Woo Hoo My First Car Wash!!!

[Nuphoenix]

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Needs some new paint and signage, But she's all mine. Been working at it two long days now, but am glad to be working again. Been a disabled veteran for nine years (almost exactly) and I'm glad to have a purpose in life again. Really beat, need to slow things down.

 

[Rfreeman]

First and foremost....THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE....secondly welcome to another family/community of car wash owners all looking and willing to help each other. Let the fun begin!

 

[I.B. Washincars]

Congrats. Hope you make tons of money.

 

[Nuphoenix]

First and foremost....THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE....secondly welcome to another family/community of car wash owners all looking and willing to help each other. Let the fun begin!

Thank you so very much. It was an Honor to serve. I have been following this forum since I decided to try and buy the wash. Lots of advice here and I'm going to need it...LOL.

 

[Nuphoenix]

Congrats. Hope you make tons of money.

Thank you. I don't expect to make tons of money, but I am happy to be productive again.

 

[Leee]

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Needs some new paint and signage, But she's all mine. Been working at it two long days now, but am glad to be working again. Been a disabled veteran for nine years (almost exactly) and I'm glad to have a purpose in life again. Really beat, need to slow things down.

As mentioned from others THANK YOU for your service. I am new to the forum, but I have been in the car wash business for awhile. Good luck on your new venture.

 

[Nuphoenix]

As mentioned from others THANK YOU for your service. I am new to the forum, but I have been in the car wash business for awhile. Good luck on your new venture.

Thank You!!

 

[Sequoia]

Congratulations on your new venture! Sounds like it is perfect!

 

[tdlconceptsllc]

Congrats on your wash! I envy little washes there so simple lol, Now lets get down to the nuts & bolts pop the hood on this bad boy. What kind of equipment do you have? Manufactures & do you have any plans for improvements besides Real estate paint. This group of guys would be more than happy to guide you in a direction.

 

[Nuphoenix]

Congrats on your wash! I envy little washes there so simple lol, Now lets get down to the nuts & bolts pop the hood on this bad boy. What kind of equipment do you have? Manufactures & do you have any plans for improvements besides Real estate paint. This group of guys would be more than happy to guide you in a direction.

Thank you.
The equipment is about 23 years old.
Magic Wand and Magic Wash? equipment.
First improvement is Cryptopay and cleaning up the coin boxes, they look horrible.
Vending machine decals look like crap, got them on order.
IBA looks like shit, but does it's job.
Customers want more soap, using Kleen rite 1A, but they want to see more bubbles. Looking at orange cream for SS.
Gonna experiment with different soaps for the IBA.
Cleaning and organizing/labeling the equipment room. Since the owner passed away 3 years ago+, nobody kept track of anything.
Experimenting maybe with concentrates?
Changing to LED lighting/Making it brighter.
Repaint or panel IBA and add better lighting to make it more attractive.
Definitely add some signage by the road. Since the wash is set back between two businesses it's hard to see from the road.

A very long list, just have to do it one step at a time as income allows. With this Virus stuff, business is down 50%.

 

[Starrwash]

Members on this site are so helpful! Welcome aboard. Thank you for your service

 

[Dan-Ark]

Looks like a nice start. Like the big equipment room! There are some great folks on here and its an amazing resource. Could not have gotten along without it.

 

[soapy]

Congratulation and thanks for your service. Where are you located?

 

[Waxman]

Welcome to the car wash forum! Congrats and thank you for your service and sacrifice.

Are you re-naming the wash or keeping it the same? I suggest going to Google and claiming the business as your own. Then create a Google business page. It's simple, easy, free and effective.

If you freshen up with panels / paint / l.e.d. lights and signs / decals, customers will respond positively. Credit card acceptance is a must. GO COUNT UP; where the display says the $$$ spent. Set up parameters so they make sense. There is a cost to accept and process cards, so go with a higher startup price than cash , if possible. Go with a higher max spend per swipe than you think you need; I just raised mine to $15 max per swipe because I was seeing a trend toward higher per customer spending per wash.

Glad you are feeling productive. Don't forget to have fun. It's easy to get bugged by customers making messes and making demands. But remember; at the most basic metastructure of this business, car washing always has been and always will be ........FUN!

 

[Waxman]

I looked at your picture of the wash. I think it would look great if you re-painted the metal corrugated on exterior top of walls and put some of these letters on there: https://americansignletters.com/plastic-letters/.

Take your time. Look at pics of other washes to see what you think looks good. Take a little poll and ask friends / relatives / customers what they like.

I'd go with a dark bronze metal and orange letters. But that's my specific jam. That would POP.

Also, tell us more about your vacs and vending, please.

 

[washnshine]

Thank you so very much for your service and congratulations on your wash. I think the place looks very good - like waxman said, get the metal painted eventually and that will really make it pop. The other Exterior surfaces look fine.

Get some good chems that work on your soils in that IBA and you’ll have a good revenue generator. I know you said it was older but heck, it’s an inverted L and that design is still widely used on “modern” machines - and they can clean a car just fine with the right water and chemistry. I wish you the best of luck and look forward to hearing about your adventure!

 

[Greg Pack]

Thank you. I don't expect to make tons of money, but I am happy to be productive again.

You never know where this path might lead. I remember when I bought my first car wash in 1992 my goal was to net an extra $200 a week to supplement my firefighter's salary. I've been full time now since 2001.

 

[Nuphoenix]

Congratulation and thanks for your service. Where are you located?
[/QUOT
Glen Daniel, WV

 

[Nuphoenix]

Thank you so very much for your service and congratulations on your wash. I think the place looks very good - like waxman said, get the metal painted eventually and that will really make it pop. The other Exterior surfaces look fine.

Get some good chems that work on your soils in that IBA and you’ll have a good revenue generator. I know you said it was older but heck, it’s an inverted L and that design is still widely used on “modern” machines - and they can clean a car just fine with the right water and chemistry. I wish you the best of luck and look forward to hearing about your adventure!

Any Idea how I can paint the IBA? The Magic wand auto. Looks like it was originally like a light gray or aluminum colored paint but now is dark and worn off in 90% of the unit. Am planning on pressure washing the entire bay and equipment. But would like to repaint it to make it look better.

 

[Greg Pack]

Acid wash with something like Arcadian's nu wall it and then have it wrapped