We are often asked how an elderly Norpe Sauna can be taken apart and moved. These notes have been written to provide some guidance.

Norpe panel saunas were very well made and their dismantling and re-siting is a relatively straightforward process. These notes are a general guide as the actual methods of construction and fixings used may vary slightly from sauna to sauna.

It will probably take you a few hours to do and you will need some small, medium and large screwdrivers, a claw-head hammer and someone to help you manoeuvre the wooden panels during the dismantling.

Electrical Safety

The first step is to make sure that the sauna is completely switched off and is electrically safe. Achieving this can be done by locating the sauna isolator (or switch fuse) which is usually alongside or above the sauna. Once found, move this to the off position. If there is a separate sauna light, this should also be made electrically safe.

If you have any doubts at all about the above, you should contact a local qualified electrician to confirm that everything is safely and completely switched off.

Sauna Furniture and Sauna Accessories

To make access to the sauna cabin easier, it is advisable to remove the door. This is simply done by lifting the door from its two hinges.

If there is a sauna duckboard (loose wooden slatted flooring), this should be lifted and removed.

The next step is to remove the benches. These are screwed onto bench supports that are in turn screwed into the sauna walls. The bench screws can be found at each end of the benches in between the bench boards. Once removed, the benches may be lifted from the bench supports and taken out of the sauna.

Around the sauna heater, there should be a wooden heater guard. This should be unscrewed and removed from the sauna.

Check for any sauna accessories on the walls that should also be removed. These may include: thermometers, hygrometers and sandtimers.

Sauna Heater and Light Fitting Removal

Make sure that the power supplies to the sauna and the sauna light are completely switched off.

If the sauna is of sufficient age, it may be fitted with a copper capillary tube to measure the sauna temperature. A thin copper tube will extend from the control panel, around the sauna to a temperature sensor usually located under a protecting shield. Remove the shield and very carefully unfasten the copper tube back to the control panel. Take extreme care with this. Should the copper tube be broken, it will mean that a complete new control panel and/or heater will be required.

In more recent domestic saunas, the heater may have the temperature sensing equipment built into the heater body. In which case, you may go straight to the next step.

In order to remove the sauna heater, the stones should first be removed from within the heater body. These are best placed in a bucket, or strong box, and set aside until they are required again.

Larger saunas have heaters with legs that support the unit directly from the floor. Usually in home saunas, the sauna heater is supported on brackets from the wall.

For wall mounted sauna heaters, it should now be possible to lift the sauna heater from its supports. You may need to unscrew a few things to achieve this depending on the type of heater.

It should now be possible to open a small panel in the base of the heater to gain access to a terminal strip. Take a photo (or note) of the connections, before disconnecting the heater cable. The heater body may now be removed from the sauna and its cabling withdrawn from the inside of the cabin if possible.

There may be some supporting and protective fixings left attached to the sauna walls in the sauna heater area. If this is the case, these should be removed as well.

The sauna light is usually a ceramic and glass unit. Remove the glass cover and bulb and unscrew the unit from the wall or ceiling. It should now be possible to access the connection screws to disconnect the unit and remove it from the sauna. The sauna light cable should also be withdrawn from the sauna if possible.

The walls and ceiling surfaces of the inside of the sauna cabin should now be free from all sauna fittings except the bench supports.

Removal of the Sauna Ceiling

Around the top of the exterior of the sauna, there is a fascia board. The exact number depends on how many faces of the sauna can be seen. These are usually nailed into place and it should be possible to lever under each board to lift it and withdraw the fixings at the same time.

In some cases, the sauna may have matching boarding above it to conceal the void above the sauna. This may need to be removed before proceeding to the next stage.

The top of the sauna should now be visible. Check that there is nothing stored on top of the sauna and that there are no other fixings on top of the sauna that need to be removed. At the same time, note the number of sections that make up the ceiling.

For smaller saunas, the ceiling panel is often in one piece. Large models have two, three, or more ceiling panels. The top of the sauna should show a single piece of chipboard exposed for a smaller sauna and more for a larger one.

If there is more than one, go back into the sauna and push upwards on the ceiling with your hands near the centre of the sauna. You will probably find that two pieces of the ceiling either side of a hidden join will start to lift.

If there is only one, go back into the sauna and push upwards on the ceiling near one of the front corners. The corner should start to lift.

Lift out the ceiling panel(s) of the sauna and pass them forward over the top of the sauna and set to one side. It may prove beneficial to take a note of their exact position as they are removed.

Sauna Wall Panels

For the next stage you may need something to stand on. A hop up ladder, or an old upturned milk crate would be ideal. Just enough to let you see and reach the inter-wall section links. These can be found in the tops of the walls, in between the inner and outer wood panelling.

Starting at a front corner, prise out the link at the corner and the next link along the front of the sauna. Carefully lift out the section and note its position. Repeat this until all the front sections are removed.

You may find that some of the bench supports span two wall sections. If this is the case, unscrew the bench support from the wall panel to allow the sections to be separated.

Repeat this process for one of the entire sides of the sauna and then gradually reduce the back of the sauna and the remaining side wall until you have two sections left forming the last corner. This can then be dismantled leaving only the base frame in position.

Sauna Base Frame

You may wish to dismantle the sauna base frame for transportation. Simply undo the screws at each corner to achieve this.

Sauna Reassembly

Reassembling the Norpe sauna is simply the reverse process.

However, we must stress that a qualified electrician should be engaged to carry out the electrical work. Over the years of the sauna’s life, many electrical regulations have probably changed and s/he will be able to ensure that the way in which the heater is re-installed is compliant with today’s more demanding regulations.

If you need any advice, we would be happy to assist. We also carry a range of spares and suitable replacements for anything that may have broken or can’t be sufficiently spruced up.

Updated by Bob Huntington, December 2008.