Something in the world of floating have you stumped?
Show Highlights
Today brings a curious question about a float center owner who’s trying to deal with salt dust everywhere, including in their tool room. While salt does get everywhere, it can’t evaporate like water can and doesn’t travel through the air very well.
Graham and Ashkahn try their best to answer it and try to figure out what might be causing it, having not experienced something like that themselves at Float On. If any float centers out there have experienced this phenomenon and have any insights, send it our way!
Listen to Just the Audio
Transcription of this episode… (in case you prefer reading)
Graham: Today’s question is, “What about the phenomena of evaporation resulting in salt residue everywhere? Anyone else have this? Do you have to clean out the HVAC system? We found that some of the tools rust just from the salt in the air. Just from the salt in the air.”
Ashkahn: Just from the salt in the tools, like in their tool room?
Graham: Yeah, it seems like a long way for-
Ashkahn: This is-
Graham: … salt air to travel.
Ashkahn: So, like, this doesn’t really happen to us. Like, I don’t notice in our float rooms, like, salt building up on the ceilings or in the HVAC vents or-
Graham: No, except from people doing the Herbal Essences kind of hair flip when they get out of a float tank. We really don’t find salt just kind of coating things, as though it had been aerated or anything like that.
Ashkahn: Yeah, it’s not like a powder or salt or, yeah. Even on the ceilings of the float tanks, there’s not like a fine dusting of salt or anything.
Graham: Yeah.
Ashkahn: But I guess it is like, it can be very humid, too, in there.
Graham: Yeah, I mean. So I see, you know, when I’ve heard of people that experience rust problems or issues with HVAC vents and things like that, it almost always in talking to them and working through things, ends up being more related to the moisture in the air than actually having salts in the air that’s getting in there. And if the HVAC installers didn’t prepare for the sheer volume of humidity that your float tanks can crank out, then yeah, you can totally hit problems in those vents and in the system as a whole.
Ashkahn: That’s good. I would ask these people that question. Like, are you-
Graham: Are you sure it’s salt or could it be-
Ashkahn: Are you actually seeing salt. ‘Cause if it’s salt, you’d see salt building up on things.
Graham: They see the salt residue everywhere is a direct quote from the question.
Ashkahn: Salt residue everywhere, that’s so strange.
Graham: I mean, so, I can think of a couple things. And from our consulting, I’ve probably heard of things like this a couple times. But, I mean, much more I hear people who are surprised that they don’t see salt getting everywhere.
Ashkahn: Right.
Graham: You know, they expect it to be like the ocean.
Ashkahn: Right.
Graham: Where the ocean is so turbulent, and it’s just kicking up all of these waves and this water.
Ashkahn: Some mist, a sea mist.
Graham: If you drive a car anywhere near the ocean, you just know your car has to be coated or it’s going to rust out from the bottom, and every metal part is going … So, I think people picture that with a float tank center, and are surprised when they open to find that’s actually not the case, which again in Float On, for us, it certainly has not been. So, the couple things I can think of are, if you have something, even like a pinhole leak in your filtration system, there’s a chance that you can be kind of spraying a really fine salt spray around. It’s almost like installer error or something going wrong with the pump system.
Ashkahn: Yeah. Like, I feel like even without any noticeable leaks, I’ve never seen a filtration system that doesn’t just kind of end up getting kind of salty.
Graham: Sure. And most of the time it’s from leaks, but sometimes there is kind of like a fine …
Ashkahn: Like a fine, fine mist of-
Graham: And I guess the most I’ve seen for a fine dust, is a couple of our tanks have …
Ashkahn: Right.
Graham: There is something about their filtration system… but only around the pump area leave this kind of residue. So, I wonder what could go wrong that would just sort of do that same vaporization.
Ashkahn: Get it everywhere?
Graham: Or really spread that to your work. All the way to where your tools are?
Ashkahn: Well, it’s so … Here’s the thing though. I feel like we have had the rusting issue, like our door hinges have … we’ve had to replace those with stainless steel door hinges.
Graham: Right, and yeah. Yeah, yeah.
Ashkahn: So, that’s … but there was no coating of salt on those things like there was or is in our pump areas, and under the pump boxes. So, it leads me to believe what you were saying, that it’s a moisture thing, not a salt thing, right?
Graham: Or that some … whenever you’re in a float room, there’s a chance again, someone’s just shaking out like a dog and getting salt everywhere. They put their salty hands on the-
Ashkahn: Or this is the door hinges of our front door I’m talking about.
Graham: Oh, I see. I thought you meant of the float room doors.
Ashkahn: So, that’s beyond like Herbal Essence range. We’re talking like lobby, front door door hinges, we needed to replace those things, too.
Graham: I was trying to picture situations where people go and shake off specifically near door hinges. I think I’ll concede this point. I think you win this one, yeah.
Ashkahn: But it is, you know, at times unbelievably humid in our lobby.
Graham: Oh yeah, I mean, even with three different dehumidifiers in our lobby, it still gets up to 60%, 70% humidity during those transitions.
Ashkahn: And again, what I see when I saw those door hinges was not what I see when I lift up a pump cover and see like a fine coating of salt on some of the equipment.
Graham: Yeah, so we don’t know. We’re not sure what’s going on with your fine powder, but it is not a common phenomenon.
Ashkahn: No.
Graham: There may very well be other float centers out there. If you have this, definitely write in and let us know if you have theories about it or what tanks you’re using or what your setup is. But again, having talked to a lot of people that don’t have this problem, I would say it’s more the exception than something that you really need to be aware of going into this.
Ashkahn: Definitely.
Graham: So, thanks for the question, keeping us on our toes.
Ashkahn: Yeah.
Graham: And yeah, if you have more questions you want to try to stump us with, go to floattanksolutions.com/podcast
Recent Podcast Episodes
How Often Should I Post on my Float Center’s Social Media? – DSP 190
On the second day of social media week, Ashkahn and Graham ask Derek how often float centers should post as well as what makes good content.
Derek lays out practical tips for how to schedule your social media (DON’T AUTOMATE), as well as what makes a good post. Facebook has several algorithms to limit your reach depending on the post so it’s important to avoid certain keywords and post topics to reach the broadest audience without paying for it.
What are “Good” Social Media Numbers for Float Centers? – DSP 189
Not everyone is a social media wizard, but fortunately for Social Media Week, Derek is here to answer all the questions the float industry might have, from the obvious to the obscure.
In this episode, Derek, Graham, and Ashkahn discuss what it means to have good social media engagement. The effect of things like Facebook likes, reacts to posts, and how to cultivate those.
Can you Float During a Lightning Storm? – DSP 188
Certain areas are prone to particular natural events. Some more terrifying for float centers than others. Lightning storms come to mind. Because water is conductive and the last thing you want in your float tanks are electrocuted customers.
So, is it a bad idea to float during lightning storms or does it even matter? Graham and Ashkahn weigh in with a heavy dose of skepticism and repeated calls to consult with a professional electrician before making any big decisions.
How to Choose the Perfect Float Tank – DSP 187
One of the biggest decisions you have to make for your float center is what tank to choose. This is what your business is based around. So how do you go about making this decision? A lot of newer float center owners want to know what the “Best Tank” is. The reality is that there isn’t some clear front runner in float tank quality. Every tank has it’s strengths and weaknesses. It really depends on what you’re looking for and what you want to spend.
Graham and Ashkahn share what they think are the most important things to consider when choosing your float tank.
How to get Building Plans Before you Have a Building? – DSP 186
Often times banks will want your building plans to approve your business loan, but you can’t purchase a building before the loan is approved. Sometimes health departments will want to know which tanks you’ll get before they’ll approve your business which can also hold up your bank loan. It feels like a Catch-22 and has definitely infuriated plenty of float center owners just starting out.
Graham and Ashkahn lay out the confusing battle you’ll have to take on to get your business started and the ways in which you can get approved, plus the silver linings these extra hoops can offer you.
Latest Blog Posts
Empty Float Tanks and What to Do with Them
There’s a marketing mantra here at Float On that we thought might be useful to share. Especially for people at the more early stages of their float center. The mantra is simple, but it's an integral part of our marketing philosophy, and can go a long way in helping a...
60 vs 90 Minute Float Sessions
I've had the pleasure of giving tours of our HelmBot software. While some of these tours are to established centers looking to switch scheduling softwares, most of the tours have been to centers in the final stages of opening. In talking about how to set up "The Helm"...
A Resource for Buying / Selling Used Float Tanks
Save Money When Starting a Float Center Construction aside, one of the more significant costs to starting a float center are the tanks themselves. There are numerous float tank manufacturers to choose from with costs that range quite a bit. A lot of the newer float...
How To Give a Proper Walkthrough
Why Float Centers Need “Walkthroughs” First time floaters typically need some instruction before they can get in the tank. A lot of things can go wrong if a client is not well informed before they attempt to float. In many cases, the first float is the most important...
