Are traditional and infrared saunas installed by the same companies?

Not always. Traditional saunas are built or fitted on site and involve framing, cladding, ventilation and a dedicated circuit, so they are the domain of sauna builders and installers. Infrared cabins usually bolt together from panels, so retailers often deliver and set them up without an installation trade involved. Check which a company actually does before you call, because the listing categories on this site separate them for that reason.

Can you pour water on the rocks in an infrared sauna?

No. Infrared cabins have no stove and no rocks, and water near the panels is a hazard, not a feature. If pouring water is what you picture when you think of a sauna, you want a traditional stove-heated room, and the build has to be designed for wet heat from the start: vapour barrier, foil, and cladding that tolerates it.

Does an infrared cabin need special wiring?

Many models are designed to run on a standard household circuit, which is a large part of their appeal, but this is model-specific and larger full-spectrum cabins can need more. Read the rating plate or the spec sheet before you buy, and have an electrician confirm the circuit you plan to use can carry it continuously.

Which one suits a Toronto basement?

Both can work, and the constraint is usually the same: headroom, a floor that can handle the load, and what the electrical panel has left. A traditional sauna adds a vapour barrier, designed ventilation and a dedicated circuit to the job. An infrared cabin mostly needs floor space and an outlet. Confirm the panel capacity early, because that is what most often decides it.

Traditional vs Infrared Sauna in Toronto: What Each One Needs

Last updated: August 12, 2026By The SaunaIndex Bench

These are two different appliances that share a name. A traditional sauna is a built room heated by a stove and rocks, needing a heavy dedicated circuit or a chimney, real ventilation, and cladding that survives steam. An infrared cabin is a panelled box that bolts together, often on ordinary house wiring, and cannot take water. Decide which machine you want first, because it decides who you call.

Once you have decided, SaunaIndex's own dataset lists 38 sauna companies across the Greater Toronto Area at an average Google rating of 4.6★ over 1,080 reviews (August 2026), so you can move straight from this page to a ranked shortlist and call the companies yourself.

SaunaIndex compares what a buyer can check before calling anyone: how each option is heated, what it needs from the house, and who does the work. Where we have no researched figure, we publish no figure.

What actually differs between Traditional and Infrared?

A side-by-side of the decisions that actually differ, so you can tell which of the two your property and your plans can take before you shortlist anyone.

Traditional vs Infrared for a Greater Toronto Area home. Reviewed August 2026. Confirm any electrical, permit or structural detail with the company doing the work.

Criterion	Traditional	Infrared
How it heats	TraditionalA stove heats rocks, the rocks heat the room, and you sit in hot air	InfraredRadiant panels warm the surfaces and the people directly, and the air stays cooler
Water on the rocks	TraditionalYes, and the whole build assumes it: vapour barrier, foil, and wood chosen for wet heat	InfraredNo. Water and infrared panels do not mix, so the cabin stays dry
Electrical	TraditionalElectric stoves need a dedicated circuit sized to the heater, wired by a licensed electrician	InfraredMany models run on a standard household outlet, but confirm the model's rating before you buy
Wood-fired option	TraditionalAvailable, and it brings a chimney, clearances to combustibles and a WETT-style inspection into scope	InfraredNot applicable, infrared is electric only
Ventilation	TraditionalNeeds designed intake and exhaust, and this is the part cheap installs skip	InfraredNeeds far less, though the room around it still needs air movement
How it arrives	TraditionalUsually built or assembled on site, benches and cladding fitted to the room	InfraredUsually a flat-packed cabin that bolts together in a few hours
Where it fits	TraditionalA framed room, a basement corner or a purpose-built outdoor cabin	InfraredAny dry room with the floor space and a suitable outlet
Who does the work	TraditionalA sauna installer or builder, plus an electrician, and a roofer or mason if it is wood-fired	InfraredOften the retailer's delivery crew, or a handy owner, with an electrician if the circuit needs work

Which home suits a traditional sauna, and which suits an infrared cabin?

Choose a traditional sauna when

Choose a traditional sauna when you want to pour water on hot rocks and you are willing to build for it. That single decision brings the vapour barrier, the vent design, the cladding choice and the electrical work with it, which is why this is the version that needs an installer rather than a delivery.

You want steam from water on the rocks, which infrared cannot do at all.
You have somewhere to run a dedicated circuit, or somewhere a chimney can safely go.
You are building a room rather than placing a cabinet, and you want the benches and cladding fitted to the space.

Choose an infrared cabin when

Choose an infrared cabin when you want the simplest possible installation. It arrives as panels, bolts together, and in many cases plugs into a normal outlet, so a retailer can deliver it and a room that stays dry is all it asks for.

You want the shortest path from ordering to using it, with no framing and no vent design.
Your room cannot take a dedicated high-amperage circuit or a chimney.
You may move, and you want something that comes apart and goes with you.

Frequently asked questions

Are traditional and infrared saunas installed by the same companies?: Not always. Traditional saunas are built or fitted on site and involve framing, cladding, ventilation and a dedicated circuit, so they are the domain of sauna builders and installers. Infrared cabins usually bolt together from panels, so retailers often deliver and set them up without an installation trade involved. Check which a company actually does before you call, because the listing categories on this site separate them for that reason.
Can you pour water on the rocks in an infrared sauna?: No. Infrared cabins have no stove and no rocks, and water near the panels is a hazard, not a feature. If pouring water is what you picture when you think of a sauna, you want a traditional stove-heated room, and the build has to be designed for wet heat from the start: vapour barrier, foil, and cladding that tolerates it.
Does an infrared cabin need special wiring?: Many models are designed to run on a standard household circuit, which is a large part of their appeal, but this is model-specific and larger full-spectrum cabins can need more. Read the rating plate or the spec sheet before you buy, and have an electrician confirm the circuit you plan to use can carry it continuously.
Which one suits a Toronto basement?: Both can work, and the constraint is usually the same: headroom, a floor that can handle the load, and what the electrical panel has left. A traditional sauna adds a vapour barrier, designed ventilation and a dedicated circuit to the job. An infrared cabin mostly needs floor space and an outlet. Confirm the panel capacity early, because that is what most often decides it.

Questions to ask before you commit

Do you build and fit this yourselves, or sell the kit and leave the fitting to me?
What does it sit on: a gravel base, deck blocks, a slab, or existing framing, and who prepares it? What a sauna build costs
What heater size did you calculate for this shell or room, and on which circuit?
Who runs the electrical, and is the ESA permit inside your price?
What is the warranty term on the heater compared with the cabin or the cedar?