A garage sauna cold plunge installation in a Chilliwack, British Columbia townhouse has become the centrepiece of a growing wellness routine, and, for its owner, a replacement for the traditional after-work drink with friends.
Jayden Lee, a 27-year-old sales representative at CENTURY 21 Creekside Realty Ltd., spent roughly $10,000 converting the garage of his 1,400-square-foot townhouse into a space fitted with a sauna, a cold plunge, and a red-light therapy machine. He started the project in September 2024.
‘Instead of inviting my friends over for a drink in the garage, we use the sauna and cold plunge,’ Lee said. ‘That’s exactly what I wanted, a place where I could host, they felt at home, and we could spend time together doing something healthy and productive.’
The Garage Sauna Cold Plunge Setup and What It Cost
The sauna was the largest single expense at approximately $4,000, followed by the cold plunge at roughly $3,000. Lee spent the remaining couple of thousand dollars on paint, artificial grass for the floor, patio lights strung across the ceiling, and a red-light therapy setup. A bicycle hung on the wall completes the display.
For context, the typical all-in cost of a home sauna in Canada ranges from approximately CAD $3,000 to $15,000 or more, depending on the type of sauna, size, materials, and whether electrical upgrades are required, according to a Canadian home sauna cost guide. Lee’s all-in figure sits towards the lower end of that range.
The sauna and cold plunge took a couple of months to arrive after he ordered them, making the transformation a gradual process. The design itself came together quickly: Lee painted the walls, laid the artificial grass, and strung the lights within a week.
‘I wanted the garage to feel like an outdoor space,’ he said, adding that he often leaves the garage door open to reinforce that connection to the outdoors.
Permits, Building Codes, and the Practical Realities
Anyone considering a similar project in Chilliwack should note that a building permit is required for any accessory structure with a footprint larger than 10 square metres (roughly 108 square feet), with permit fees calculated on the construction value of the work, according to a Chilliwack building permit guide.
At the provincial level, the BC Building Code 2024 came into effect on 8 March 2024 and applies to all projects with permit applications made after that date. The BC Building Code Appeal Board has confirmed that accessory sauna buildings under 10 square metres generally fall within the provincial exemption for small accessory structures, though local municipality requirements may still apply.
Lee lives in a townhouse, so his installation sits within the existing garage footprint rather than as a separate outbuilding, which simplifies the permit picture considerably.
Before converting the garage, Lee would drive around 10 minutes to a nearby lake for cold exposure most days. Having the equipment at home removed that friction entirely. ‘Now, I can just walk downstairs and use them whenever I want,’ he said.
His morning routine centres on the cold plunge: three-degree water first thing, which he says ‘wakes me right up.’ In the evenings, he cycles through roughly 20 minutes in the sauna followed by two minutes in the cold plunge, repeating the sequence about three times and always finishing with the sauna, which he finds aids sleep.
The personal reasons behind the project run deep. Lee had cancer as a teenager, then lost his mother in 2020 and a close friend in 2021. A 2022 visit to a health and wellness retreat, where he first experienced saunas and cold plunges together, set the idea in motion.
‘I can genuinely notice a difference between the days when I use the sauna and cold plunge and the days when I don’t,’ he said. ‘I feel calmer and more energised overall.’
Videos of the garage posted to social media have drawn considerable attention: one clip exceeded a million views. Lee says he is regularly tagged in photos of other people’s garage transformations, and a builder friend has begun including saunas as a selling feature in new residential builds.
Lee’s next plan is to convert the back room adjoining the garage into a gym or additional wellness space, a move that would test whether the Chilliwack permit threshold becomes a factor at a larger scale.