The Federal Way News located in Washington State recently wrote an article that car wash operators and charity organizers ought to perk up to. It’s that time of year again when community organizations and small groups come out in force washing cars to raise money for their varied causes. While many smaller organizations depend on the funds raised by these makeshift carwashes, they can hurt business for professional carwashes, and it turns out that they’re bad for the environment too. According to the article:

…before you send all that oily, soapy water down the storm drain, Federal Way’s Surface Water Management Division and the Puget Sound Car Wash Association (PSCWA) want to remind you that not only is this very harmful to wetlands, streams, and lakes, but it is also a violation of state, local, and federal pollution laws.

Unlike the sanitary sewer systems, water that runs into the storm drains goes directly to lakes, streams, and wetlands with little or no treatment.

Runoff from car washes is highly toxic to aquatic life and is one of the reasons that streams are not as healthy as they should be. [read more...]

At the end of the day, professionally operated carwashes are typically more environmentally friendly than non-professional washes. The article recommends that fund raising groups team up with professional washes who will donate some of the proceeds. From a marketing standpoint, while not likely to make as much money when donating proceeds to charity, a car wash that works with community service groups has an excellent way to generate free advertising and positive publicity while attracting new customers.

RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) chips seem to be popping up everywhere these days. As RFID chips get smaller, innovative companies are finding more uses for them. These chips serve as a method of remotely storing and sharing data via radio waves. Similar to the magnetic strips on the back of credit cards, RFID chips can be attached to cards, products, and even animals. Some RFID advocates even imagine a future where you can go to the store, shop for the items you want to buy and simply walk out of the store with them. Scanners on the store exit would automatically detect what products you’d purchased based on their RFID chips and send you a bill.

Though RFID chips have not been deployed that widely yet, a company name Innovative Control Systems has recently introduced RFID technology in an attempt to streamline the payment process at car washes.

ICS is offering the RFID system as a value-added service to its customers in the car-wash industry as part of the ICS Auto-Sentry touch-screen payment terminal. This terminal can process cash payments (it dispenses change), as well as payments made with magnetic-strip credit or debit cards. As such, it can be deployed at unattended car-wash stations, where customers drive up to payment kiosks, select the type of wash they want, pay and follow instructions to enter the automated car-wash tunnel. [read more...]

If the technology takes off, it would allow busy car washes to automate the payment process and reduce the overall time it takes to wash a car. This is good news for both consumers and car wash owners. Consumers would no longer be troubled by sometimes confusing car wash payment menus and car wash operators could wash more cars per bay.

Circulating the internet this week is a story that every carwash operator should note.

Magic Wand Car Wash Systems recently installed a car wash for an investor in Frederick, Maryland. Shortly after the system was installed, the owner of the new Magic Wand Car Wash started complaining that he was losing large amounts of money from his carwash coin machines every week. The owner even suggested that Magic Wand employees might be using stolen keys to remove money from the machine. In response Bill Daugherty, owner of Magic Wand, set up hidden surveillance cameras to try to catch the thieves in the act. What they found was quite surprising and is pictured below:

Perched and obviously practiced, the starling digs deep.

No worries — he finds what he’s looking for: three quarters!

It turns out that this little criminal, AKA a starling, works in gangs and is attrcted to shiny objects. The carwash operator reported losing hundreds of dollars to the birds and would some mornings find, literally, dozens of quarters on the ground beside the coin machine.

So this true story seems like proof that a good surveillance system at a carwash can be invaluable. It also goes to show that sometimes it is best to keep an open mind when those quarters go missing!

This story has been confirmed by Urban Legends.

The International Carwash Association (ICA) recently concluded its annual trade show in Las Vegas. The booths have been taken down and awards handed out, and among the most interesting results was who received the award for being the Most Washable Car of 2007. That’s right, if you prioritize having a clean, shiny vehicle, then there’s an ideal new car for you. This year’s winner was based on a variety of criteria, including secure mirrors and antennas and smooth body lines.

So which car won this year’s honor? The Saturn Aura. You can read the details of the award below:

PRESS RELEASE:
International Carwash Association Names Saturn Aura Most Washable Car of 2007

LAS VEGAS, March 26 /PRNewswire/ — The International Carwash Association (ICA) named the Saturn Aura as the Most Washable Car 2007 today at the Car Care World Expo in Las Vegas, Nevada. The annual award acknowledges the vehicle that car wash operators consider the most wash-friendly car of the year.

The honor is a critical distinction in the car care industry as research shows that nearly $24 billion a year is spent battling automobile corrosion damage. With the number of consumers keeping their cars longer, this award is an important nod to Saturn’s dedication to designing cars that are easier for car owners to maintain.

“The sleek, European lines which give the Aura its visual appeal, also make it easier to keep clean,” said Lisa Hutchinson, director of brand and product development for Saturn. “We took great pride in the attention to detail and quality of the Aura, because we know that Saturn owners take great pride in their vehicles.”

The International Carwash Association members considered the following criterion for choosing the Most Washable Car:

– Smooth aerodynamic lines that do not catch and retain dirt
– Moldings and ornamentation that do not protrude and are securely
attached
– Bumpers, mirrors, wipers, etc. that are securely attached
– Radio antennas that are securely attached or are hidden in the
windshield or back window glass
– Retractable side view mirrors that are robust at the pivot or mirrors
that do not retract at all
– Ground affects and desk lid spoilers that are aerodynamic and securely
attached or do not exist
– Windshield wipers that are concealed under the rear edge of the hood
– Rear window wipers on Sport-Utility vehicles that do not protrude
– Front license plate attachments (when required) are secure and are not
susceptible to damage

“Keeping your car clean certainly helps its appearance, but it also contributes to its long-term condition and value,” said Mark Thorsby, International Carwash Association executive director. “Our members recognize the Saturn Aura as a vehicle that washes easily professionally, therefore contributing to its preservation.”

The biggest car-finish culprits include the corrosive mixture of sand and salt on roads, pollutants from rain fall, bird droppings, road grime and tree sap. They can harm a car finish if not removed in just a couple of days. According to a survey by the International Carwash Association, more than half of all car owners wash their cars less than once a month, and 16 percent say they never wash their cars. And, once kids ride in a vehicle, food is reported as the number one leave-behind odor, followed by sweat and old shoes.

The International Carwash Association is a non-profit trade association serving 3,000 businesses in the United States, Canada and overseas. Membership includes car wash operators, equipment manufacturers, distributors, and related suppliers. ICA members represent approximately 25,000 car wash and car care locations in North America. The ICA provides facts on car care at http://www.carlove.org/.

What’s in a business sign? A lot actually. A good carwash sign can make a business thrive. The owners of Elephant Car Wash in Rancho Mirage, California, know that their pink elephant carwash sign gets a lot of attention locally, but when they recently decided to give the sign a makeover, they found themselves in the national spotlight as well.

“If you looked at it right now, because of the cold weather - it was so harsh to the sign,” said Anthony Antonis, who co-owns the car wash with his brothers, Michael and John. “It’s such a pillar of the community.”

The car wash serves about 200 cars daily and doubles that number on the weekends, he said.

Customers may not know the business’s name, but they know the elephant. “I hardly remember the name; I just call it the car wash with the big elephant,” said Palm Desert resident Eve McCulloch. It’s a hot spot for photo opportunities, manager Gary Deines said.

“Every night, I see someone taking a picture,” he said. [read more...]

What’s that? People stopping to take a picture with your business sign? That’s right, it’s become something of a landmark. When completed, the restored sign will have new neon lights and cost about $9,000 — a small price to pay for the media punch this sign packs.

It’s nearly 40 degrees in Rochester, Minnesota. While that might not sound very warm in some parts of the country, it’s scorching for this time of year in Minnesota. The warmer weather means that people are out to wash all that salt and grime off their cars after the weeks of cold weather and adverse road conditions. This combination of factors has made one of the busiest weeks of the year for local washes. Some washes are doing between 200-250 cars per DAY!

Regular car washes help make the car look better and last longer, Ayers said.

“If you don’t maintain the finish, it’s more likely to fade and crack and peel and rust — all those nasty things,” Ayers said. [read more...]

On another interesting note, the article concludes by saying that “the car wash industry in the United States includes 14,000 full-service car washes with combined annual revenue of about $5 billion. ” Breaking that down, each wash is earning, on average, $357,142.86 annually.

This month has been sweet indeed for carwash operators in Northern parts of the country — especially the Northeast. Larry Biasotto, owner of Glove Carwash in Delaware caught my attention by putting it this way: “Salt is our sugar.” Yes, that just about sums it up for carwash operators in areas lucky (or unlucky, depending on your perspective) enough to receive buckets of snow this February. Delaware was one of those states to get hit hard by snow and ice.

So far, the state has dipped into its 21 statewide “barns,” where salt is stockpiled, to the tune of about 15,700 tons. While tonnage figures for last year were not immediately available, Westhoff said, he checked around and learned anecdotally that the amount exceeded this year.

The 15,700 tons already has been replaced by International Salt of Clarkson, Pa., which supplies Delaware with the sodium chloride, he said, and DelDOT has restocked the barns to their 64,000-ton capacity.

The stuff spread on roads is almost pure salt, with a little anti-caking agent mixed in, he said. DelDOT mixes it with water to create a brine for its pre-snow salting. After it snows, the salt is poured on without the water, with the strategy that traffic will break down the large granules and mix it in with the ice and snow.

That’s one reason less-traveled roads often remain snowy, he said, because the salt hasn’t been broken down.

This year, the salt has outlived its welcome because the snow hasn’t been deep enough to plow, which usually would scrape the salt off the roadway, too, Westhoff said. [read more...]

This year’s late cold temperatures are making news in more ways than one. Road crews are getting better and better at salting and sanding roads with each passing year. But that efficiency, while it makes the roads safer to drive on, also takes a toll on cars. It’s not just sand and salt the road crews are dumping on streets either. They also often use a combination magnesium chloride and other de-icing chemicals. This combination of elements can be extremely corrosive to cars.

In winter weather, street crews use magnesium chloride and other chemicals to de-ice roadways. Collins said those chemicals do damage to your car’s body and paint. “They’ll just eat away at that stuff,” he said.

The Colorado Department of Transportation says magnesium chloride does contain corrosive products and it can damage to your car, so it recommends you wash your car after every major snowstorm.

“I’ve actually talked to a body shop a couple days ago,” said Collins. “They said you should wash the mag chloride off before it even dries.”

A car wash in twenty degree weather might seem crazy, but Collins said ice will melt; chemicals will not. “It’s better to have a little ice on your vehicle than chemicals and things like that.” [more...]

Car washing is becoming a weekly routine for many car owners across the Midwest this winter. It’s been an unusually cold and snowy February so far across many parts of the country — and that weather takes a toll on automobiles. The cold temperatures make it worth frequently checking tire pressure and anti-freeze levels. If you’re idling your car more to warm it up before you drive, it’s also a good idea to change your oil sooner than you normally would. But the thing that hurts your car the most is the salt that road crews pour on the road when the snow start falling. Jason Baird of Gratiot, Ohio, put it this way:

“I keep my car as clean as I can,” Baird said. He was having his car washed at one of the Go Kleens in Zanesville. “With all the salt lately, I wash it at least once a week.”

“Wash your car as needed, and try to be preventative,” he said. “Salt is very corrosive to the underside and paint, and could do some serious damage to the support structure. An underbody wash is very important, and wax is important to maintain the clearcoat finish.”

Ty Hankinson, owner of Go Kleen Car Wash, explained other effects salt can have on vehicles.

“It can tarnish rims, chrome and eat away at anything,” he said. “I’ve even seen it happen to new cars that weren’t even a year old. The sooner you get the salt off the better you are.” [more...]

Arizona is a hot and dry place in the summer. This combination of factors means that water conservation is sometimes necessary. In response, Arizona carwash operators are doing their part to save water by recycling it. Modern carwash water recycling equipment can reduce water use by as much as 50%. Although more expensive to install, these systems can pay for themselves in the long run. They also give an environmental marketing edge to commercial carwash operators. Additionally, water reclamation systems in commercial carwashes can actually use less water than hand-washing.

Tom Collins, a general manager with National Carwash Systems, says that local municipalities are increasingly asking carwash builders to install water reclamation systems when they build their carwashes:

Collins advises new car wash owners to, if they don’t install the full water reclamation system, at least install the piping required, because, in his mind, “it’s only a matter of time” before the system is required everywhere.

“There are a lot of local municipalities that are requiring them,” he said.

About 25 percent of new car washes have water reclamation systems, estimates Arizona-based car wash architect John Reddell, who planned Mercado Del Rio. He said more than half have just the initial piping system. [more...]

At the end of the day, carwash operators are finding that water conservation systems make sense for the environment and for the bottom line too.