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New Alaska SS build

C

clarktar

New member
I have been reading for a couple months and decided to join up. Currently we are exploring opening up a new SS in our small, remote, Alaskan town.

Town Details:
  • Remote Alaskan town (only connected by ferry, barge, plane).
  • Weather
  • 7 miles paved road and 50 miles dirt/gravel
  • Rains year round almost
  • 1500 year round residents. Summer closer to 3000 due to commercial fishing (lots of bow pickers for gillnet fishery)
  • Winter we get a salt slurry on roads
  • Weather: Summer is June - August rarely over 65 degrees, probably average of 58-60 with some rain each month. Fall is 40-50 rain everyday. Winter is mild for alaska since we are on the ocean/sea level. We average probably 25-35 degrees. We get the rare two weeks of low teens, and maybe the odd few days of single digits. Some winters we only get a few snow flurries and it doesn't stick around more than a week (like this winter). Other winters we get several feet all winter.
  • We have a large rainwater fed reservoir that serves the town and the water is not "hard".
SS thoughts:
  • We plan to build a large shop and section off the front 1/3 into a single bay SS. There will be two overhead garage doors for a fully closed bay
  • Will have closed system for in-floor heat for the floor in the bay (concrete slab) (40'x16') and another zone for the rest of the shop (54'x40').
  • Functions: HP warm water rinse (help remove ice/snow), HP soap(or just foamy brush?), foam brush, salt remover (not sure which one or type but I think this would be a big hit). I think that would be the most used functions. I don't think wax would really get used here.
  • Hanging option (clips) to hang floor mats to spray clean
Additional initial thoughts:
  • Thinking of including a dog was station in the corner of the bay (we will have lots of room in the bay due to footprint of the shop. The Bay will be 40' long by 16' wide.
  • I know we need an equipment room. Given my lack of experience and exposure to carwashes I am having trouble sizing this. Current thoughts are a Takagi on demand system with a couple pumps for the in floor heating (would like this to actually run two zones, one for wash bay and one for rest of shop). Maybe another takagi with a well insulated 55 gallon storage tank and a high pressure pump from that for the wash bay. Then I know we need pumpstand and components for the single wash bay and extra room for some chemical storage (we would probably try to store 6months or a year of chemicals due to our remote location). Would 10'x14' be large enough?
  • Also thinking of adding a single vaccum station outside under a lean-to off the shop. But I think we would need a wet/dry type. It rains year round and people are recreating here year round so most insides of vehicles are wet and dirty. IN fact, most cars here drive around with desiccation bags hanging all over!

We live less than 1/4 mile from where this will be built so multiple daily visits is no problem.
Some of my design principles (remembering this is a remote location):
  • Simple (i.e., more mechanical than computerized)
  • Efficiency matters
  • Good support from manufacturers.
  • If you read alot of 2Biz posts the general approach he takes to building, retrofitting etc hits the nail on the head for me.
  • I would like to build out the equipment so that if a pump or some critical element fails, I can isolate and quickly replace with parts on hand. This is important because our mail can take 4 weeks sometime! Other times the ferry is shut down. So having spare parts on hand the the ability to quickly change out is important to consider for the build.

I appreciate any advice, experience, things to consider etc as I work through this build. I hope to build it right the first time and get 30 years of mostly trouble free service. Maybe I am overlooking some functions that I should consider? Perhaps there are certain no brainers for equipment or build out that I should be aware of. This is all new to me!

Thanks in advance
-C
 
My initial thought is that you will never make enough money from 1500 to 3000 people to support the cost of a new build. Let alone the high operating costs of being in such a cold climate as well as the fact that you said it rains year-round. When it rains nobody comes to the car wash.
 
Waxman said:
My initial thought is that you will never make enough money from 1500 to 3000 people to support the cost of a new build. Let alone the high operating costs of being in such a cold climate as well as the fact that you said it rains year-round. When it rains nobody comes to the car wash.
Click to expand...
Right now the end goal is to have the wash pay for itself in 10 years. The land is 100k (10 year loan no interest), our initial guess on cost to build shop is 150k.
I don't think our operating cost will be so high, its only cold in winter and a tankless system seems pretty efficient (and the bay will be fully enclosed and insulated).

We are thinking our minimum to make this work would be $2000 a month.
  • $6 starts the wash and gets you 4 mins
  • $2 every additional minute.
  • Hope to average 10 minutes at $18 for each visit.
  • 28 visits per week (so four per day) 28x52x$18 = $26,208 (of course this is net, before any operating costs)

I guess I should have prefaced with, this is not meant to supplement income. We have careers we are not leaving. This is a means to buy property and build a shop (initially out of pocket but over 10 years we hope the profit from the wash will pay cover the property and shop).
Our bay will be inside therefore the rain will not matter. There have been many community polls about business needs/wants and everytime a Carwash is the most often repeated business desired.

Maybe no one wants to wash their car IN THE RAIN as opposed to WHEN its raining. The rain here creates mud and that mud ends up on every vehicle.

I do appreciate the initial thought.
 
people don't wash when it's raining. most carwashes have a roof, so I'm not confused about my assertion that rain kills business; I'm basing my statement on 20 years experience owning my wash.

lets see what others here think..
 
Waxman said:
people don't wash when it's raining. most carwashes have a roof, so I'm not confused about my assertion that rain kills business; I'm basing my statement on 20 years experience owning my wash.

lets see what others here think..
Click to expand...
Thank you for sharing your experience. I appreciate it.
 
I think you should expand the wash area from 40x16 to something wider or longer. Make an interior vacuum/detail area. That may encourage people to use you facility if they have the opportunity to clean the interior in a covered heated environment.
Check out what the Canadian’s call a “2 door” Carwash. 1 door to enter the building to access the wash and vac area and a second sort to exit.
Your hurdles are going to be: 1. Getting a community that doesn’t prioritize a clean car to use your Carwash and 2. Managing the huge amount of mud on the floor from 50 miles of unpaved road. 3. Cost of doing business when importing supplies, especially heavy items like soap, will be very high.
 
If they salt the roads alot I would look into having a way that people could rinse the underside of the car. A rolling deck with a couple of spray nozzles. I would try to have at least a bay that could handle 2 cars Nothing would be more frustrating to a person to sit in line for long periods of time waiting. With one bay you would get people who paid the $6 and then would stay and occupy the bay drying, detailing etc. for hours. In ALaska I think your cost to do what want is going to be double what you said.
 
I say go for it.

Build the dog wash in a separate room (heated) so you can make money on both at the same time.

Definitely add the vacuum.

10x12 should be fine for equipment room plus storage.
 
I'll check my lip if you check your story—pretty sure that's where the smell’s coming from.
You're seriously attempting to create a business model that washes cars in the rain? May I suggest a free snowball with every wash?
 
edredtop said:
I'll check my lip if you check your story—pretty sure that's where the smell’s coming from.
You're seriously attempting to create a business model that washes cars in the rain? May I suggest a free snowball with every wash?
Click to expand...
If it's raining there won't be any snow. But thanks for trying.
 
Be careful. Just a gut check.

I could refer you to several people who got "bitten" by the car wash bug, and almost died (financially).......

People don't wash in the rain (and I have 65,000 people in a 3 mile radius of my wash to validate my statement).

3000 people? Rainy?

Be very, very careful.
 
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