Mobile Sauna Made From Horse Trailer

2022 - Volume #46, Issue #5, Page #20

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When you’re inside the mobile sauna Blaise Johnson built, you can’t tell there’s anything unusual about it. But from the outside, it still looks like a regular old horse trailer.
The cedar-lined horse trailer fired by a wood stove was a gift to his brother. It turned out so well that Johnson hated to see it go down the road.
“My brother Wes lives in northern Minnesota and wished he had a sauna,” says Johnson. “I thought I’d build one, and the horse trailer was the perfect size for two people.”
The horse trailer had been sitting unused at a friend’s place for several years. When Johnson asked about it, his neighbor told him he could have it at no cost.
“I wanted it to still look like a horse trailer when I was done,” says Johnson. “The plexiglass windows were weather checked, and it needed some body work. I used Bondo in places, took a panel off an old Vermeer baler and welded it into the window spaces and used thin gauged steel everywhere else a patch was needed.”
He insulated the interior with blue foam board on flat surfaces and foil-covered insulation on curved areas. He then covered it all with cedar picket fence boards that he bought new.
“I used a brad nailer to attach the cedar to the plastic and the studs,” says Johnson. “The seats were made out of old cedar 2 by 6’s I had laying around.”
He fabricated the stove out of an old 30-lb. propane tank and welded a section of field disc to it for a pedestal base. It sits in the curved nose of the trailer with smoke piped out the roof.
Johnson installed a heat shield around the stove. He screwed 1-in. electric conduit spacers to the cedar before attaching the corrugated steel to them.
Johnson made hardware for the sauna out of horseshoes. He used them for a sign on the outside, clothes hooks on the inside, and for a sliding door latch that can be accessed from the interior and exterior.
Interior lighting is provided by solar-powered LEDs Johnson picked up at Harbor Freight. He painted the exterior in Farmall colors, as the red matched his brother’s red pickup.
“It was a fun project, and I kind of regretted sending it down the road,” says Johnson.
He admits it may not be the last mobile sauna he builds. “A couple of neighbors have already found horse trailers for sale on Facebook Marketplace,” says Johnson.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Blaise Johnson, 32650 E 143rd Ave., Brighton, Colo. 80603 (ph 720-415-5153; blaiserford@yahoo.com).

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Mobile Sauna Made From Horse Trailer FARM HOME recreation When you’re inside the mobile sauna Blaise Johnson built you can’t tell there’s anything unusual about it But from the outside it still looks like a regular old horse trailer The cedar-lined horse trailer fired by a wood stove was a gift to his brother It turned out so well that Johnson hated to see it go down the road “My brother Wes lives in northern Minnesota and wished he had a sauna ” says Johnson “I thought I’d build one and the horse trailer was the perfect size for two people ” The horse trailer had been sitting unused at a friend’s place for several years When Johnson asked about it his neighbor told him he could have it at no cost “I wanted it to still look like a horse trailer when I was done ” says Johnson “The plexiglass windows were weather checked and it needed some body work I used Bondo in places took a panel off an old Vermeer baler and welded it into the window spaces and used thin gauged steel everywhere else a patch was needed ” He insulated the interior with blue foam board on flat surfaces and foil-covered insulation on curved areas He then covered it all with cedar picket fence boards that he bought new “I used a brad nailer to attach the cedar to the plastic and the studs ” says Johnson “The seats were made out of old cedar 2 by 6’s I had laying around ” He fabricated the stove out of an old 30-lb propane tank and welded a section of field disc to it for a pedestal base It sits in the curved nose of the trailer with smoke piped out the roof Johnson installed a heat shield around the stove He screwed 1-in electric conduit spacers to the cedar before attaching the corrugated steel to them Johnson made hardware for the sauna out of horseshoes He used them for a sign on the outside clothes hooks on the inside and for a sliding door latch that can be accessed from the interior and exterior Interior lighting is provided by solar-powered LEDs Johnson picked up at Harbor Freight He painted the exterior in Farmall colors as the red matched his brother’s red pickup “It was a fun project and I kind of regretted sending it down the road ” says Johnson He admits it may not be the last mobile sauna he builds “A couple of neighbors have already found horse trailers for sale on Facebook Marketplace ” says Johnson Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Blaise Johnson 32650 E 143rd Ave Brighton Colo 80603 ph 720-415-5153; blaiserford@yahoo com

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