Dear TanningBeds.org,

We have an 1984 suntana bed-model SB-3 24 bulbs and it keeps thowing the breaker.It’s 120 volts and the breaker for the bedroom is a 20 amp. What do we need to do? We are not sure if the wiring in the bedrm would carry a 30 amp breaker.

Pamela
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Dear Pamela,

You need to wire a new circuit. That bed REQUIRES a 120V/30A circuit, and you can NOT just add a 30 amp circuit to that wire, or you risk a serious fire hazard. Sorry, but its time to get an electrican.

15 amp circuits use 14ga. wire. 20 amp uses 12 ga. and 30 amp uses 10ga. Pushing 30 amps through 14 or 12 will make it dangerous.

That is a very unusual bed, in that a 120V/30A circuit is very uncommon to begin with (excepting at the camp ground). It is also a very good bed, so it is worth the $100-$150 typical charge for an electrician to wire the circuit.

Dennis

Dear TanningBeds.org,

I have Poison Ivy right now. Is it still safe to tan. I tan weekly usually and now I wonder if the UVA rays will help heal or if it will make it worse. Thanks in advance for your response.

Monica

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Dear Monica,

I would NOT tan if you have poison ivy! Wait for it to heal. Poison Ivy, and or the medicine to treat it can make you photosensitive.

You might just be ok, then again, you may swell up like a toad. More than likely, you will react negatively, so just wait.

Dennis

Dear TanningBeds.org,

How is the best way to maintain a tan? I just got back from the beach and, as in years past, have a good dark tan. Every year I’m unsuccessful in keeping that deep color and it fades. I lay out when possible but sometimes have to resort to a tanning bed when the weather isn’t cooperating. I’ve heard about High-Pressure tanning beds but, honestly, get lost in all the jargin. And the tanning packages on those are expensive. When it comes to tanning beds, frequency of usage, and type of lotion what do you recommend to keep my beachy color?

Angie
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Dear Angie,

I don’t mean to sound like a sales pitch, but it sounds like you want to stay really dark all year round, and the only way to do that is with a tanning bed. There really isn’t any cheats on this one. Your choices are either the salon or a home tanning bed. If you tan all year round, almost every day, then a home system is definately cheaper. Our sponsor sells a 24 lamp bed starting at about $2000 including shipping, and it is commercial grade.

If a salon is more to your choosing, you can find packages in the $30 per month range or cheaper if you sign up for a whole year. High pressure beds are another alternative, because you typically only go once or twice per month after you have the tan, but they are pure UVA and a big more intense than some people would like. They also cost a lot more.

Be syre to use a good moisturizer, find a good tanning lotion to use, and never let yourself burn (burns actually reduce tanning ability). Remember: Each of us has a limited potential to tan. If you are Irish and freckled, you are not going to get as dark as someone of Brazilian decent, no matter what you do. Be careful not to expect too much, or fall into the “tanning addiction” end of the spectrum. UV can be very healthy, but too much isn’t good either.

Dennis

Dear TanningBeds.org,

Do you know the value of a Commerical 1997 Montego Bay Classic 2600 Wolff System Tanning Bed? I’m thinking of buying one and would like to know what it’s worth, to see if they’re asking too much.

No email or name given
(So I can’t email them back this answer….you gotta leave me the email address folks…)

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Dear Friend,

Value is a relative thing. It depends on the condition, what parts it needs, if any, the overall appearance of the bed, etc. Also, where the bed is located, if delivery is included, and other factors influence value. I used to sell those beds, so I know them pretty good. Over all, I like them better than most new tanning beds. Usually.

The 2600 was a good bed *IF* if it had the proper modifications to it. When they first came out, they were melting bench acrylics, so the factory sent a kit out that added an extra fan on the ends of the bench acrylic. If it has any bubbling on the bench acrylic, avoid it as you can’t get the kit any more.

Likely it was converted and should work fine. The replacement acrylics are pretty expensive, so make sure it doesn’t have cracks in it. “Spider cracks” in the bends of the acrylic are common, and are not a big issue as long as there are not too many. Acrylics can run $200+ and shipping is typically $150. Wow, but true.

Performance wise, the bed is an average. It uses magnetic ballasts and came with a Bellarium S lamp. There are plenty of replacement lamps that can be had, and I would suggest a “rebuild kit” for the acrylics before anything else. It is $26 at 1-800-274-1744 and worth every penny. Just about any bed with magnetic ballasts is going to be “average”, as they are not the hottest electronics system. They are extremely reliable and stable, and offer many failsafe systems, however.

To establish a dollar value, you have to look around and see what they are selling for. They sold for around $4000 to $4500 new then, and a similar quality bed would sell for about $4000 now. Keep in mind, what you are paying for is the construction, not the number of lamps, and that is a very beefy bed. A new 26 lamp bed now can run as cheap as $3000 or less, although it won’t be as beefy or strong as that one. It will, however, have a warranty and all the parts are new. Also, that bed is extremely heavy, which is a consideration if you have to pick it up and set it up yourself.

So, what is the bed worth?

Assuming the bed is in good condition, doesn’t need acrylics, hydraulic pistons or ballasts (ie: all lamps light up) but DOES need new lamps ($400 typical, including shipping) and the acrylics reconditioned, then the value can be from $500 to $1500, depending on how it looks and if they are delivering it. Remember: that bed requires a remote timer, and if you don’t have it with the bed, it will cost $100 for the timer plus $25 for the plug assembly to connect it. If you get it for $1000, put $400 into new lamps, spend nothing else, AND it looks and works really well, then you have a very good value. They are very comfortable and the parts are still available, so it will be useable for years to come.

Dennis

Dear TanningBeds.org,

I have a Tanning Canopy my husband bought me last year but I am not getting the tan I used to get going to a tanning salon. Now I am wanting to purchase a tanning bed but I am holding out until I can find out why these little small white spots are showing up on my legs. They won’t tan with the rest of my skin. I know this is an odd question for you but I am hoping you can help me. The last place I asked told me to stop tanning and stay out of tanning beds. Have you had any questions like this before ? Can you give me some advise ?

Thank you,
[name withheld]
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First, smart move on ditching the canopy. I try to tell people every day, but most do not listen. The vast majority of people are not happy with canopies, unless their goals are very modest.

As to the spots, I know what they may be, and I had them all over my back last year. I went to the doctor, who perscribed some lotion to put on them for a couple of weeks with selenium sulfide. It is a type of yeast fungus. This sounds bad, but actually it is a very common fungus and is easy to treat. Some people call these “sunspots” as they become more noticable in people who tan, since the spots don’t tan themselves. They are sometimes a little scaley. Most people have the fungus anyway, but it doesn’t “show up”. If you sweat outdoors a lot, use a hot tub, or stay in hot, humid places a lot, then they flair up.

The lotion is pretty cheap but by perscription only. It is similar (or the same) as what is used in some perscription dandruff shampoos. I put off going for months, and it spread. After I finally went, it was gone in two weeks. The lotion has a weird smell, kinda like dirt and chemicals mixed, but it was worth it since they are gone and I don’t have a spotted tan.

I’m not a doctor, but a visit would be in order if you have a lot of spots. You can also buy what is called “sun spot solution” from larger tanning suppliers (like us at 1-800-274-1744) and it works for some, but it didn’t work for me. Once the spots are gone, you can start tanning in those areas again. Likely a bit slower at first, but it should be even within a couple of months.

If you want to read more on the fungus, you can visit Wikipeida’s article on Tinea Versicolor which is a small but decent article. The pictures they show are probably a lot worse than your case, but it is the same problem.

Dennis

Here is a question about a tanning bed that is older than half the visitors to the site!

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Dear TanningBeds.org,

Glad to find this site. I need help… Do not want to burn up tanning bed. In the past week I was given a Suntana SunSystem bed that came out of a tanning salon. It is a 1984, Model SB-3, 26 Amp, 120 VAC and 24 bulbs.

It has a 4 pin connector that plugs into the back with a Red, Green, Black and whit wire. Only the Red wire was connected to 2 smaller wies that were twisted together that ran up in the cieling. At the other end ( At the front desk) was a two bed timer…Also a Suntana with one Wire for bed 1 another for bed 2 and one bare wire. Can one wire be enough to start the bed or am I missing something that was hiding in the cieling ? Such as a transformer or Relay ? The bed worked fine before but will not power up without the timer.

Signed,
Bob
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Ok, just talked my friend Ron Murphy. He has been in the industry for 25 years, and verified what I first thought. There aren’t many of us still around that remember those beds! Fortunately, if you are handy or have access to someone who is, setting up won’t be too painful. You will need to do some quick tests with a volt meter, but it won’t be hard to figure out.

Of the four wires in the timer port, the green is ground, the white is neutral. The key is the red and black wires. One is the “always hot” leg, the other is the “switched leg” that goes to the relay to turn the bed on. To test this you have to test to see which wire is HOT when the bed is connected to power. Obviously, this is very dangerous if you don’t know what you are doing.

Normally that went to a powered timer (We sell similar ones for about $25 with no housing or knob). The timer itself is powered by 120V (thus the neutral wire and the always hot wire). When the timer is ON, then it connects the always hot wire to the other wire (either red or black, testing will tell) which turns on the relay.

The coil of the relay (the actual switching part, typically labelled A1 and A2 or similar) will have one leg always connected to neutral, and when it gets power from the trigger wire via the timer, it turns on. This allows the power from the Load side of the relay to go through to the Line side, thus the bed is on.

If you don’t have the original timer, you would have to make one. You can use a plastic box, say 6″x6″ and 3″ deep. You would buy the 120V timer first, for measuring. Also nice to get a fuse housing and a 3amp fuse. You would drill a hole in the center to mount the timer, and two small holes for the screws that hold the timer in place, plus a hole for the fuse holder (if used) and for the incoming cord. You would use SO grade cable (18 guage is plenty good, 4 conductor) that you can buy from any home improvement store by the foot. You would interupt the “always hot” leg with the fuse. You also want a strain relief for the SO cable.

Connecting it all together isn’t as hard as it may seem, and I would just call whoever you buy the timer element from once you know which color (red or black) is the trigger and which is the “always hot”. If you are using the bed at home, about 8 foot of the SO cable is plenty. If you don’t have a plug to connect the remote timer with (likely) then you will have to hard wire it.

Assuming you are pretty handy, this should get you going. It may take a little time, but that is a good bed and the company I work for has all the parts you need plus other parts for the SB-3, like hydraulic cylinders, etc. at 1-800-274-1744 (ext. 127 is Archie, who handles parts, or ext. 121 is Ron who really knows that bed) or you can check around with anyone else that sells parts. Good luck, and tell me how it goes!

Dennis