Outdoor Shower for a Sauna: Pillar, Privacy Panel or Enclosed Barrel

Sauna installation guide

An outdoor shower for a sauna does three jobs: the rinse before you go in, the cool-down between rounds and the rinse before a shared cold plunge. Sauna Republic carries three formats: a cedar pillar for a private yard, a cedar privacy panel for a yard overlooked from one side and an enclosed barrel for full privacy. The format is the easy part; the real decisions are water supply, drainage, placement, wood and winter.

Why a sauna needs an outdoor shower

In Finnish sauna custom, the shower is part of the routine. MyHelsinki, the City of Helsinki's official visitor site, tells visitors to shower before going into the sauna: "Every Helsinkian knows this rule – it helps keep saunas clean and fresh." It also describes breaks with a cold shower, or a dip in the sea, as part of the practice. At home, an outdoor shower covers both.

A shared plunge adds a third job. The CDC tells swimmers: "A one-minute shower removes most of the dirt, sweat, and oils on your body that use up the pool chemicals needed to kill germs." That is pool and hot tub guidance; the same logic applies to a plunge several people use, so rinse before every dip.

Inside the sauna, a towel takes over: Harvia's heater manual recommends seat towels to keep sweat from flowing onto the platforms, washed after each use, with separate towels for guests.

Cold water has its own precautions. The American Lung Association cautions that switching between sauna heat and icy water can raise blood pressure, that the strain matters most for children, older adults, pregnant people and people with chronic heart or lung disease, and that you should check with a healthcare provider first. Our contrast therapy and cold plunge guides cover routines and temperatures.

Pillar, privacy panel or enclosed barrel

Choosing an outdoor shower for sauna use starts with the format. Sierra and Savannah figures are from Dundalk's product page; R3 figures follow SaunaLife's specification as given on our listing.

Sierra: the freestanding cedar pillar

The Dundalk LeisureCraft Sierra is a cedar outdoor shower at its simplest: one pillar, 13 in wide and 78.25 in high, on its own 31 x 31 in base. It has the smallest footprint here and can be moved. A garden hose gives a cold rinse; Dundalk's Premium Shower Hardware gives hot and cold. Dundalk's page says shower hardware is not included and must be purchased separately, and that the White Cedar packages come with a 3-year warranty; confirm coverage with us. It suits a private yard where an open shower is enough.

Savannah: the cedar privacy panel

The Dundalk LeisureCraft Savannah swaps the pillar for a 42 in wide cedar panel on a 40 x 40 in base. Dundalk says it "can be free standing or mounted to a fence or wall," so it can screen one side of a yard. It suits a yard overlooked from one direction. Our Dundalk LeisureCraft buying guide covers the brand's saunas.

R3: the enclosed barrel shower

The SaunaLife Model R3 Rain Series is a complete enclosed barrel of 1.65 in Thermo-Spruce staves, with a 7-inch rain head plus a handheld wand, hot and cold water capability and floor channels pitched for drainage. It weighs 463 lb and is designed by SaunaLife and handcrafted in Northern Europe. It suits owners who want privacy for changing and a look that matches a barrel sauna, and it has the largest footprint of the three. Our SaunaLife buying guide covers the brand's saunas.

Water supply: garden hose or plumbed hot and cold

Settle the supply before the spot: it decides whether a plumber is involved.

Cold-only from a garden hose

Our listings note that the Sierra and Savannah can run a cold-only rinse from a standard garden hose, which suits cold showers between rounds and is easy to disconnect and drain before winter. Shower hardware is not included with either model, so price the shower and the hardware together.

Hot and cold water through plumbed lines

For hot and cold, the Sierra and Savannah need Dundalk's Premium Shower Hardware, which Dundalk describes as "fully stainless with additional hand held shower plus hot and cold water supply (may require a plumber)." The R3 has hot and cold capability built in, and SaunaLife's description includes a plumbing box that conceals the exterior piping connections. Either way, have a licensed plumber plan and make the connections.

Anti-scald valves

Where the International Plumbing Code is adopted, section 424.3 requires individual shower valves to be pressure-balancing, thermostatic or a combination of the two (ASSE 1016), installed at the point of use, with a means to limit the maximum setting to 120°F (49°C). Adoption and local amendments vary, so your plumber and local inspector decide what applies.

Drainage and gray water

Outdoor shower drainage needs a plan, because shower runoff can be regulated. Arizona, for example, includes wastewater from a "bathtub, shower, and sink" in its definition of gray water, and its gray water general permit allows "private residential direct reuse of gray water for a flow of less than 400 gallons per day" if its conditions are met. Those include avoiding human contact with the gray water, keeping it on the property, minimizing standing water and being able to divert it to the sewer or septic system. The rule adds: "Towns, cities, or counties may further limit" its use.

That is one example. Rules vary by state and county, so check locally before you build a drain or let water run onto the ground.

The R3 has pitched floor channels and an included drain kit; where the drain line leads is up to you and local rules. For any format, plan the water's path first.

Where to put it

Put a sauna outdoor shower on the route between the sauna door and the plunge, on a firm, level base that drains.

If you are building a pad for the sauna, Dundalk's barrel sauna manual asks for a base that is level "with a slight slope to the back for drainage" and recommends "a base larger than required to provide a sitting area for cooling off during your sauna session." Extending that pad to take the shower keeps the routine on one firm surface; just keep the runoff from flowing back under the sauna.

For siting the sauna, see our indoor vs outdoor sauna guide and outdoor sauna buying guide. Our backyard sauna setup guide covers the plunge, seating and changing space around it.

Flooring and seating

A teak mat gives bare feet a defined floor over gravel or pavers. Anderson describes its Shower Mat as "top grade teak solid wood" with a water-based sealer and "rubber feet," made in Indonesia for "residential and commercial use"; we list it in 24 x 24 in and 30 x 30 in. It suits a shower floor, a plunge exit or a changing area; the R3 includes its own mat.

The Roll-Up Shower Mat strings teak slats on rubber footing and rolls up, so it can spend the winter indoors.

The Corner Shower Stool supports up to 400 lb, per specifications Anderson supplies to dealers, with leveling feet and non-marking plastic feet, for indoor or outdoor shower, spa and pool areas. Where floor space is tight, the Wall-Mount Folding Seat folds flat on stainless brackets; it must be fixed into studs, blocking or masonry.

Caring for teak outdoors

Anderson's care page lists a "teak sealer once or twice a year" as optional for outdoor pieces, and its FAQ recommends a sealer over teak oil, which it says does not protect furniture from UV rays or water; in a wet area, use sealer, not oil, per Anderson. Untreated teak will "age into a silver-gray patina," which Anderson says "does not affect the strength or durability." The Anderson Teak collection adds benches and deck chairs for the cool-down area.

Which wood holds up

The decay ratings below are from the USDA Wood Handbook; our guide to sauna woods covers more species.

Eastern white cedar

The Sierra and Savannah are eastern white cedar, which the handbook lists as northern white-cedar. Its 2010 table of heartwood decay resistance groups the species as "Resistant," with two limits: "Untreated sapwood of essentially all species has low resistance to decay," and "Decay resistance may be less for members placed in contact with the ground and/or used in warm, humid climates." Cedar heartwood resists decay but is not rot-proof, so keep the base out of standing water.

Thermally modified spruce

The R3's Thermo-Spruce is thermally modified spruce. The handbook's table groups domestic (North American) spruces as "Slightly or nonresistant," but its section on heat treatments says heating "can decrease the hygroscopicity and improve the dimensional stability and decay resistance," with no added chemicals. Yet the gain in stability and durability "also increases the brittleness and loss in some strength properties," and heat-treated wood "is not recommended to be used in ground contact." Keep the R3 on a firm base, off bare soil.

Teak

Teak's decay resistance depends on how the tree grew: the 2021 edition of the handbook groups old-growth teak heartwood as "Very resistant" and young-growth teak as "Moderately resistant," which is one reason outdoor teak still needs the basic care Anderson describes.

Weathering and finishes

Untreated cedar turns gray. Dundalk's Georgian cabin sauna manual says: "Over time the cedar will weather into a weathered grey colour from natural elements including the sun, rain and snow." Dundalk recommends a UV-inhibiting sealant or stain to keep the natural color and advises against paint or varnish on its barrel sauna exteriors. Those are sauna instructions, so ask us for Dundalk's guidance on the showers.

Winter and maintenance

To winterize an outdoor shower, drain it before the first freeze. Dundalk's warranty terms exclude damage from not draining water before freezes; confirm coverage with us.

Permits

Plumbed hot water and drainage are regulated locally, and requirements differ from place to place. Before you dig, run a supply line or connect a drain, ask your local building department about permits and inspections, including whether gray water or backflow rules apply to a hose-fed rinse.

Towels and robes at the shower

Keep towels and a robe at the shower, out of the spray. For drying off after the shower or plunge, we suggest the Kassatex Atelier 800-Gram towel: 100% combed Aegean Turkish cotton, made in Turkey, at 800 grams per square meter, which Kassatex calls "dense and heavy weight." Hang it fully open; heavier towels take longer to dry.

For a lighter towel, the Kassatex Pergamon is 90% combed Aegean Turkish cotton and 10% Pima cotton at 650 grams per square meter, which Kassatex calls "airy and medium weight"; we suggest it as a soft drying towel. See our sauna towel guide for weave, weight and care, or our bath towel collection for more options.

The R3's robe hooks suit the Kassatex Hotel Waffle-Terry Robe: 100% cotton, made in Turkey, with a waffle exterior and terry interior, in 50 in (S/M) and 53.94 in (L/XL) lengths. Our guidance is to wear a robe between rounds, not inside the hot room, and to keep robes away from the heater. Harvia's heater manual warns against placing combustible material, such as towels or bathing suits, over the heater, and its Spirit manual says not to hang clothes to dry in the sauna, "as this may cause a risk of fire."

Frequently asked questions

Browse the full outdoor shower collection to compare all three.

Dundalk LeisureCraft, SaunaLife, Anderson Teak, Kassatex and Harvia are trademarks of their respective owners. Plumbing, drainage and electrical requirements vary by model and location; follow the manufacturer's instructions and local code, and use a licensed plumber or electrician where required. This article is for educational purposes and is not medical advice.