How to make a camp sauna Tips from a tourist bathhouse attendant

Kinds

Varieties:

1. Steam room in a tent. Takes up minimal space. It consists of three parts - an awning, a frame, and a stove. All elements are prefabricated.
2. Industrial sauna for travel. Resistant to different weather conditions. The structure is assembled quickly, but to place it you need a sufficient amount of free space with a flat base.
3. Mobile steam rooms with stove. They consist of a metal frame, which is covered with dense polyethylene film. A stove is installed inside and a chimney is installed.

The choice of a hiking steam room depends on the method of travel, conditions, and number of visitors.

Steam room in a tent (Photo: Instagram / mobilnaya.banya.samara)

Principles for selecting ready-made models

To choose a good camp sauna in a store, you need to know what criteria should be taken into account when purchasing and study models of ready-made structures.

Criteria

Criteria for choosing a ready-made sauna tent:

1. Number of visitors. You need to calculate in advance how many people will go to the steam room. This will allow you to choose the size of the tent. The tourist steam room is suitable for 2-3 people visiting at the same time.
2. Frame material. It is better to choose structures made of aluminum rods or hollow metal tubes. The former are used to assemble a semicircular canopy, and the latter – a rectangular or cubic frame.
3. Number of layers of awning. It is not recommended to buy three-layer products, since moisture begins to accumulate inside, which can leak onto visitors during bath procedures.
4. Awning material. It must be solid and manufactured. Products made of water-repellent material should be used.
5. Availability of additional elements. Often a floor is included with the kit. It is better if it is a product made of flexible material with PVC coating on the front side.
6. There is a hole for the chimney. It should be located in the roof or side wall.
7. Build speed. It's better to check it right away in the store.

You need to think in advance whether a waiting room is needed. It will retain cold air from the street and add free space for preparation for bath procedures.

You also need to pay attention to various little things (hangers, windows, shelves, etc.), furniture for a camp bath. Some ready-made baths are equipped with folding shelves and chairs.

Folding chair (Photo: Instagram / wood_in_zp)

Advantages and disadvantages

Positive sides:

1. Bath procedures can be carried out in nature, without postponing them until you come home.
2. To build the frame, it is enough to find a flat surface and secure the structure with spacers.
3. You can assemble a steam room using available materials. It is important to have a thick film with you to cover the frame.

Flaws:

1. Excess weight if the steam room consists of a metal stove and hollow frame tubes.
2. Low level of comfort. It is very difficult to lift it in a tourist steam room.
3. High price of finished structures.

It is impossible to lie down and relax in a portable steam room.

Models and prices

The highest quality steam rooms for travel:

• Nova Tour;
• "Mobiba".

Price - 12,000 rubles.

Hiking steam room "Mobiba" (Photo: Instagram / mobiban.ru)

Recommendations for use

Experienced tourists know all the mandatory rules for visiting homemade or ready-made camp baths, but, as experience shows, novice travelers have too much courage. It's never a bad idea to remember the rules.

You can immediately place a container of water on the stove after lighting the wood; it will have time to heat up well, sometimes even to boil.

When the firewood burns out, its remains must be removed and the tent should be well closed so that the air does not cool down.

The walls around the stove must be additionally protected from overheating and sparks, and the canopy must be securely fastened.

After the wood burns out, water is poured onto the stone stove with ladles, which immediately forms steam; The temperature of the steam from the hot stones is such that the heat is enough for a couple of hours, which is quite enough for bathing several people.

A homemade camping sauna or purchased as a ready-made kit will allow you to keep your body clean, steam if necessary, and prevent colds and many other diseases.

Following some recommendations will help ensure the best use of a bath in nature.

It is advisable to install a sauna tent near a body of water - a lake or river. The proximity of water will make visiting the bathhouse not only a necessity, but also a useful relaxation. This fact is explained by the benefits of contrasting changes in temperatures affecting the human body.

The body, heated by hot bath steam, dipped into cold water, undergoes processes of emergency cell restructuring, which has a beneficial effect on the general physical condition and has a tonic effect.

A short distance between the bathhouse and the pond will avoid hot people being exposed to drafts for a long time and will greatly simplify the process of visiting a forest steam room. In addition, while inside, it is necessary to use enough water to create steam and maintain the temperature at the required level.

We suggest you read: Is it possible for a nursing mother to go to the bathhouse and take a steam bath?

It is recommended to place the bathhouse on a flat surface covered with grass. To prevent unpleasant situations, the possibility of sharp stones, branches or twigs getting into the perimeter of the internal space is eliminated.

The presence of a herbal layer will provide a softening and massage effect, which will make your vacation even more pleasant and beneficial. To enhance this effect, it is recommended to cover the bathhouse floor with branches of coniferous trees, birch or oak. The enzymes contained in their leaves have a relaxing and healing effect on the human body. If there is tall bush or grass vegetation in the area where the sauna tent is installed, it should be removed.

When using a homemade sauna structure, the stones are heated outside its perimeter. This is explained by the fact that installing a stove in a polyethylene casing without creating a risk of fire or melting is extremely difficult. Taking this fact into account, the place for heating the stones is arranged at some distance from the steam room.

The stones are heated as follows: the stone house is lined with a large amount of dry firewood. The better their combustion proceeds, the faster the stones will heat up to the desired temperature.

The properties of the stone species must meet safety standards. They should not burst when heated and sharply cooled. River stones meet these parameters. It is strictly not recommended to use sandstone.

The sizes of individual stones should be average, since too small ones require a lot of time to be spent moving them to the technical compartment of the tent. The use of too large stones is associated with the subsequent difficulty of carrying them when heated.

To move hot stones from the fire to the sauna, it is worth preparing special devices. They can be a metal bucket, a road or sapper shovel, a wooden spear, an improvised stretcher or something similar.

During the installation of a homemade bathhouse and its subsequent operation, it is important to adhere to generally accepted safety standards. As a precaution, you may want to prepare and keep a container of water available for extinguishing uncontrolled fires or a vehicle fire extinguisher nearby.

To learn how to make a camp sauna with your own hands, see the following video.

Manufacturing technologies

There are two technologies for assembling camp baths - “black”, “white”. Each of them has certain features and differences.

Steam room "black"

The awning is installed over a fire with hot stones. Peculiarities:

1. The general frame for the awning can be knitted from wicker or willow twigs.
2. Scotch tape is suitable for fastening the poles.
3. You can build a frame from two long poles. They need to be bent and combined so that they intersect in the center. In the same place tie them together. It is important that you get a semicircular hut on which you can throw an awning.
4. To cover the hut, it is better to use thick plastic film.
5. As a base for the stove, which will be covered with stones, it is recommended to use a small rectangular frame made of reinforcement.

To assemble the base for the steam room, it is better to use hollow aluminum tubes, which are connected into a large cube using corner tees.

Since there is a hot stove under the stones, the heat inside the steam room will be intense. It may damage the awning film. Therefore, the frame needs to be made larger.

Camping stove (Photo: Instagram / splavkontur)

Steam room "in white"

The awning will not be installed above the flame. The stones are heated in advance in the fire and rolled along the prepared path under the awning. Technique for constructing a steam room:

1. To assemble the frame, it is better to use hollow metal tubes with corner connectors.
2. If there are no tubes for assembly, you can use poles. To build the frame you will need 8 sticks 1.5 meters long. They can be connected with wire or tape.
3. If 4 people are steaming, the appropriate frame shape is a cube. For three people you can build a cone.

The film in the door area should be overlapped so that steam does not escape outside. The floor needs to be covered with spruce branches. In the center you should arrange a place for hot stones. To do this, you need to clear it of leaves and grass, leaving only the soil. Drive sticks 50 cm high along the contour. The film should be pressed along the edges with the remaining stones so that steam does not escape from under it.

It is important to pay attention to choosing a location for the stove. Sparks should not reach the walls of the steam room.

Manufacturing stages

You can assemble a steam room for outdoor bathing procedures without purchasing special tents or additional components. The manufacturing process consists of several stages:

1. Selecting a location.
2. Furnace manufacturing.
3. Frame structures.
4. Making a canopy.

Arrangement of a camp bath (Photo: Instagram / vovan.bear)

Selecting a location

When choosing a location, it is important that there are certain conditions:

1. Fresh water. It is better to choose a place near a river or lake. Artificial ponds are also suitable.
2. Big stones. They will come in handy if you don’t have a ready-made portable metal stove. It is important that the stones are solid, non-layered. Suitable sizes are 10–12 cm in girth. If they are larger, it will take longer to warm up; if smaller, they will cool down quickly.
3. Young trees. They are needed if there are no elements to assemble the frame. Poles are cut from young trees.
4. Dense soil. This is necessary so that the poles driven into the ground do not fall during bathing procedures or when adding film.

Making a furnace

The heart of any sauna is the stove. For a camping steam room, you can use two types of stoves:

1. A portable structure, which is assembled from metal plates. Outwardly, it looks like a potbelly stove. It has legs for stability, elevation above the ground, and a prefabricated chimney.
2. A homemade heater, which is assembled from cobblestones.

If the second option is chosen, the type of steam room will depend on the location of the homemade stove with a fire. The first option is divided into two subgroups. These are ready-made purchased stoves, which are a set of several plates, legs, a door, a chimney, or homemade metal stoves.

Anyone can build a suitable heater if they take into account some features:

1. Before you start building the heater, you need to make a base for it. To do this, the top layer is removed and several even stones are laid out to create an even plane.
2. There are two ways to lay a stove for a camp bath. One involves the construction of a firebox made of stones, inside which a flame will burn and the stones will heat up, and the second involves the creation of a multi-layer structure, where flat stones alternate with layers of firewood.
3. You need to choose stones without foreign inclusions or large cracks.

The heating time for a homemade stone stove is 4 hours.

Portable metal stove (Photo: Instagram / pingvinural)

Frame construction

The optimal shape of a homemade camping sauna is a half-trapezoid. Frame construction process:

1. Cut poles for the corner posts of the cross braces and intermediate posts.
2. Drive them into the ground, if possible strengthen them with stones.
3. Cut poles to create a square roof frame.
4. Connect the elements with ropes, wire or tape.
5. In the slope area, make a cross-shaped roof covering. The slope should be higher so that all the stones fit underneath.

Steam will rise along the slope covered with film, which will gradually fill the steam room. The advantage of this form of frame is that it saves free space and reduces the risk of getting burned by the walls of the heater.

Making a canopy

Manufacturing:

1. It is better to make canopies from 2 layers of thick polyethylene film.
2. The size of the canopy must be sufficient so that it can be strengthened near the ground with sand, stones or logs.
3. To keep the heat in the steam room longer, you need to prepare the floor. To do this, the first layer is covered with spruce branches, and branches of other trees are laid on top of it.

If there are no special seats, you can find large logs, cut them into pieces and place them inside like stumps.

Bath made of branches and film (Photo: Instagram / atticclimb_)

Stove for a mobile sauna from the store

The market for such stoves is not that big; it is far from conventional stationary ones. We will describe everything that we managed to find in our review.

PoshehonStar products

]PoshehonStar[/anchor] produces stoves for mobile baths in the form of a series under the general name “Poshehonka”. It includes three ovens, differing in size and power.

Photo by PoshehonStar

Here are the parameters of each of the models presented by the manufacturer:

Wall thickness 0.5 mm, chimney pipe thickness 0.4 mm. According to the manufacturer, alloyed non-magnetic stainless steel AISI 304 . The fact that it is non-magnetic is good, which means it is heat resistant.

By the way! Pay attention to the brand. AISI 430 is more common.

The company also hopes that the stove will serve the owner for at least five years, but they only provide a one-year warranty.

The kit includes: a prefabricated chimney of 5 straight and two angled (45 degrees) pipes, a bag-cover, metal trim for installation in a tent.

There is no steam generator , steam is obtained from stones, for this they need to be placed on the top of the stove, or better yet on some kind of tray to accommodate more.

In addition to being used in a camping sauna, “Poshekhonka” is suitable for cooking food and heating a tent (this applies to most camping stoves).

Continuous burning time from 5 to 10 hours - this parameter depends on the model. In larger ones, burning takes longer.

Products

The line of camping stoves is represented by three models of different power: “Gorynych”, “Yarilo”, “Gromila”.

The material from which they are made is AISI 430 , the thickness of the parts is 0.4-0.8 mm. The heat resistance limit of this steel grade is 850 degrees.

photo by manufacturer gorynych.rf

The delivery set is the same for all models: stove, damper, dismountable chimney, legs, poker, spark arrester, steam generator.

The presence of a steam generator eliminates the need to search for and heat stones. It does an excellent job of releasing steam at the beginning of the fire. Therefore, stoves with a steam generator are in demand and popular.

The cylindrical shape used in the design is good because it is not affected by heat and temperature changes. And in order to reduce the thermal load on the ends, they are made in the shape of cones and filled with Rockwool mineral wool.

In addition, Gorynych furnaces have a protective casing and a spark arrestor - both greatly contribute to fire safety. The spark arrester is represented by two devices: inside the stove it is a flame arrester, and at the top of the chimney it is an “umbrella”.

If desired, you can also purchase 6.5 liter water tank corner chimney segments . Stoves with a water tank have a fairly wide range of advantages, which is why they are in demand among customers.

Diesel and gas modules for the same models are also available

Products

The Bereg Bannaya stove is made of the same grade of steel as that of Gorynych - AISI 430, thickness is 0.8 mm throughout.

The delivery set from the manufacturer includes: a furnace, a spark arrestor, a removable door, a glass for oxygen supply, stationary IR radiation screens, legs and a chimney.

By the way, the same screens are also a box for stones , where up to 20 kg of them can fit.

Firebox dimensions (DShV) 520x195x180 mm.

Stove dimensions (DSHV) 700x280x415 mm.

Weight 11.5 kg.

Products

Stove for a mobile sauna Altai. Teplodar Photos

The Altai stove from a Russian manufacturer has the following dimensions:

VShG 615x880x425 mm.

Weight 14 kg

Material: heat-resistant, high-alloy steel. The manufacturer does not indicate the brand.

Stones are not needed, because there is a steam generator , and a proprietary one - multi-section, high-speed.

The steam room is ready in 10-20 minutes. The volume of the heated room is up to 70 cubic meters.

The oven also has a convection casing, which enhances air exchange and protects against fires and burns.

The stove has a glass door , a folding chimney, legs, a passage unit made of non-flammable material, and a bag.

Reviews of this stove said that the glass door often breaks while camping , and the actual weight of the stove in the bag is not 14, but 18-19 kg. The steam generator did not cause any complaints.

Products

“Tourist stove for a camp bath”, manufacturer - Invest Group. It is made of stainless steel with a thickness of 0.5-0.8 mm. The designers provided a box for stones that can hold 10-20 kg.

Delivery set: prefabricated chimney, legs, ash pan.

The stove has a flame arrester, thanks to which the efficiency of the stove is higher. In addition, the device prevents sparks from burning the awning.

The burning time of one bookmark is from 1 to 4 hours - this parameter depends on the fuel.

Power 4 kW, volume of heated room 50 cubic meters.

The weight of the unit is 15 kg.

Dimensions 550x400x250 mm.

Oven Economy. Photo Invest Group

Products

Stove "Pichuga"

Suitable for saunas, heating tents and cooking food. The set includes: chimney, legs and bag.

Dimensions of the VShG: 570x230x550 mm.

There is no steam generator , but there is a spark arrestor.

Weight 15 kg.

On the Termofor website there is no “Pichuga” in the catalog , but there is another stove for a mobile bath - “Duplet”. It is said about it that it is made of heat-resistant steel. The delivery set includes: a bag and a chimney.

Doublet oven. Photo Termofor

There is no steam generator either.

Products

The manufacturer’s line of camping stoves includes: “Parobomba-3”, “Gravitsapa KTs-1”, “Mediana-5”, “Sogra-3”.

"Steam Bomb-3"

Delivery set: convector, steam generator, cover, chimney, crown. tray for stones.

The manufacturer gives the owner the opportunity to choose when obtaining steam - from stones, or from a steam generator, which, by the way, is two-sectional and heats the steam to more than 600 degrees . And in order not to get cooked from such a temperature, the steam is not discharged into the tent, but under the convector casing . That's why it doesn't burn.

The volume of the firebox is 49 liters, the volume of the steam generator is 5.8 liters.

Stove diameter 380 mm, height with podium 880 mm.

Weight 19.4 kg.

Video

The offsite made sure that buyers have a complete understanding of their products; a detailed overview is provided:

"Gravitsapa KTs-3"

The set includes stoves: convector, cover, chimney, crown, superheater segment, shelf-bottom for stones.

Oven diameter 380 mm. Height with podium 810 mm.

Weight 13 kg.

Firebox diameter 270 mm.

Firebox height 400 mm.

Firebox volume 23 liters.

There is a steam generator , like the “Steam Bomb”, and a place for stones.

"Mediana-5"

A camping sauna stove, but with the ability to cook food on it. The cooking surface is reinforced with stiffening ribs.

Camping stove Median-5. Mobib Photos

Stove weight 16.6 kg (including chimney).

Dimensions (LW): 620x280x610 mm (with legs).

Firebox volume 29 liters.

Firebox depth 40 cm.

An improved convector, which prevents the floor from overheating.

Improved lock on the door - does not knock on the road.

There is a built-in spark arrester.

The model does not have a steam generator , but you can steam from stones. The manufacturer recommends light round stones, the size of a goose egg or slightly larger.

IMPORTANT! Cold air outside the tent causes the chimney to quickly become clogged with soot. With a new firebox, the old soot heats up and can separate, fly out into the chimney, fall on the awning and burn it. Therefore, you need to clean the chimney once a day . At the very least, you should tap the cold pipe so that the soot falls down. Those who don’t want to clean can buy a spark-proof cape for the awning.

Useful video

Review of Mediana-5 from the manufacturer:

"Sogra-3"

According to Sogra-3, it can easily be used as a sauna heater. But the main purpose of this model is still heating a cottage, garage or greenhouse . The fact is that Sogra-3 is a highly efficient long-burning stove - one fill is enough for continuous heating for 10 hours .

Of course, it can be useful on a long hike - to heat the tent. In addition, you can cook food on it.

This stove weighs 11.5 kg .

Dimensions (LW): 600x330x470 mm.

The firebox volume of the Sogra-3 stove is 25 liters.

Material: heat-resistant stainless steel.

The delivery set includes: convector, spark arrester, hob, cover. chimney, legs.

Video

Review:

Burn duration testing:

Yes, from the video you learned that Mobiba also produces the Dune stove. But this model is not intended for use on hikes. In essence, this is a simplified Sogra that does not have a spark arrestor . And it is for this reason that it is not suitable for installation in a tent. The main purpose is heating of country and tourist houses. Weight 8.1 kg.

***

This concludes our review, and the choice of a camping stove is still yours.