Smoke saunas did cause problems however, the smoke was a problem and the soot also created problems within the sauna by coating the benches
. Most sauna heaters today use electricity and the stones help keep the temperature control and also retain heat. The heat in the stones can then be released by throwing water onto them which will release a blast of heat into the sauna. The atmosphere in a sauna is magical but the electric heaters dampen that atmosphere, there is a lot to be said for sitting in a sauna and having a wood stove where the fire can be seen and if you sauna in Lapland with the snow piled high outside, there really is nothing more magical. For this reason the wood stoves have seen a revival of late.