So what would you do (self serve bay abuse)

[soapy]

I run into that on a daily basis. I carry a square nose shovel for the heavy mud and use it first. Speeds up the bay cleaning. Don't let the 1 in 100 create a policy that eliminates 50.

 

[Waxman]

keep the price high enough to allow for xtra cleanup once in awhile. I see way too many operators selling an awesome product/service/experience at a price from 1989, thinking they can't go up. Nonsense.

most of my abusers come after hours when staff has gone home. i'm not gonna waste my energy looking up their plate on my cctv, calling them etc.

my old friend Whale of a Wash said " if you can clean it up in one cycle worth of time I don't even consider it a mess."

 

[Roz]

keep the price high enough to allow for xtra cleanup once in awhile. I see way too many operators selling an awesome product/service/experience at a price from 1989, thinking they can't go up. Nonsense.

most of my abusers come after hours when staff has gone home. i'm not gonna waste my energy looking up their plate on my cctv, calling them etc.

my old friend Whale of a Wash said " if you can clean it up in one cycle worth of time I don't even consider it a mess."

Hank is filled with those sayings.

 

[Big Chris]

Thanks everyone for your comments and thoughts.

After checking my records, this was the first and only time that a credit card issued to this person was used in the past 2 years. So I knew I wasn't dealing with a repeat customer, instead someone who needed to blow their truck bed out.

I ended up doing something along the lines of what HeyVern suggested. I stopped by his practice (he's a local doctor) and politely asked to speak with him, when I was told he was "busy", I explained who I was and left pictures from the first post with the receptionist and my phone number. I left. About 10 minutes later I got a call from him apologizing up and down and how he "felt bad" while he was doing it. I did not address him as "Dr", instead I used his first name. I explained that he left the place a mess for the next customer, and there is a difference between using the facility and abusing the facility. He offered to pay a clean up fee, I did not accept that offer.

I was satisfied with this. Knowing that there would be some embarrassment with his office staff. I was also satisfied knowing he'll never be back, and that was my goal.

As for those who simply say "suck it up butttercup". That's cool, and you do you.

 

[soapy]

Chris, you handled it well. I often have trouble with people who want to stay in the bay detailing their wheels and drying the car while people are waiting to get in. Every bay is full and people waiting and they don't care. I ask them kindly to pull out so then next person can wash. I have signs posted in each bay saying not to loiter in the bay. At least 50% of the time they have to argue. No problem if we aren't busy but when we are busy I have to put my foot down.

 

[Keno]

Thanks everyone for your comments and thoughts.

After checking my records, this was the first and only time that a credit card issued to this person was used in the past 2 years. So I knew I wasn't dealing with a repeat customer, instead someone who needed to blow their truck bed out.

I ended up doing something along the lines of what HeyVern suggested. I stopped by his practice (he's a local doctor) and politely asked to speak with him, when I was told he was "busy", I explained who I was and left pictures from the first post with the receptionist and my phone number. I left. About 10 minutes later I got a call from him apologizing up and down and how he "felt bad" while he was doing it. I did not address him as "Dr", instead I used his first name. I explained that he left the place a mess for the next customer, and there is a difference between using the facility and abusing the facility. He offered to pay a clean up fee, I did not accept that offer.

I was satisfied with this. Knowing that there would be some embarrassment with his office staff. I was also satisfied knowing he'll never be back, and that was my goal.

As for those who simply say "suck it up butttercup". That's cool, and you do you.

Wonder how far his social and professional net goes? You know he won't blame himself when he tells people the story and not to go to your wash. I think there is a lot more to lose than to gain by shaming someone like this. My 2 cents, but like you said, you do you

 

[WashTechGuru]

Wonder how far his social and professional net goes? You know he won't blame himself when he tells people the story and not to go to your wash. I think there is a lot more to lose than to gain by shaming someone like this. My 2 cents, but like you said, you do you

It might just have a positive effect. He may tell his friends how it never occurred to him that the bay was out of commission until someone came and cleaned it out. Also, it never hurts to put a face with the business. .

 

[Keno]

It might just have a positive effect. He may tell his friends how it never occurred to him that the bay was out of commission until someone came and cleaned it out. Also, it never hurts to put a face with the business. .

Publicly shaming someone is never something that will bring them to your corner

 

[Waxman]

Publicly shaming someone is never something that will bring them to your corner

I tend to agree. I find that people are very intolerant of any criticism however minor that comes their way.

 

[Greg_T]

I think that this thread just shows how different each car wash can be. As I noted earlier, mud is just "business as usual" for us. As evidence, 3 x 5 gallon buckets of mud that my wife cleaned up yesterday.......

 

[edredtop]

I tend to agree. I find that people are very intolerant of any criticism however minor that comes their way.

...especially on this site (just kidding... kinda)
The best thing about what we all do is that we're INDEPENDANT operators and we get to handle things our way.
The cool thing about this site is we get a sample of how others handle things and get to compare it to our own standards.

 

[edredtop]

.

 

[Roz]

Get a WheelBarrow Vac. Makes cleaning the mud like vacuuming the house. If small amount then just shovel. If a large amount the vac on wheel barrow works great. They are a bit pricey but now available from KR

We primarily use the vac on our pits.

Roll-n-Vac Hydrovac-2 Portable Industrial Vacuum Cleaner

The RNV Hydrovac-2 is an industrial portable vacuum cleaner for water, wet leaves, sludge, sand, & mud. Fits on 6 cu ft capacity construction wheelbarrows.

www.kleen-ritecorp.com

 

[MarkDavis]

If I saw someone abusing a self-serve bay, I'd first try to calmly let them know it's a shared space and we all benefit from using it fairly. If that doesn’t work or feels unsafe, I’d report it to the attendant or property manager—keeping the peace while respecting the space is key.

 

[edredtop]

If I saw someone abusing a self-serve bay, I'd first try to calmly let them know it's a shared space and we all benefit from using it fairly. If that doesn’t work or feels unsafe, I’d report it to the attendant or property manager—keeping the peace while respecting the space is key.

Respectfully, Its not a "shared space," its a transactional space and technically the OP here (Chris) had his bay vandalized by an inconsiderate "customer." What's being discussed in this thread is "balance" on a couple of sliding scales.
*At what point have our services been abused, and what is the appropriate response

 

[OurTown]

Respectfully, Its not a "shared space," its a transactional space and technically the OP here (Chris) had his bay vandalized by an inconsiderate "customer." What's being discussed in this thread is "balance" on a couple of sliding scales.
*At what point have our services been abused, and what is the appropriate response

I believe that is a bot you are responding to.

 

[edredtop]

I believe that is a bot you are responding to.

Aaaagh...damn it, I think you're right. Got me .
The spineless, "fresh college graduate" style of writing irked me to the point of a response.