6 FACTORS to CONSIDER BEFORE BUYING SAUNA LIGHTS
Have you thought about what an important part lighting is in your sauna design? And how to improve your sauna experience and safety by incorporating the right lighting choices to your sauna design.
Good lighting can transform a space. Clever use of light and shade can make a sauna room feel cozy but also add sophistication, drama, and atmosphere. You can use lighting to draw attention to the most important elements of your sauna by using a fiber optic lens to illuminate the steam rising from the heater, or light up the entire ceiling of your sauna to create the perfect starlight night sky. Light can also be used to highlight the elements in your sauna, such as the unique texture of wood or bring out other design details of your sauna interior.
There are several kinds of lighting options you can use in your sauna but before you take the plunge there are a few important things to consider when deciding which kind of lights go into your sauna.
1. MAKE SURE YOUR SAUNA LIGHTS ARE HEAT AND MOISTURE RESISTANT
Make sure the lights (and everything else) you put into your sauna can withstand high temperatures and humidity. Very few of them actually can. The budget friendlier options out there might not burn down your sauna, but they probably will have a much shorter life span than product that have been designed for this purpose, and when it comes to things like lighting solutions, once installed, they are a pain to change for the better and cost you more money in the long run.
Cariitti is a Finnish sauna light manufacturer with decades of experience in designing and manufacturing high-end lighting solutions for challenging spaces. In 2023 Cariitti launched their first UL and CSA compliant lighting line for saunas. The products include ready-made fiber lighting sets, light bars and Starlight sets, all specifically designed to be used in saunas, made from the best material with cutting-edge technology specifically for sauna use in mind. Read more >
2. ARE YOUR SAUNA LIGHTS MADE FROM HIGH-QUALITY MATERIALS AND DESIGNED SPECIFICALLY FOR SAUNA USE?
If you are looking for fiber lighting for your sauna, make sure they are made from actual glass fiber and not plastic fibers. Plastic isn’t durable in sauna use and will have a much shorter lifespan than glass fiber lighting. Once your plastic fiber lights burn out you are faced with a much larger dilemma, how to replace them?
High-end lighting solutions such as Cariitti’s Standard or Premium glass fiber lighting sets are made from actual glass fiber, which withstands high temperatures up to +356 F, essential in sauna use. Glass fiber lights are also practically maintenance free, the only maintenance point is the projector, which has a service life of 50 000 h. So, by investing a bit more into your sauna lights you are actually saving money and time.
A set of 8 (7 spots illuminating the wall + 1 for the heater) Cariitti’s Standard glass fiber lights has been used to light up the back wall and heater of this Finnish sauna. Cariitti’s Optical light bars have been installed behind the sauna benches.
3. LIGHT BARS vs. LED STRIPS IN SAUNA USE
If you are looking for beautiful even light with a long lifespan (see picture above), the answer is simple, high-end LED light bars, such as Cariitti’s Optical Light Bars, are a much better looking, practical, and durable option for sauna use than led strips.
Let me explain why; Standard LED strips consist of small LED chips along the length of the strip, and each of them will wear out randomly on their own pace, which means that there will be gaps in the light line over time, and/or the light line is “dotted”.
The “Dot Effect” of led strips refers to the noticeably singular points of lights i.e. dots, instead of the desired continuous line of illumination. This effect occurs because of the spaces between individual LEDs on the strip.
In lieu of individual LED spots on a strip, Cariitti's Light Bars feature light heads on both ends of the optical bars where the light is “shot” from both ends of the bar, so the light line is always even and will stay so over time. Also, the structure of the Cariitti’s light bars is specifically designed for sauna use, the LED components carefully selected for use in hot and humid spaces.
Before you install led strips into your sauna think about how the light will look now, and in a few years, and how durable the lights will be in sauna use. Also, how much time and attention do you want to give your light solution after installation?
4. VISUALLY the MOST IMPORTANT CHARACTERISTICS in SAUNA LIGHTS
I asked a lighting specialist* what are the most important characteristics in a light source esthetically. They advised to pay attention to 2 things: the color rendering capacity, indicated by The Color Rendering Index (CRI), and the color temperature of the light source.
THE COLOR RENDERING CAPACITY
The higher the CRI of the light source is, the more natural the colors in your sauna will appear. The color rendering capacity of the light source indicates the quality and the color temperature of the light. The color rendering values show how the colors in that space will look like in the light. Values of 85-90 indicate good color rendering. For example, all Cariitti lights have the color rendering index of more than 90, so they have excellent color rendering capabilities.
THE KELVIN VALUE (K)
The Kelvin value (K) of the light source indicates the color temperature of the light. With less than 3,000 kelvins, the light is warm yellow, and around 4,000 kelvins, the light is cool white. In more than 5,000 kelvins, the light is remarkably cold and bluish. The Cariitti lights vary between 2700-3000 K depending on the porpoise of use which ensures that the light is always beautiful and warm, well suited for sauna environment. The color temperature of light plays a major role in creating the mood of the space. Warm-toned lighting brings out the colors of the interior favorably, especially the warm wood surfaces in your sauna.
5. HOW MUCH LIGHT DO YOU NEED IN A SAUNA?
Different surfaces, materials, and color shades in your sauna affect the amount of light required. Dark and rough surfaces absorb more light than shiny and light surfaces, so the amount of light should be higher. Lighting should always be pleasant to the eye and does not need to be projected directly from the ceiling downwards but can be carried out indirectly to create more warmth and atmosphere in your sauna. Indirect lighting in saunas is often installed behind the back rests or under the sauna benches, which adds drama and ambiance to the sauna space.
SHOULD YOUR SAUNA BE DARK and ATMOSPHERIC or MORE BRIGHTLY LIT?
You can and should trust your own vision in lighting issues, as you’re the one using the sauna. However, there are some rules of thumb when it comes to sauna lighting. Lighting is an important mood creator in a sauna, but a certain amount of light is necessary from a safety standpoint. The need for light varies a lot between different sauna users and therefore their age and vision should be taken into consideration when choosing the lighting to your sauna. For example, a 60-year-old person requires about twice the amount of light to see as a 20-year-old person.
The easiest solution is to install a dimmer in the lights, so that each user of the sauna can adjust the brightness exactly as desired.
Other things to consider when deciding how much light your sauna needs are the size of windows and the amount of natural light in the sauna. Also take into consideration how dark the walls of your sauna are, as dark and rough surfaces absorb more light than shiny and light surfaces, therefore the amount of light should be higher.
6. ARE the LIGHTS SAFE TO USE IN a SAUNA AND HAVE THEY BEEN TESTED TO MEET the UL SAFETY AND SUSTAINABILITY STANDARDS?
Why is it important to check if the electrical devices in your sauna are UL compliant? This goes to sauna lights as well as for sauna heaters. It is important because UL Certification means the product meets local and federal environmental and safety regulations.
Cariitti lights, as well as all other electric products sold by Sauna Revival have been tested and approved to meet the UL standards for safety and sustainability in sauna use.
SEE YOUR SAUNA IN a NEW LIGHT
Browse the Cariitti collection in our webstore and get inspired by the possibilites in sauna lighting.
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Sorces: * https://www.cariitti.fi/en/lighting-must-fit-the-space-and-interior/
