We are the largest Sensory Deprivation Tank Center in the US. Ask Us Anything!

Maybe an odd question, but how do restless people or people with ADHD react?

They are actually some of our happiest customers. A lot of those people have trouble quieting down that voice inside of their heads, and letting their body relax, and the float tank is amazing at helping you do that.

What is the cost to experience this?

How often is that water changed?

How many people have lost their shit in the tank? (freaked out, not crapped their pants)

We run our floats at $50 for 90 minutes (and $60 for 2.5 hours). That being said, average price across the US is something more like $60-$65 an hour.

The water is filtered between every person, through a cartridge filter (for physical stuff) and a hydrogen peroxide dose (for bacterial stuff). Our pumps are powerful enough that the entire water in the tank goes through this filter system 3-4 times before anyone else gets in.

The salt is also an amazing sanitizer. It's at about 25%-30% salt, which is enough to kill almost any bacteria.

We also switch the entire water out every 6 months or so, just for good practice.

We get a lot of questions about sanitation, so we do independent lab tests and crazy stuff like that too just to be extra sure, and they've all come back with the lowest possible levels of any bacteria we tested for.

In terms of people losing their shit, it doesn't really happen. It seems like a crazy idea at first, but if feels really familiar once you're in there. It also puts your body into a super relaxed place, so it's a really hard environment to lose your shit in.

You can see crazy visuals and hallucinations in the float tank, but there's no point where you feel like you're not in control, so it differs from a drug trip in that way.

People are really forgetful after they float though, so our lost and found is pretty impressive :)

[edit for more info]

[deleted]

Don't tell anyone, but float tanks are basically the flux capacitor in this equation.

Really want to try this. So cool.

Come on over to Portland! Best known for float tanks, beer, and strip clubs.

Of course, there are also many other little float centers located around the US where you can experience the sweet awesomeness that is floating.

[deleted]

You've just asked the right question. It really is the secret to our success. A few of us even competed in the World Beard and Mustache Championships (when it was in Norway).

Not to encourage juicing, but pre-natal vitamins really promote hair growth.

Where can I find cool shades to coordinate with my outfits, Float On guys?

At our shop! Come to Portland!

Is there a prize system? Like, save five shades and trade them for a mustache ride?

You can definitely earn a mustache ride, but it involves a very hairy punch card.

Is it allowed to go into the thant under the influence of drugs? If no, how do you make sure it doesn't happen? Are there any stories about people on drugs in the thanks? Thanks!

I assume that you're under the influence right now, in which case let me ask: can people in the outside world tell? If you walked into a float center right now, would we be aware of your altered state?

If you behave yourself well enough that we can't tell, how would we know?

If you want some crazy tank + drug stories, look up Joe Rogan talking about tanks on youtube!

If William Hurt came in for a float, would you let him? If so, would you schedule him as the last client of the day, and/or make him pay a large up-front deposit?

We would just stock the float room with lots of goats and lock the door.

Anyone fall asleep in the tank? how do you keep them from drowning?

The difference between sleep and deep meditation can be a fine line. It is very difficult to submerge oneself because of the salt. Also as soon as you get any near your eye, nose or mouth, you will be very aware and need to get out of the tank.

How much does it cost to build and maintain a single tank?

It will probably cost you somewhere in the 2k-5k range to build your own float tank (with a decent amount of planning and handiwork).

The salt you'll need to fill it for the first time will be about $500. After that, they don't cost a lot to maintain. If it's just you and a couple other people floating, all you really need is about 50 pounds of salt a month, a few pool chemicals, and a tiny bit of electricity cost from running the heaters and the pump.

Well I maintain my own pool so maybe I have a leg up.

It seems like an interesting enterprise. Is there an American equivalent of Floatworks where you guys got your tanks, were they hand made or what? Were you self-funded or did you get a loan? Could I realistically get a small business loan/grant for this because it seems like the only spa advertising this is over 100 miles from my area?

Being a fan of the JRE podcast and Rogan in general I'd love to find a way to market mind-expansion to my fellow Texans. I imagine it would be much, much easier to sell the idea of a SDT to a 50+ year old than the idea of Psilocybin or DMT.

Two of our float tanks are Oasis tanks which are similar to Samahdi tanks, two are built by a company in England and two we built ourselves. If you are interested in opening a center, we set up a site with some information here. There is some free stuff and a full on business plan. It is definitely a mind-expansion tool that is easy to recommend to everyone.

As someone who wants to have his own float tank one day, which route/option would you suggest?

Have you floated before? I would start there, if you haven't.

I've floated before several times and I know that eventually I will want one for personal use (it will likely be at least 5 years in the future) but I wanted to see if you had any opinion as to which brand to go with. Samadhi is the major one that I had heard about and what I would have gone with had I heard nothing else.

I will try to get you information on the differences between the Samadhi tanks and the Oasis tanks.

Samadhi is fantastic. I do wish there was a less expensive option but if you aren't planning on building it yourself, Samadhi is the ideal in a lot of ways.

How feasible do you think it is to build on my own? I'd definitely consider it due to the cost but my biggest concern would be about making sure that the quality is up to par.

You are basically making a box with a heating element. Everything beyond that is up to you. The cheapest tanks are usually wood with a pond liner and some water bed heaters. Fiberglass is another common option.

Why are your float times so long? Do people really like to go for that long at a time? I feel like an hour would do me, then again, I haven't floated(yet).

Thank you very much for doing this AMA.

Lots of places run hour long floats, but we really don't think it's long enough.

We get a lot of people surprised by an hour and a half, and then come out to tell us that it felt like 30-40 minutes. We also get a lot of requests for longer floats. Time really does fly by in there, and the longer you're in the better it feels :)

It also takes about 40 minute to get to the good floatey part of the experience, so an hour and a half really gives you a longer amount of time in the sweet zone.

Thank you so much for the answer! I'd love to stop by sometime, but unfortunately I'm on the other side of the country.

Hey there might be a place nearby. Where are you located?

Up in Northern Vermont.

You might try giving this place a call. I'm not sure if they still exist anymore, though.

Thank you. I'll definitely give it a try. Damn, you guys are awesome.

It's all the floating. We can't help it.

What are your thoughts on the use of the sensory deprivation chamber on Fringe?

I've only seen a youtube clip, but it's a lot less spooky than that. For one thing, we don't lock you in.

I assume you've floated in these yourselves? What did you experience when floating in the tank? It seems like it would be really relaxing, but do you experience other things? Does your imagination kick in and trip you out?

We love floating. It's why we do what we do. So, yes, we have definitely floated in many different styles of tanks in several different countries.

It's super relaxing. You lie in a dense solution of magnesium sulfate. Your spine relaxes like an accordion. Your joints decompress.

With no light, no sound, and no touch... your brain waves begin to slow down. You rest in the theta state which has been known to help with creative release. Some even experience visuals (not everyone, though).

• I read about a discussion wether or not a integrated display inside a isolation tank might be useful at learning specific things like languages and other disciplines. In theory, deprivation of all external stimuli should aid your ability to focus. Do you think this would actually be beneficial or that other effects of isolation tanks like intense body sensations and perceptual distortions (some experience hallucinations) might be to much of a distraction to improve cognitive learning?

• How is the water in the isolation tank cleaned?

The most research on the first part of your question was done by the Dallas Cowboys in the 80s. Players floated and watched videos of their performance. According to the team, it helped immensely. We had one person use our tanks to tune his musical ear, listing to specific notes while floating.

The water is cleaned after each person with a cartridge filter. Our pumps are powerful enough that the entire water in the tank goes through this filter system 3-4 times before anyone else gets in. We also clean the water with hydrogen peroxide. The fact that the water is so extremely salty does wonders to keep it clean.

Most of our cleaning is dealing with the salt getting everywhere.

That's fascinating. I'm really pumped to use a tank for the first time soon.

Most of our cleaning is dealing with the salt getting everywhere.

I have a petty question about that. I do a lot of kickboxing and I play soccer regularly. On top of that I own a very strange cat. How worried should I be about getting in the tank with (little) open wounds?

If you are kick boxing your pain tolerance should be good enough to deal with a bit of salt stinging. With that said we provide Vaseline to cover cuts, and the salt really helps heal said cuts up really fast if you man or woman up, hop in without covering the cuts up and let the salt do some work

According to the team, it helped immensely.

there's nothing like a good science experiment.

and that's nothing like a good science experiment.

Look up studies on REST (Restricted Environmental Stimulation Therapy). That is the name that a lot of clinical studies on float tanks have been done. None of the studies had super large samples sizes, but they're still really interesting to look at.

Has anybody ever pooped in it?

Nope! Thank goodness! We check the tanks after each person. Also a filtration system cleans the water after each person.

How do you feel about people wanting to experience different types of drugs in your facility?

Wanting to do drugs is absolutely fine! Unfortunately, federal law frowns on actually doing them, and we have to take the same stance...

Legal drugs, like marijuana (with a medical card in Oregon) can be great for relaxing into the float, but a lot of people, after trying it, actually prefer doing the tank a la carte.

• How profitable is your business?

• How large is the "floating industry" nationwide?

• Have you thought about opening centers in other cities?

• How often do people pee in the tanks, and how would you know if they did?

• Are there any long-term health effects (positive or negative) to spending several hours a week floating in saltwater?

1. The business has been profitable from day one, pretty much. We started with very little but it has been doing well.

2. There are about 100 centers in the US, so not enough. There should be at least one in every town. The number is rapidly growing: attendance at the last 3 float conferences has doubled each year.

3. We would love to open in another city when we can raise the capital! Maybe there is a way to crowdfund a center someday.

4. No one has peed in our tanks. It would be hard to do. We check the tanks after each person. If they did, it would mean we would have to reschedule on a bunch of people and cost us a lot.

5. Epsom salts have many medicinal properties. The effects of regular deep relaxation are very positive for a number of health issues. Right now we are working on a fibromyalgia project because floating is insanely good for people with fibromyalgia.

(edited to add some linkage)

Not to dwell on this, but how would it be hard for someone to pee in a tank? Seems like floating in water + extreme relaxation + privacy = primo time for bladder releasing. Granted one would then be soaking in their own urine which could be enough of a deterrent...

You are both very relaxed and very aware of your body. It is hard for me to picture a situation where I could pee in the tank without noticing. I have certainly felt the need to pee. We have robes so folks can just go. I bet with the amount of floats we run something will happen someday but knock on wood it doesn't.

What about MS? As an MSer who refuses to use the current crop of toxic MS drugs, I'd like to know what effects Fibro patients are seeing?

I'm not aware of any clinical studies about people with MS floating, but anecdotally, I've heard a lot about considerable pain relief from MS using float tanks.

The small pilot study that went on with Fibro showed pain relief from the beginning to the end of a float, and between floats. We're hoping to get some larger data with the new Fibro project that is going on internationally.

Upvote for science!

We're all about the science. We're all natural skeptics here at Float On, so we had to do our due diligence before accepting that these things weren't new age mumbo jumbo.

The nice thing is, these things have been around since the mid 50's, and spent their first 20 years exclusively in laboratories, so it was easy to find a lot of hard information on why float tanks are amazing.

Oh heck yeah man! Where do I sign up! <--- Rhetorical question, I know I can bump over to your website and sign up, or roll in. Alas, though, I am not in PDX.

There are lots of places to float around the world (relatively speaking). You might be surprised. Check out floatationlocations.com, or just google the name of your city and "float tank."

The fact that you want to see more flotation places, as you mentioned that you want to see one in every town, is frikkin awesome. It shows that you are not a greedy corporate suit. Upvote to you my good man.

Thank you, sir. We're all about sharing knowledge and bringing floating to the people.

There's a whole section of our float conference specifically set up to help people get float centers up and running.

In fact, the whole float industry seems to be unusual in this way. Everyone is extremely cooperative and open with information. I guess floating helps you get a bit of perspective :)

[deleted]

It hasn't happened yet. I would be concerned about the smell. You would have to will yourself to do it.

I'm really excited about this AMA.

About answer 3: How much capital do you need to open a center in, say, California? Wine country + college town + float center = good idea

You should definitely check out floattanksolutions.com. It's our website for answering people's questions about opening a float tank center. Feel free to give us a call as well. We're always happy to chat and help out.

What's the longest float you know of?

Where did this practice begin?

How do you regulate the temperature in the water/pod?

I want to do this so bad.

We have had someone come in and float 24 hours straight, and there are rumors that John Lilly did a 2 week float using an IV way back in the day, but for sure a 24 hour float has happened at Float On.

The Float Tank was first created in 1954 and the first commercial tank was released in the early 70's.

Different tanks use different methods, but the most common method is a set of water bed heaters under the liner.

How did they feel after 24 hours?

Are they impractical to have personal tanks at home?

Thanks for the answers!

He said time was very silky, and had used the time to recover from a very long walk, which worked quite well. Words and language take a bit of a backseat after that long in a tank, so not so sadly he was not a sound byte machine when emerging from a day in the tank.

You need to be really committed to have a tank in your house, for a few reasons. Cost, space, how close to a shower you can get it, salt is going to destroy things, and you need to float a lot before you are going to save money over visiting a center and letting them deal with the rest of it.

One more question. Excluding rent since that varies, how much would you advise a new float business to have on hand before attempting to open a float center? Say in a popular but underserved city.

That is going to depend hugely on how many people are on your payroll and how many tanks you want to have. We shoestringed and bootstrapped to make this one happen.

How bad does the water taste with all the salt?

It's pretty intense. It's magnesium sulfate (no sodium), so it doesn't really taste salty.

I want to start a float tank business in my town. It's a town of 300,000. Can I ask you questions in private? I have no idea what I'm doing.

Feel free to PM us. Also check out floattanksolutions.com Best of luck to you!

My wife goes to this place occassionally and finds it to be a very positive experience. She considers herself midly claustrophobic. One of the tanks is apparently more of an open room, but it is dark. She likes that a lot.

Also, when she was deep into pregnancy and was uncomfortably huge, floating was a great relief.

That's great! We get a lot of people worried about claustrophobia before they hop in the tank, but then almost no one who actually has a problem with it once they're in there.

You can open the door to the tank at any time, so you're really in total control of everything.

The pregnant ladies love to float. There's actually a certain position in there that takes all the weight of the the mother's stomach off of her body.

We even had one woman say she really got to know her child for the first time in the tank........woah.....

What's the best way to find one near me? Is there some sort of directory of these places internationally? I live in Germany so am not really sure what the terminology would be in German.

http://www.floatation.com/wheretofloat.html

http://floatation.biz/floatfinder/

http://floatationlocations.com/

Where in Germany are you?

Never heard of this before, but from the pictures I was easily able to find, it looks like the tanks are pretty small. Are there any places with bigger tanks? Seems like if you had enough room to swim around you'd kinda be able to feel like you're flying. And that sounds like a lot of fun than just floating. I mean the floating sounds pretty cool, but having more space seems like it would be awesome.

Our 2 newest tanks are about 2 feet wider than an average float tank, we had the same thought as you, and it often does feel like flying through space on the river time.

You guys need to get an Olympic sized float tank.

Do I hear a kickstarter in the making?

How does the experience relate to a DMT trip? Is there any "mind fuck" ?

I feel like going in a flotation tank would be claustrophobic and kind of scary. Is it as scary as it sounds?

The tank is only as scary as the voice inside your head.... So for me not so scary, for you...who knows. In all honesty though claustrophobia is typically more about control than it is about space, and you are in total control of the whole thing.

So can you open it up whenever you want?

Absolutely. No locks or no latches on the tanks. You are in complete control. Of course, there is a client controlled lock on the main door to the float room... we want clients to feel comfortable (being naked and what not).

That's right. You just push the door and it opens. No locks or latches.

Has anyone requested music? Sure, this defeats one element of its purposes, but having something made for a meditative state like Filosofem piped in during a float sounds awesome.

People can bring music in if they like. We strongly suggest that people try a float in silence first, just to get a sense of it.

How does that work? Can you bring an ipod and have it plugged in?

Exactamundo.

How do people react when their float ends and they are "woken up"?

Most people are really surprised that an hour and a half actually went by. Pretty much everyone feels super relaxed, and would hop right back in if we let them :)

Oh, well. No one saying stuff like "I was relaxing; you woke me up. I hate you!"? :D

How do you wake people up?

We fade music into the tank. Each tank has transducer speakers that are below the water line, so it's actually a pretty neat experience to have sensory stimulation eased in like that after suck a long time without.

What are the age limits in the tanks?

There really are no age limits.

When it comes down to it, you're just floating in water and Epsom Salt.

Yeah, i live up in Vancouver and I've heard a bunch about these tanks but I wasnt sure how old you need to be. Whats the youngest person thats floated at your location?

At least 8 but I think his mom was in the room with him. A 12 year old was floating on a semi regular basis a while back.

How sound absorbent are the tanks compared to anechoic chambers ? I remember reading that most people couldn't bear to be in them for more than a few minutes and would think that with the deprivation of the other senses it should be even more uncomfortable.

The tanks are no -7 decibels but they are very quiet, a lot of the sound reduction comes from how you build the room, and we also have our tanks on sound isolators that keep the vibrations that come from the floor out.

Oh man, I've always wanted to try a sensory deprivation tank. Until I went to your website I thought "I wonder if there are any in Portland". Well now I know!

So my question; who is your favorite lawmaker to work with?

We have yet to deal too directly with any specific lawmaker, but I am a fan of a few specific politicians totally seperately from Float On. Elizabeth Warren, Dennis Kucinich, Ron Widen and Alan Grayson would be awesome to work with towards making opening float centers easier.

Have you read The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown?

Did the bit about the bad guy spending time in the sensory deprivation tank bug you as much as it did me?

Do you think Dan Brown is perhaps America's worst author?

Yes, yes, and yes.

I have OCD related to being dosed with LSD...absurd I know. Would the experience in the tank be something I could handle? Ie no wild psychedelic experiences?

You might have an experience but it is more mild than wild. You are also very in control, being able to get in and out at your own pace and take a break any time you like.

How intense are the visuals?

Anywhere from no visuals at all, too Flying across the universe, to being a crow on a lake.

Could you actually replace your bed with one of these tanks?

I guess it would help you a lot, but... will it be safe?

There is one person I know of that did this for an extend period of time, but she was already quite experienced with the tank, and living a crazy exhausting life style, I think it is possible, but not for too many people.

What are possible drawbacks you're thinking of?

Since the float tank promotes such a meditative state, it can be hard to actually slip into REM, which of course your body needs.

If you float every night for long periods of time, eventually your body will be able to easily slip into REM in there.

I've heard of one woman who slept in her tank every night, and then had trouble sleeping when she traveled because no bed was as comfortable as being in a float tank.

I live across the street from this place. How 'bout that.

I'm waving to you right now.

I love the idea of sensory deprivation tanks but many of my friends think they would be too claustrophobic to even give it a try. Is claustrophobia a big concern of first time customers?

It's something that everyone is concerned about being a problem that doesn't actually turn out to be a problem. The main thing is knowing that you can get in and out. Are they claustrophobic when they sit in a car or when they take a shower?

[deleted]

Interest - I think so. Activity - not as much, it seems. Are you thinking of something specifically? John Lilly did a lot of crazy stuff...

I'm surprised I haven't heard of you guys before this, and I live in Tigard. Do you guys not run advertisements? And I am definitely going to stop by sometime in the near future because the experience sounds sublime

We don't do any paid advertising, but we run lots of fun projects that usually gets the word around. We've been on the news a couple times too :)

You should definitely swing by and visit us. We tend to book out a 1-2 weeks in advance, so give us a call before you come.

I have to ask - how often do people have sex in these tubs?

That would be a salty and chaffing experience. We only run solo floats.

Is there such a thing as double (or group) float?

We don't do those at our center. They do exist. It's different than floating by yourself. I find it a little distracting but to each their own!

Open one on the east coast? How much do you think that would cost?

Depends a lot on the city, Manhattan versus some suburb of Atlanta are going to be two very different beasts. With that said what tank style you choose, whether they are new or used, and how much work you do yourself versus hiring people are also going to be huge deciding factors regardless of where you end up opening.

Cool. I wonder if their is anything nearby NYC

There are definitely a couple small places in NYC. Google that shit!

What do you think of the Simpsons episode where homer went in one?

Fantastic! I remember watching that episode before ever knowing about float tanks, so I guess even in my own life, the Simpsons did it first.

They're a lot bigger than pictured in that episode, and we only put 1/4 of our customers on the back of moving trucks.

Could someone bring goggles in and swim around?

I routinely do laps in there as my morning exercise. With only 8 feet of length, you can get a couple thousand in before breakfast.

You have to be careful around the lifeguard though, he has a strict "no splashing" policy.

So...The Modest Mouse song. Is it about you guys?

They did come float here...

I am quite late, but do you float against the side of the tank? Doesn't it interrupt the relaxation? I want to do this so much!

You end up getting centered pretty quickly, and then not really hitting the sides.

I've been interested in these Tanks for a while now. I know it relaxes you but is their any other long term effects at all?

Absolutely. Basically curbing the effects of stress on your body consistently has incredible long term improvements. Look up research on REST (Restricted Environment Stimulation Therapy).

How about doing a GroupOn for $10 USD for one hour, but that hour must be between 2 and 8 am? That way you can get lots of potential new customers, without antagonizing your user base.

We already float people between 2 and 8 am :)

That's a good idea though. I like the idea of happy hour floats.

How tall and wide are the tanks?

Doesn't bouncing into the side of the tank cause sensation?

The tanks range form about 4-8 feet wide, and also 4-8 feet tall.

You bounce a little at first, but if you don't push off the walls, you get centered pretty quickly, and then you're good.

Is it true if your placed in a sensory deprivation tank where you can't even hear yourself talk outside, that eventually you go crazy and want to commit suicide?

Not that I know of, but I guess anything's possible.

There are some old myths about sensory deprivation and torture, but they're mostly fabricated.

The original studies on sensory deprivation involved people being put into dark rooms and told to lie on beds with cardboard and cotton all around them for incredibly long periods of time. It seems like most of people's anxiety and discomfort came from the laboratory settings and the fact that you're lying wrapped in cardboard for 24 hours.

The salt water we use nowadays is basically the most comfortable thing we've been able to come up with as humans. Once we invent anti-gravity machines, we might switch to that.

We now have people float for incredibly long periods of time who have amazing experiences. The record at our shop is a 24 hour float. The dude came out and said he thinks he can go for 48.

What do they do about food/ water? Seems like you might get hungry or thirsty after a long period of time.

We advise people to eat 30-90 minutes before coming in, so you both don't have to listen to yourself digest, and are not getting hungry mid float. For longer floats your body is in such a state of rest you just don't need the same amount of calories as you normally would.

I'll be stopping in the next time I head up to Portland. Want me to bring you guys anything from the Rogue Valley?

Heck yeah! Bring yourself in for a float.

If you put an animal in the tank, like say a dog or cat or whatever, do you think they would flip out or what? Also, has anyone ever done dmt then got into the tank and turned into a monkey?

No one has done DMT and told us about it, but I am sure Joe Rogan has. I don't know how you would get the animal to stay in the tank but I am sure some animals would just shut off, like when you put a blanket on a guinea pig or hold a chicken's head down.

are there any at-home substitutes for those of us who aren't near a floatation center?

It can be hard to replicate at home, but basically just try to cut out as much sensory input as you can: dark room, no noise, a really comfortable bed, etc.

Do you have any Naruto posters hanging up in your building?

None....yet.

Please make an announcement when said Naruto posters are prominently displayed within the building.

You will know because we will change our business name to Naruto Posters On.

Free session for me?

What do we get then?

[deleted]

The largest center in the world currently is Floatworks in London, England. Floating is much more popular in Europe than in the US currently.