Slev’s red, round sauna stove

“As beautiful as an aircraft engine.” These were the words used by Erik Isomaa, founder and CEO of Slev, to describe the Slev round electric fibre, designed by Pekka Wikström. Wikström considered the design of the stove to be a bold idea, and he said that the round design was due to the production technology of the stove:

“Even before the world wars, the manufacture of electric stoves had introduced the firing of vitreous enamel surfaces in an enamel furnace. The rather shallow space did not fit the stove as a whole, so the metal casing of the stove had to be divided into two parts. But it was good for the development of the product. More sheating and air intake seemed to be better.

There was demand for the new product in the domestic market and it was also sold with sauna packages to countries such as the United States and Canada. Exports to the Nordic countries, on the other hand, were hampered by customs protection. The Swedish Electrical Inspectorate did not approve the stove until 1970, when Slev was acquired by Swedish Electrolux Elektrohelios. The production of the stove was stopped shortly afterwards in 1972.