ETS Tanning Bed Blog

When I started at ETS Tan a year and a half ago, I didn’t know the first thing about tanning beds. I couldn’t have even told you what an acrylic is. But, what I did come in with is a strong customer service and call center background.

I was a little intimidated at first because the ETS Tan customer service team is and always has been very strong technically and so, yes, I felt a bit like a fish out of water. But, it turns out that the combination of my team’s highly defined technical skills and my customer service skills really worked out.

Why? Because most of the calls we get are from non-technical salon managers, meaning you have to be able to combine good, accessible technical support without ever losing sight of the customer and their experience.

Customers want stand-up tans – they’re faster, give a better quality tan with no pressure points and are often perceived as hip & fun.

A tanning bed unit like the SS756V (the V stands for “vertical) features a true 200-watt system, meaning your clients can get an incredible standing tan in about 8 minutes. Speeds like that are especially appealing to your customers on the go.

Beyond its speed and power, the SS756V has some other great features…

Recently we talked about the importance of regular, ongoing cleaning to keep your tanning beds in tip-top condition. But, salon maintenance should also include your work stations and computers. Most of us use salon management software like Helios and a few other mission critical applications. Keeping those computers cleaned and maintained means less down time and a lower chance of losing all your important records.

Inside & Out

There are two parts to maintaining a computer system – the inside and the out. Keeping the inside of your systems clean means having up-to-date software, installing and running an updated anti-virus program, deleting old files and defragmenting your hard drives from time-to-time. If you have a newer Windows or Mac system, you should be able to set it to automatically run those regular maintenance tasks so you don’t have to think about it. If not, consider upgrading.

Bug Blasting Free Tip

The room temperature in a tanning salon should never get above 80 degrees when the beds are running.  Aside from the comfort of your customers, overheating can cause your beds to malfunction and often in ways you might not expect.

For example:  A few months ago, I was helping a customer troubleshoot a bed where the gas shocks were trying to open by themselves. It turned out to be the high room temperature causing the gas inside the shocks to warm up and start expanding.

Overheating can also affect the face tanner lamps. The face tanners are equipped with a thermostat on the side that is designed to kick the lamp off if it gets too hot. It’s a safety feature, but the mechanism can be tripped if the room temperature is too high.

How often do you check the power cords on your tanning beds?

If you can’t remember the last time you checked, then perhaps you should go have a look now. Doing so could save your thousands of dollars and a lot of down time.

Don't Wait

Loose power cables can cause major damage to your beds – from single bulbs burning out to a full electrical meltdown. If a power cable is too loose, the pins inside the plug connection can break or bend leading to lights burning out or, the worst-case scenario, an electrical arc that can melt both your power cord and possibly your tanning bed.

When a T-Max 3A stops communicating with a bed, your tanning bed business can grind to a halt.

That’s why it’s important to know how to troubleshoot, reset and reprogram your equipment. So, if you’ve ever panicked once your T-Max 3A starts beeping at you or stops working, then keep reading for a comprehensive guide that will keep your T-Max operating and your business running.

Step 1 – Reset & Check

Often, resetting the power to both the 3A and the tanning bed will fix most problems. Just like rebooting a computer, sometimes a reset is all you need. Typically, a power surge or circuitry problem is the culprit and a simple power reset should fix it.