Salon Equipment Notes | August 2026
A recent discussion among U.S. head spa owners caught my attention.
One salon owner shared that she had been in the head spa business for about 21 months. When she first opened, she started with four portable, non-plumbed head spa sinks.
At first, the idea sounded perfect: no major plumbing work, easier installation, and more flexibility when setting up the salon.
But after actually running the business, her experience changed quite a bit.
25+ Replacement Pumps Later…
According to her post, something seemed to go wrong every couple of months. She mentioned problems with sprayers, halo components and pumps, and said she had gone through more than 25 replacement pumps as well as several sink exchanges.
That does not mean every portable head spa sink will have the same problems. Product quality varies significantly.
But her experience highlights something worth thinking about:
The easiest equipment to install is not always the easiest equipment to operate.
A non-plumbed system normally relies on clean-water tanks, waste-water tanks and pumps. This avoids permanent plumbing work, but salon staff also need to refill, empty, clean and maintain those components.
She Eventually Switched All Four Stations
The salon owner later replaced all four units with fully plumbed, fresh-water head spa systems.
In other words, the equipment now connects directly to the salon’s water supply and drainage, much like a traditional shampoo station.
No repeatedly filling clean-water tanks. No emptying dirty-water tanks between services. And fewer pump-related components involved in everyday water delivery.
Her reaction after the upgrade was simple: she wished she had done it earlier.
Another salon professional in the same discussion said she only keeps portable systems as backups and prefers plumbed equipment for regular daily use.
Portable Still Has Its Place
I would not say portable head spa equipment is “bad.” In some situations, it can still make a lot of sense.
- Rental suites where plumbing cannot be modified
- Temporary salon locations
- Businesses testing Head Spa before renovating
- Backup stations
- Spaces where flexibility matters more than daily volume
For a permanent Head Spa running several appointments every day, however, a plumbed system may be worth considering from the beginning.
The Real Cost Is More Than the Purchase Price
This is something distributors and salon owners should keep in mind when comparing equipment.
The decision is not simply:
Portable or plumbed?
The more useful comparison is:
installation + daily operation + maintenance + replacement parts + downtime + after-sales support.
A cheaper or easier setup at the beginning can become more expensive if the equipment creates additional work every day.
And sometimes paying more attention to the plumbing plan before opening the salon can save a lot of trouble later.
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