Bubbles Galore
Active member
I am working up my cost per car for my different services and this portion has me stumped...I know my chemical, water and debt service costs, but I'm missing how to figure my gas and electric into the equation.
Car Wash Forum
This is a sample guest message. Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!
Determining Gas & Electric Costs
- Thread starter Bubbles Galore
- Start date
bigleo48
Active member
For the electric side, look at the motor rating for your pumps and correlate to KWH. Then cross reference to what you are charged. The other 24V stuff is negligible on a per car basis.
Gas...depends on your setup. If you also heat floors and equipment room, that could be hard to get an accurate amount.
Because my devices are hooked up and counting, I get some accurate reports and took a different approach listed here http://forum.autocareforum.com/showthread.php?t=8068 I also did a gross marging calculation for my SS bays here http://forum.autocareforum.com/showthread.php?t=8457&page=2
IMHO, I find those numbers more relevant.
Earl Weiss
Well-known member
Great question. I think Bill has the only realistic answer.
For gas and electric you may very well have a baseline. You need heat and floor heat and lighting even if you wash zero cars.
There are so many variables involved in the process the only realistic way to do it is based on your periodic billings and volume. You can perhaps back out some items like natural gas where you may use none some months or just have a towel drier using gas those months.
You may be able to "Back out a baseline" by figuring if your volume increased X cars and your gas and electric increased Y dollars, then that increase in cost divided by the increased number of cars is the incremental cost. You cna then use that incremental cost times total volume and see how that total incremental cost compares to the bill. Whatever the excess cost is would be the baseline.
Bubbles Galore
Active member
Going over some more of my numbers...I am seeing water usage at roughly 82,000 gallons of water in the month of May. Is it just me or does that seem kind of high? I have a 6 bay self serve, 1 auto and dog wash...just seems high to me...thoughts?
2Biz
Thread Killer!
Its interesting, since I've started tracking water usage, my usage is within .25gallons for every $$$ dollar that goes into the coin boxes. I average between 7.75 and 8.0 gallons per dollar spent. Its easy for me to get the reading though, since the meter is in the ER. I can tell in a few seconds how much I take in that day or between collections. Its always within a few dollars of the gallons used.
Can't you use previous water bills to see if your close to the income you made for May? I wouldn't be complaining if I used 82,000 gallons, unless I had a leak!
Can't you use previous water bills to see if your close to the income you made for May? I wouldn't be complaining if I used 82,000 gallons, unless I had a leak!
Bubbles Galore
Active member
I'm definitely not complaining, May was a great month! I was just surprised to see that I used that much water, that's all. I should see if I can do that type of comparison as well. Good idea since everything at the wash short of vacs uses water.
J
J
2Biz
Thread Killer!
May was a good month for us as well! Up 20% from our best month out of the last 16! I'm hoping its the product of all the hard work I've put in this wash and not because its been in the 80's everyday for the past 3 months and sunshine 98% of the time! Not typical of Southern Ohio Weather!
I was amazed after tracking water usage how close the numbers are even with all the low pressure functions, Spot Free production, and Softener regeneration thrown into the mix.... .25 gallons per dollar variance between readings isn't much.
I can see this being a useful tool if you ever have to go on vacation and have to rely on someone to help with the wash or handle money. Once you know the gallons used per dollar, its an easy calculation to verify income against water usage since it appears to be so consistant.
Not typical of Southern Ohio Weather!I was amazed after tracking water usage how close the numbers are even with all the low pressure functions, Spot Free production, and Softener regeneration thrown into the mix.... .25 gallons per dollar variance between readings isn't much.
I can see this being a useful tool if you ever have to go on vacation and have to rely on someone to help with the wash or handle money. Once you know the gallons used per dollar, its an easy calculation to verify income against water usage since it appears to be so consistant.
Last edited:
Before I purchased my reclaim, i calculated my usage for 2 autos and 3 self serves at over 2 million gallons a year. My equipment is a water hog though.
Bubbles Galore
Active member
I've tried to stumble through my numbers as best I can and appear to be right around $2 cost on my $9 wash...does this seem to be in line with some of you guys?
pitzerwm
Active member
Paul Noon, talked about one of these and I happen to see it at NewEgg: http://www.newegg.com/special/shell...-_-EMC-060112-Index-_-MECH-_-ShellShocker-E1C
Jim Caudill
Self Serve Operator
No that seems way too low. Back to your original question. I think what you are looking for is fixed and variable expenses. Some items are one or the other. Many things can be both. For example, electricity is both. If I do not wash even 1 car, I will still pay for electricity that is used for lighting, circulation pumps (hot water for example), electrical components of heating systems in the winter, etc. etc. All of that electrical cost is "fixed". This would also include any monthly billing or customer charge.
The part that is variable is the kwh's that are actually used in washing cars. If you wash zero cars in a month, then this cost would be zero. If you washed 2,000 cars in a month, then this should be a pretty-much linear cost (2,000 cars cost 10times as much as 200 cars).
It sounds like you are looking at the cost of automatic washes (since you mentioned your $9 wash). Besides all the normal variable costs (electicity, water, gas, chemicals) you will get a feel for your maintenance costs. How often swivels, motors, hoses, bearings, mitters, rollers, photo-eyes, proximity sensors, etc need replacing. I did some pretty detailed analysis when I was operating my touchless auto a few years back. I even calculated that it was costing me about 50cents evertime I had to cycle my doors in the wintertime.
For comparison, my $5 wash was costing me about $3.50 - not including heat. I used about $1.30 worth of water and about $0.70 for presoak. Both of those costs would be higher today.
The part that is variable is the kwh's that are actually used in washing cars. If you wash zero cars in a month, then this cost would be zero. If you washed 2,000 cars in a month, then this should be a pretty-much linear cost (2,000 cars cost 10times as much as 200 cars).
It sounds like you are looking at the cost of automatic washes (since you mentioned your $9 wash). Besides all the normal variable costs (electicity, water, gas, chemicals) you will get a feel for your maintenance costs. How often swivels, motors, hoses, bearings, mitters, rollers, photo-eyes, proximity sensors, etc need replacing. I did some pretty detailed analysis when I was operating my touchless auto a few years back. I even calculated that it was costing me about 50cents evertime I had to cycle my doors in the wintertime.
For comparison, my $5 wash was costing me about $3.50 - not including heat. I used about $1.30 worth of water and about $0.70 for presoak. Both of those costs would be higher today.
Jim Caudill
Self Serve Operator
continued answer
contd....
Finally, there is the cost of the investment in the equipment. How did you pay for that automatic wash? If it is financed, then you have the interest cost. If you paid outright, then you have to look at what other ways you could have invested that money. After all, if you have $100,000 tied up in aut equipment, that money could be earning something (maybe more) somewhere else.
Lastly, there is amortization cost. After 5 years and 100,000 cars (you pick the numbers), you equipment will need to be replaced. During the life of the equipment, you should be setting aside the financial reserves to replace it. Otherwise, you will reach the end-of-life for the equipment and will have to borrow again to replace it.
It is false economics to think that you can use up a $100,000 worth of equipment and not have to pay for it.
So yes, I think $2 for a $9 wash is unrealistic, and doesn't properly reflect the true cost of purchasing, operating, and maintaining that equipment.
Jim Caudill
contd....
Finally, there is the cost of the investment in the equipment. How did you pay for that automatic wash? If it is financed, then you have the interest cost. If you paid outright, then you have to look at what other ways you could have invested that money. After all, if you have $100,000 tied up in aut equipment, that money could be earning something (maybe more) somewhere else.
Lastly, there is amortization cost. After 5 years and 100,000 cars (you pick the numbers), you equipment will need to be replaced. During the life of the equipment, you should be setting aside the financial reserves to replace it. Otherwise, you will reach the end-of-life for the equipment and will have to borrow again to replace it.
It is false economics to think that you can use up a $100,000 worth of equipment and not have to pay for it.
So yes, I think $2 for a $9 wash is unrealistic, and doesn't properly reflect the true cost of purchasing, operating, and maintaining that equipment.
Jim Caudill
