Sauna buying guides spend their time on heaters, wood, and capacity. The small things you add afterward decide how tidy the room feels every day.
This article covers hooks and where the small accessories go. For what to buy in the first place, see the sauna accessories buying guide.
Short answer: mount hooks away from the heater, put the thermometer where your manual says, and choose accessories that need no power.
What a robe hook solves
Without a hook, a towel ends up over the door, on the bench, or on the floor. The Almost Heaven Sauna Robe Hook is red cedar, costs $41 at Select Saunas, and mounts on any flat surface inside or outside the cabin.
It’s a single hook. Run the numbers for your household: two regular users means two hooks and $82.
You get a fixed spot in wood that matches a cedar cabin. You give up $41 for something a hardware-store hook outside the door also does.
Where things go
| Item | Where | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Hooks, towels, robes | Away from the heater, never over it | Harvia KIP manual |
| Thermometer | Over the heater, 6 in. from the ceiling | Harvia KIP manual |
| Thermometer (other view) | About 1 ft below the ceiling, 3 ft or more from heater and door | Finnleo |
| Caution sign | On the wall near the heater, visible | Harvia KIP manual |
| Warning sign | Outside, on the sauna door | Harvia KIP manual |
| Sand timer | On a wall you can see from the bench | My suggestion |
Keep the area over the heater clear
Harvia’s manual says not to place any combustible material over the sauna heater. It names towels, bathing suits, and wooden buckets and dippers.
So the wall above and beside the heater isn’t hook space. The far wall, or the outside of the cabin, is.
Inside or outside
Inside, your towel is within reach. Outside, it stays dry and cool until you step out.
My rule of thumb: sit-on towels come inside with you, and the robe hangs outside. If you buy one hook, put it outside.
The thermometer question
Here’s what the spec sheet won’t tell you: two sauna makers give different mounting advice. Harvia’s KIP manual puts the thermometer over the heater, 6 inches from the ceiling. Finnleo recommends roughly 1 foot down from the ceiling and at least 3 feet from the heater and door.
Both agree that location changes the reading. Follow the manual for your heater, and don’t move the gauge once it’s up.
No outlets, so no gadgets
Harvia’s manual says receptacles and plugs aren’t allowed in a sauna room. That rules out plug-in clocks, speakers, and chargers inside.
It’s why the standard small accessories are mechanical: an analog thermo-hygrometer and a sand timer.
Add them one at a time
You don’t need all of this on day one. Put up the thermometer and the signs that came with the heater first. Add a hook and a timer when you notice you want them.
If you’re planning an outdoor build, the traditional sauna buying guide covers heaters and room requirements.
Bottom line: small accessories are cheap. Placing them well costs nothing, and the heater manual has already told you where.
Sources
- Harvia, KIP electric sauna heater owner’s/operator’s manual (North America), September 17, 2015: almostheaven.net
- Finnleo, 4” Round Thermometer product page (mounting advice), accessed October 8, 2026: finnleo.com
- Almost Heaven Sauna Robe Hook listing at Select Saunas, checked October 1, 2026