Which timber should we specify?

Cedar is the timber for humid or coastal sites and for rooms where the wood is meant to be seen. Hemlock is the structural workhorse — cabin bodies, frames and bench structure. Finnish pine and spruce is the volume and budget option.

Abachi is the bench-face timber, because it has the lowest heat conductivity of anything we stock and so stays comfortable against skin. Carbonized abachi is the same fine grain, darker and far more tolerant of moisture, for wet rooms and high-use commercial work.

The question that decides it is usually which surface the timber is for.

Bench tops and backrests

Abachi — the lowest heat conductivity of anything we stock

Wet rooms, humid climates, high-use commercial

Carbonized abachi — darker, far more tolerant of moisture

Cabin bodies, frames and bench structure

Hemlock — tight, even grain and good strength

Visible timber in humid or coastal rooms

Western red cedar — the classic sauna timber

Volume panelling and budget-led orders

Finnish pine and European spruce — the lowest cost of the group

Cedar colour varies widely — from pale straw to deep brown — within a single order. That is the timber rather than a fault, and we select to your preference, so tell us which end of the range you want.

Abachi is soft, so it wants care during site handling and a dry installation environment. In a wet room or a high-use commercial installation, carbonized abachi is the grade to specify.

Hemlock is stocked in two grades: figured grain, and a scarcer straight grain for a more uniform face.

Sound knots are part of the standard grade in Finnish pine and spruce. Specify knot-free stock where the face has to read clean.

Tongue-and-groove sauna cladding in five timbers, supplied by the container or cut to a project list, with matching bench material.

Panels are cut from the timber you specify — the board list on the drawing is the board list we run.

Origin matters for specification and for customs paperwork, so it is listed against the botanical name:

A board list is the fastest route, but it is not the only one:

Board list

Timber, profile and lengths — the list we run is the list you send

Or the room

Finished dimensions in millimetres, and we work the list out

Surface

Which surfaces are seen, and which one the bather sits on

Destination

Country and port