ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of Science-Technology Centers
Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related institutions.
*****************************************************************************
Anna,
Years ago I went round and round trying to find a solution for flooring.
I went through about 5 types of flooring before finding something that
worked. The only flooring that would work is a rubber mat used for the
entrance of walk-in refrigerators or freezers like what you would find
in a restaurant or an industrial setting. It is a thin rubber mat, but
the surface is similar to very coarse sandpaper. Insurance companies
will advise you that your flooring should have a slip coefficient rating
of at least 5.
It's possible you might encounter a few lightly scraped knees, but it is
a small price to pay for safety. For comparison, I used Dri-Dek and had
multiple injuries associated with it. At least one person broke their
ankle on it. As Paul says below, it is great for draining water, but not
for soap solution. The Dri-Dek does not provide a slip free surface when
dealing with soap.
Drainage mats will work, but have three sets on hand because you will be
rotating them on a regular basis for cleaning. Traffic was high at my
museum so we were rotating them out daily for cleaning. It was very
labor intensive and didn't make much sense to do, but at the time we
were desperate for something that was safe.
Flooring is only half of your problem. Depending how much solution is
spilled on the floors, you will be surprised how far it can travel and
how much damage a little bit can do. The soap solution at our museum
eventually raised the tiles on the floor, corroded the metal studs in
the wall and seeped through the wall and started damaging the flooring
on the opposite side. This happened even with good maintenance and a
drain in the middle of the floor.
Another thing to keep in mind is soap in the air. Again depending on
your amount of traffic, you will soon find a soap film in the ceiling of
your bubble room and on walls of adjacent galleries. We had enough soap
travel through the air to cause problems in the aquariums of a nearby
gallery.
Bubble rooms take a lot of maintenance. I hope this will be of some help
to you - good luck with your exhibit.
Paul
Paul Spana
Exhibits Manager
Space Center Houston
1601 NASA Parkway
Houston, Texas 77058
281.244.2124 office
281.283.7729 fax
-----Original Message-----
From: Informal Science Education Network
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Paul Orselli
Sent: Thursday, July 29, 2010 6:10 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Bubble Stations
ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of Science-Technology
Centers
Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related
institutions.
************************************************************************
*****
Hi Anna,
Great question! I think the flooring of Bubble Galleries is as, if not
more, important than the bubble stations themselves (I've seen/made
effective and long-lasting bubbles stations of fiberglas, Corian, and
stainless steel) but poor flooring really detracts from most Bubbles
exhibitions.
Whenever I've had the opportunity to start Bubble Galleries from
scratch,
I've gone for a raised drainage floor with a non-skid surface (hexagonal
asphaltic pavers work surprisingly well) on top that eliminates standing
puddles of bubble soap solution. (Any spilled solution goes right
through to
the drain below.)
If you can't start your flooring solution from scratch, you're faced
with
two types of options:
1) "Drainage" mats (like you see at the entrance of shopping malls ---
or
museums) with a "fuzzy" surface and a plastic backing that are designed
to
absorb a certain amount of liquid. Honestly, these mats quickly become
sodden, stinky, and slippery and are a real sanitation and maintenance
hassle to keep switching out. If you don't switch them out regularly
and
consistantly, a layer of grimy soap film will start to migrate to floor
areas in adjoining exhibit galleries. Also the mats still get a bit
slippery when they get soaked.
2) Raised drainage tiles (like Dri-Dek) these tiles look like knobbly
waffles with holes that allow liquid to drain through. They really work
better for Water Areas, but they are better than just plain cement/tile
floors. You'll need to mop or wet-dry vac trapped underneath. I've also
combined Dri-Dek on top of drainage mats in severe cases.
Whatever you do, don't waste time/money on installing "airport-type
tiles"
with the raised half-dollar sized "dots" on them. They might work for
water
in an airport, but they are essentially useless, if not downright
dangerous,
for Bubbles Exhibit flooring.
Good luck and happy bubbling!
--------------------------------------------------
Paul Orselli, President and Chief Instigator
Paul Orselli Workshop (POW!)
World Headquarters
1684 Victoria Street
Baldwin, NY 11510
(516) 223-1043
POW! website
<http://www.orselli.net>
Exhibit tips + tricks at the ExhibiTricks blog:
<http://blog.orselli.net>
On Thu, Jul 29, 2010 at 5:58 PM, Anna Grace at Explorit <
[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of Science-Technology
Centers
> Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related
> institutions.
>
>
************************************************************************
*****
>
> To piggy-back on Jeff's question, I'd like to know what you all use
for
> flooring that is non-slip when covered with bubble solution.
>
> Thanks,
> Anna
>
> On Jul 29, 2010, at 1:00 PM, Jeff Rosenblatt wrote:
>
> ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of Science-Technology
Centers
>> Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related
>> institutions.
>>
>>
************************************************************************
*****
>>
>> We are planning to create a bubble wand making station. Are there
any
>> recommendations for materials and/or designs to utilize?
>>
>> Thanks in advance for sharing your expertise.
>>
>>
>>
>> --Jeff--
>>
>>
>>
>> Jeff Rosenblatt
>>
>> Director, Science City
>> Union Station Kansas City, Inc.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
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