Choosing a Laundry System

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Today we dive in to another question from Dylan’s Salty Mailbag.

Christian commented on our tour video post with the following:

Laundry QuestionsWe’re struggling with laundry and wondering if you are happy with your situation. A commercial washer and dryer is almost 10x the cost of a residential model, and while certainly more robust, we can’t justify the cost. Are you happy with your laundry equipment? Do you send any laundry out or do you do it all in-house?

The decision you make is going to have a huge impact on time spent at your float center. If you get a washer that is too small or one that takes too long to dry, you are going to fall behind on laundry. Purchase a cheap washer/dryer and you’ll start having issues with it sooner rather than later and it isn’t going to be worth the headache. 

Capacity

The first question I think you will want to consider is: “What size center am I going to have 1-2 years from now?”

If you plan on expanding, don’t purchase a washer that is going to meet your needs for today but for tomorrow; taking into account any additional float tanks or modalities you may add. This is too large of a purchase to not invest in for tomorrow.

We purchased an LG WT5001CW (the WT1201CW and DLEY1201W are the newer models) which does not have an agitator in the center of it. This means it’s able to hold more laundry in its 2.5 cubic feet bin. When we first opened, we had two float tanks running and laundry was hardly something that required our constant attention. Currently we have 3 tanks in operation which for each transition include a hand towel, body towel and a floor towel. We also have acupuncture and massage which require new sheets after each use. We also have hand towels for our bathroom. Finally, we have robes that we offer to customers who have purchased combinations of modalities (such as acupuncture then float then massage). Currently our washer and dryer are always on.

Time

Washers and dryers take different amounts of time to wash and dry your towels. Do your research first so that your needs will be met when you have your first fully-booked day! There are new units available now that are washer/dryer combos, but know that these take longer to get through the full wash/dry process. These all-in-one units do not use vented drying and instead use an condenser drying process which takes 2x-3x longer than traditional vented dryers and their drying capacity is only half of their washing capacity. (This may have changed in recent years, hopefully Nashville Float will comment on this as I believe they have a combo unit).

Warranty

Inevitably, your washer and dryer is going to experience wear and tear during its tenure at your float center. You can get warranties on everything these days, and that’s because the companies selling you warranties know that their products are most likely to last longer than your warranty. Because of this they get to profit beyond the sale of your item. This is great for you! You are going to use the heck out of your washer and dryer, so buy the longest warranty possible!

We have only had 2 issues so far, but the savings of having it under warranty has already made it worth it. If this is not clear, ABSOLUTELY GET A WARRANTY!

When purchasing a washer and dryer for your float tank business, decide on a quality product that is still going to be working for you years down the road. Look at size, quality of product and the amount of time it takes to get your laundry washed and dried. Oh, and did I mention that you should get a warranty?

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10 responses to “Choosing a Laundry System”

  1. Sandra Avatar
    Sandra

    I remember so well the day our Float Shoppe washer and dryer arrived! Dylan had done all of the research and ordering, so I had no idea what to expect. They were so far beyond any washer and dryer I had ever used that it was like I was getting a pair of rainbow-breathing dragons. I couldn’t believe my eyes. And the buttons! The tiny songs they sing at the end, which can be conveniently turned off when they become annoying! The gentle rumble of the Eco-friendly load-sensing system…That was almost 2.5 years ago, and I still love using them.

  2. Christian Avatar
    Christian

    Wow! Thank you so much for the post! I’ve been so deep in research on: Flooring, permits, Pantone colours, pods, HRV units, WordPress, etc, etc… that I forgot I asked you about laundry – wonderful to have some real-world advice!

    2.5 years with the same washer/dryer?!?! I LOVE the sound of that. I did have concerns that the manufacturer’s warranties almost always specify “home use” so great to hear you’ve had success with extended warranties. As you say, it’s usually a sucker’s bet, but not in our case.

    Thank you again for the post – I’m sure this is helpful to lots of people now, and to Float Center People of the Future.

    Christian

  3. Chad Avatar

    Thanks much. This is great information. If others could make comments about their experiences that would be helpful.

  4. Amy Grimes Avatar

    We purchased the LG as well (bright shiny red ones). We bought the front loaders and stacked them as we have a very tiny space. We love them. We know of two people who have the same set and have used them pretty hard for several years without problem. Best decision ever! I never thought I’d be so happy about buying appliances.

  5. Randall Avatar
    Randall

    Thanks for sharing your experiences and research. I had been considering commercial units but as you all know, they are much more expensive than residential units. The greatest benefit with commercial units seems to be that they can do a laundry cycle faster. Have any of you considered using a laundry service instead of doing it yourself? One reason against using a service is that they may use chemicals that can be irritants to sensitive clients. One pro is that it can reduce staff time to do the laundry.

  6. Graham Talley Avatar

    Also, be careful of noise if your space is small. At Float On, we can’t run our washer/dryer when people are floating in the rooms right next to it (and soundproofing stacked units without causing insane rocking has proven challenging).

    You can get tricky though, and run it when you turn on the music for your floaters, turning it off when the new batch is going in to shower.

  7. Kyle Avatar

    We are a float center in Charlottesville, VA and we are going to be getting rid of our linen service as it is incredibly expensive..we are probably going to get a commercial washer/dryer. A few questions, what type of towels did you buy for your float center? Where did you buy them? We are trying to find the best deal on bulk 100% terry linen bath towels online. Any suggestions?

    1. Dylan Schmidt Avatar

      I wish I had a better answer for you, but currently we simply get our laundry at the local Costco. I’m sure there are better deals for buying in bulk, but currently I don’t have anywhere to point you. Perhaps someone else on the site can help!

  8. Tim Strudwick Avatar

    When we were operating 9 pods we had initially had commercial washer dryers, which broke down a lot as we were putting up to 81 towels, plus cleaning cloths and floor towels through our machines each day.

    Eventually we decided it was cheaper to use residential machines…. after some time we then did some more sums and factored in the costs of the electricity, water, washing powers, softeners and the replacement of towels when they wore out and it turned out having a linen service was the most cost effective method.

    They charge us .50p (USD 62 cents) a towel delivered to our door, this saves us a huge amount of time and effort and allows us to concentrate our efforts on providing good customer service.

    Tim
    i-sopod / floatworks

  9. Jasper Whiteside Avatar

    I’m glad that a lot of laundromats these days have many of these options available. I don’t have a house big enough to have a washer and dryer yet, so the laundromat works great! I especially like using the fast washers like what you mention in the article. I don’t like the all in one units.

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