Sauna · Review

Sun Home Eclipse Infrared Sauna review

Last updated July 2026 · Verified against the manufacturer's product page

The Sun Home Eclipse is positioned as the step up from the Equinox, and at $9,999 for the 2-person and $12,999 for the 4-person it costs $3,900 to $6,900 more. Before you read another word, here is the honest core of the comparison: the 2-person Eclipse uses the same two full-spectrum heaters, the same measured 0.5 milligauss EMF, the same 165°F ceiling, and the same 2-person cabin as the Equinox, with two extra far-infrared heaters (six vs the Equinox's four). Both cap at 165°F, so the heat is very close, not literally identical. What the premium actually buys is one substantive thing — factory-integrated red light therapy — plus a couple of changes that are lateral at best. Whether the Eclipse earns its price comes down entirely to whether you want that red light built in.

What the step-up actually is

The single real difference between the Eclipse and the Equinox is red light therapy. The Equinox has chromotherapy — colored mood lighting — but no therapeutic light. The Eclipse adds two dedicated red light towers, one on the front and one on the back of the cabin, so both sides of your body get coverage at once. Sun Home spec's the setup at 360 medical-grade LEDs across dual 900-watt panels (1,800W combined), emitting red and near-infrared wavelengths of 650nm and 850nm (Sun Home also frames the emission as a 630–850nm range). Those are the two wavelengths standalone red light panels are built around, so this is genuine photobiomodulation hardware, not a marketing relabel of the infrared heaters.

Everything else that separates the two models is smaller than the price gap implies. The Eclipse runs six far-infrared heaters (left wall, right wall, calves, floor) plus two full-spectrum on the back wall, where the Equinox runs four far-infrared plus the same two full-spectrum. Both hit a 165°F ceiling on the 2-person size. Both publish a 0.5 milligauss EMF measurement from Vitatech. Both assemble with the same tool-free Magne-Seal panels and ship with app control and Bluetooth audio. Strip the red light towers out of the Eclipse and you have essentially an Equinox with a slightly larger heater bank — plus two spec changes that don't move in your favor.

The first is the wood. The Equinox interior is eco-certified kiln-dried eucalyptus, which is harder and more moisture-resistant than the softwoods most cabins use. The 2-person Eclipse is Canadian Hemlock per Sun Home's spec table — a perfectly standard sauna wood, but a lateral-to-downward move from the eucalyptus, not an upgrade. Confirm the species before ordering, though: on both the 2- and 4-person pages, Sun Home's own sales copy and structured product data describe a Canadian Red Cedar interior that contradicts their spec table. We go with the spec table (hemlock).

The second is the warranty, which Sun Home labels "limited lifetime" on the Eclipse versus a stated "7 years" on the Equinox. Read the warranty page and the two resolve to nearly the same thing: limited lifetime on cabinetry and heaters is defined as up to 7 years, with 3 years on controls and 1 year on LED lighting, glass, and audio — the same tiers the Equinox carries. The one genuine add on the Eclipse tier is complimentary labor and shipping for the first 90 days. Both are residential-only. The "lifetime" badge reads bigger than it pays out.

What you actually get

The 2-person Eclipse is a fixed cabin measuring roughly 51.5 by 47.2 by 76.7 inches on the outside and about 600 pounds assembled, seating two adults on bench seating that lifts out for stretching or floor work. Heating is full-spectrum: the far-infrared units do the bulk of the heat distribution while the two full-spectrum heaters add the near and mid frequencies some recovery research points to. The red light towers can run during a session or on their own, which is the whole design thesis — you get infrared heat and red light in the same footprint, at the same time, without a second device and a second wall outlet.

Day-one accessories are complete: chromotherapy lighting, a Blaupunkt Bluetooth sound system, an integrated control panel, and native app control for remote preheat and session scheduling. The 4-person model is the same recipe in a larger cabin at the same 165°F ceiling: Sun Home lists it at 94.4 by 55.1 by 76.7 inches exterior (85.7 by 50 interior), roughly 925 pounds, with 12 far-infrared and 4 full-spectrum heaters — double the 2-person's bank. Note it's a heavier 240V install (5,300W) rather than the 2-person's 120V/30A.

Installation reality

This is where the Eclipse asks more of your house than the Equinox does. The 2-person Eclipse draws 2,820 watts at 23.5 amps on 120 volts and ships with a NEMA L5-30P plug — a twist-lock connector that requires a dedicated 120V, 30-amp circuit. The Equinox, by contrast, draws 15.67 amps and uses a NEMA 5-20P on a 20-amp circuit. Neither is a standard 15-amp household outlet, but the Eclipse's 30-amp twist-lock is the less common of the two, and the extra red light load is why. Most homes do not have a spare 30A circuit near a sauna-sized room.

The fix is a licensed electrician pulling the correct circuit from your panel, which runs a few hundred dollars in most US markets and more if the panel is far from the install room or near capacity. Verify your panel can carry another 30A circuit before you order. The cabin will ship whether the circuit exists or not, and you cannot run the Eclipse safely off an outlet that isn't rated for it.

Assembly is the same tool-free Magne-Seal system as the rest of the Sun Home line — magnetic panel edges that two adults can lock together in a couple of hours. The panels are heavy, so line up help rather than going solo. Owners report the payoff is real once it's together, though door sealing and panel fit can need fussing on assembly, and app or Bluetooth connectivity is the most common recurring gripe.

How it actually performs

As a sauna, the Eclipse performs like the Equinox, because it is the Equinox's heating system. Warm-up is fast for an infrared cabin, heat distribution is even thanks to the panel coverage, and the full-spectrum heaters give the heat a quality far-infrared-only cabins don't quite match. It hits the 165°F it advertises — a point owners specifically call out — and daily-use viability is high, with low operating cost and minimal maintenance beyond wiping the benches.

The performance question that's unique to the Eclipse is the red light. Here it's worth separating the hardware from the health claims. The hardware is legitimate: 650nm and 850nm are the standard collagen-and-recovery wavelengths, and 1,800W across 360 LEDs is in the range of a mid-size standalone panel. The synergy pitch — that infrared heat dilates surface blood vessels so red light reaches a denser capillary bed — is plausible and is the most defensible reason to want the two modalities combined rather than sequential.

The honest caveats are two. First, dose depends on distance. Clinical photobiomodulation studies target roughly 50–100 mW/cm² at the skin, and irradiance falls off the farther you sit from the panel. Seated a foot or more from wall-and-tower LEDs, the dose landing on your skin is lower than the same wattage of a dedicated panel used at six inches — so "equivalent to a standalone panel" is true on the spec sheet but not necessarily at your skin. Second, the evidence base is still maturing. Skin and collagen benefits have the strongest clinical support; broader systemic claims are less settled. Popular Science's own coverage of the Eclipse notes that "the commercial market has outpaced the clinical evidence base." The red light is real and pleasant and probably helpful for skin; it is not a reason to treat every marketed benefit as proven.

How it compares

The most important comparison is in-house: the Equinox. At $6,099 the Equinox gives you the identical sauna and the harder eucalyptus wood, minus the red light towers. If you'd use red light — genuinely, most days — the Eclipse's integration is worth a real premium. If you're indifferent to red light, the Eclipse is $3,900 for a feature you won't run, on a cabin whose wood is a step softer. That's the whole decision in one sentence.

Against Sunlighten's mPulse line ($7,000–$16,000), the mPulse is the other major full-spectrum-plus-red-light option, and it separates near, mid, and far infrared into independently controllable channels the Eclipse doesn't. What Sun Home has that Sunlighten's product pages don't is the published EMF measurement — a 0.5 milligauss figure you can check — and, at the 2-person size, a lower entry price. The mPulse wins on channel-level customization; the Eclipse wins on transparency and value.

Against the Therasage Thera360 Plus at $1,428, this is a form-factor comparison, not a spec-sheet one. The Thera360 is a fold-up, single-person, portable infrared tent with red light built in — a fraction of the price and no install, but a fraction of the power, coverage, and permanence. Renters and travelers who can't host a cabin should look there; the Eclipse is a room-occupying fixture for people who can.

Who this is for

The Eclipse is for the buyer who specifically wants red light therapy and wants it built into the sauna rather than run as a separate device. If you'd otherwise buy both a premium infrared cabin and a standalone red light panel, the Eclipse folds them into one footprint, one install, and one session where the heat and light reinforce each other — and at that point the premium over the Equinox is buying convenience and simultaneity you'd have paid for anyway. Couples fit the 2-person cabin cleanly; larger households should look at the 4-person.

It's also the right pick if the published EMF number is a hard requirement and you want red light — that combination narrows the field quickly, and the Eclipse is one of the few cabins that clears both bars with a spec you can verify.

Who should just buy the Equinox

• Anyone indifferent to red light therapy. The heat, the EMF, the size, and the warranty are effectively the same. If red light isn't a feature you'll use most days, the Equinox is the same sauna for $3,900 less.
• Buyers who value the wood. The Equinox's kiln-dried eucalyptus is harder and more moisture-resistant than the 2-person Eclipse's hemlock. On wood alone, the cheaper model is the better material.
• Anyone who'd get more from a close-range panel. If red light is your priority, a dedicated panel used at six inches can deliver a higher skin-level dose than towers you sit a foot away from. Equinox plus a standalone panel is a legitimate — sometimes better — alternative to the Eclipse.
• Buyers without a path to a 30A circuit. The Eclipse needs a 120V/30A twist-lock circuit; the Equinox runs on 20A. If your panel can't easily take the heavier circuit, the Equinox is the lighter install.

The bottom line

The Eclipse is a real step up on exactly one axis: it's the same premium Sun Home sauna with legitimate, factory-integrated red light therapy that the Equinox doesn't offer. That's a meaningful difference for buyers who want both modalities in one cabinet, and the integration — front-and-back coverage, simultaneous with the heat — is the cleanest version of that idea in the category. But the step-up is narrow. The heaters, the EMF, and the heat are identical to the $6,099 Equinox; the 2-person's wood is a notch softer; the "lifetime" warranty is mostly a relabel of the same 7-year term; and the install asks for a heavier 30A circuit. Buy the Eclipse if red light therapy is something you'll actually use, most days, and you want it built in. If it isn't, the Equinox is the same sauna for thousands less — and saying so is the whole point of this review.

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Weighing it against the cheaper model? Start with our Sun Home Equinox review, then see where both land in Best infrared saunas for home. If you're still deciding between infrared and a traditional stove-and-rocks sauna, our infrared vs traditional sauna comparison covers the experience and install differences first.