An Outdoor Sauna in Malaysia: Rain, Heat and Where to Put It

The roof does most of the work

Every outdoor sauna cabin we build carries a waterproof asphalt-shingle roof. Shingles shed water in sheets, they do not lift in gusts the way a flat panel can, and they take the sun without cracking. On a barrel sauna the curve itself sheds the rain, and the panoramic models add a tinted glass canopy.

Four painted sides, bare inside

The outside of the cabin is finished with waterproof exterior paint on all four sides, which is what keeps driving rain out of the timber. The inside stays bare hemlock or cedar, because a sauna interior must never be painted or varnished. That is the one rule of sauna timber that never changes, outdoors or in.

What it stands on

A sauna should never sit on wet ground. A level concrete slab or a timber deck lifts it, keeps the base dry and gives the door a clean step. The barrel saunas sit on their own cradle stand on top of that. If the garden is uneven, say so when you send the photo; the slab is the one thing we may ask you to prepare before delivery.

Where in the garden

Pick the spot with these four things in mind:

• Drainage. Not the low corner where water sits after a storm.
• Afternoon shade. A tree or a wall on the west side keeps the cabin cooler to walk into and the paint fresher for longer.
• Distance to power. An electric heater needs a proper outdoor run from the house; a VAPA wood stove needs none, but needs the flue clear of eaves and branches.
• The view. A panoramic glass end is wasted facing a fence. Face it to the pool, the lawn or the hills.

Electric heater or wood stove?

Both work outdoors. An electric Harvia, Sawo or SIPENTK heater is switch-on simple and the choice for most gardens. A VAPA wood-burning stove gives the slow, crackling kind of heat and suits a highland garden in Cameron Highlands or Kundasang, where the evenings are cool enough to enjoy tending a fire. The wood-fired cabins carry a chimney and, in one model, a shower room too.

Near the sea

Salt air is harder on everything, timber included. If the cabin will face the sea in Penang, Port Dickson or Terengganu, tell us. We advise on timber, placement and how often the exterior paint should be renewed, so the cabin ages the way it should.

A once-a-year check

An outdoor cabin asks for ten minutes a year: brush leaves off the shingles, look along the paint for any dull patch that wants a coat, check the door seal, and look under the base for standing water. Inside, the same rules as any sauna: bare timber, door open after use, stones checked.

Which outdoor sauna for which garden

A barrel sauna for a deck or a small lawn; the modern courtyard cabin for a landscaped garden; the panoramic glass cabin for a view; the custom-shape cabin for a narrow side yard. The outdoor sauna page lists all eight with their sizes, and the barrel sauna page the four barrels. For the design side, the sauna room design ideas cover glass, light and the cold plunge next door. Send a photo of the garden and we will tell you which one fits it.

Questions people ask