Questions about hot towel cabinets

[Annettest]

I've been using hot towels in several different ways for a while now. If I'm doing a massage, I heat 2 towels in my electric skillet (that I normally use for hot stones) to use. It works well but the skillets put off a lot of heat. I also use the towels when doing wraps or scrubs. For those I use an 18 qt. roaster and again it works very well except that it puts off a lot of heat and also it can be noisy getting the towels in and out with the metal lid.

I started using these methods since I usually go with the most cost-efficient way of doing things (yes, I'm cheap!)

Ok....fast forward to this past week. My boss and her friend had gone to a spa as a reward. When she came back she was 1) commenting that she gets much better massages at our clinic and 2) raving about this neat contraption that they had to heat towels. After she described it to me, I explained that it was a hot towel cabinet. So....she got all excited and asked me if I wanted her to buy one for us to use.

So.....I'm trying to figure out in my head just what the benefits would be of having the cabi vs the roaster.

And.....I'm trying to figure out if the cabi would be big enough to hold the number of towels needed for a wrap and how quickly do the towels heat/reheat up??

For example: when I do a mud wrap I use 5-small bath towels (think the thin, small ones you'd get a Target or Kmart for like $1.50) 6-hand towels and 2-washcloths. I really use more than that, but what I do is use a towel and then put it back in the roaster and within 10 minutes or so it has heated back up again.

Can you reheat towels back up again in the cabis or would I need to put in the "real" number of towels that I use. Are the cabis big enough to handle that many towels? I see that they make double-decker cabinets. Would I be better off with one of those or two of the smaller units?

I was hoping that someone here could share their experience and knowledge with me??

Thanks!
Angie

 

[nina s]

I can fit about 20 hand towels in my cabbie ( if not more) And we have thick towels. I have never reused a towel after I have taken it out ( putting it back in and taking it out again). It doesn't take long for them to heat up in a cabbie. I have put them in while my client was changing and they were hot enough by the time I need them a few minutes later.

I have done 3 wraps in one day and it held all the towels I need for that day plus I had extras left.

I used my hot stone roaster the other day and I hated how fast my towel cooled off when i took it out.

 

[Lynzeigh]

Shannon, I know nothing about hot towel cabis. So, I have a few questions. Do you put the towels in wet or dry? Is this a dry heat or moist heat? How hot to the towels get? Are they dry, damp, rung out wet, or wet wet???

I assume most people would want a good moist rung out wet towel when they use hot towels on clients?? Or is a dry hot towel what they want?

I am concidering adding some work with hot towels in my regular sessions once I move.

 

[Tired Old Man]

I use hot water then make sure they are soaking wet then wring them as much as I possibly can. So when you put them in they are wet and wrung out weel, not soaking wet. I roll mine (folded in half then rolled up, think jelly rolls) When I take it out the cabbie it isn't dripping wet nor is there a need to wring it out again.

Before I place the towel on the client I shake it out a lil bit to cool it off some.
The towels are a moist hot not a wet wet and you could kinda say damp in a sense.

I have never used a dry towel in there but I do have a heat pack i use on peoples backs that I heat up in there and it works great with that.(was purchased at Universal companies... I love it! gonna look for it on their website and post a link if i find it)

 

[Yahzmin (US) (???)]

Questions about hot towel cabinets

when I do a mud wrap I use 5-small bath towels (think the thin, small ones you'd get a Target or Kmart for like $1.50) 6-hand towels and 2-washcloths.

that is a LOT of towels! You'd have to go up to the double cabi I think for that kind of quantity of towel. I could probably get about 15 thick hand towels in my cabi, probably 20 thin ones (sounds like same size as Shannon's), maybe 2 bath towels, but I wouldn't be too comfortable with them heating through evenly quickly (the handtowels on the outside do warm up faster than the ones in the middle)

I use muslin for wraps, much less bulky than towels in the wash, and I use a sponge for getting most of the product off.

I'm slight;y concerned by "she got all excited and asked me if I wanted her to buy one for us to use.". You need the cabi in the treatment room, so one cabi will be for one person to use, not for multiple therapists.

 

[Zach F]

Questions about hot towel cabinets

that is a LOT of towels!

I use a sponge for getting most of the product off.

I'm slight;y concerned by "she got all excited and asked me if I wanted her to buy one for us to use.". You need the cabi in the treatment room, so one cabi will be for one person to use, not for multiple therapists.

I'm doing the wraps in a dry room and the way I was taught was to remove the products (salt or sugar and/or mud) with moist, hot towels. If there is a better way of doing it, I'm all ears. Do you have a sink in your room or some way of rinsing the sponge off? Or does one sponge suck up enough product to get it all off??

We have 12 therapists at our clinic but I'm the only one who does the body treatments. We have 5 treatment rooms so those of us who have been there the longest have our "own" rooms so the cabi would go in "my" room. When I'm not working the room is used by another therapist who certainly could use the cabi if she so chose to do so.

Thanks for your help, I'd love to hear more about how the sponge works.

Angie

 

[Pompal 09.]

i love my towel cabi - can't work without it. i also love the uv light feature.

i turn mine on once i come in the room in the morning, and wet the towels with hot water, wring them out, roll them up and put them in. it's not long at all before they're hot. the moist heat is awesome - feels great and really helps the client melt.

my favorite thing is probably the lack of mess - nothing to wring out while in the tx room with the client.

amanda

 

[rakib]

Hey, all,

I use a hot towel cabinet that I purchase new on Ebay for $99. It's the same model that MassageWarehouse sells for $169. Like others here, I wet my towels with hot water, fold them in half lengthwise and then roll them up. I purchase BleachSafe brand towels from Sally Beauty Supply - they're sort of navy blue which hides the mud stains that are almost inevitable PLUS I can bleach them and they stay blue. They are available in other colors like brown and green as well.

I fit about 20-30 towels in there depending on how tightly I roll them and what all I have to do that day. I also have a set of four rubber mixing bowls that I got from MassageWarehouse that can be placed in the towel cabi until I'm ready to use them. They are easy to grip and scoop out of and if I accidentally drop one nothing breaks. The product comes out nice and steamy. The cabinet is also great for hot stones.

I took Biotone's spa class this year and one thing Kelli Lane' emphasized was that the more towels you use the more luxurious the experience for the client. No one wants to be wiped down with a half chilled towel. I keep a bucket (a pretty blue cleaning bucket) at the foot of the table to toss the used towels in.

My towels seem to heat up pretty quickly - fast enough that I could add more between clients and they would be ready. I tried dry towels but that's no good for anyone - they don't get hot enough nor do they take any mud off.

My cabinet came with a wire baskety thing (good description huh?) that I take to the sink with me when I'm wetting and rolling towels. Then I just carry the loaded basket to the room and pop it in the cabinet.

Even if you don't do much spa work, a hot, steamy towel placed on the face does wonders for sinuses and there's no replacement for wrapping them around the feet of my clients on a cold winters day.

I start my massages with a refreshing foot bath (a spray bottle with 1/2 water and 1/2 Sea Breeze astringent), then a quick exfoliation with a gentle scrub (maybe a peppermint scrub if they want) and a quick wipe down with a hot towel. Then I place a dry bath towel under their feet and wrap a hot towel around each foot and then fold the bath towel up over them to keep them warm. Cover with the drape and blanket (if using one). By the time I get ready to massage the feet the skin is soft and warm. My clients love this.

Plus, the cabinet looks so much more professional than roasters or skillets. And you can't tell me that some people don't look a bit crossways at paying $60 an hour (or more) for a massage and getting the crock pot hot stone treatment instead of what they'd get at the nearest spa. Marketing is all about the experience. It may seem petty but I know I didn't much appreciate it when I was paying that price and my therapist couldn't take the time to buy even a stone warmer. If we want to be taken professionally we should present ourselves as such. I wouldn't stay long with a physician who didn't have a professional office with standard equipment.

Sorry for getting on my soapbox.

I would definitely go with the hot towel cabinet.

 

[B.E.inspired]

Hi Bodywork Guy,

Thanks for all the ideas with the extras you do for your clients. I love the foot bath idea for sure! I've had my feet wrapped and I'll tell you what... It's blissful! I will definitely incorporate the footbath or hot towels on their feet with my massages this winter.

I also use a hot towel cabi. I don't know what I would do without it. It's definitely worth every penny.

http://www.massage-tools.com/hot-towel-cabi-warmer-hc-x.html.

I bought this towel cabi for $129.00 back in June. I can't seem to find it for the same price. It is oversized and will hold plenty of towels.

I've gone to a massage therapist who had a kitchen crockpot on the floor with towels. Maybe I'm too picky, but I thought it was unprofessional. The sound of towels being wrung out isn't relaxing. :?


-Grapeseed

 

[Mrs Lovett]

Questions about hot towel cabinets

I'm doing the wraps in a dry room and the way I was taught was to remove the products (salt or sugar and/or mud) with moist, hot towels. If there is a better way of doing it, I'm all ears. Do you have a sink in your room or some way of rinsing the sponge off? Or does one sponge suck up enough product to get it all off??

I use an Olympian Spa Sponge, can't find it online, it's round, about 10"in diameter and about 1" thick, it absorbs a LOT, it's a special synthetic sponge for removing mud wraps. I do use a bowl of water to rinse it in when they turn over if it is a non-gritty product, if it's a gritty scrub, I usually brush off as much as I can, and may rinse the sponge once or twice in the bowl. I do use a sink nearby, but I will only go to it once to get the water for the bowl, I'm not running back and forth; a friend has an urn in her treatment room and doesn't even leave the side of the table. I use the sponge to get most of the product off and then use the hot towels - I only use hand towels and use about 4-6 to make sure everything is removed. I do my own washing, so keep everything as clean and oil free as I can, generating a whole load of washing for one treatment doesn't make economical or environmental sense to me eg with the linen I use, I can fit 7 massages into one load, with some muslin wraps, if I'm using towels that will be in another load.

 

[Obama Lied Trillion$ Died]

Question about wrapping clients feet in hot towels.

Do you keep switching the towels when they get cold?? Or once they go cold do you take the cold damp towel off their feet and just cover them back up with the sheet?? I cant imagine the towels holding the heat for more than a minute or two. Then again, I know absolutely nothing about using hot towels. Could someone fill me in?

 

[demactima]

The cabinet is also great for hot stones.

I find the cabi too hot for stones (my cabi runs at 175degF and I use my stones around the 130degF mark)

I took Biotone's spa class this year and one thing Kelli Lane' emphasized was that the more towels you use the more luxurious the experience for the client.

sounds like Kelli Lane isn't concerned about how much laundry is generated, I'm all for a luxurious experience for the client, but too many towels is just a waste on resources, there is a balance,

Plus, the cabinet looks so much more professional than roasters or skillets. And you can't tell me that some people don't look a bit crossways at paying $60 an hour (or more) for a massage and getting the crock pot hot stone treatment instead of what they'd get at the nearest spa. Marketing is all about the experience. It may seem petty but I know I didn't much appreciate it when I was paying that price and my therapist couldn't take the time to buy even a stone warmer. If we want to be taken professionally we should present ourselves as such. I wouldn't stay long with a physician who didn't have a professional office with standard equipment.

gotta agree 100%, but a lot of people don't, see http://www.massageplanet.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4849

 

[HOPE FOR GOOD.]

GreatttLakes,

I don't switch out the towels. If you wrap each foot in one towel and then wrap a dry bath-sized towel around both they'll stay warm for a while. Even if the towels cool off they're wrapped tightly so it's not cold and clammy. When I'm ready to work the feet I remove the towels, using the dry one to pat them dry, massage and then recover with the drape and blanket like normal.

It's nice and simple to do. It's only three towels which I can throw in with my sheets.

Melb,

Actually Kelli did talk about laundry costs and we're not talking about twenty towels. I normally use about 8-10 towels for a full exfoliation and mud/clay/seaweed. But she taught us how to do it with as few as 6 - all the while explaining that it depends on the ambient temperature (towels cool quicker in a cool room) and how much product you use (not like the display ads Biotone uses).

I don't do a lot of stone work but I put my stones in a water-filled bowl in my cabinet and they do fine so long as I don't leave them for hours. I usually put them in once the client is prone and before I start the back. At this point, I'm in a small room at a medical day spa and don't have room for a stone warmer (plus, I haven't taken a class yet). Once I take a class I'll buy the appropriate equipment (I love Amber's products) and actually advertise stone massage. Currently, I just add it for special clients who give good word of mouth.

Another tip - which is off the subject - that Kelli passed on was to never give away free massage. Give free spa. Spa is less work (only very little product) and feels like something truly special to the client. For referrals I give a foot bath, exfoliation and masque as an add on to a one-hour appointment. This is also why I price my spa treatments the same as my massages - it's less wear and tear on me and people are more inclined to try it when the price isn't exorbitant. Plus, then they have money to buy product!

Work smarter, not harder.

 

[<3Clapton<3]

I also would like to invest in a towel cabi. Currently have the towels in the hot stone warmer and they just get cold and clammy much too quick, even when I have them wrapped up in a towel and the blanket covering them.

 

[Vaughn.student]

I also would like to invest in a towel cabi. Currently have the towels in the hot stone warmer and they just get cold and clammy much too quick, even when I have them wrapped up in a towel and the blanket covering them.

A towel cabi isn't going to make the towels stay warmer longer. What determines how long the towels stay hot are:

1) How hot they are to begin with...the hotter they are, they longer they stay hot.

2) How well insulated they are. Towels that are covered with other towels or blankets will hold their heat longer. If they are exposed to direct air then they will cool off quickly.

3) The density of the towel. The denser it is, the longer it will stay hot...it's simple physics.

Angie

 

[ELIZABETH C]

A couple other points-

Different cabi's will work differently. Get specific model recommendations.

Of the different kinds I've used I've found the real small units that hold about 4 hand towels and get VERY hot very quickly. I have a nice burn scar on the back of my hand from one.

The larger units take a little longer to heat up & work better if they are full- the walls of the unit get hot & can transfer heat to the other towels.

One more thing, dry hot towels can be nice to keep rolled under the neck as a warm neck roll. Clients love it.

I'd definitely get a hot towel cabi. Just make sure you know which kind/size you want before you buy.

 

[skymodog]

Well, I've had my towel cabi about a month now and I have to say that I have mixed feelings about it. I got the "double decker" model so it would be big enough to hold all the towels I need when doing wraps.

On the plus side, it doesn't make the room all hot and steamy. It probably looks more professional although I've had several clients ask me why I have a small refrigerator in the massage room. : It's a lot less noisy getting the towels out....no clanging noise made by the roaster lid.

On the down side, there is absolutely no way to regulate the heat. It's either on or off. This really annoys me. I don't mind if it's too hot, thats easy to fix by fanning the towels but if it's not hot enough....well, there's no way to fix that. It takes forever (well, not forever but up to an hour) for the towels to heat up completely. I've been microwaving them before putting them in and that helps but it's a pain in the you-know-what to nuke them and then carry them back to the treatment room.

So, that's my review so far. I'm using that cabi for doing wraps and scrubs but if I only need one or two towels to use during a massage, I'm back to using the electric skillets...just so much easier to have the towel at the temp that I want them to be.

Angie

 

[Terrier (UK)]

Towel talk

HI angie , i read your last post about having mixed feelings about your hot cabi , i have been using a hot cabi for several years and usually the fisrt thing i do when i get to work is start rooling up my towels for the day and put them in , that way they are hot all day long . I truly believe thats its the little added extras you do for your clients thats keeps them coming back . i always wrap 2 towles around there feet (while they are face up) when im at the end of my treatment doing compressions . and i lay one on there back with a dry towel on top when i end working on there back and again do my compressions . the dry towel is nice because i put the sheet and blanket back over them with out it getting wet . and they stay much warmer that way . anyway enough rambling . good luck!
ps if any one is lookign for a towl cabi , i got mine on ebay for $130 total . iTs a double cabi (thats with shipping) they shipped the same day, from Ca , and i had it in 3 days

 

[africbeauty69]

Do any of you add aromatherapy to your moist towels? If so, is there a cost effective way to do this? I've played around by dipping my towels in a basin of water where I've added essential oils but I'm thinking that perhaps I should premix some oils in water and simply spritz the towels right before I roll them.

I know there is probably an obvious way to go about this, but lately my brain seems to want to make everything harder than necessary! :roll:

Thanks!

 

[elsamuel7]

my cabi

Hey gang!
I love my cabi,and I