Tips on buying first car wash

[Headquarters]

Hello all. I am new to the forum and new to self serve car washes. Currently I am 53 and an automation tech for major oil company. But I have been contemplating on buying a car wash or laundromat. There are tons of YouTube videos etc. But not all content is legitimate. I live in West Texas. By Texas Tech University. We have several automated washes but I still believe there is a place for self service. As I begin this journey I would like some feedback on where to shop for equipment, what is needed for a self serve wash.
I have many questions but I will start with this. Thank you all in advance for your comments, feedback and your time

 

[washnshine]

I’d recommend purchasing an existing self serve if you want a self serve. Once you do that, then you can see what equipment will be needed, but depending on what is in the wash, you may not may not need various components.

 

[Headquarters]

I’d recommend purchasing an existing self serve if you want a self serve. Once you do that, then you can see what equipment will be needed, but depending on what is in the wash, you may not may not need various components.

Thank you. I definitely want to purchase an existing wash. I think the start up costs should be much less. Again depending on condition. I am curious on the spot free water rinse. Some of the washes I have used has had terrible water pressure and volume. Is that just a pump and pressure setting? What is the typical GPM these normally produce. Try to determine the size unit that would be needed.

 

[washnshine]

A lot of operators use the purclean units. They would be sized to accommodate your quantity of bays. SFR is going to be a lower pressure setting than your typical 1000-1200psi high pressure functions.

 

[cbchevy4x4]

You are going to have multiple pieces of equipement for SFR. You will have a RO system (produces the SF water), a holding tank (holds the SF water for delivery), and a delivery system. I have a 3000 gpd production unit and a 100gal holding tank at 1 site and a 6000gpd and 250 gal holding tank at another. Both are more than enough and have never even ran low on sfr water at either site at the busiest of times. 1 site is 10ss 1 iba, the other is 8ss and 1 iba. For the SS i use a repressurization pump and 40 gallon bladder tank. I pressurize the tank to 125psi. My pressure regulator is set to 110 psi for the delivery off the tank. Pump cuts on at 95psi and off at 125psi. I can notice a difference between 95 and 125 psi but dont notice any difference between the 95 and 110. Thats why i set it up that way. Some people apply SFR at 300 to 400 psi but i personally think that is way overkill, nice but overkill. I can SFR a tahoe/suburban in 50 to 60 seconds, all a customer really has to do is hit the top surfaces for about 30 seconds to displace the "bad" water with SF water and quickly walk around the vehicle and push the water from the top down on the sides and they should be good to go.

 

[Headquarters]

You are going to have multiple pieces of equipement for SFR. You will have a RO system (produces the SF water), a holding tank (holds the SF water for delivery), and a delivery system. I have a 3000 gpd production unit and a 100gal holding tank at 1 site and a 6000gpd and 250 gal holding tank at another. Both are more than enough and have never even ran low on sfr water at either site at the busiest of times. 1 site is 10ss 1 iba, the other is 8ss and 1 iba. For the SS i use a repressurization pump and 40 gallon bladder tank. I pressurize the tank to 125psi. My pressure regulator is set to 110 psi for the delivery off the tank. Pump cuts on at 95psi and off at 125psi. I can notice a difference between 95 and 125 psi but dont notice any difference between the 95 and 110. Thats why i set it up that way. Some people apply SFR at 300 to 400 psi but i personally think that is way overkill, nice but overkill. I can SFR a tahoe/suburban in 50 to 60 seconds, all a customer really has to do is hit the top surfaces for about 30 seconds to displace the "bad" water with SF water and quickly walk around the vehicle and push the water from the top down on the sides and they should be good to go.

That was a lot of information. Thank you for taking the time to share that with me. Now to try and find a car wash for sale. The good thing for me currently is my schedule. I work 14/14. So I would have time for repairs and things. I see nothing listed in my area currently, but there are several car washes around town. Not many self service though. Perhaps the best method is sending messages to the owners and see if someone is interested in selling to contact me. There are several surrounding towns around Lubbock. I would say anything In 80-100 radius is fine and there are 12 -14 towns that meet that criteria

 

[washnshine]

You will want to be on site more than you may initially think, so be sure to be careful with your radius and make it doable.

 

[Waxman]

what is a 1414 schedule? Does that mean you work for two weeks and then you're off for two weeks? If so who is going to watch the car wash during the two weeks that you're working? Can you go by after work and clean up collect money etc.? Depending upon your hours you may have to hire someone to go there a couple times of day to clean the place empty the trash pick up the foamy brushes that people leave on the floor etc.

 

[Headquarters]

what is a 1414 schedule? Does that mean you work for two weeks and then you're off for two weeks? If so who is going to watch the car wash during the two weeks that you're working? Can you go by after work and clean up collect money etc.? Depending upon your hours you may have to hire someone to go there a couple times of day to clean the place empty the trash pick up the foamy brushes that people leave on the floor etc.

Yes that’s correct. I work 14 days on then 14 days off. No i travel for work. However my wife and teenage son will handle the trash and daily inspections money collection etc. or that’s my plan as of now.. Also any repairs will be done by a friend who wants to become partners. He is a realtor and his family has several hundred rentals.
So possibly that could be a good thing. Still considering that, sometimes friendships and business don’t mix.

 

[floppgean]

Hey there! I'm new to the forum and just starting to look into car washes. I think self-serve washes can be a great entry point, especially depending on your budget. I’ve found that visiting local self-serve car washes and chatting with the owners can be super helpful—I got some great insights that way.

 

[Axxlrod]

Let me guess.... both of you guys stumbled across some youtube videos of SS car washes that showed the owner making tons of money with not much work. Trust me when I say those videos are crap, and it can be a ton of work.

 

[Waxman]

I'd advise against a partnership. I speak from experience. One person as the owner is far better in almost every way. When my partnership went south many years ago, I suffered a 'dark nite of the soul' where I had to decide whether to scrap the whole detail shop/ car wash idea or soldier on. It was the toughest time of my business career. Don't do it; I M O!!!

 

[floppgean]

Thanks for the reality check! I’ve definitely come across those videos, but I know better than to think success comes without hard work, especially in the early stages. I’m prepared for the challenges and long hours ahead, and I’m more interested in learning from people who have real experience in the industry. Any insights you can share on the less glamorous parts of running a car wash would be super helpful!

 

[AnalyticWash]

Also any repairs will be done by a friend who wants to become partners. He is a realtor and his family has several hundred rentals.
So possibly that could be a good thing. Still considering that, sometimes friendships and business don’t mix.

You can have a partnership but only one partner should be running/managing it.

Realtors make shitty business partners if you are expecting them to do any repairs...




What you really need to understand is a carwash is not a rental house. It's a 24/7 business with regular repair/maintenance requirements that will require a reactionary response at the most inconvenient times (think holidays, nights, weekends, birthdays, weddings, "insert important event")