EU Wood-Fired Sauna Heater Standard Changes on February 9, 2027
By Arlene Scott
Senior Wellness Correspondent & Hospitality Consultant
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The replacement standard expands emissions testing. Here’s the deadline, what the lab measures and which documents to ask your supplier for.
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Europe’s wood-fired sauna heater testing is changing, with a replacement standard adding measurements of particles and other emissions. The transition reaches its deadline on February 9, 2027.
That is when the coexistence period ends for EN 15821:2010 and its replacement, EN 16510-2-10:2025, under Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2026/284. The new standard covers multi-firing sauna stoves that burn natural wood logs. The one-year transition began on February 9, 2026.
Measuring more of what goes up the chimney
A September visit to Xamk’s testing laboratory in Kouvola, Finland, offers a look at the work behind the change. Saunologia’s Lassi A. Liikkanen reports that the new protocol adds measurements of particle mass, nitrogen oxides and organic compounds.
The lab received accreditation for the new testing in July, according to the report. Emissions and safety tests use separate setups. Controlled fuel and draft conditions, together with repeated emissions runs, help establish whether results can be reproduced. Safety testing also checks the distances a heater needs from surrounding materials.
For buyers, more detailed testing could make emissions claims easier to examine. The useful comparison is between results measured under comparable conditions; the new standard number alone does not show that one heater burns more cleanly than another.
What to ask your supplier
For a model being specified for the European market, ask whether its test report and product documentation have been updated for EN 16510-2-10:2025. The EU decision sets the transition dates but does not identify which individual heaters have completed testing.
For a North American installation, ask for the test report, manual and installation requirements that apply to the exact model in that market. February 9 is the European transition date.
The standard concerns the wood-fired heater itself. Europe’s EN 18164 sauna-room standard and the UL transition for electric sauna heaters cover different equipment or parts of the installation.
