CONSTANT-STEAM-VS-DELAYED

Room Fill Complaints

Many people are surprised when they but a steam generator that has a low steam saturation density. The room is very hot due to the latent heat of the steam but it is not like the spas and gyms people are used to going to where they can't see a person sitting on the other side of the steam room. Many people end up getting a steam generator that produces too wet of a steam and doesn't work well with their room dimensions, especially those with 8 foot and over ceilings and have a porous material like ceramic or porcelane.

For those that want as close to 100% steam saturation as possible I urge people to understand dry vs wet steam. For those that want to stay in the steam room for 45 minutes to an hour to get that feeling they want to end their steam session, then having long duty cycles where you have to wait almost half the session for steam to build up and the steam is trapped at the ceiling and you are only feeling a mild steam, then the single tank and low psi models that cause these steam traps won't be a problem.

I personally like constant steam where the steam stays at the same temperature the entire time. Some brands have a 6 degree variance and others have up to a 25 degree variance. where you feel like you want to splash ice water or put a cold towel on the thermometer to kick on the steam again. This is what voids many warranties. I wish companies would tell people that. It is not in the fine print usually.

Notes: in order to get constant steam you just have dual boiler tanks or an inlet dual tank. You cannot get continuous steam with a single tank steam generator. Also, having a dryer steam will keep the steam fluctuations smaller and avoid steam traps at the top of the ceiling. See my page on steam traps.

Temperature Fluctuations - You either like continous or duty cycles

Some people like to stay in their steam room for long sessions. If you are waiting for steam and it allows your heart rate to go back down, you can stay in much longer. Nearly everyone I have ever talked to doesn't like duty cycles unless they have a medical problem and need a mild steam room and need to keep their heart rate down by having duty cycles with no steam.

The good thing now is that thermostats are way more accurate than they have ever been. Some steam generators have 3 sensors and make sure steam never goes over or under 6 degrees. That is as good as it gets right now. To get this constant steam, the control factor is at 7 foot and not having porous walls. Of course this is based on a perfect scenario. If someone has a 9 foot ceiling and they used a sizing chart, it will not have a 6 degree variance.

My best advice for someone that wants to feel the same temperature of steam all over their body and not just their head and upper body is to have a marine grade fan so that steam blows down to the floor and there is no steam trap at the ceiling. When your feet and legs are geting the same steam experience as your upper body, session times are almost cut in half. I like to get everything in my body heated up at the same time. I do this for micro circulation and my lower body and legs are just as important as heating up my upper body. I bring my fans into day spays in by gym bag and suction cup 1 or 2 fans above me. People look at me like I'm crazy until I ask them if they want to sit in my spot for a minute. Having a heat co-efficient (opposite of a wind chill factor) blowing on you is a game changing experience.

Steamspa has the most continous steam if you are looking for a fast burn steam. The Steamspa uses 3/4 inch pipes, not half inch. It also has super high psi pressure relief valves, not the 15 psi type.

The Steamcore is the competitor brand in the continous steam generator market. This is a slow burn type (opposite the type of the Steamspa). Both are CSA certified. It is up to you which steam you like best. One is hotter and more intense but the other is dryer and has minimal steam traps.