ETS Tanning Bed Blog

The Importance of Proper Voltage in Tanning Beds

All things mechanical are going to have a problem at one point or another. It's natural.

A large part of the issues with tanning beds are electrical, which leads to overheating. Sometimes a bed can overheat and shut down. Other times, it can run too cool, and not give a proper tan. We work with tanning salon owners to avoid these potential problems prior even to the bed purchase.  Our guidelines are clear for voltage and we offer buckboosters to help either raise or lower the voltage, depending on what the needs of the salon are.

230 volts is the maximum recommended voltage. However, not all power is the same – it can be too high or too low, which makes the bed run too hot or too cool. By using a buckbooster, we can help the salon achieve 230 volts for their beds. The best way to tell whether your voltage is correct is by using a voltage meter, which all our technicians carry.


The Importance of Proper Ventilation in Tanning Rooms

Room temperature can also play a factor in the proper functioning of the bed. If a room runs too hot because of poor ventilation, hot air will get circulated into the bed, making it extremely hot. Again, in these cases, a bed can overheat and shut down. This can also cause damage to the bed.

In one salon, a room temperature reached 117 Fahrenheit, which is a scorcher no matter how you look at it. The bed overheated and wouldn't work properly. An HVAC technician came to the salon to work on the problem. He discovered that when the ceiling vents were moved, the heat went down.

Proper ventilation removes pollutants, provides fresh air, and most importantly, allows the room to cool, an important aspect with a very warm tanning bed. Proper ventilation also reduces the possibility of damage to a tanning bed and tanning salon and keeps all occupants – users, workers, owners, customers – safe.

Installing tanning beds is one of those details whose timing is critical. There is actually a bad time and a good time to install tanning beds. Finding the right time can make everything go smoothly, keep installation times short, and can even save money. A bad time can result in damaged beds and delayed openings.

Installing a bed while the building contractors are still working is risky. It's just smarter to have the contractors doing their finishing touches, or even finished, when the beds are installed. If installers show up too early, and have to work around the contractors, it can actually take longer than waiting until the contractors are done.

If contractors are still fixing drywall, installing the floor, or painting, the tanning beds can be damaged. We've had clients who ended up with paint on their beds, drywall dust, and even dents and scratches.

One of our customers, who's opening his third salon, understands what it takes for a smooth installation. He makes sure to have everything ready for us, and as a result, his installations are the smoothest we usually have.

Everything in his new salons are nearly complete – rooms are drywalled and painted, the electricity is on – which ensures his contractors and our installers are not disturbing each other or waiting for others to finish. The installers can actually get done in a single day, rather than working for a day-and-a-half. This saves installation costs, and makes sure his salon opens on time.

We understand the eagerness for new salon owners to get their tanning beds installed. But it's more beneficial to have everything in place rather than to rush and risk damage to the beds. By making sure everything is completed before the installers show up, you can reduce the risk of damage, and keep extra costs at a minimum.

Last year, one of our biggest customers was having a lot of staffing and technical issues. They went through a period of turnover with their management and they were having a hard time training their people on using and maintaining the beds. Basically, they needed help.

ETS to the Rescue

We did as much as we could over the phones, but eventually we realized that more was needed. So, we decided to fly one of our best ETS Certified Service Technicians down to their salon. He went down and did some extensive, hands-on and in-person, one-on-one training. It was exactly what the client needed.

Because we were working with a chain, he visited each salon in the area over three days and did education sessions on lamps, paneling of lamps, changing lamps, bed cleaning and really just basic tanning bed maintenance. He taught them everything from the simple stuff like not touching the bulbs when you change the high-pressure lamps to more complex tips like how to troubleshoot a daisy chain of tanning beds.

One question that our sales people get a lot is “should I buy new or used tanning beds?” For many home tanners, used beds can mean significant savings. However, there are a few things to consider when buying a used tanning bed :

1. Ballast Life

A ballast is a device designed to limit the amount of current in an electric circuit. In a tanning bed, ballasts are used to control the amount of power needed to start and operate the lamps. And, like other tanning bed components (the bulbs, acrylic, etc), they have a finite life span.

Home tanning beds are quickly becoming a popular purchase for tan-lovers. But, too often, people jump at the cheapest bed possible thinking they don’t need an industrial-strength bed for basic home use.

Or, they buy an ultra-powerful bed that can’t be plugged into a standard home outlet and find themselves scrambling for an electrician.

In order to get the most out of your home tanning bed investment, we’ve provided 3 essential tips for buying the perfect home tanning system.

By working for a company like ETS Tan and being surrounded by tanning industry enthusiasts, I get to hear about and even see all the latest trends in tanning beds, lotions and related products.

For example, our customers are going wild for light therapy. Light therapy, infrared phototherapy, rejuvenation therapy, whatever you want to call it, is a light system designed to reduce and combat the signs of aging like discoloration and fine lines.

What we’re seeing is a lot of interest in beds that can both tan and do light therapy. That way, tanning salon customers can opt for a light therapy session, a tanning session or even both simultaneously. It’s probably the hottest trend in tanning beds right now.

Depending on where you live, a raincoat can be a slicker, a trench or even a mack. And just like a raincoat, a tanning bed can go by many names.

In the UK, Australia, South Africa and parts of the West Coast, it’s a “sunbed.” On the Eastern seaboard, it’s a “tanning bed.” In parts of South America, it’s often referred to as simply a “tan bed.” And in parts of the Canadian Maritimes, they call it a “sunny” (my personal favorite).

So, while most people refer to them as tanning beds, we hear everything from “tan bed” to, of course “sunnies,” a term used to describe both the beds and the tanning salons.