Installing a rollover carwash but my bay is only 28' long

[med5595]

Hi everyone,
I am converting one of my mechanic shop bays into a carwash. Although it is nice that I don't have to build a tunnel, I have some limitations because my bay length is only a 28 feet long and the entrance and exits are only 10ft wide so I cannot have the machine go out a little but. With this short bay, my options are limited and I cannot do a full wash on most cars. Can anyone point me in the right direction with which car wash system to purchase that can be most accommodating for a short bay like mine? I have attached a current layout plan of my project with a Mark VII choice wash but as you can see it is very limiting,

Any help or suggestions would be great from anyone who has had such a short bay like mine. Thank you

 

[washnshine]

Touchfree or soft touch?

 

[med5595]

Soft touch

 

[Roz]

Put dryers outside the exit as it may give you more options. We installed our Razor in a 30’ bay this way. 28’ may not work for a soft cloth as the shortest I have seen is for 34’

 

[med5595]

are you happy with the touch less?

 

[Roz]

are you happy with the touch less?

most definitely!

 

[Islandwash]

28 feet length should work with many Touch Free machines, but is short even for them. I don't think any friction units will work. 32 feet seems to be a minimum, with 34 feet much better for friction.

 

[med5595]

The Rylko Soft Gloss Maxx 5 seems like a pretty good option for short tunnels because it has the 4 side brushes. (2 in the front and 2 in the back. I think this makes it better because it doesnt have to move the whole system behind the car when trying to hit it with the side brushes. What are your thoughts on that?

 

[Greg Pack]

Get a maximum vehicle length from ryko and make sure you're happy with it.

 

[Dirt]

My bay is 17x36. When my Maxx 5 is in the home position, I have to walk sideways to fit between the front brush and door jamb to get around the machine. Same when the machine is at the front of the bay against the bump stops. So...

 

[Ryko CS]

In a 28' bay (free and clear), the Softgloss MAXX can wash about a 16'-2" long vehicle completely (meaning the top brush going all the way to the rear) using a short bay kit. It can wash longer vehicles too with the rear arms, but the top brush may not get complete coverage on vehicles like an SUV. The short bay kit enables the rear arms to close when in non-brush passes.

 

[DAWGWASH]

Hi everyone,
I am converting one of my mechanic shop bays into a carwash. Although it is nice that I don't have to build a tunnel, I have some limitations because my bay length is only a 28 feet long and the entrance and exits are only 10ft wide so I cannot have the machine go out a little but. With this short bay, my options are limited and I cannot do a full wash on most cars. Can anyone point me in the right direction with which car wash system to purchase that can be most accommodating for a short bay like mine? I have attached a current layout plan of my project with a Mark VII choice wash but as you can see it is very limiting,

Any help or suggestions would be great from anyone who has had such a short bay like mine. Thank you

You could possibly extend your bay out with a glass inclosure another 1O feet or so. I would do this or nothing. Don’t make your wash where you can only wash a certain size vehicle and limit your income potential. Spend the $ upfront not on short bay kit

 

[Islandwash]

I extended a 28-foot bay 4 feet to 32 feet to install a 5 brush rollover. My town required me to get a site plan to extend the bay but it was worth it. Only regrets are that I should have extended 6 feet and gone to 34 feet in length.

 

[Ryko CS]

I extended a 28-foot bay 4 feet to 32 feet to install a 5 brush rollover. My town required me to get a site plan to extend the bay but it was worth it. Only regrets are that I should have extended 6 feet and gone to 34 feet in length.

I agree 100%. It's always better to run the machine in the optimal size for the machine wherever possible.

 

[med5595]

In a 28' bay (free and clear), the Softgloss MAXX can wash about a 16'-2" long vehicle completely (meaning the top brush going all the way to the rear) using a short bay kit. It can wash longer vehicles too with the rear arms, but the top brush may not get complete coverage on vehicles like an SUV. The short bay kit enables the rear arms to close when in non-brush passes.

It seems like the Ryko Maxx 5 is the best option to go with considering my length limitations, because those two rear arms can still get in the back of the car.
Question I have, In the cases where the vehicle is longer than 16'-2" and only the rear arms will get the back, will the water be able to get the rear of the car, or will there most likely be soap left over in those cases?

 

[Greg Pack]

16 1/2 feet is awfully short. It might work in urban area or a kia dealership, but a Chevy Tahoe is 17.5 feet flong.

 

[Ryko CS]

It seems like the Ryko Maxx 5 is the best option to go with considering my length limitations, because those two rear arms can still get in the back of the car.
Question I have, In the cases where the vehicle is longer than 16'-2" and only the rear arms will get the back, will the water be able to get the rear of the car, or will there most likely be soap left over in those cases?

That is where the short bay scenario comes into play. On foam bath, rinse passes or other non-brush passes, the rear arms will try to close as the machine travels reverse. This gives you additional room to drive it further reverse to rinse that detergent off the vehicle.

Greg, you are right that 16'-2" is relatively short, however that's for a "complete" cycle with top brush going clear to the back. The rear arms will get a Tahoe. It's the extended length vehicles that are mostly affected. On those larger SUV's, it's the top towards the rear that the top brush may not reach. That's challenging in a shorter length bay.

 

[8th Street Car Wash]

My two cents... We extended our bay to 34 feet to fit a Mark VII softwash. The softwash is the same gantry as the choice wash, just with different options. We still get complaints about our machine's side brushes not reaching the rear of long pickup trucks and SUV's. I would highly advise not going with Mark VII for anything shorter than 34 feet. We would have extended our to 36 feet if the city would have let us...

 

[DAWGWASH]

My two cents... We extended our bay to 34 feet to fit a Mark VII softwash. The softwash is the same gantry as the choice wash, just with different options. We still get complaints about our machine's side brushes not reaching the rear of long pickup trucks and SUV's. I would highly advise not going with Mark VII for anything shorter than 34 feet. We would have extended our to 36 feet if the city would have let us...

Spend the money to extend the bay and put the dryer outside. You’ll save money not having to install a short bay kit and if you put dryer outside it will speed things up and install eyes so when car leaves the dryer shuts off. A lot of people rave before the dry time runs out and some drive straight through