So you’ve decided to buy an infrared sauna for your home or place of business. When one goes searching for the best infrared sauna for their needs, knowing what type of infrared heater is preferred is one of many decisions that must be made.
As we’ll share, infrared sauna heaters largely fall into two categories – far infrared and full-spectrum. While considering your infrared sauna, don’t forget to also look into the type of wood you want to use, what’s covered under any sort of warranty you might be using, and what other features you may want included.
Far infrared heaters – ceramic
There are far infrared sauna heaters which vary according to size, material, quality of the heat, and the surface temperature of the heater. Two of the most common materials used to manufacture far infrared heaters are ceramic and carbon. Ceramic is used as it’s very efficient and effective when producing infrared heat. It also has a high emissivity rating, which means ceramic can produce a lot of heat. The primary criticism related to ceramic is that they only produce shorter infrared wavelengths. These are not as readily absorbed by the body and are considered less therapeutic than others.
Far infrared heaters – carbon
Comparatively, carbon infrared sauna heaters produce longer infrared wavelengths. Carbon’s also light which means the heaters used can be built larger and run at a lower surface temperature. It’s these low surface temperatures which produce long wave infrared heat. This version of infrared heat is more readily absorbed by the body and has more therapeutic effects. The criticism of carbon infrared heaters however are that, while they produce high quality heat, they don’t produce a lot of it. To put it simply, they are relatively weak next to ceramic. Even so, the vast majority of companies use carbon heaters as they can be more effective at producing therapeutic benefit.
Full spectrum infrared heaters
There are also full spectrum infrared heaters to contend with, should you choose to not want to go with a far infrared heater. As you’d expected by their name, a full spectrum infrared heater emits heat in all three known infrared wavelengths – near, mid, and far infrared. Some infrared saunas use a combination of heaters to produce a full spectrum infrared heat effect, as opposed to providing the user with a true-blue full spectrum heater. For example, a sauna may incorporate three pieces – a far infrared heater, a mid-infrared heater, and a near infrared heater.
Which infrared sauna is right for me?
The infrared sauna buying process can be overwhelming for first-time buyers and/or inexperienced users. We recommend connecting with a sauna specialist at Steam Sauna who can help with providing insight into what type of sauna may be best for your situation.
If you need any assistance or are seeking information which cannot be found directly on the Steam Sauna website, we would be happy to help by email or over the phone. Needless to say, we’ve received a lot of questions over the years – ‘what type of infrared heater to use’ being a common one. If you’re unclear about anything or are on the fence about any of the customizations offered, don’t hesitate to speak with a representative today.