Sauna Owner's Guide

Sauna Owner's Guide

Welcome to Nightjar

Everything you need to load it, connect it, and start sweating. Let's get you up and running.

What's inside

Getting Started

Six short steps from delivery day to your first real sweat.

  1. 1Loading the stones — about an hour, done once, done right.
  2. 2Getting on WiFi — so you can run it from your phone.
  3. 3Setting up the HUUM app — start it from anywhere, schedule it ahead.
  4. 4Running the controller — heat, lights, temperature, settings.
  5. 5Enhancing your session — steam, hats, and the little things.
  6. 6Caring for your sauna — keep the wood happy for years.

A note before you begin

We wire and test every stove in our shop before it ships, and each one is sized to your room. If anything ever feels off, it's almost never the stove — and we're one email away. dave@nightjarsauna.com · 616.328.4302

Step 1 · Loading the stones

Load the Stones

Set aside about an hour. Put on a podcast and enjoy it — stoning the stove is part of owning the thing. Wear gloves — the stainless mesh frame has sharp edges. Rinse the stones before they go in, and only ever use stones made for sauna use.

  1. 1Load from the bottom. Take off the upper mesh cage and add stones one at a time, spaced evenly around the elements so you can't see them from outside. Never drop a stone straight onto the heater.
  2. 2Keep the spacing even. Packed too tight chokes the airflow — that's what makes a stove run hot and cut out.
  3. 3Flat side out, guide plate in halfway up the elements, then pile stones until they sit just above the steel grate.

Step 2 · Connect

2Getting Your Sauna on WiFi

WiFi is only for the app. Your stove runs from the wall panel with or without it — so if the network ever drops, you still have a sauna.

  1. 1Hold the control-panel button for 10 seconds to open Settings.
  2. 2Go to Wi-Fi settings → Wi-Fi SSID and press to confirm.
  3. 3Pick your network, enter the password, and follow the prompts. Once it connects, you're done.

Three things that trip people up

2.4 GHz only.
The module can't see 5 GHz or 6 GHz networks. If your 2.4 and 5 GHz share one name, give the 2.4 GHz band its own name.

20 characters max.
The network name and the password each have to be 20 characters or fewer, or the module won't take them.

Skip the ASUS Lyra.
The module won't pair through an ASUS Lyra WiFi amplifier.

Step 3 · The app

3Setting Up the HUUM App

Start the sauna from your phone, from anywhere, and watch the temperature climb in real time. You can even schedule it to be hot when you walk in.

  1. 1Find your Sauna ID and Sauna Code — printed inside the electrical supply box cover. Write them down first.
  2. 2Download HUUM from the Apple App Store or Google Play.
  3. 3Create your account and follow the prompts.
  4. 4Pair and test — enter your Sauna ID and Code, set a temperature, tap to start, and wait for the steam icon to turn from blue to red.

Everyone in the house can install the app and run the sauna — same ID and Code. Most saunas take about an hour to reach temp; the app pings you when it's ready.

Step 4 · The controller

4Running It From the Panel

One short press
Heat on or off. While it's heating the screen stays lit, with the heat icon under the temperature.
Two presses
Lights on. Leave the controller lights on — the wall switches then run the bench and porch lights. (Porch lights are on a photo-eye, so they come on and off by themselves.)
Turn the button
Clockwise for hotter, counterclockwise for cooler. Target temp shows top-right, current temp in the middle.
Hold 10 seconds
Opens Settings — steamer, lighting, child lock, and the rest.

It shuts off on its own after 3 hours, or whenever you press to stop.

Step 5 · The experience

5Make It Yours

Bring the steam

Ladle water over the hot stones and enjoy the löyly — the Finnish rush of soft steam.

Beat the heat

A wool sauna hat keeps your head and hair comfortable as the heat rises.

Kit yourself out

Have a towel, slippers, and a robe ready for the moment you step out.

Step 6 · Upkeep

6Taking Care of Your Sauna

Interior wood
Never paint, stain, or varnish it — the wood has to breathe. Rinse with a hose or bucket while it's still hot after a session. For stains, use a brush with warm water and a couple drops of dish soap (go easy — too much attracts dirt). Sand the benches lightly once a year to bring them back to new. Bacterial growth wipes off with warm water and a little bleach.
Floorboards
When they get dirty, hose them down and give them a scrub.
Smells
A vinegar-and-water mix clears them out.
Deep-clean walkthrough  →  watch it on Instagram, @nightjarsauna

If something's not right

Start Simple

Most heating problems aren't the stove — it left our shop wired, tested, and sized to your room. Work down this list before you worry.

Everything looks normal but nothing gets hot
Press the red reset button on the stove. Wipe it clean, press firmly until it clicks, and run it again. This is the number-one fix.
Warms up but stalls, or quits partway through
Usually stones packed too tight around the elements, or a power issue upstream. Loosen the packing first.
Controller says it's hot but the room isn't
Likely the temperature sensor — the part we see fail most. Call us.
The app won't connect
That's WiFi, not the stove. You can always run it from the panel.

Anything past this — email dave@nightjarsauna.com. We have a full electrical checklist and we'll walk you through it.

Now go sweat.

Sauna every day.

1175 Burton St. SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49507  ·  616.328.4302  ·  @nightjarsauna  ·  nightjarsauna.com