Trailer Sauna Build
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 29 เม.ย. 2022
- This video documents my full build of a trailer sauna. The base frame is welded aluminum on two skids and is designed to be winched on and off a trailer. Walls are built out of a 2x2 inch studs with all joints glued and screwed together. Exterior is clear cedar and the roof is low profile tin. Interior walls are tongue and groove pine with cedar trim. Wood stove is the Grill'D Aurora 160.
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This craftsmanship and attention to detail is absolutely incredible. I can only hope when I build my own I can channel half the patience, love and skill you have put into this. What a beautiful project. Well done.
Thank you so much for your kind words. I do hope you will enjoy both building and using your sauna. Cheers and all the best to you sir!
Wonderful attention to detail and a real pleasure to watch this man work!
Thank you kindly!
This is incredible. I'm seriously dumb founded by the amount of know how, skills and tools in your garage
That craftsmanship beautiful! Great job!
Thank you Joseph!
Incredible, absolutely incredible. I love how everything is so thoughtful and as previous users mentioned, your attention to detail just blows my mind away.
Thank you very much. I'm so glad you enjoyed watching my build.
Personally saw this unit inside and outside, very well built, and excellent attention to detail.
Thanks Zac. Nice to have met you.
Gorgeous build and video! I could learn a lot from someone like you, thanks for posting
Thank you very much!
Your attention to detail is a great role model and inspiration! Great work, well done keep it up
Thank you very much!
A true artist! Excellent quality video as well. Thank You!
Thank you, I'm glad you enjoyed it.
Amazing! Thanks for shatter process. The craftsmanship is unbelievable.
Glad you like it!
Just, wow. Your attention to detail is inspiring, I'll be more alert on those longer projects! Great work.
Thank you very much!
As usual, you turn an ordinary project into a magnificent work of engineering art. Nice work.
Thank you very much! Good to hear from you again.
As usual, exceptionally well done.
Thank you!
Wow! Chapeau, brilliant how you made this nice sauna. I hope you inspire many people with your skills.
Thank you so much!
Beautiful work
Thank you very much.
Omg. Great work! Well done sir. Best regards from the Czech republic. Milo
Thank you Milo! I’m glad you enjoyed watching it. Cheers from Canada.
Beautiful work 👏🏻👏🏻👍🏻
Thank you! Cheers!
Very nice work.
Thanks
wooow! What a beautiful sauna! My god did you build it propper. Skills!
Thank you very much!
Outstanding!
Thank you Scott.
Классное видео!
Спасибо, Маэстро!
Thank you, Cheers.
Multi-disciplinary Master Class. What a heart for beauty! Much to aspire to here, for me. Got my sub on the first video.
Thank you very much for the kind words and subscribing.
Beautiful! I'm planning to build one myself and this is something great to aspire to.
Thank you! Enjoy building and using your sauna.
@@AjBProductions do you use the sauna while it is still on the trailer? I am getting into the details of my build and I really like the idea of building the sauna separate from the trailer, but I’d want to still be able to use it while it’s sitting on the trailer. Also curious what your dimensions are and how many people can fit inside? Thank you!
@@jon7960 Yes, I use it on the trailer. I have 4 light car jacks under the trailer frame to stiffen things up and a ramp that makes going in and out safe. The total floor size is 5 x 10' with the hot room is 6.5' long. As my side walls angle out 6 degrees, the space expands as we go up and the two benches can easily fit 6 people (3 up, 3 down).
@@AjBProductions Thank you so much for your detailed and quick response! Edit: Have you ever brought it to a weigh station? I am going back and forth between one and two axles.
@@jon7960 my one regret was I should have used two axles. Not for the weight but for stability at highway speed. Not exactly the most aerodynamic so a bit unstable. I use anti sway bars which fixed the issue.
Amazing❤😊
Thank you.
Awesome.
Thank you
Wow, very relaxing and inspiring! Would love to see a follow up video on how it’s doing this winter?! Is there a drain in the floor for water? Anyway thank you for posting this beautiful build!
Thank you very much for your kind words. The sauna is performing very well and I especially look forward to when the snow comes this winter. To answer your question, there is a floor drain right in front of the stove that also acts as the fresh air intake for the combustion. One major upgrade, after I posted the video, was to replace the single axle trailer with a tandem axle one. The original trailer wasn’t overloaded but was not very stable at highway speeds. Now, it pulls like a dream on the new trailer. I haven’t thought about posting an update video but one might just look into this. Thanks for the suggestion. Cheers.
That is truly beautiful work of art .wow how many hours did that take you to build ? The detail is gorgeous
Thank you very much! It took 6 months from start to finish but I did not keep track of the hours. I have built canoes and kayaks before which took around 200 hours and this project was definitely longer (but very much worth it).
Came for the oars, stayed for the sauna. Thank you for inspiring, informing, and educating. Also, re-calibrating both what's possible (you) and what's realistic (me). What did you do for a living, before you became the da Vinci of Alberta? I'm guessing Millwright. Or possibly Hephaestus' little brother?
Thank you so much for enjoying my videos. I was a Forester :).
Fantastically great job Andre! Great video record too! Well done. How did it work? Was the stove the right size? How long did it take to heat up and where did you use it?
Thank you Peter. She works fantastic! The stove can handle bigger rooms than mine ( 6.5 x 6 with 6.5 headroom) but that allows it to heat up to 75 C in about 20 minutes. I've had it up to 85 C but that was a bit uncomfortable for me. She will spend most of the time at my lake cottage with some travel to various remote campsites. I'm in West Central Alberta.
What a beautiful project!
Love the curved touches that you added in many places, and how you built everything from scratch, even doors. Was the motivation to make it trailerable to be able to take it from house to a cottage seasonally? What sort of foundation did you build for the sauna in each of it's parking places?
Thank you very much! Yes, you guessed exactly right. The reason for a trailer is to move it back and forth between the cottage and house. As it’s on a trailer, I have yet to take it off and simply back it into its spot at each site. One upgrade I made since I posted the video was to purchase a tandem axe trailer for better road stability. The single axle just wasn’t steady at highway speeds. Cheers.
Thank you so very much for filming this! I am about to begin building my own trailer sauna and this has been incredibly helpful. I am wondering if you might be able to answer a few questions about your design?
I’m wondering how you did the roof insulation, and if you added any moisture barrier or strapping above your insulation, before you put the tin roof down?
Thank you for your question. In the video you can see me first attaching the interior vapour barrier to the inside roof beams. I then added some twine to help support the weight of the insulation. Also, on the inside, I added 1/2” strapping to provide a gap between the T&G paneling. The roof insulation was added after and the thickness of it was just shy of the thickness of the beams to provide a gap under the tin roofing. As you know, tin roofing allows air movement through its ribs (which open on the front and rear on my roof) so I also left a narrow gap under the soffits to get air moving in from the sides for additional ventilation. A peaked (or flat) roof would be much easier and simpler to design and build but I think this looks much better. Hope you have fun building and using yours and if you have any other questions let me know. PS. After I posted the video, I upgraded my trailer to a tandem one. The single axle was not stable at highway speeds so I would recommend you go to with the same.
Absolutely awesome... are there any plans for this build?
Thank you. I made my own design so no plans other that a few sketches.
REALLY IMPRESSIVE, GREAT VIDEO , HOW MANY HRS BUILD
Thank you. I didn't track my hours, but it took 6 months and worked on it most days.
Hello, your work is an art :) Would you mind sharing the plans ? especially for the trailer skid and the wall framing ? would greatly appreciate . Love your work. i am getting ready to make mine own sauna trailer and I am really inspired by yours - if I can get it half well done as yours I will be thrilled :)
Thank you. I only have rough sketches but would be happy to share them with you. I don’t think I can attach any pictures or files through this TH-cam comment system. If you are willing to post your email or some other link, I can then send it to you.
Hey, Andre. Beautiful build. I love the look of the siding after you stained it. What kind and color of stain did you use?
Thanks! I used oil based Sherwin Williams’s exterior. It was almost clear but I don’t remember the exact colour.
This is beautiful work. I am still trying to figure out why someone would want a sauna trailer...
Thank you. For me, a trailer sauna allows me to move the sauna out to the cottage in the summer and back home for the winter. Others use them to rent out but that is not my plan.
Hey Andre. Really inspiring stuff thanks for sharing! I'm curious about some of the materials as I'm going to build my own trailer sauna soon. If you have a minute, I appreciate the input.
1. What size trailer? How much does the sauna weigh approx?
2. I'm jealous of your shop and ability to weld aluminum... Is the aluminum essential for longevity? I assume the weight helps... but If I wasn't winching on and off a trailer would the extra frame be needed?
3. Why Pine T&G inside? Have you had any rot issues? (Probably not yet)
4. Did you insulate the ceiling or just add the Vapour Barrier?
5. If you made it this far, cheers!
Hello and thanks for watching. My trailer capacity is 1500 lbs with a 10' x 5' deck. The saunas' weight is 1300 lbs. so within limit but I suggest you get a tandom axle for better road stability. I will probably upgrade my trailer to a tandem one next year. If your design does not require removal from a trailer, then simply an insulated floor directly attached to your trailer will do. Keep in mind the need for drainage and fresh air supply for your wood stove (my drain is also the fresh air supply located close to the stove). Pine is actually the choice interior material in countries like Finland where saunas are very common. It is less expensive than cedar and (if installed properly) will not rot. Cedar (clear) is still the best for seats as it does not get as hot as some harder woods do. The ceiling is insulated with Rockwool like the walls. I installed it after the vapour barrier and before the tin roof (suggest you leave a gap and vent along the sides to provide air flow. Hope this helps and have fun with your build.
A+
Thank you
Beautiful! I love saunas, and this one fall definitely under its category. Hoe much does the whole sauna weigh?
Thank you! The Sauna alone is 1,300 lbs. Since I made the video, I have upgraded the trailer to a tandem axle with breaks. The little trailer was a bit unstable at highway speeds. It pulls now like a dream. :)
This is a fine piece of art. The sledge is very innovative. What are the measurements and total weight in the end? Just wandering can the total weight be under 750kg
Thank you. The base is 6 x10’ with about 6 1/2’ inside headroom. Total weight of the sauna was around 1300lbs. The trailer has a capacity of 1500 lbs so it was not overweight. However, the single axle trailer was not stable enough for me at highway speeds so I upgraded to a tandem axle trailer and now it pulls just fine. Using all aluminum for the base frame and 2x2 wall construction, kept the weight down.
Very nice job, absolutely fantastic craftsmanship.
Surprised I didn’t see you fit an insulation though, why not out of interest?
Thank you! If I recall, the insulation part was just not that interesting and I needed to wear a mask so decided to skip recording it. I used Rockwool insulation and had to split it in half to fit in the 2x2” wall studs. On the roof, I was able to fit the full insulation sheet as the trusses are thicker. Cheers.
Incredible build! What was housed in the changing room bench?
Thank you Zac. Under the bench has two sections, one for an RV battery and charger and the other for odds and ends like leveling jacks and newspaper for fire starting. The RV battery is vented to the outside.
This is literally the perfect mobile sauna! Regarding the drain, does is the floor slightly sloped towards it and does it drain to the exterior of the sauna? If so, how?
Thank you. I am definitely enjoying its mobility and function. The floor drain is located close the the stove’s door and also acts as fresh air intake for combustion. The floor is sloped into it from approximately 3’ in all directions mainly to drain any spillage when pouring water on the stove. You can see it’s location in the floor frame and slope at 2:08 and again at 14:05 in the video. Water drains onto the deck of the trailer. Thanks for you response. Cheers
Are those 2x2 framing studs? Did you use those at the corners as well? Great work
Thank you. Yes, I used 2x2 for all framing, including corners. Frame was reinforced with diagonal 2x2 incorporated at all 4 corners.
looks like the cedar you used for the outside was painted on the back side...did you rip those and plane them down from lap siding or where did it come from?
Your are exactly correct. I salvaged my old house siding and this was the perfect use for these clear cedar boards. Initially, I tried to plane the painted side but the planer blades didn’t last long due to the paint. Thanks for watching. Cheers.
Super cool! What was your cost to build this? What would you do differently if you did the build again?
Thank you. Total cost of materials (not including the trailer) was $7,800 Canadian. This does not include the exterior cedar which was reclaimed from my old house siding and cost me nothing. The only chance I would make (which I already did) is to use a tandem trailer rather than a single axle. The single axle was not stable enough at highway speed so I sold it and purchased an aluminum 12” tandem one. Pulls great now.
How much in total did this build cost? Looks amazing
Thank you. The total (excluding the trailer) was $8k Ca. I already had the cedar for the exterior so that is not included.
where do you buy those teflon wear pads?
Thin Teflon is available in hardware stores like Rona but if you want thicker material you need to go to an industrial supplier. Just search for a local plastic or Teflon supplier like this
www.redwoodplastics.com/
How much would one of these go for ? I’m really invested in this !
Thank you for your interest. I built this for personal use and have no plans to build another. I can however share some details should you want to build one yourself. First, the trailer in the video has been upgraded to a tandem axle one. Not that the single axle trailer couldn’t carry the weight, but a tandem one is much more stable at highway speeds. Second, this took me six months (almost full time) to design and build. It doesn’t need to be this fancy if one builds it out of 2x4 and simpler exterior materials. I would however not skimp on the stove and piping (don’t want to have a stove that is too small or pipes that will overheat.
Otherwise it can be as fancy or simple as you want. Cheers
Hey what type of plywood are you using for the floor?
I used 5/8” treated plywood both under and over a 2x4 (on flat) frame. All was glued using PL400 subfloor adhesive.
Nice work. 24:28 What did you include in the equipment? In your 6 month build time you must have has 23 hour days, leaving an hour for sleep and food, lol. I build a sauna in my house in 1998. Must have used it 5000+ times. Other than time, it cost me $0.00. Bought a new sauna heater at auction. Sold it, profit paid for everything else, including a used heater (never quits), new thermostat/timer, cedar door and extra cedar for benches. Prices for everything were different those days. Did you add up the material cost of your trailer sauna? Looking at the Aurora 160 Short wood-burning heater and accessory prices alone, has me sweating already, haha (crying). Thanks
Thanks for the nice comment and questions. I installed an RV battery and charging system under the change room bench. Also, on the lid is where I keep a set of computer cooling fans that I use inside the hot room to help circulate air after use. As for the cost of the sauna ( not including the trailer) it ran me just shy of $8,000Ca. I built it during the time that ALL building materials were at their peak. The heater is a Russian made Grill’D I purchased direct from an importer close to where I live. It’s a very well made and effective stove. Cheers
@@AjBProductions Yes I could see that amount going in. Now add $ 5000.00 + - for the trailer, then your labour cost and the folks asking you to build one for them, might think twice. Then again, some have the $$ for a great investment for their health. Btw, great video production and editing also.
would you recommend using a trailer with an aluminum deck with steel framework? I am a bit concerned about aluminum's capacity for weight bearing =g with a heavy load while transferring
Are you building the sauna base out of steel? If so, I would recommend having a puck board layer under the skids to keep the two metals apart.
@AjBProductions the base would be either steel or aluminum with treated wood overtop. I am looking at a trailer that has an aluminum deck with some steel on the undercarriage, but I am worried it will make the overall weight too heavy for the axel of the trailer. Thanks for your advice
@@kaylidunk6606After making this video and pulling the trailer sauna at highway speed, I upgraded the trailer and purchased a tandem axle one. Although the single axle trailer was below its rated weight capacity, it was not stable at high speeds. The new tandem trailer solved this problem nicely. If you haven’t yet purchased a trailer, I recommend going to a tandem one. All the best.
@@AjBProductions thank you for your time! May I ask if you used aluminum or steel? Thank you
@@kaylidunk6606The new trailer is all aluminum (a bit more expensive but worth it IMO).
Very nice! What are the dimensions?
Thank you. The total floor area is 6x10' with 6.5' headroom. The hot room is 6.5' long.
Damn.
Would you build one for me like this?
I would like to but my wife has a long list for me this winter. :)
Do you know the weight of your sauna?
Yes. The saunas’ weight is 1300 lbs.
thanks for watching.
Can I buy somewhere
I'm sure there are folks in your area that will build and sell one to you. This is my first and last sauna which I am enjoying very much. Thank you for watching.
Do you sell them?
Thanks for the question, but no. I built this for personal use.
Could you please explain what we are looking at at 24:33?
Thank you for your question. Inside the box is an RV battery and charger. Under the lid is where I keep the venting fan when not in use. The fan is shown in place at 26:08 under the bench in the hot room. It plugs into a USB port and helps to move moist air out after use. Cheers.
@@AjBProductions Thank you for your response! I now understand the venting fan under the lid is just stored there. Could you please explain what is on the left and the right and why it is vented outside?
@@hbandereYou bet. The left side of the box is for storing items like stability jacks and other miscellaneous items. On the right is where the RV battery and charging system is located. The battery needs to be vented to the outside to prevent gas from buildup inside.
@@AjBProductions Okay, so on the left is a battery in a jacket, that is vented outside, On the right is a charger which you can plug in when you're near power to recharge the battery?
@@hbandere Yes, that is correct.
How many kg has the trailer?
The sauna only is 600 kg and the trailer has a capacity of 680 kg. I upgraded the trailer to a double axle after I made the video as the single axle trailer was unstable when over 90 km/hr. It pulls very well now. Thank you for your question. Cheers.
@@AjBProductions thanks for you answer
where do you live /? can you build me one lol
In Canada and one sauna build is my limit. Thanks for asking though. Cheers
😮🤯👍👏👏
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