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Need all new equipment, everything !! Bought a closed down car wash in Pasadena, Texas

zathura21 said:
Hi,
I am novice in this industry. Some how bought a closed down car wash thinking I will bring it down and make storage.
But cut the story short, decided to re open the self serve car wash. ( 6 bay , 6 vacuum , .6 acre, double entrance ).

Its in the main road of Pasadena. So chances are it may work.

Now, I am taking help of a great guy to advice/mentor me on buying all the equipment and fixing the place up.

Can you please guide me as to what are the common mistake a new guy can do and should avoid.

He recommend Coleman Hanna equipment, as they have local support in Houston, so I am going with that. ( Anyone disagree with that ?)

Please advice, what should I be doing to make my SS car wash stand out, reduce operational cost and be in budget.

Its costing me 200K just to get all new equipment's and installation. Plus building remodel , electric, plumbing work , Lighting.

Please help me, as I am nervous about all this :)

Next year planning to get INBAY, if this SS works.

Thanks Guys !!
RU
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Installing a SS carwash is one thing and getting paid for what you do is Another from what I have been seeing there is alot of dishonest people Out There Becareful!! This Thread needs to be Removed.
 
Any one know any technician for Compressor and Coleman Hana technician . I am about to open the shop. But my compressor is showing signs of issues. Houston area.
 
water guy said:
Installing a SS carwash is one thing and getting paid for what you do is Another from what I have been seeing there is alot of dishonest people Out There Becareful!! This Thread needs to be Removed.
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Please meet me personally and I can show you all my invoices and all the details. Only 7% money is not paid of the total bill. ( waiting on the installer to finish and test)

Please meet me at my office or Coleman office , if you have question.
We are honest people, and don't want to blame anyone. Just need our work done.
 
Petit automatic and CustomKraft self service. I am out of Arkansas but I know the petit distributor from doing a job in San Antonio. He is a real good guy with a good crew. I will list his name and number so you can see for your self. Wes Wallace 210-639-6048
Petit is the only automatic manufacturer that provides more than 1 year warranty on the equipment. CustomKraft is the only SS equipment that I love to start back up after not running for 5 years. It's like a Cat pump the system with 9 lives! I fully encourage you to find put for your self.
 
water guy said:
Installing a SS carwash is one thing and getting paid for what you do is Another from what I have been seeing there is alot of dishonest people Out There Becareful!! This Thread needs to be Removed.
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Please meet me personally and I can show you all my invoices and all the details. Only 7% money is not paid of the total bill. ( waiting on the installer to finish and test)

Please meet me at my office or Coleman office , if you have question.
We are honest people, and don't want to blame anyone. Just want to open the shop.
 
Why would you need or want to put wash analytics in the self serve bays? We've been in the car wash business for almost 40 years and see little or no need for wash analytics in a self serve bay.
 
Kevin James said:
Why would you need or want to put wash analytics in the self serve bays? We've been in the car wash business for almost 40 years and see little or no need for wash analytics in a self serve bay.
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I'm sure people said the same thing about computers and filing cabinets.

It's good to know what your customers are spending their money on. Having a bay function that customers don't buy isn't keeping the meter running.
 
Kevin James said:
Why would you need or want to put wash analytics in the self serve bays? We've been in the car wash business for almost 40 years and see little or no need for wash analytics in a self serve bay.
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Wash analytics is prob the best thing I’ve installed to assist with monitoring and keeping track of income. From a business perspective, this is what gives value to the business owner when they go to sell or want to do a business loan. If I want to sell my wash for top dollar and not be stuck in an owner finance situation, would need to prove my wash really makes what I say it makes. This is even more important for SBA loans, which opens up your wash to many more buyers. Of course, I keep pretty good books but most of the people I’ve talked to that own washes, don’t report all the cash income and they want you to believe it makes what they say it makes. Banks don’t work that way.

My end goal is not to run this car wash for the next 40 years, build a portfolio with metrics showing where I actually make money, how much, and what real costs are per vehicle. When you have metrics like this and are able to prove you have a 70% margins, it’s much easier to attract a large pool of capital.

You can take a look at this weeks usage for my wash. Data is from Feb 2-8 2025
 

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Mattwash said:
Wash analytics is prob the best thing I’ve installed to assist with monitoring and keeping track of income. From a business perspective, this is what gives value to the business owner when they go to sell or want to do a business loan. If I want to sell my wash for top dollar and not be stuck in an owner finance situation, would need to prove my wash really makes what I say it makes. This is even more important for SBA loans, which opens up your wash to many more buyers. Of course, I keep pretty good books but most of the people I’ve talked to that own washes, don’t report all the cash income and they want you to believe it makes what they say it makes. Banks don’t work that way.

My end goal is not to run this car wash for the next 40 years, build a portfolio with metrics showing where I actually make money, how much, and what real costs are per vehicle. When you have metrics like this and are able to prove you have a 70% margins, it’s much easier to attract a large pool of capital.

You can take a look at this weeks usage for my wash. Data is from Feb 2-8 2025
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What does this do any differently than properly kept books with COG's, gross income, etc?

Bank isn't going to look at that. They'll be looking at your PL's, Balance Sheets and income taxes and you can achieve the same result without with simple numbers.

Maybe I'm just missing it thought.
 
Car_Wash_Guy said:
What does this do any differently than properly kept books with COG's, gross income, etc?

Bank isn't going to look at that. They'll be looking at your PL's, Balance Sheets and income taxes and you can achieve the same result without with simple numbers.

Maybe I'm just missing it thought.
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This is more solid proof than numbers than can be made up out of thin air - another layer to prove numbers. Even this can be manipulated, but it is more solid than just financials. It all depends on end goals of each operator.
 
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