Ceramic wax
- Thread starter Leee
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soonermajic
Well-known member
The more reputable soap/chem companies & reps are telling me it's pretty much a fad & it is all hype.
If you git a good Carnauba foam wax, then you got something customers can see, smell, & watch it work for several weeks.
If you git a good Carnauba foam wax, then you got something customers can see, smell, & watch it work for several weeks.
washnshine
Well-known member
Exactly what I heard. It promises high shine and 30 days water repellency - got that already with hot wax and rain-x.
Products like this do not layer - so if you put on hot wax, rain x and ceramic sealer you don’t get 90 days, you get 30 - or whatever any single lasts. It is the next thing to up your ticket price or have a $4 add-on, but quite frankly it has no show - unless you put it on with a lighted arch and it does nothing that super sealers and carnaubas already have been doing for 10-15 years.
the thing with high end extra services is that the customer has to see a difference - like they can with hot wax, rain x, tire shine etc.
This does nothing new . It doesn’t even promise anything unique. It is not the coating that you get at the detailer for several hundred dollars. There is probably about as much sio2 in it as there is carnauba in hot wax. It is the polymer in either case doing the work. And 30 days is probably about the max You’re going to get for now - no matter what you call it.
Who is even going to be thinking about it after 30 days anyway- if it was just sprayed on in a car wash.
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Thanks for the help. Decision made.
DiamondWash
Well-known member
You could advertise "Hot Birthday Cake Flavored Cermaic Sealant" and it would sell but don't forget to add $6-$10k in rgb lighting to drive your sales up too.
OurTown
Well-known member
Maybe use the word "scented" instead. Otherwise I could see someone putting their window down during that cycle to verify it tastes like cake because they want to make sure they are getting their money's worth.
You guys should try it before you poo-poo it. It is not the same thing as professionally applied ceramic coatings for $600, but it is def a step up from a rain repellant.
SI02 is the active ingredient.
It def enhances shine and water literally falls off the car.
My problem with it is that it does such a good job, that I think it will keep customer's cars cleaner for longer, which means they won't need to wash it as often.
SI02 is the active ingredient.
It def enhances shine and water literally falls off the car.
My problem with it is that it does such a good job, that I think it will keep customer's cars cleaner for longer, which means they won't need to wash it as often.
washnshine
Well-known member
If you don’t mind me asking -
What brand are you using and how is the shine and water repellency differ from a carnauba wax/hot wax product? Your description sounds just like what those products do.
JMMUSTANG
car wash owner
washnshine
Well-known member
Same here - I also don’t see that it makes a claim to do anything better than we already have with the high end sealers/waxes. That is my big problem with it.
JMMUSTANG
car wash owner
I agree but my thinking is it is the “New and Improved” that might sell it more than the wax I have now especially if no other self servs around me has it.
Greg Pack
Wash Weenie
Ceramics is the buzzword and a true ceramic application is an entirely different process than is offered in the automatic wash environment. I've talked to one rep and he thinks that manufacturers and wash companies are flirting with a lawsuit. IIRC, back in the 80s there was one company suing a lot of folks over the use of the word "wax" in their description of products containing seal oil or silicone instead of a true wax. I don't recall how successful he was, if at all.
There is no ceramics in the liquid formulations we use but the shine and repellency is coming from a group of polymers. It seems that some products are better at providing a silky hand-waxed feel and higher gloss levels, while others are better(longer lasting) water repellents. Most tunnels and the newer IBAs have the ability to offer them in different stages. The theory is usually to apply the gloss enhancers first and then "seal in" that product with a Rain-X type product. I'm more interested in shine and short term repellency. I'm not really interested in providing a product that lasts more than 30 days as my average customer comes through probably weekly. Plus, some of the ultra durable products have build-up issues in the equipment. Another potential issue is if you run a touch free wash and don't get the car clean before you apply these products you have effectively sealed the dirt into the finish and made the car even more difficult to clean the next time.
In the SS I use the gloss enhancer products in my triple foam (Quest's Shine On), and then use a better high pressure CCP that has rain repellent qualities, giving the customer the ability to do this process in the bays.
There is no ceramics in the liquid formulations we use but the shine and repellency is coming from a group of polymers. It seems that some products are better at providing a silky hand-waxed feel and higher gloss levels, while others are better(longer lasting) water repellents. Most tunnels and the newer IBAs have the ability to offer them in different stages. The theory is usually to apply the gloss enhancers first and then "seal in" that product with a Rain-X type product. I'm more interested in shine and short term repellency. I'm not really interested in providing a product that lasts more than 30 days as my average customer comes through probably weekly. Plus, some of the ultra durable products have build-up issues in the equipment. Another potential issue is if you run a touch free wash and don't get the car clean before you apply these products you have effectively sealed the dirt into the finish and made the car even more difficult to clean the next time.
In the SS I use the gloss enhancer products in my triple foam (Quest's Shine On), and then use a better high pressure CCP that has rain repellent qualities, giving the customer the ability to do this process in the bays.
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JMMUSTANG
car wash owner
Greg I believe it was the family of the guy that ”invented” and trademarked “HOT WAX”
We actually did heat our “wax” to 105 degrees.
We actually did heat our “wax” to 105 degrees.
AnalyticWash
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These products work. Really well.
Protect-ants/waxes/ceramics (self serve or IBA applied) have come a long way in the last 5 years. I think most people have not been able to try any of these new options because car wash owners are all cheap when it comes to their chemicals and they tend to step over $100 bills to pick up pennies. These products work much better than carnauba based wax products that have been on the market for years.
Ignore the cost. If a product delivers a substantial result, marketing & educating your customer base will go a long way towards making you more $$ with said product.
You should find a new rep. Anyone who says it is a fad or hype does not understand the trends. Carnauba was the stuff my dad's dad's dad put on his ride...it's 2020
I'm using Ceramic Sealant from T&E sales; it's half the price of Simonize ceramic.
I am using it in my tunnel. Created a new top package, and sell it alacart as a $5 add-on.
I'm not using it in my SS bays. I recently installed a Rain-X foam gun in my bays though.
You guys with IBA's should really get on on board the ceramic train, and create a new top package.
I am using it in my tunnel. Created a new top package, and sell it alacart as a $5 add-on.
I'm not using it in my SS bays. I recently installed a Rain-X foam gun in my bays though.
You guys with IBA's should really get on on board the ceramic train, and create a new top package.
washnshine
Well-known member
Well, not really, since we are talking about car wash applied sealants. And we already established the carnauba is not a functional compound in these products, but rather a name to drive sales. The carnauba we are talking about (arch applied spray sealant ) made its way into the market circa 2012, so probably not a product your great grand father used. Maybe he used a hand applied carnauba wax, but that is not the product we are talking about. Sure, the name may be nostalgic to some, but I am sure people buy it for the results it gives them in their favorite car wash.
In terms of trends, there will always be something to replace the old product, a “new and improved” version, but unless it delivers more and performs better than what it succeeds it is just hype.
soonermajic
Well-known member
Analytics'
That is some pretty sound advice. I appreciate you helping me out. I have been struggling getting my wash more profitable, & i think what you said to do is exactly what I need to try.
How many washea do you own, & how long have you owned them?
Thanks again
I.B. Washincars
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All these big words and performance claims in the car wash industry are nice and all, but I would bet ten dollars to a dog turd that you could explain it all to a hundred customers and 99 of them will just hear that it is wax. Be sure and work nanotechnology in there as well. Nobody knows what that means either...
DiamondWash
Well-known member
But my "Hot Birthday Cake Scented Ceramic Sanitizing Sealant" with infused nanotechnology should sway the customers decision to buy it I think
