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Karla

New member
I am needing/interested to know all there is to know about running a Carwash.
I am eager to learn and need to know so much.

(Wand wash, 4 car size, 2 truck/trailer bays with 2 on each side (4)

From the keyExpress machines, office, mechanical room, pressures, water softener, ratios, helpful hints to make life a little easier👌 Lol
I live in an area that apparently loves mud.
Learning and crying over mud has been quite the experience! Haha

I’ve been reading so much and reaching out to anyone and everyone for some helpful guidance. I’m needing a list to follow that outlines everything to check over and how to maintain properly and what to look out for.
The owner has been truly amazing with repairs, rebuilds and fixing up the building (not cheap!😬)
I’ve walked into my position very eager to learn. Now that things are being cleaned up/fixed up and I can see more clearly I would like things to stay functional.
- what tools are absolutely necessary to have on hand
-what parts/pieces are a must to have on hand
-what to really look out for day to day. (Sounds are becoming quite easy to pick out now👌)
-KeyExpress know how (red key)

Interested to hear from anyone and everyone!!
Running away is not an option. haha. (Heard that quite a bit)
 
If there's a lot of mud, like it takes over 5 minutes to spray it down into the pit, I pull out a wheel barrow and shovel and dump it on a low spot in our grass. If you don't have grass, then you can put it into the trash can. (Careful with this, some places are funny about "wet" things being put into the trash. You may have to dry it first.)

If you want to discourage mudders, or at least make a few extra dollars so you feel better about having to clean it up, lower your pressure or change your tips to allow less water to flow through in a given time. This will make them take longer to clean it resulting in more money. It's essentially a way to raise prices on just mudders.

Try to enjoy it.
 
The mud situation is the first task I’m wanting to simplify. Vac truck was heart breaking to see the invoice. Then tackling clogged drains. Then mini back hoe was my life saver for the moment. Now I’m thinking of replacing the grates with steel plates with holes in them. Also the proper use of a shovel and good ‘old elbow grease needs to be done more. I do have a dump spot for mud.
 
Northern Alberta Canada. I’m so looking forward to seeing how things hold up during our winters😬 lol
 
For the mud I welded on diamond shape expanded metal onto my grate to make sure mudders dont wash down chunks of mud filling my pits faster. We normally shovel any mud into the dumpster and wash down the residue
 
I've also had to cover the pits of the busiest bays with steel with a single 4" hole in the middle. It makes a huge difference in the frequency of emptying the pits. Just place an empty bucket over the hole, rinse the dirt/mud onto the steel, then pick up the pail and let the water run into the pit. The mud will stay to be picked up with a shovel.

I wouldn't know where to start with advice. Just read this forum and ask questions, there are plenty of people who will answer.
 
Mud can and will be frustrating but think of the $$$$. Not sure what your prices are but i would make sure they are set pretty good that way when you are cleaning a bay that has been destroyed by a mudder your also thinking of how much money he or she had to use to make that mess. What size tips do you have on your wands? Mep recommends veejet and i switched all mine that were an imeg to all veejets and love them. I found the 2506 and 25065 work best for me.
 
Probably the best advice I can give you is don’t get into the self-serve car wash business. As a business model it is slowly dying, it’s kind of like the Drive-in movie industry or the laundromat industry, slowly dying. At this last ICA convention there was only 2 vendors of self-serve car wash equipment and the rest were tunnel equipment suppliers. Why is that, could it be that the business model is dead for the self-serve car wash industry. When was the last time a new car wash was built in your area from the ground up, in my area it’s been years. Most self-serve car washes that are sold are torn down and something else is built in its place, why is that, could it be there are more profitable uses for the property than having a car wash on it. In the 37 years I’ve been in the car wash business I’ve seen more operators come and go than they are in the business now, why is that, could it be the low return on the investment or is it your working your butt off for peanuts. Sure there are a few operators who do reasonably pretty well, they are the ones who have dog it out over the last 10 or 15 years, who wants to work there butt off for 10 or 15 years before they start getting a decent return. There’s a reason that a lot of car washes are run down eyesore in the community and that is because at the end of the day there isn’t any revenue left to properly maintain the facility or the owner doesn’t have the skills to maintain the property or he just doesn’t care anymore. Then at the end of 10 or 15 years the facility will be worn out and in need of a remodel so there goes another huge expense and it goes on and on.
I suggest that you ask a specific question instead asking that you want to know everything there is to know about running a car wash, it took us years to learn everything we know about the car wash business and still today it’s a learning experience.
 
We put a filter before the drain in our pits and shovel them out whenever needed (every day, week, month, etc. depending on traffic) and let the water drain slowly into the drains leaving the sludge behind, then shovel sludge into burlap bags (14''x24''~) and let it sit out to drain. After a few days, either pick them up and dump them into the dumpster or if your trash company is picky, just load them up onto a trailer/pick up and dump it at the landfill with minimal costs.
 
Randy has some good points but around here I think that it's more leveled out than dying. Between about 1998 to 2007 probably 75 percent of self serve washes near us were built. (with at least one automatic) There are just too many bays available now. The express exteriors are now being over built in the same way around here. It will probably shake some out in the years to come in the same way self serve did. Automatics are the way to go as people are getting lazy about everything these days.
 
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