Something in the world of floating have you stumped?
Show Highlights
Still no Ashkahn today. He’s taking a couple of post-conference days to himself.
Jake and Graham are on the scene though to answer construction questions, though. Even the straight forward ones, like today. Jake informs us which to choose when doing construction, light or heavy gauge studs when constructing a float center, while getting a little sidetracked when comparing wooden and metal studs.
Listen to Just the Audio
Transcription of this episode… (in case you prefer reading)
Graham: Alright, welcome everybody. This is Graham over here.
Jake: And this is Jake over here.
Graham: The man with the lesson.
Jake: Oh, something with the lesson.
Graham: And today’s-
Jake: We have a question.
Graham: Question. Yeah, I guess, first of all there’s no Ashkahn so if you’re expecting Ashkahn, you were wrong and you should feel bad about it. And so it’s just Jake and I rocking it out. Answering some construction stuff. And today’s question is “what are your thoughts on heavy versus light gauge studs?”
Jake: My thoughts on heavy versus light gauge studs.
Graham: So they’re talking about metal studs.
Jake: Of course.
Graham: Because you don’t have gauges of wood.
Jake: No, they’re talking about metal studs here and you have a whole range of gauges. What do we see? A lot of 20? 20 gauge is what we’ve come across as the most common.
Graham: Yeah, I think especially when you’re dealing with commercial construction, not residential, when we’re gonna be putting some heavy sheets of drywall on our walls most commonly. So I think a lot places 25 is the requirement, but 20 is really common.
Jake: Yeah, definitely. Probably more common for what we want with our very heavy walls like you’re saying. But to get back to the question, light gauge versus heavy gauge.
Graham: And so either of those would be light gauge.
Jake: Right.
Graham: 20/25, that’s light.
Jake: Absolutely. I guess the answer there is light gauge. Unless it’s load bearing. If you’re not holding up part of the property, if you’re not putting tanks on the second floor, if it’s not load bearing, then light gauge studs are definitely the answer.
Graham: And that’s pretty much the alternative to wood studs. You don’t really see heavy gauge steel studs used as just an alternative to standard wood studs in framing or anything like that. Light gauge is the alternative.
Jake: And we like metal studs for a couple reasons. If you do end up with a moisture problem in your wall or something like that, metal stud holds up better than a wooden stud. A wooden stud is gonna swell, it’s gonna flex. Mold and mildew can grow through it. Whereas a metal stud is not gonna suffer that sort of damage. What else do we like about them?
Graham: Well, in some places they’re required for commercial construction.
Jake: Yeah. In some places you just have no choice. So we love them.
Graham: They don’t flex with the seasons as much in general.
Jake: If you have a good thermal barrier. If you have a good thermal break in between an exterior environment and an interior environment. When we were down in Australia they were mentioning that they’d experience some problems with that from time to time if they didn’t have a good thermal break because it would be really, really hot outside.
Graham: Oh, sure, yeah, yeah, yeah. It’s Australia too.
Jake: Yeah, right. Usually in spring and fall is when the houses were changing and stuff like that. That’s what we heard.
Graham: So does that mean that the metal actually expands and contracts more than the wood is going to change with the seasons?
Jake: It has worse thermal resistance. Yeah, that is kinda one of the down sides of metal studs. The thermal resistance is not as high as it is for wood.
Graham: But does it actually grow and shrink more with the thermal changes? I mean it definitely is affected more but-
Jake: I think it is, right? Because that’s where you’re getting those popping. That’s where you’re getting that sound. And they do flex. Especially if you go lighter gauge studs. If you’re looking at 25 gauge, those flex much more than 20 gauge which is flexing more than 18.
Graham: This is why we have Jake on the show for construction stuff. Yeah, I thought the metal flexed less than wood. That’s interesting.
Jake: I mean I don’t know the difference between the two. What I know is that metal is flexing. Metal is doing something. I don’t know which is flexing more.
Graham: Yeah. Yeah, yeah, totally. No, it makes sense. Especially in Australia.
Jake: Yeah.
Graham: Okay. So just ignore that whole flexing. But that’s no longer a point of benefit for the metal.
Jake: They don’t rot like wooden ones do. They can be considered greener because they’re using recycled content as opposed to wood.
Graham: Okay. But back to the original question. So light versus heavy gauge studs.
Jake: Light gauge studs, unless it’s load bearing.
Graham: Ding. A little extra bonus content with wood versus steel in there too. But yeah, anything else?
Jake: No, no, no, great. I love them.
Graham: Good question.
Jake: Yeah, great question.
Graham: Bravo. Bravo. Encore.
And if you have questions of your own, just head on over to floattanksolutions.com/podcast. We’ll be there waiting. We’re always waiting. Talk to you tomorrow.
Jake: Goodbye.
Recent Podcast Episodes
Pairing Psychotherapy and Floats – DSP 154
It’s easy to look at some of the research that comes from floating or look at special programs for veterans with PTSD and think about how float tanks should be paired with psychotherapy.
Graham and Ashkahn have met several therapists who use float tanks in conjunction with their sessions, sometimes exclusively. They also know that it’s important to recognize that they are trained professionals who are providing a treatment for difficult to treat psychological issues in some cases. Knowing when to leave the work to the experts is a valuable part of providing a service like this one with so many broad uses.
What is too small for a 4-tank float center? – DSP 153
Real estate costs from building out a float center, especially in an urban area, can get costly really quick. Sometimes compromises need to be made. But how much of a compromise is too compromised?
As with the best float center mistakes, Graham and Ashkahn can speak to their personal experience on this issue. They talk about opening a four tank center with less than 1,000 square feet and how much of a mistake it is. They also provide helpful planning tips so you can find out how much space you need at an absolute minimum for your float center.
How Do You Find Time for Hobbies? (Rise) – DSP 152
This is the last episode we recorded at Rise and it seemed fitting to close out the recordings with the organizers again, Jake and Kevin. In this episode they talk with Graham and Ashkahn to answer a question from Greg Griffin about how to manage your time after opening a float center to dedicate to hobbies.
While the episode starts a little heavy, the conversation turns and begins discussing the value of work and how rewarding it is to be in this industry.
Thank you to everyone who came and talked to us at Rise and shared your experiences. If we don’t see you at the Float Conference, hopefully we’ll see you next year. As always, float on.
What’s the Weirdest Post Float Experience You’ve Seen (Rise) – DSP 151
Another conversation that was captured at Rise was this little sit down between Graham and Ashkahn and a float center owner by the name of Jeremy out in San Antonio. They talk about a subject that I think comes up whenever float people get together. “What’s the weirdest thing you’ve seen after someone got out of a float?”
Sometimes people have a hard time coming back to Earth after a really good session in the tank and seeing how they interact with the rest of the world afterwards can be heartwarming and enlightening. It’s part of the reason we do what we do.
Should Float Centers Tone Down Their Personality in Rural Areas? (Rise) – DSP 150
Another great conversation that came out of Rise. Graham and Ashkahn sat down with Russ, a local float center owner who is just about to open his doors. He wanted to talk to the guys about how best to present floating to a more rural and conservative area. Graham and Ashkahn have seen float centers from across the world in rural and metropolitan areas alike and share their take on how best to present floating to people who aren’t as exposed to other alternative wellness practices.
Latest Blog Posts
Thou Shall Not Program
Floating is on the rise, and this means there are lots of new faces trying floating out for the first time. When someone comes to you for their first time, what should you say to explain floating? Just as importantly, is there anything you should avoid saying? Or...
How to Clean and Maintain Your Float Tank – An Owner’s Guide
This post is kept around for historical purposes, but doesn't reflect our current knowledge of float tank sanitation. Please see The Basics of Float Tank Sanitation and Testing and Maintaining Float Tank Water Quality instead. Ashkahn and I just got back from...
Meditations on Mediation
I just had to mediate a discussion between two of my employees, and I couldn’t be happier. Neither of them is going to lose their job: we’ve never fired an employee. Neither of them is going to be paid more or less than the other: we pay all of our employees the same....
From ‘I’m never doing this’ to ‘when can I sign up?’ in 30 seconds
When you show people the float tanks, inevitably some of your potential customers will be freaked out. That's fine, it's normal, it's how people reacted to Rock n' Roll. Now, you need to know upfront that there's a small group of people who will, in fact, never be...
