Aaron Vainikka from Finnbilt joins the show to discuss his Finnish-American sauna heritage and share his thoughtful but unorthodox takes on the Finnish steam bath.

LINKShttps://www.theupperbench.com

https://www.instagram.com/upper.bench.podcast/

https://www.facebook.com/theupperbench

https://www.finnbilt.co

https://www.instagram.com/finnbilt/

CONTENTS

00:00 Intro

07:09 Aaron's Sauna Days visit

20:31 Aaron's first sauna build and his construction philosophy

21:31 Starting his company: Finnbilt

22:09 Unique sauna builds (shipping container, etc)

24:06 Building a shop sauna in less than a week

33:33 Two-by-four sauna build

40:56 The beauty and benefits of log saunas

53:37 "You don't need permission to build a sauna on a budget"

Episode 73 - Sam is building a new sauna, so we take a look!

James and Dan join us to share their stories of growing up Finnish-American in Maine, saunaing as kids, and building their own saunas.

The Sauna: A Gift from the Finns bookhttp://www.finnheritage.org/FHH/styled-5/FHH/book_ordertwo.html

CONTENT

00:00 Introductions

03:00 Finns in Maine

11:38 Sharing sauna with others... one person at a time

14:03 The sauna they grew up with

19:09 Water heaters, buckets, washing in the sauna

25:33 Dan's sauna build

29:30 Changing rooms

31:41 James' sauna build

35:45 What to do about HOT benches

38:37 Propane outdoor shower

39:38 Cold plunges and Sam's big fan

41:59 Drainage

44:46 The beauty of DIY saunas

47:04 Ventilation

51:31 Dan's trip to the U.P.

54:59 James and Dan's normal sauna proceedure