In this episode, Jessie Henderson from Salt Chamber,Inc. discusses how to size a custom Himalayan salt wall for a sauna. Sheexplains how sauna type, wall dimensions, bench placement, viewing angles,lighting depth, electrical planning, and humidity affect the design andinstallation.
John Maher:Welcome to the Salt Chamber Podcast. I'm John Maher, and I'm joined today byJessie Henderson, Senior Salt Therapy Consultant at Salt Chamber Inc. SaltChamber specializes in designing and building salt therapy spaces and providinghalo therapy equipment, Himalayan salt decor, training, and ongoing support forspas, resorts, wellness centers, and more. Jesse, welcome to the podcast.
Jessie Henderson:Thanks, John. Very happy to be here and excited to talk with you guys aboutsalt today.
John:Absolutely. Jesse, today we're talking about sizing custom Himalayan salt wallsfor saunas. When someone's planning a custom Himalayan salt wall for a sauna,what's some of the information that you need from them in order to determinethe appropriate wall size?
Jessie: Yeah, weoften handle questions regarding this, and even coming from contractors,architects doing this for a client or a custom sauna build. The biggest thingswe ask are, is it a dry or wet sauna? Is this a prefab? Is it just a smallsauna that someone bought online, and can we build this out, the feasibility ofit? And the dimensions, of course, depth, height, the ceiling height, thewidth, and how many benches they have. Those are main focal points when we'retrying to determine if it's feasible to put a salt brick wall in. And thenlikewise, if it's a custom build, we like to get in early and talk and answerall those questions before we even begin the process.
John: So does asalt wall need to cover an entire sauna wall to create an impressive effect orcan a smaller accent wall work just as well?
Jessie: Smalleraccent wall, large full coverage. Again, it depends on the space and the depthand even the depth of the benches. So we'll talk about that in a little bit,but you really have to have certain set spaces in order to incorporate thistype of decor in a sauna. So either way will work just fine.
John: Yeah. Solet's talk a little bit more about the sauna's dimensions and the seatingarrangement, the ceiling height, viewing angles. How do all of those thingsinfluence where the salt wall should go and how large it should be?
Jessie: Yep,absolutely. As many know when they're reaching out, it will depend on the typeof sauna. So if you have infrared panels on the walls, obviously we're notsalting those walls. Most of the time it is a back wall of a sauna that we tendto put a salt wall on. It's a focal point. It draws people to that modality.They can see it in the hallway. It's beautification, and people are like, "oh,what's that?" It's a sauna experience, but also it's heightened with theHimalayan salt decor. Many contractors and owners will want to know where theirclients are sitting. Are they going to be staring at a beautiful focal point?So often I will work with them to create a full back wall that draws in visuallywith that glow from outside of the unit, as well as when my clients are on thebenches, they're facing some sort of beautification, a partial wall, maybe aborder around the top of the bench.
So we work on the dimensions, what's available to put asalt wall on, but also the client focal point inside as well as outside drawingto it.
John: In termsof the dimensions, how much space do you need and does the salt wall itselftake up a lot of that sauna area?
Jessie: Sowhenever we're building a back lit brick wall, if you want that glow behind thebricks, there needs to be a space. We provide a full proprietary kit at Salt Chamber.I'm sure others can as well, but you really want to make sure you're guidedstep by step to make sure there's no hotspots, shadowing; that it looks asbeautiful as you want that glow and that smooth congruency to be. So there doesneed to be a space between the bricks and the lighting for sure. And with ourprocess, it's about five and a half inches that this will come off the back wallsubstrate unless you're doing a custom build and it's built into the saunadimensions.
John: So that'sjust something to consider, that you're going to be taking up some of theinterior space of the sauna.
Jessie:Absolutely. With the lighting, with the spacing and the bricks on the clearacrylic themselves, it will be about five and a half inches depth off the wall.
John: Okay. Whatare some of the special installation or moisture considerations people shouldunderstand when they're adding a Himalayan salt wall to a dry sauna? And is itpossible to add a Himalayan salt wall to a steam room?
Jessie: Yep. Allright. So two points there, very important. One, considering electrical, thecontractor will want to plan this. Obviously you have to plug in the LEDlights. Do you want it on a dimmer switch? Is this plug going to be locatedinside the sauna or outside, and will it have to go through a wall? So, theelectrical components and configuration should be thought of before evenplacing this order and installing a wall.
Yes, it can go in a dry sauna. It really cannot go in a wetsauna or steam room of any kind. Salt, with humidity, really anything above 40to 50% relative humidity is a big no-no in our world. It can cause sweating ofthe bricks themselves. They can break down over time. The eco-adhesive we usemight not cure fully if it's humid and moist. And then also, likewise, it couldcause corrosion. Salt can be a corrosive when wet, but not when dry. So in adry sauna is the best possible place to build this wall.
John: And whatare some of the most common sizing mistakes that people make when they'reordering a custom salt wall and how can Salt Chamber help to prevent expensivechanges during an installation?
Jessie: We putthis fully in our estimator. We've been doing this for over 15 years. It's verydialed down to a science based on square footage. So if you told me you had aback wall that was six feet long by four feet tall and it was above a bench, wework with the client to make sure that the configuration's right for the depththat's going to come off the wall, because likewise, you're going to have tomove that bench out about five and a half inches as well as the height andwidth. If you want to go floor to ceiling, bench to ceiling, that's perfectly fine,but we will want those exact dimensions in there. If you have some sort ofcrown molding or baseboard or you're only doing this as a decor piece thatmight be framed out, we make sure we take into account all of those exactdimensions and what wood will be framed around it or if it's going floor toceiling as well as the five and a half inches of depth.
John: Any finalthoughts on custom Himalayan salt walls for saunas and what customers should bethinking about?
Jessie: It'sabsolutely beautiful. It can improve your ROI, bringing this heightenedexperience to a sauna. We do work with a lot of spas and resorts that aretrying to up all of their experiences from the years past and they'rereconfiguring their spa spaces. So it is a wonderful addition to most saunas.We just want to make sure every element is accounted for, including thehumidity and the use case. What are clients coming in here for?
The bricks themselves are highly decorative. They're notputting salt into the air, so this isn't true active halo therapy. It's morefor beautification, architectural beauty, decorative and relaxation stressrelief in a sauna.
John: All right,well, that's all really great information, Jessie. Thanks again for speakingwith me today.
Jessie: Ofcourse. Thanks for having me, John. We'll talk to you soon.
John: And formore information about Salt Chamber, you can visit the website atsaltchamberinc.com or call 561-556-3322.
Leo Tonkin, with a decade of deep expertise in salt therapy, initiated SALT Chamber, a leading entity in the domain of salt therapy products and decor. As the inaugural Chairman of the Salt Therapy Association and Chair of the Respiratory Wellness Initiative from the Global Wellness Institute, he has played a pivotal role in broadening the accessibility and recognition of salt therapy globally. His commitment to developing advanced technology and educating the public on the benefits of salt therapy has solidified his position as a key figure in the industry, enhancing its credibility and trustworthiness.
