Learn best practices for starting and running a float center:
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Something in the world of floating have you stumped?

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Show Highlights

Some questions are hard to answer, but that doesn’t take away the fact that it’s fun to try to find answers anyway.

This week, Ashkahn and Graham tackle the question, “How many float centers are there in the USA?” While the amount is constantly changing, their attempt to pin down a number opens up a fun discussion about the recent growth of the float industry.

Show Resources

Listen to Just the Audio

Transcription of this episode… (in case you prefer reading)

Graham: So, today’s question is, how many float centers are there in the country? Which I assume, means the United States.

Ashkahn: I feel like pretty much all our episodes start off with us saying that we really don’t actually have a good idea of what we’re talking about.

Graham: I mean, all of our episodes so far have started that way.

Ashkahn: So, we don’t really know. We don’t really know how many float centers there are. I guess, first thing we should clarify is what counts as a float center?

Graham: Also, nor does anyone.

Ashkahn: Yeah.

Graham: It’s not just us, I actually think there’s not a single person that could give you a totally accurate count of float centers in the United States.

Ashkahn: Maybe the government, you know?

Graham: Definitely not the government, there’s ten, there’s ten float centers out there.

Ashkahn: So, what counts as a float center, I think is the first thing we need to answer for this.

Graham: I would say anything that’s open, available commercially to the public, right? If it’s a float tank in someone’s house, that doesn’t count unless they’re also running paid floats out of there.

Ashkahn: So, maybe we should just say our best guesses at the same time.

Graham: Okay.

Ashkahn: You ready? One,

Graham: Two,

Ashkahn: Three … 350.

Graham: 500.

Ashkahn: 500?

Graham: Oh no, sorry, I was thinking of the U.S. and Canada, I was thinking of U.S. and Canada. I was thinking of U.S. and Canada. Okay, ready to do it again for realsies this time?

Ashkahn: Okay. One, two, three.

Graham: 483.

Ashkahn: 83? You think there’s 13 float centers in Canada?

Graham: Sorry. I wanted to say 383, I just got excited. It think there’s above 350. I think there’s somewhere …

Ashkahn: Like, 400.

Graham: 383 is my guess.

Ashkahn: 383, okay. Yeah, 350 to 400 is my best guess. But I don’t know, I mean it’s …

Graham: I did a really bad job there of the guessing game. Immediately forget what we were guessing about. Okay, bringing it back in.

Ashkahn: I mean, it’s hard to know what these numbers are from the past, as well. When we started up in 2010, I had the feeling that there was like 80 places across the U.S., maybe a 100. But a lot of those, when you actually looked at them, were a float tank that was a part of a much bigger spa, or a float tank in someone’s apartment. Or when you’re actually thinking of a business on a retail street that has four, a number of float tanks, stuff like that. There was just a small handful back then.

Graham: When we opened in 2010, we do know the number of 4-tank centers that there were in the United States, and it was nothing bigger than that. In the U.S., right? So there was four, 4-tank centers, is that right?

Ashkahn: Um so, there was us, there was …

Graham: Use the word know loosely here.

Ashkahn: Kinda know. Maybe I’ll count off and we can take our guesses at the same time.

Graham: 383.

Ashkahn: There was TrueRest, there was iFloat in Connecticut, and Space Time.

Graham: And then we opened up.

Ashkahn: Yep.

Graham: And so yeah, when we popped up, we were the fourth 4-tank center.

Ashkahn: I believe so.

Graham: And the other two had only opened within a year prior to us. So if you were taking 2008 numbers, then that would be only be Space Time tanks that had four tanks.

Ashkahn: Mm-hmm (affirmative).

Graham: So, fast forward to now, I still have no idea how many four tank centers there are.

Ashkahn: No, it’s hard to count now.

Graham: But it doesn’t take a lot to realize that there are a lot. I mean, they’re popping up all over the place, and much bigger centers too. Six tanks, seven tanks, eight tanks.

Ashkahn: 11 tanks.

Graham: Yeah, they’re getting really big. And that number I think, is almost more interesting to look at too. If you look at the industry report from Float Tank Solutions, you’ll see from 2016, that that number of new centers who want to start with more tanks is only going up too. It’s kind of turning from what may be used to be more of this cottage enterprise with a tank and a spa or a tank in a house, and we’re counting those as float centers too. Now, if you’re opening a float center, it means you’re opening a three to six tank kind of big deal, and oftentimes five or six tanks too.

Ashkahn: Yeah, even just like depending on when you’re listening to this episode, if it’s been a year since we recorded this, these numbers are probably wrong at this point. Everything’s growing at a really tremendous rate. It’s hard to keep up and really have a good finger on the pulse when everything’s changing so quickly.

Graham: All right guys, hope you enjoyed our meandering through today’s question and we’ll see you tomorrow.

Ashkahn: Chicka boom.

Recent Podcast Episodes

Surface Disinfectant for Tank Walls – DSP 335

Surface Disinfectant for Tank Walls – DSP 335

What’s the best way to clean the inside of a float tank? And what sort of product should you use? 

It turns out that this deceptively simple line of questioning has a major explanation involved. Ashkahn and Graham share what they’ve learned at the World Aquatic Health Conference about surface disinfectant and the best way to protect your float rooms. 

Surface Disinfectant for Tank Walls – DSP 335

Putting a Shower in A Separate Room – DSP 334

Most float centers run a tight schedule with narrow margins for the transitions between floats. Oftentimes relying on their customers to take reasonably timed showers to fit that schedule. If a single customer takes a shower that’s a bit too long, it can throw of the schedule for the rest of the day!

What if showers were in a separate room? Then customers could shower as long as they want! Ashkahn and Graham explain why this is an extremely bad idea. 

Surface Disinfectant for Tank Walls – DSP 335

Having Doors Open into the Hallway – DSP 333

Float centers, more so than some other brick and mortar businesses, tend to be desperate for maximizing the efficiency of their space. And float rooms would have so much extra space if they didn’t have to deal with a door swinging in and out all the time. Why don’t float centers do it this way instead?

Well… Graham and Ashkahn explain exactly why centers don’t do this already, along with the vast majority of other buildings being made currently. It’s likely a code violation and even if it weren’t, it’d probably be unnecessarily hazardous to travel through your center that way. 

Surface Disinfectant for Tank Walls – DSP 335

Using H2O2 Instead of Chlorine – DSP 332

Let’s say you buy a center and want to use H2O2  instead of the chlorine that was being used by the previous owner. Or maybe you want to switch over to H2O2  after using chlorine for a while. Let’s further assume that this is in compliance with your health department and your UV system is sized adequately. What else do you need to know to make this happen? Do you need to change the water? 

Ashkahn and Graham lay out all the things to consider and why someone may or may not want to replace the solution in their tank at the same time as replacing the water treatment method in a float tank. 

Surface Disinfectant for Tank Walls – DSP 335

How to Sell a Float Center – DSP 331

It’s not an easy decision to sell a float center. But when you do come up to that point, what do you do? Who do you talk to and how does it work? Should you hire on a broker? What sort of timeline should you expect?

Having never sold a business, Graham and Ashkahn aren’t exactly experts on the subject, but they offer informed advice on where to sell and how long it’ll probably take. 

Latest Blog Posts

The Relationship Between the MAHC and Float Tanks

The Relationship Between the MAHC and Float Tanks

The MAHC stands for the Model Aquatic Health Code. This is a document put out by the Centers for Disease Control that is a set of guidelines for recreational water sanitation and operations.

The MAHC is what is called a “model code,” which means it is not a regulation in and of itself. Instead, the CDC puts out the MAHC as a document which they consider to be a really nice set of code language for recreational water facilities (mostly pools and spas). The MAHC includes everything from the process of getting permits…

A New Year, a New Research List

A New Year, a New Research List

When we first released the floatation research list back in 2011, it was as close to a comprehensive list as we could create. It was put together in an effort to illustrate that sensory isolation was a thoroughly studied practice and there was scientific evidence for the health claims we were making.

Many float centers adopted this list for their own uses and put it on their sites, spreading the information and making it more available. 

In this post, you’ll learn about the updates made to our float research list.