Earthlite Massage Tables

About the time I started this blog, I got the opportunity to go down to Vista, CA and tour the Earthlite factory. I've been wanting to write about it this whole time, but (insert excuse here) so now is the time. I learned a lot about massage table construction during my visit, and I thought I'd pass it along to you. By the way, I don't have any affiliation with Earthlite other than I was part of the decision of my school to use their products. I have had great experiences with Earthlite for my entire career.

Table Construction

Apparently Earthlite is one of the last mills in California. I didn't know that before. They actually cut down all of their wood components right there in their own factory. But on to general massage table factoids:

1. You want maple. Cheaper massage tables use birch for the legs. They last a little while, but because birch is a softer wood, before long the screw holes loosen up and the table starts to squeak. Not so with maple.


2. You do want some birch. Maple is heavy, and birch is lighter. While you don't want birch on the legs and frame, the flat decking can get really heavy if it is too dense. So birch is ideal there, but not just any birch. Aircraft quality birch from Russia is the ticket. Really light and strong, it's the same stuff they used to make planes out of.


3. Wood blocks. Cheaper tables use plastic blocks to anchor the legs into. The problem is that plastic doesn't bond to wood very well, making for a potential weak spot where the legs join the table. A quality table will have wood blocks.


4. You want 3" of foam. Different tables will layer their foam differently, with various foams and even memory foam, but you want 3". Some of the cheaper tables have 2". Even some of the 3" foam tables you have to make sure that you can't bottom out on it (take a fist and push down. Can you feel the wood?)


5. Double-locking legs? I've heard it said that you are supposed to have double-locking legs on your table, but the high end tables I've used haven't had or needed them. I still have my first Earthlite Spirit table from 11 years ago (heavily used and transported) and I still can't get it to squeak. I suppose it could be a fail-safe, but I've never seen any problems with single-locking legs.


6. Weight. Some cheaper tables pack on strength by packing on weight. This can be fine if you never move it, but if you do any out-call - Fuhgeddaboudit!


7. Vinyl. Ultraleather feels nice, but it isn't all that durable. Both duraleather and Earthlite's Natursoft feel great and last. Although how important this is may depend on how often your clients actually touch the table vinyl directly.


8. Full width hinge. A good table will have a sturdy hinge on it, preferrably the entire width of the frame rather than a couple of dinky hinges to support the entire weight in the middle.

Some Earthlite Specifics

I love their Caress and Flex-Rest face cradles. If you've ever had that splitting sinus pressure during a massage getting a table that one of these babies will fit in would be worth it by itself. The Flex-Rest distributes the pressure a little more evenly (and is a little lighter) and the Caress molds to your face. Beautiful. Earthlite also uses more eco-friendly products like water-based varnishes and renewable hardwoods.

Quality Controls (aka Made in China)

OK, I knew Earthlite was a quality company before I went down there, but this part blew me away. I had had some doubts about switching to Earthlite simply because they had acquired Stronglite - a company that I had had endless headaches with in the past. Their tables had simply fallen apart with alarming regularity. We finally got rid of (broke) the last one not long ago. Not one table (or chair) lasted. I was concerned what impact that that would have on Earthlite.

I learned a lot about doing business in China from this trip. That doing business there can be a blessing or a curse. Apparently this is how it works. You usually don't do business directly with a Chinese factory, you deal with a broker who then lines up a factory for your production as well as the suppliers for your materials. The broker charges a fee and then lines up his suppliers to make the most profit. The broker will swap out factories and suppliers at any time to maximize his profit - and leaving you out of control of your product. Hence all these problems with products made in China. U.S. companies are learning the hard way how to do business there.

Earthlite impressed me with how they handled this situation. Yes, they do have a factory over in China. They run the factory and even house their employees (to ensure that they get proper shelter and nourishment). They employ the same kinds of quality controls there as they do here and I met the man that oversees them. They also worked out direct contracts with each supplier and even visited their factories to QC the parts they receive! They cross-inspect between factories - the finished products here and the wood components there (that get sent there from CA).

The vinyl is a story all of itself. Duratouch vinyl can get expensive and apparently there is somewhat of a corner on the market. Earthlite wanted to reduce costs so they created their own vinyl (Natursoft). Personally, I think that it feels better than ultraleather. Anyway, as far as quality control, they send their own chemist to the factory that inspects all of the ingredients and then the finished product of each batch of vinyl. Feels better, lasts longer, and is cheaper than the alternatives.

I got to watch the table tests too - static load and the drop test. It's pretty darn cool to see a forklift set a few thousand pounds on a table and it doesn't break. The drop test is even more dramatic. They suspend weight (in this case around 500 pounds) over the table and drop it so that it hits the center of the table (at the hinge) with force. First they dropped 450 lbs. Then they upped it to 495 lbs. Finally 540 lbs caused the table to give. Give mind you and not break. The real-life equivalent would be three clients of those weights each taking a turn to run up and jump on your table. Right.

I did notice that their warranty service area was conspicuously bare. They just don't get that much warranty work.

Company Culture

Of course we were there in the capacity of "potential clients", but I met a great bunch of people down there. Certainly a bunch of guys I could hang out with even if it wasn't business. They have been very responsive to our needs and I could certainly tell that they all have a genuine interest in making a great product. They didn't need any hard sales pitch and didn't use one either. They did what I recommend for any product - build a great product and then all you have to do is teach about it instead of "sell" it.

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