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Grade A cedar is used for all of Northern Lights’ saunas. It’s sustainable with that beautiful fragrant smell, and impervious to rot with a high insulation value – cedar is a great choice for hot tubs and water applications.
Grade A cedar is used for all of our wooden saunas. It’s sustainable with that beautiful fragrant smell, and impervious to rot with a high insulation value – cedar is a great choice for saunas, hot tubs, and water applications. Cedar has long been the premier choice for building boats and canoes and of course, wooden hot tubs, for so many reasons:
Cedar’s natural oils give it natural protection against rot and decay. A cedar sauna will last upwards of 20 or more years and requires minimal maintenance!
Its fibrous structure is full of micro air pockets which give it one of the highest insulation values of any common wood.
Lastly, but definitely not least – we harvest only sustainable cedar from forests that adhere to the strictest reforestation practices.
This ensures our forest stay healthy and the supply of cedar will be available for generations!
There are many types and grades of cedar. Northern Lights uses both Western Red Cedar and Yellow Cedar to build our wooden hot tubs and saunas – and both are really great options!
WESTERN RED CEDAR
Western Red Cedar is known for its aromatic smell and deeper reddish colors as it’s name implies. It is a lighter wood and more fibrous making it a great wood for insulation.
ALASKAN YELLOW CEDAR
Yellow cedar grows at higher elevations, and has much tighter growth rings – which makes it a much harder and stronger wood. Yellow Cedar will hold up better to wear and tear than western red cedar, but has similar insulation properties.
Both varieties of cedar are known for their straight grain pattern, which gives them dimensional stability against warping and twisting – making them VERY durable, and a great material to build your wooden hot tub.
As with almost everything, cedar comes in many grades – however, Northern Lights ONLY uses Grade A or #2 or better to build our wooden saunas. This grade is simply the best, and defined by its absence of any knots as well as a tight ring pattern.
DURABILITY
Knots in wood cause warpage, and will result in water leaks over time. This higher grade of cedar also has a tighter ring pattern as it is harvested from older trees. A tight ring pattern will define the durability of the cedar.
BUYER BEWARE
Not all wooden tubs are built from the same grade, so be sure to ask when shopping for your new tub. Some competitor’s cedar tubs are even built in China, so buyer beware.
Market demands greatly affect the wholesale pricing and availability of cedar. As such, cedar has become one of the most sought-after woods internationally. Choosing your wood is a matter of preference and design. The uniform color of yellow cedar is prized by architects looking for a more modern design, whereas the more rustic/random color patterns of western red cedar have always been a popular choice for outdoor projects. The choice is yours! Either way, you can’t go wrong with a cedar hot tub as the perfect addition when creating your own oasis.
Whether you’re looking for a cedar barrel sauna, or looking to buit your own DIY sauna room – with over 25 years in business,we ensure that Northern Lights cedar saunas are of the top level quality and craftsmanship in the world.
Our cedar saunas can be found all over the world, and we have warehouses in both North America as well as Europe in order to provide our customer with the best service possible.
When we say we know cedar tubs and saunas, we mean it - learn more about us, or our other brands.
Whether you’re looking for a cedar barrel sauna, or looking to build your own DIY sauna room – with over 25 years in business,we ensure that Northern Lights cedar saunas are of the top level quality and craftsmanship in the world.
Our cedar saunas can be found all over the world, and we have warehouses in both North America as well as Europe in order to provide our customer with the best service possible.
When we say we know cedar tubs and saunas, we mean it - learn more about us, or our other brands.
