Steam & Oak Kelo 220 Sauna Pod — Up to 4 Person Arched Garden Sauna

The Kelo 220 is the classic camping-pod shape done as a proper sauna: a pointed arch that sweeps from the ridge all the way to the ground, shingled over the top, with a full-height bronze glass door in the front gable and two bench seats tucked under the overhang outside.

It is the one that looks like a hobbit house without trying to be a novelty. Underneath it is 42 mm timber, a 6.1 m³ hot room and a real stove-and-stones sauna.

Why the arch works

The shape is not decoration. An arched shell has no square corners for heat to sit in, so the air circulates evenly and the room comes up to temperature without cold pockets round the edges. It also sheds rain and snow straight to the ground with no roof junctions to fail, which is exactly what you want on a building that spends its life outdoors.

And it is efficient in the way that matters on your bill: at 6.1 m³ there is far less air to heat than in a square cabin of the same seating. It reaches temperature quickly, holds it easily, and a modest heater does the job.

Up to 4 people on the internal benches, with two more seats outside under the front overhang for the cooling-off round.

Spruce or thermowood?

Both are available, and it is a real decision rather than an upsell.

Nordic spruce is the value option and perfectly good if you treat it every couple of years. Thermowood is kiln-treated at 180–220°C in a low-oxygen chamber — no chemical preservatives, just heat and steam. It absorbs 40–50% less moisture and moves far less, which on a curved shell matters more than on a square one: every board is doing structural work as part of the arch, and timber that moves is timber that opens gaps.

Our honest position: on a small, sheltered pod, spruce well looked after is fine and the money is better spent on the heater. On an exposed site, take the thermowood.

Specification

What's in the box

Everything structural. No hidden extras to buy before you can build it:

• Pre-cut, numbered arch panels in your chosen timber
• Thermo-aspen benches
• Bronze tempered glass door
• External bench seats
• Bitumen roof shingles in your chosen colour
• Floor and foundation beams
• Complete fixing kit
• Ventilation grids
• Step-by-step assembly instructions

Run it on gas — no electrician, no cable across the garden

This is the option almost nobody else offers, and for a lot of gardens it is the one that makes a sauna possible at all.

A FinSteam gas heater runs on a standard propane bottle — the same sort you would use for a patio heater or a barbecue. No armoured cable, no trench across the lawn, no electrician quote you had not budgeted for. If your garden has no power at the far end, this is how you still get a sauna there.

At 6.1 m³ this is one of the most comfortable fits for gas we sell — the 8.1 kW heater has plenty in hand, so the room comes up quickly and holds temperature without working hard.

Pick a gas option above and we fit the flue and commission the heater on installation day. You do not need to arrange anything with anyone.

Which gas option?

And then: safety pack, or without?

Every gas option includes the heater, the Orbis stone cage, and our fitting and commissioning. See the full gas heater range →

Or choose electric or wood-fired above

Electric — a Harvia heater with a full stone load for soft, steady löyly, integrated controls and a 2-year warranty. At 6.1 m³ the 6 kW is ample. Needs a dedicated circuit installed by a qualified electrician; budget £400–£1,200 for a garden supply on top of the heater.

Wood-fired — a Harvia M-series stove. No electrics at all, a real fire, and the traditional way to run a pod this size. We fit the flue on installation day. If you are in a smoke control area, check the model against DEFRA's exempt appliance register first — see our smoke control area guide.

2-year warranty

Two years on the structure and on the heater, whichever heat source you choose. Covers manufacturing defects and workmanship.

Lead time — please ask before you order

Lead times vary with stock and specification — anything from 2 to 12 weeks. Ask us before you commit and we will give you the real date for the exact build you want, not an optimistic one.

Getting it into your garden

This is one of the easier saunas to site. It arrives flat-packed on a single pallet 2.21 m long and weighs around 640 kg assembled — light enough that a well-compacted paved base is fine, and the pallet fits on a normal driveway. Individual panels carry through a standard side gate.

It needs a level, well-draining base — paving slabs on a compacted sub-base is the usual answer at this weight. Our construction service starts at £500, and we apply insulating paste between every panel as we build, which is the single biggest factor in whether a sauna holds its heat properly. Full installation guide.

Options

Choose your timber and heater above. Roof shingles come in black, red, green or brown — tell us your preference when you order. Want the longer version with room for six? See the Kelo 300. Ask us anything before you commit.

Images are manufacturer renders. The heater shown is illustrative — your heater choice is made above.