Anybody using Slot Drains?

[Msaxonii]

Got a look in the equipment room last week and found out that there's space on the pump rack for another two pumps. So thinking that would make it a little better to add a bay to the outside for larger vehicles.

Found the slot drain system while tinkering around and looking to get pros and cons. I think that I'd be able to do a longer run of drain to cover longer vehicles without the whole covered pit concept. Mount a meter system to the outside wall and be able to secure the larger fleet market from the local businesses, and maybe open to expanding to an attendant model with trailer washout. But I digress...

So, slot drain experiences for a selfserve open bay?

Slot Drain® - Presloped Surface Drain / Floor Drain Superior Trench Drain

Slot Drain provides drainage solutions that are durable, sanitary, easy to clean, load class rated and corrosion resistant.

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[MEP001]

I've seen a lot of older washes that have a trench all the way through with a grate over it. It's wide enough for a shovel - the downside is you'd have to pick up all the mud by hand, maybe once a week or more, but no pumping pits.

 

[Msaxonii]

I've seen a lot of older washes that have a trench all the way through with a grate over it. It's wide enough for a shovel - the downside is you'd have to pick up all the mud by hand, maybe once a week or more, but no pumping pits.

I think that this is where my 8 years of working in housekeeping is a benefit. We had a water pressure based floor cleaners that I think would be useful. They use them for concrete cleaning. Similar to a buffer, but instead of pads, it's a circular pressure washer with a vacuum attachment. Make a slurry and pick it up.

With the slot drains, if it were dry dirt on the sloped concrete, a outdoor sweeper would make it a piece of cake to pick up.

 

[MEP001]

Cake is very difficult to clean up. After it's been smashed into the concrete by traffic and it's dried, you have to pull out a shovel to scrape it off, then you're still left with a greasy looking stain.

I haven't dealt with the trench-type thing in a car wash, but I've watched owners do it. The floor is still sloped so you can wash mud and dirt into the trench, then you remove the grates periodically and shovel the mud out. I would be concerned with a narrow slot because not only will it be difficult to rinse dirt into it, it might be prone to clogging.

 

[Msaxonii]

Cake is very difficult to clean up. After it's been smashed into the concrete by traffic and it's dried, you have to pull out a shovel to scrape it off, then you're still left with a greasy looking stain.

I haven't dealt with the trench-type thing in a car wash, but I've watched owners do it. The floor is still sloped so you can wash mud and dirt into the trench, then you remove the grates periodically and shovel the mud out. I would be concerned with a narrow slot because not only will it be difficult to rinse dirt into it, it might be prone to clogging.

The drains have optional flush valves that can be connected to a sump and set on a timer to automatically flush at intervals. They also have what's looks like a scraper type tool that mates with the drain to clean stuck debris.

I know part of the concern with an open bay is rainwater flowing to the sanitary sewer and I think that this set up would help to reduce that while also allowing a longer drain area for bigger vehicles.

They're also designed to be driven over.

 

[mjwalsh]

Depending how much soil comes off the vehicles ... I am pretty sure you will get a

With the slot drains, if it were dry dirt on the sloped concrete, a outdoor sweeper would make it a piece of cake to pick up.

I would say that you would tend to not always be able to keep up with keeping he drain clean with your slurry process ... depending on the current soil coming off the vehicles & the volume of traffic. At that point a hump of hardened moist dirt would form over the area where the vehicles were centered. The best choice would be a skid steer loader & both scrap & remove the stiff moist &/or possibly dried dirt from the surface. Bay washdown to keep customers from walking in chunks of mud dropped from the wheel wells ... possibly would not be that much different.

A sweeper unless it was a real expensive version like the city uses ... I would think would not be that easy like Mep001 says.

 

[Msaxonii]

Depending how much soil comes off the vehicles ... I am pretty sure you will get a


I would say that you would tend to not always be able to keep up with keeping he drain clean with your slurry process ... depending on the current soil coming off the vehicles & the volume of traffic. At that point a hump of hardened moist dirt would form over the area where the vehicles were centered. The best choice would be a skid steer loader & both scrap & remove the stiff moist &/or possibly dried dirt from the surface. Bay washdown to keep customers from walking in chunks of mud dropped from the wheel wells ... possibly would not be that much different.

A sweeper unless it was a real expensive version like the city uses ... I would think would not be that easy like Mep001 says.

I worked in a mechanic shop ran by a guy who didn't feel like cleaning anything was worth paying for. The most the work bays got was a push broom whenever somebody came to the door begging for money. The whole shop floor was caked in years of built up grease. He went into the hospital for a few months and let me run the shop for a few jobs while he was out. While the shop was emptied, my dad and I took Purple Power with a pressure washer and an antique Gravely walk behind tractor with a brush on it to clean up the floor and got it back to bare concrete.

Forgot about that old thing, but saw that they still make a walk behind model with a brush attachment. And yes, he did acquire that from the city who had used it to clean their smaller parking lots.

 

[MEP001]

The whole shop floor was caked in years of built up grease. He went into the hospital for a few months and let me run the shop for a few jobs while he was out. While the shop was emptied, my dad and I took Purple Power with a pressure washer and an antique Gravely walk behind tractor with a brush on it to clean up the floor and got it back to bare concrete.

What was his reaction? I stayed late at work once and did something similar on my own time, just because I felt like doing it. All I got was "I don't want you in here by yourself anymore." I've worked for some shitty people, glad I don't have to anymore.

 

[mac]

You have not mentioned if you will put a canopy over the truck bay. Your local wastewater people will not like rain water filling up their treatment plant.

 

[Msaxonii]

You have not mentioned if you will put a canopy over the truck bay. Your local wastewater people will not like rain water filling up their treatment plant.

Fortunately I think that I'm in a reasonable, not regulation obsessed area. I've seen a historical suggestion of using a controlled diverter valve for open drains. The natural state of the valve is to storm sewage, and when the bay equipment is turned on, diverts to the regular sanitary system for a period of time.

 

[Msaxonii]

What was his reaction? I stayed late at work once and did something similar on my own time, just because I felt like doing it. All I got was "I don't want you in here by yourself anymore." I've worked for some shitty people, glad I don't have to anymore.

He didn't have much of a reaction. He had just stared the Grim Reaper in the eyes and was still contemplating his life. He had a multiple bypass done, followed by organ failure because they were drowned in oxygen they had gotten used to not having. I can't remember the exact time frame, but think it was November when he went in and he didn't get home until February.

My dad started working with him when I was in my early teens. Mike's one bay back alley shop was just bought by the Urban Redevelopment for new housing, and they gave him a huge moving allowance. The mayor was able to help him get into a garage that used to be a trade school. At least 12 bays, but he never transitioned from that one bay shop mentality. Working with him taught me a lot about life, how to find the cheapest way to jerry rig and fix almost anything, and because I saw him refuse to spend anything to be able to work on newer cars, your customers won't be here to be loyal forever.

Looking at this wash, I think that the same thing happened. Lack of reinvestment, zero marketing, no improvements, just relying on the loyalty of the same customers who have now moved on. 6 bays, 8 basic vacuums, taking quarters only worked well at one point in time. But today's customers expect something different.