other space. It will collect hair, dust, any spillages and general dirt that will include material that finds it way into the sauna room from other parts of the building. All of this debris needs to be removed.

Floor and benches

The floor should be swept with a brush and vacuumed to remove any missed particles. Periodically it can be a good idea to clean the floor with a mix of mild detergent and water. When this is done care should be taken to minimize the wetting of the floor and to ensure that any water or dampness is thoroughly mopped up. The floor should always be dry when you vacate the sauna room.

Benches or seating and any other parts of the sauna room lining that people lean against (and sweat against) should be washed or wiped down with a damp cloth. The cloth used should be dipped in water with a mild detergent in it to kill off any germs. Hygienic wipes can be an alternative provided that they do not leave any residue on the wood. Benches and walls should not feel greasy or sticky once they have been cleaned.

Door handles, switches, buckets, ladles etc should be cleaned with a water detergent mix applied to a cloth. These components are constantly touched and they can accumulate germs. They will also show up finger prints and smudges that prevent a sauna room from looking at it s best.

Cleaning heaters

Next the heater (or heaters) should be cleaned. With infrared radiating heaters this is a simple process that requires little more than wiping with water and detergent. Care should be taken to make sure that the cloth is damp (not wet) and that there are no watermarks or smudges on the face of the heater that will detract from its performance.

With an electric stove the cleaning is a little bit more involved. A dirty stove may pose a health risk and it will certainly look unsightly and may even smell when in use, so proper cleaning is essential.

Firstly the rocks need to be removed – these will be cleaned separately. The stove can then be cleaned as above with care being taken to make sure than any discolouration or staining (that may result from applying water or fragrances) is cleaned off. The rocks can also accumulate dirt and dust and if aromas are poured onto them they will need a good clean. The easiest way to clean the rock is to soak them in hot water and then wipe them dry. This should remove any residues, dust and dirt.

How often and how thoroughly a sauna room should be cleaned will depend upon its size and level of use, but the more frequently that it is cleaned the quicker and easier the cleaning process will be.

Finally, cleaning a sauna room will provide an opportunity to closely inspect the materials in the sauna for cleanliness, damage, deterioration and wear. This can act as an early warning system if problems are manifesting themselves and it is good practice.