ProSaunas Adds a Shorter Door for Compact Sauna Builds
The Minnesota maker has added a 26" x 72" size to its Douglas Fir insulated glass lineup, targeting basement builds and low-ceiling rooms where a standard 80-inch door is too tall.
The ProSaunas Douglas Fir Sauna Door with Insulated Glass — handcrafted in Minnesota from solid Douglas Fir with a dual-pane tempered glass panel.
ProSaunas, the Minnesota-based sauna door manufacturer, has added a 26" x 72" option to its Prehung Douglas Fir Sauna Door with Insulated Glass lineup. It is the first size under 80 inches in the insulated glass series, and it fills a gap that has been quietly frustrating a specific slice of the US sauna market: builders working in basement rooms, converted utility spaces, and compact backyard cabins where standard door heights simply don't fit.
Why Door Height Actually Matters in a Sauna
This is not purely a carpentry problem. In a traditional Finnish sauna, a lower door opening is a deliberate thermal strategy. Heat rises and collects at the ceiling. A shorter door keeps the coldest air near the floor, where it belongs, rather than spilling it out every time the door swings open. Bench height typically sits at 36 to 48 inches. The sweet spot for heat retention at the bather's level is maintained better in a room where the door top doesn't extend far above it.
Most US sauna doors are sold in 80-inch heights because that is what standard residential framing accommodates. Rooms built specifically for sauna use, particularly older basement conversions and detached outbuildings with modest ceiling heights, often can't accommodate 80-inch doors without structural modification. Until now, ProSaunas' options stopped at 80 inches. The 26" x 72" slots in below that threshold.
Same Construction as the Full Line
The new size carries everything that makes the ProSaunas Douglas Fir doors worth specifying. The door is handcrafted from solid Douglas Fir with a natural Hemlock jamb and header. The glass panel is dual-pane clear tempered with LoE argon-fill insulation, which keeps radiant heat inside the sauna while letting natural light into the room. Self-closing hinges are standard, adjustable to hold open if preferred. A magnetic catch keeps the door sealed at operating temperature.
It arrives prehung and factory-assembled in its frame. Rough opening required is 26" x 72"; the assembled outer frame measures 27.5" x 73.5". Left-hand and right-hand swing configurations are both available.
26" × 72" (NEW) — $1,266.50
24" × 80" — $1,285.20
30" × 80" — $1,370.20
36" × 80" (ADA-compliant) — $1,540.20
Pricing and Where to Get It
At $1,266.50, the 26" x 72" is the least expensive door in the Douglas Fir insulated glass family, undercutting the 24" x 80" by about $19. That slim gap reflects the shorter material run more than a meaningful price concession, but for a compact build where this is the right door anyway, it is a reasonable entry point into a handcrafted US-made door.
The door is distributed nationally through Bathing Brands and available through specialty sauna dealers.
It is a small expansion in a narrow product category. But for anyone framing a sauna into a basement or low-ceiling outbuilding, a quality US-made prehung door that actually fits the opening is not a small thing. The 26" x 72" ProSaunas Douglas Fir door solves a specific problem well.
Arlene Scott
Senior Wellness Correspondent & Hospitality Consultant
Arlene Scott brings over fifteen years of reporting and consulting experience across energy infrastructure, sustainable design, and thermotherapy-focused hospitality.
Full byline
Arlene Scott is a Senior Wellness Correspondent for SaunaNews.com, bringing over fifteen years of experience at the intersection of energy infrastructure, sustainable design, and thermotherapy. Her work focuses on the physiological benefits of passive heat therapies and the sustainable integration of sauna culture into modern wellness routines.
Arlene's background is rooted in the clean energy transition. She was a founding writer at MicrogridMedia.com, where she covered the technical and economic viability of desalination projects, microgrid deployments, and distributed renewable energy systems. During the mid-2010s, she was a regular contributor to Greentech Media (GTM) during its independent era — prior to the Wood Mackenzie acquisition in 2016 — reporting on the early integration of thermal energy storage and sustainable infrastructure.
Transitioning her focus from macro-energy systems to human-scale wellness, Arlene now applies her technical background to the hospitality sector. She operates as an independent consultant, advising boutique hotels and eco-resorts on the design, energy efficiency, and historical authenticity of commercial sauna and thermal spa installations. Her consulting work ensures that high-end wellness facilities balance traditional Nordic bathing principles with modern sustainable engineering.
Arlene holds a specialized certification in Applied Thermic Wellness from the Nordic Institute of Passive Heat Studies (NIPHS) and is a recognized associate member of the International Sauna Association (ISA). When she isn't reviewing the latest innovations in infrared technology or consulting on a new resort project, Arlene can be found tending to her own traditional wood-fired sauna in the Pacific Northwest. You can read her complete archive of essays on energy, wellness, and sustainable living at www.arlenescott.com.
