Five Elements Africa

Saunas & cold plunges in Clifton & Bantry Bay

Clifton and Bantry Bay are the tightest sites we work on anywhere: cliff-edge apartments, stacked decks and almost no space that is not already doing something.

Clifton & Bantry Bay, South Africa

Small footprints, exact measurements

A two-person cabin on a 1.2 by 1.5 metre footprint is often the only thing that fits, and it has to fit exactly. We measure the deck, the door, the lift and the stair before quoting, because a hundred millimetres decides whether the project happens.

Where a full cabin will not go, an infrared cabin often will, and it needs no drain and no supply upgrade.

Decks over nothing

Many of these properties cantilever over the slope. A cabin is light; a plunge tub full of water is nearly a tonne on a small area and we will not put one on a cantilevered deck without an engineer's opinion. That is not caution, it is the only defensible position.

Salt and wind at the same time

Direct Atlantic exposure means A4 stainless everywhere, sealed end grain, and a deeper cavity. Anything plated bleeds rust down pale timber within a season on this stretch of coast.

Questions

Clifton & Bantry Bay: what people ask

Will a sauna fit on our deck?

Often yes, at 1.2 × 1.5 m. We measure exactly, including the route to get it there.

Can we have a plunge on a cantilevered deck?

Only with an engineer's opinion. A full tub is nearly a tonne.

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