Something in the world of floating have you stumped?
Show Highlights
Sometimes people wear jewelry. Sometimes people float. What happens when these things overlap? What about piercings?
Graham and Ashkahn concisely explain why it’s a good idea to take that wedding ring off before you float in this episode.
Listen to Just the Audio
Transcription of this episode… (in case you prefer reading)
Graham: Okay.
Ashkahn: Welcome. Hey, everybody.
Graham: Hey there. I’m Graham.
Ashkahn: I’m Ashkahn.
Graham: And today’s question is, “Jewelry/piercings in a float tank?”
Ashkahn: Hm.
Graham: Concise.
Ashkahn: Yeah.
Graham: I like it.
Ashkahn: To the point.
Graham: Um. No.
Ashkahn: Period.
Graham: Thanks for the question.
Ashkahn: I mean, so, there’s a couple of factors here. One-
Graham: Jewelry can sometimes be piercings.
Ashkahn: Yeah.
Graham: So it’s not just a straight separation there.
Ashkahn: This is really just a one question thing here. Well, there’s a lot of salt in these float tanks. I don’t know if you knew that.
Graham: Have you heard?
Ashkahn: But the salt can be pretty, it’s pretty intense. It can be pretty damaging. It can eat through metals and it’s not good for some things. So, which metals will it destroy and which will it won’t? I mean I’m sure-
Graham: We could go into it. There are definitely metals that won’t really be affected by the salt.
Ashkahn: Yeah.
Graham: Especially not being in there for such a short period of time.
Ashkahn: But, are you really going to be going through that with each person and the jewelry and piercings that they have?
Graham: And sometimes their jewelry is not made out of the metals that they think it’s made out of.
Ashkahn: Yeah, like a crummy boyfriend back in the day.
Graham: That’s exactly what I’m talking about. Or just a confused person who thought they were wearing their titanium necklace when in fact they were wearing their silver necklace, you know?
Ashkahn: I just thought titanium came out of those little things you put quarters in and spin to get the egg out.
Graham: That is true. If they have just plastic jewelry, you can wear plastic jewelry.
Ashkahn: Yeah, I’m sure there’s a couple, like jade or-
Graham: That’s totally fine.
Ashkahn: But here’s the other thing. It can be uncomfortable. When you’re in the float tank, you just feel everything that’s on your body. If you have bracelets or necklaces or things like that on, it might just make for a slightly worse float experience. So it’s a combination of those two things that makes you be like, well, “what’s really the point of keeping things in?” I mean, I guess there’s piercings where you can’t-
Graham: Yeah.
Ashkahn: -just conveniently take things out of your body.
Graham: And fortunately, those ones are actually often very controlled. And in that case, you want to check with the person who did your piercing. Or, yeah, the person who’s in charge of doing your body work is who you want to check in with.
Ashkahn: And it shouldn’t have been done very recently.
Graham: Yeah, definitely. Healed up. Healed up first. I mean, I know that you soak those things in salt water but it’s a different kind of salt water. Yeah.
Ashkahn: But in general, if it’s rings or bracelets or whatever, if it’s easy to take off, earrings, take it off. Why keep it on?
Graham: And for me, it really is that risk of what if they thought they knew what material it was and it wasn’t? Or what if they’re wearing this thing in and the person running the shop was pretty sure that it would be fine and it totally wasn’t fine. Are you now responsible for replacing this person’s jewelry-
Ashkahn: Yeah.
Graham: -and upsetting them? It just feels like another one of those things since there’s the option to remove stuff. When people have dyed hair, you have them contact their person who does their hair, their hairstylist, and see if it’s safe to go in water or soak in something like a float tank and maintain their color and style and it’s the same for piercings if it is permanent. Otherwise, it’s removable and why ever risk it? Pretty much like why-
Ashkahn: Just say no.
Graham: -take these risks.
Ashkahn: Yeah. Just like drugs. Just don’t even risk it. So, yeah, there you go. That’s it.
Graham: Yep. Jewelry and piercings are just like drugs.
So if you have your own float tank problems you want to send our way, go to floattanksolutions.com/podcast.
Ashkahn: There’s a little box in there. There’s a little box. You’ll type stuff into it.
Graham: Yep. And it sends directly to our brain. So, yeah, we had that surgery done. Take advantage of it.
Ashkahn: All right. We’ll talk to you tomorrow.
Graham: Bye, everyone.
Recent Podcast Episodes
Levels of noise that can affect floats – DSP 129
Soundproofing is costly and difficult, especially for float centers. Most recording studios don’t have to worry about showers or a solution that eats up concrete. It makes sense that we might want to quantify the challenge of sound in a very straight forward way, but the reality is much different than that. Different types of sound can penetrate float rooms at different intensities and different floaters will care more than others.
Graham and Ashkahn share some of their own frustrations with creating their ideal soundproofing for Float On and some helpful tips for identifying noise as well as some advice on how to keep your sanity.
Thoughts on non-compete clauses for employees – DSP 128
Float centers require a lot of upfront capital to get started up, and because of that it can feel like float centers should operate like big business, or perhaps bigger businesses than they actually are. Some centers may consider, at some point, having their employees sign non-compete clauses to prevent them from sharing trade secrets with competitors. Graham and Ashkahn have been at this for a while and express their opinions as to why this probably isn’t the most practical approach for your float center.
How often do you float? – DSP 127
This episode takes the time to have Graham and Ashkahn share their experiences in the tank. They take the opportunity to explain their relationships to floating and how they differ, and in some ways, how they are very similar.
Thoughts on floating with tinnitus – DSP 126
About 15% of people have tinnitus, at least in the United States. It’s one of the most common medical conditions in the country, but most people don’t think about how to accommodate it. Many people who have it don’t even notice it unless they’re in total silence, which adds a particular challenge to float centers.
Graham and Ashkahn talk about their experiences in floating people with tinnitus and how to approach the situation when and if a float becomes problematic.
How to Keep Your Float Center at 100% Capacity – DSP 125 (April Fool’s)
Tired of running gimmicky marketing with steep discounts because your float center has an empty schedule?
Do you want that easy lifestyle business where customers just flock to you instead of you having to hunt them down? Want to be able to raise your prices without worrying about losing revenue?
Graham and Ashkahn share a secret they recently discovered while on their trip to Australia about how you can keep your float center 110% full at all times (that extra 10% isn’t cliche, it’s a waitlist)!
Latest Blog Posts
2013 Start-a-Center Giveaway Winners Announced!
Look, this wasn't easy. When we launched this, we didn't expect nearly as many submissions as we ended up getting, and certainly not as many that were so compelling. All in all, there were over 140 participants and after reading through all of them, floating on it,...
‘Post-Float Environment and Interaction’
I don't have a lot to offer on this subject, as it has been a long time since I have operated a float center.... But, 'back in the day', it was rather simple: it was really up to the customer/floater how they wanted to be treated, post-float. Some customers wanted...
Lightening the Load Through Meaningful “Post Float” Conversation
The post float environment is as important as the environment in the float room because people are still in slower brain wave states after a float, and they generally seek time to sit down, relax, and process what happened during their float. Probably the best way to...
February Topic: Post-Float Environment and Interaction
The second month of our industry blog has arrived. The topic for February is 'Post-Float Environment and Interaction.' We'll be putting up the first post tomorrow, and you'll hear my take on things a little way through the month. I wanted to take a moment, however, to...
