Something in the world of floating have you stumped?
Show Highlights
Starting up a float center out of your home isn’t nearly as daunting as it may sound at first and is a great way to get your foot in the door. Graham and Ashkahn break down the logistics of this time honored tradition in the industry.
Listen to Just the Audio
Transcription of this episode… (in case you prefer reading)
Graham: Today’s question is, “what do I need to do differently when running a float center out of my home?”
Well, probably not run a 24 hour operation. Unless you are just that extreme, you know.
Ashkahn: Well, so I’m assuming you’re not talking about … You need to get some sort of thing to be able to run a business out of your home.
Graham: Right, so we are assuming over the radar.
Ashkahn: Yeah, or you are just running some test floats for friends and stuff like that.
Graham: And not really taking money for them or turning it into a business or anything.
Ashkahn: Like towards the path of opening in a commercial space. But just running a commercial business out of your home probably has like zoning questions and depends on your city, and a few things like that that you might want to look into.
Graham: So assuming all of your commercial zoning ducks are in a row, then what’s different?
Ashkahn: Well …
Graham: Usually you don’t build out the rooms as intensely-
Ashkahn: Yeah, definitely not.
Graham: …as you would a float tank center.
Ashkahn: Some extreme construction to do to your house. You’d have a really weird room left in your house if you ever took that float tank out after this point.
Graham: Yes, so most notably though means there is not as much salt and water proofing up around your own house as there would be in a float tank center.
Ashkahn: Which is kind of dangerous, like the salt …
Graham: Scary, scary is a word I would use to describe it.
Ashkahn: Scary, so you’re vulnerable to that sort of salt and water damage, and you have to be careful about what you are actually doing. There are certain things you can do to minimize the risk as much as possible. It’s probably easy to put some layer of something on the ground that would do some amount of water-proofing without going to extreme. You probably want to think about where the closest shower is, you probably don’t want someone having to walk all the way across your house to a shower. Like putting in a room closest to the bathroom is going to help you out a lot.
Graham: In general, I guess, moving it into portions of your house that are less nice than other ones, right? Like if you have a choice between like hardwood maple floors and an unfinished basement, maybe throw your float tank down in the unfinished basement.
Ashkahn: Yeah, maybe not on the second story, and some of it comes with how you talk to people when they come into float. One of the nice things about having a float tank in your house is you probably have one float tank. It’s like one person coming in at a time. It’s just a lot more manageable than a commercial float center. So you really have the chance with these persons that come through to say, “Hey, once you hop out of your float, stand here on this little drying stand thing I put right in front of the float tank.”
Graham: Like a tray, like a float tray. It’s really common, too, actually. Even if you order home tanks from the manufacturer, oftentimes they have little trays you step out into and kind of catch the saltwater, because they realize you are not going to have drains everywhere and perfectly laminate floors and everything.
Ashkahn: So step out there and do a really good job of drying yourself off, put on this robe, like do that before you walk away. You can tell them that otherwise the salt kind of gets everywhere and can damage the place. You just have a much more one on one interaction with someone to try to encourage them to not spread salt and water all over the place. I think they’ll probably understand they’re in the house, it’s obvious it is not a like a giant waterproof thing like maybe a commercial float center would have.
Graham: Like running a commercial float center sometimes I feel people want to get every last dollar that they spent on their float. Like to them that means getting out of the tank and shaking off like a shaggy dog and just getting water everywhere.
Ashkahn: Splashing.
Graham: Using every possible thing they can in the basket, like there’s almost a sense when you are in a place of business that you get to not worry about that kind of stuff. So stressing that, and again, that just kind of naturally happens that when people are in your home they understand and will take better care of it than they would in a totally commercial space.
Ashkahn: So that’s probably the biggest one, it’s a concern and there are ways to go about dealing with it without spending the kind of construction money that you would in a commercial retail style shop float center. There are some obvious ones like you want it to be quiet so find the quietest room in your house, like this is probably going to be hard to do if you live in an apartment building, or in near a busy road, or any of that sort of stuff. You’re going to have to blank out the windows to not allow any light to get in.
Graham: That said, my first float was in an apartment building.
Ashkahn: Yeah, mine too. Most float tanks don’t come totally light proof. Although the more home style float tanks do tend to do a better job of light proofing than the other ones. So depending on what tanks you purchase, it might be more or less of a concern to completely and perfectly make the room the float tank is in pitch black.
You’re going to have to do some laundry. You’ll have to do a lot more laundry than you are used to doing for the amount of towels people are using. So you’ll get used to that.
Graham: And you’ll just have to keep a really close eye on things. The nice thing about this is I’ve known people who’ve had float tanks in their apartments for 15 to 20 years and it is a carpeted apartment. There’s no damage. It’s totally possible to maintain a float tank in your private residence without completely destroying your house.
And I know float tanks that have been in people’s houses that have sprung leaks and done a lot of damage, so there’s … It’s not really different than a commercial center, except for the fact that …
Ashkahn: It’s your house.
Graham: I was going to say, and again, people are a little more cautious and tend to take it a little more easier on your house then they may do on a commercial center.
Ashkahn: I think there’s benefits, too, to having float center in your house. I think a lot of it comes from the fact that you can offer a really nice personalized, individual experience for people coming to float. Like you’re there, you’re giving them all your attention, you can do cool things, have snacks for them afterwards, have stuff like that that’s a lot easier to do for one person than when you are floating like 60 people a day or something like that. Have juice, have a chance to really sit down and just chat with them afterwards, for whatever 10 minutes, 20 minute, an hour. Like it is just a much more casual, nice, person to person experience than is really possible to run that easily in a … Like you got to work a lot harder in a commercial float center, too, to provide that same sort of experience.
Graham: Yeah, we spent a lot of money trying to get our lobby to kind of feel like a nice living room, if it’s in your house, you have a living room. So, mission accomplished.
Ashkahn: It’s probably a little more peaceful, it’s out in the neighborhood, there’s a lot …
Graham: Generally less noise concerns, too. The float itself might be noisier, because you’ve done less soundproofing on your house than you would in a center, but usually you have way less big trucks, less noise coming in than you would have in a commercial center. It’s a little easier to just maintain in that sense. Everything kind of balances out, like you’re not going to be able to make a ton of money running it, no way is running one tank out of your house going to make you wealthy or anything like that. Getting to pull in a little ancillary income and provide floating, if you’re doing another job or something like that, or just if you’re trying to get used to float tanks and build up to having a commercial center, this can also be a really nice …
Ashkahn: Or if you just want a float tank in your house and this is how you’re justifying it.
Graham: Yeah, it’s like funding some of the maintenance and chemicals and cleaning with the people coming through. That’s how you maintain your own private float tank, that you get to float in five times a day, or whatever moderate amount of floating you decide to do.
Ashkahn: Yeah, be careful about that, be careful about humidity, is another one you should consider when putting this float tank into a place. You’ll probably want to make sure there is some amount of ventilation or something happening so that you’re not slowly destroying the room that it is in with humidity.
Graham: Yeah, and again, other than the fact that they’re totally different business models, there’s actually a ton concern wise that’s different, it’s just a much lower scale. You’re still worried about soundproofing, just not as much. You’re still worried about making sure water and salt don’t destroy your building, but you’re probably going to use less actually protection and really more on people’s conscientiousness to protect your floors. Again, that little tray you set out in front. Your showers aren’t going to be directly connected to the float tank, but you’ll probably have some sort of walkway going out there. It’s all the same things again, just much, much tinier concerns than in a full blown float center.
Ashkahn: And you get to give people some really crazy stories. People are going to get to leave and tell their friends they went to some random person’s house and hopped inside of a sensory deprivation tank.
Graham: And they just got out and had the best orange juice in the world.
Ashkahn: Yeah, so that’s fun, you get to contribute that to the world.
Graham: And if you have anymore questions to shoot along our way, go to floattanksolutions.com/podcast.
Recent Podcast Episodes
How do you Start Opening a Float Center? – DSP 285
For people just starting out, it can seem really daunting to start a float center. They may not even know where to begin.
Graham and Ashkahn tackle this idea head on. The most important thing is to do a lot of research (definitely check the resources) and to make sure you have people that you can call and refer to for support when you need it.
What to do When Floaters Interrupt Intros? – DSP 284
Ashkahn’s back and on form. He and Graham take on the question of how to handle first time floaters interrupt the pre-float intros explaining the process.
There’s a lot of information that first time floaters need, and if they aren’t paying attention, it can cause messy floats or unnecessary difficulty or confusion. The reunited duo provides some great tips while going over different customer scenarios.
When is the Best Time to Open a Float Center? – DSP 283
Graham takes the helm again without any co-captain to steer the SS Daily Solutions through the rugged storms of float industry questions.
Today he answers a question about when the best time of year to open your float center. The important thing to remember is that, whenever you choose, you should plan for even earlier, as float centers are more likely to get delayed in construction.
Tips for Choosing Contractors – DSP 282
Graham the Lone Podcaster takes the reigns on answering how to pick a contractor for float center build out.
It’s the kind of big decision that every float center owner hopes to only make once, so getting as much information ahead of time is extremely useful. Graham breaks down some useful tips and explains how to ask for a bid, specific skill sets to look for, and general advice on knowing when to walk away.
Starting your Pumps Early – DSP 281
In this episode, Graham goes solo again to answer a particularly loquacious listener who sent in a question about how to logistically handle your changeover when a floater comes out early.
It can be tempting to start your changeover as soon as possible, especially if you have a few of them to get to, but Graham lays out some helpful things to remember before flipping that switch and running your pumps before the allotted time.
Latest Blog Posts
4,937 Things to Know About Buying a Used Float Tank
You’re thinking about buying a used float tank. Whether this is for a new center, an addition to an existing operation, or a purchase for your home, this is a big decision.
We’ve compiled together some of the major questions and considerations to entertain before making a purchase. While you do have the opportunity to save some money and snag a good deal, there can be hidden costs and unknowns to weigh against those savings.
Offering Overnight Floats
Almost three years ago, we discussed the merits of running overnight floats from an employee’s perspective, focusing on the opportunities of this unique experience as well as its challenges. We’d like to take a deeper dive into this issue because, while the majority of floaters come through our tanks during “normal” business hours, overnight floats form an important part of not only Float On’s identity, but also its business structure and broader culture.
How to Talk About Floating
You step into the elevator and shuffle to the side to make room for the kind-eyed, old woman with the miniature poodle.
“Good morning,” you say with a smile.
“Good morning,” she beams back, her gaze resting briefly on your water bottle with the logo from your float center’s annual party.
After a brief pause, she asks, “What is Float-a-Palooza?”
You take a breath, smile, and launch into your literal elevator pitch.
So, what do you say?
Employee Handbook Template
Whether you are a small or large float center, you most likely have other employees working for you. Regardless of the size of your staff, for reasons of efficiency and legality, it’s essential that your organization has clear and straightforward policies and guidelines. No matter how good employee communication is, it’s always safest and cleanest to have clear parameters and expectations written down.
This is why Float Tank Solutions has created a customizable Employee Handbook Template. Free for anyone to download, it contains federally compliant language (current as of October 2016) and contains a multitude of sections, from employee benefits and compensation descriptions to job guidelines and discrimination policies.
