How sauna fires can lead to multimillion pound losses
10/10/2022
Saunas are a great way of letting off steam but they can also pose a relatively high fire risk if not properly managed and maintained. Many occupancies will have saunas from traditional leisure sector risks to modern residential developments.
Saunas pose a relatively high fire risk due to the combination of timber construction, combustible insulation and fire risks from electrical hazards and accidental ignition when towels and other objects are placed onto the heater.
Heaters are very often positioned close to the timber walls that form the sauna enclosure. This allows a fire starting on the heater to spread rapidly. In full-scale fire tests, the temperature within a sauna enclosure has been shown to rise to 600 degrees centigrade in just a few minutes of the fire starting.
How a towel left on a heater caused a £30m claim
Paul Redington, from Zurich’s Property Major Loss Team, says “I dealt with one claim at a commercial leisure centre in the south of England, where a cleaning operative inadvertently left a towel on top of a live heater at the end of a shift. A fire then developed, eventually spreading to the rest of the building. The premises was a total loss, with the initial claim put at over £30 million – half of which was business interruption.
“In contrast, the probable cause of a fire at a London sauna was the lack of cleaning, which resulted in litter and other discarded items accumulating in the vicinity of a heater.
Finally, at a council-owned sauna in the west of England, a £4 million blaze was caused by what was believed to be the application by a customer of a flammable liquid to the coals of a heater.
Guidance on managing the risks of sauna fires
Fire prevention
We’ve highlighted the top 5 management questions for saunas to help manage the fire risk:
- Do you carry out a formal six monthly inspection and maintenance of the sauna including a recorded visual inspection of all electrical components? An annual maintenance programme may be sufficient depending upon the actual amount of daily use.
- Have you checked to ensure that the walls behind the heater and the ceiling directly above the heater is protected by a minimum of 6mm mineral silicate board?
- If your sauna heater is located behind seating, does it have the mineral silicate boarding and a metal grille to prevent loose objects falling down onto the heater?
- If you inspect your sauna, does it have any dark or cracked timber? If yes, it is likely time to replace the sauna or undertake a major refurbishment. Blackened timber that is starting to char is easier to ignite. This type of wood behind the heater should be repaired immediately and mineral silicate board installed.
- Have you provided recent training to operational and cleaning staff about procedures such as opening and shutting down the sauna, the need for regular inspections, guidelines around what is and isn’t allowed inside the sauna and the key fire risks with saunas?
If you are considering installing a sauna please contact Zurich to discuss the design requirements for this. Saunas should ideally be located in non-combustible compartments with a minimum fire rating of 60 minutes.
For further details on the management of saunas please see the RISC Authority document RC50 Fire Safety in the Construction and Use of Saunas.
Fire suppression
It’s great news if your building already has a sprinkler system as this can be extended to protect the sauna. This would utilise a 141 C temperature rated sprinkler head(s) to avoid the risk of accidental activation by the high temperature within the sauna.
If a sprinkler system is not installed, there are local fire suppression systems that you could consider such as water mist.
Summary
Zurich continue to see largely avoidable fire losses in saunas. Clear guidelines for staff can help manage the operational risk. Good design, such as installing mineral silicate boards behind heaters, and clear maintenance regimes will help ensure the fire risks are minimised. Finally, extending your sprinkler system or installing a water mist fire suppression system can help control the fire should the worst happen.
