Hirsityö Heikkilä is run by three brothers, Johannes, Martti and Ilkka, who build traditional smoke saunas from locally sourced aspen and pine, dried for more than a year before it is used.
"The timber must be really dry and of the highest quality," says Johannes. "Otherwise it won't be able to withstand the load and the weather conditions over a long period of time."
The logs are sawn to size, notched and joined with traditional dovetail joints, which give both the look and the structural stability a sauna needs. Bark is stripped with drawknives, bench timber is planed and every surface is sanded. "Nobody wants to sit on a bench with splinters, so of course we go over these very thoroughly."
The team builds five to ten saunas a year, many on remote islands where mains power is not available. Where they once relied on diesel generators, battery tools now give them the flexibility and the clean working environment they want.
Festool tools on the job
- ROTEX RO 150 geared eccentric sander for the benches
- HL 850 planer for the bench timber
- SYS-PowerStation for mains power where there is none
- SYSLITE work lights
- MX stirrer
Planning a timber build of your own? The Festool cordless range and planers are in stock at Power Tool Services, Cape Town.
Source: Festool blog. Images courtesy of Festool.
