Sscwn lowresproof

Whatever Happens in

. . . s a g e V ICA Show ‘18

NEW!

INDUSTRIAL

VACUUM SYSTEMS

• SINGLE OR DUAL ARM • FLEXIBILITY

Order with One or Two Vacuum Arms

DIMENSIONS: Boom Arm 120” long Base Pole 99” tall

Connects to any IVS Vacuum or Central Vac System

• DURABLE Constructed of Stainless Steel for long lasting durability

Shown with DE3130 Base

• ADJUSTABLE Boom(s) can swivel 180° or can be fixed stationary • CUSTOMIZABLE Programmable LED Lighting, Trash Bins, Racks, Mounting options for Pylon or Islands, Coin Box or Free Vac timer options • BRANDED Signage on System can be custom printed/branded for you

IVS ARCH BAY VACUUM SYSTEM

Attract customers with this popular and custom look at your car wash. Our Swivel or fixed boom design keeps your hoses off the ground, clean, and are easy for your customers to use, the system can be ordered in a dual or single boom configuration. The easy to use remote controlled programmable LED Light show will draw attraction and interest to your car wash. IVS engineered our ARCH BAY VACUUM SYSTEMS out of Stainless Steel to last with time, be weatherproof and incredibly durable. The boom arm can swivel 180°, or it can be locked into a fixed position.

Signage can be customized for your car wash’s branding. Vacuum can be controlled by a free vac push-button or a coin box.

IVS VACUUM LINEUP POWERVAC 140000

POWER AIRVAC 240000

POWER VAC X3

MPV POWER VAC

AIR MACHINES

VACUUMS

DETAIL ISLANDS

SHAMPOO & FRAGRANCE

VENDING

800-968-8227

WWW.IVS-VACUUM.COM 2

• SPRING 2018

COMMERCIAL VACUUMS

POWER MAX 3

CARPET WIZARD

POLE VACUUMS

FRESH N’ UP

SIMONIZ

TAPESWITCH

The Ultimate Road Salt Fighter

Why replace the complete mat when only half needs replacing?

Less money, less waste, less shipping costs!

DESALT

24” X 30” CAR WASH MAT SYSTEM 24 VAC or DC with 15 lbs. nominal actuation force. Gray mat constructed of molded PVC. Mounts with 4 thru holes on a 3/16” steel plate.

Low pH Formulation 5 Gallon 30 Gallon 55 Gallon

PA5568 DR30568 DR55568

ANTI-FREEZE DETERGENTS Cherry Cherry Cherry White White White

SPRAYWAY

Melts ice & frost quickly from locks, windows, or headlights.

Will not harm finish.

SWGC557

SWGC758

ASCO NORMALLY OPEN

SOLENOIDS

BRASS BODY•GREAT FOR USE IN WEEP SYSTEMS 110 24 110 24 110 24

PSI

75 75 125 125 125 125

SUT1500W

WMS120

12 PER CASE • 16 OZ.

Removes salt stains from carpets and mats. Brush cap helps loosen salt.

VOLT

GUP106

DE-ICER

12 PER CASE • 11 OZ.

PART #

28” X 44” WINDMASTER SIGN INSERTS

SPRAYWAY

SALT OFF

SA170 SA171 SA216 SA218 SA250 SA252

5 Gal. 30 Gal. 55 Gal. 5 Gal. 30 Gal. 55 Gal.

PIPE SIZE

1/4 1/4 1/2 1/2 3/8 3/8

GUK600W

We’re Closer Than You Think!

SHIPPING FROM NEVADA,

TEXAS & PENNSYLVANIA

WMS190

WMS2000 Snap-in sign holder w/ wheels & fillable base CH2002 Snap-in spring-loaded sign holder CH2002W Metal sign holder with wheels

PU21495

WEEP GUNS

DIXMOR DX1000

WEEP MIZER Prevent line-freezing!

HUGE SELECTION OF

GUK600W GUKEZW PU21255 PU21265 PU21295 PU21495 GUP106 PU36141 SUT1500W

GET YOUR ORDER

FAST!

WMS122

**SIGNS ARE SINGLE SIDED. STANDS SOLD SEPARATELY.

WEEP GUNS & REPAIR KITS! LOW PRESSURE

Mat System - 2 Mats

WINTER SIGNAGE

KLEEN-RITE

KR5AF KR30AF KR55AF KR5AF-W KR30AF-W KR55AF-W

TSCWRS2430

TSCWRS2430L LEFT mat ONLY TSCWRS2430R RIGHT mat ONLY

Kleen-Rite Kleen-Rite Easy Pull Giant SS Outlet Giant Recessed Fitting Giant Brass Outlet Giant High Impact Paraplate Adj. Trigger Cat Pumps Anti-Fatigue Suttner SUT1500

Cycles your weep system for maximum savings. Includes battery backup.

TI0100

Maine Washington

Oregon

Minnesota

North Dakota

Montana

New Hampshire

New York

Wisconsin

South Dakota

Idaho

Vermont

Pennsylvania Iowa Nebraska

Illinois

Nevada

Ohio

Indiana

Utah

Kansas

Missouri

New Jersey

New Jersey ware Delaware Dela Mar yland

West Virginia Colorado

Rhode Island

Connecticut Rhode Island

Michigan

Wyoming

Massachusetts

Massachusetts

Virginia

Kentucky North Carolina

California Tennessee Oklahoma Arizona

New Mexico

Mississippi

Texas

South Carolina

Arkansas Georgia Alabama

Louisiana Florida

1 DAY

2 DAY

3 DAY SPRING 2018 •

3

Selfie Notes

BY DEBRA GORGOS, EDITOR

CONTENTS Letters to the Editor.................................6 Looking Back: Fall 1999.........................8 Quick Tips................................................ 10 Fun & Games........................................... 14 Spring Clean Your Car Wash............. 16

My least favorite season used to be Spring.

From the rain and wind, to the mud and pollen, it placed fourth right behind Winter, then Fall, then Summer. But, as I have grown older, I have separated my seasonal appreciativeness, which was primarily based on the holidays and parties therein (Christmas = Winter, Fall = Halloween, Summer = my birthday) and have come to appreciate them based on their natural gifts, sounds, and beauty. Even on the gray days, there are bits of color and magnificence. As I type this, I can hear some birds outside, and my kids are running around outside with our dog. I’m not going to lie, it was a long, harsh winter here in New York. Snow, snowstorms, snowsqualls, snow bombs, you name it. But, Spring is now here and is pushing its way through, like this little lone flower I noticed today outside my front door.

In other news, I love the new Fill in the Blank section, an idea that came from Publisher Jackson Vahaly. Not only is it fun, but it gave me a lot of insight into what you all go through on a daily basis and the angst some of you feel when pulling into your self serve lot, not knowing what to expect. A few of you said something to the effect of: You take a deep breath, or say a prayer, before entering the property. What many of you find or have to deal with is no joke. From vandalism, to left behind trash, to having to test equipment, etc. you’re all routinely putting in hard work. If it makes any of you feel better, I too, get nervous each time I come home. Why? Because of our dog! Granted, he is still a puppy, and although he has been “trained,” he is still causing irreparable damage. A few weeks ago, I stepped outside for a few minutes with my kids to play in the snow. I heard our dog barking manically but didn’t think anything of it. When I walked into the living room, I was greeted by this: Yes, that’s right. He ate our couch.

And, finally, I had so much fun at the 2018 Car Wash Show in Las Vegas. Jackson and I enjoyed

Want to Recycle Water?....................... 21 Self-Serve Snapshot............................... 22 Self-Serve Shout Outs........................... 30 Association Calendar & News......... 32

you c an

do it, little guy!

How Interesting...................................... 34 Innovations............................................... 37 Industry Dirt............................................ 38 Extra! Extra!............................................. 40 Natural Disasters................................... 44 Tricks of the Trade................................ 52 Random Thoughts: How to keep an ‘eye’ on employees................................ 58

ch?!?! u o c E T A ou Miles!!! Y

Open for Business................................. 60 Funny Business...................................... 62 Cover Story: ICA SHOW..................... 64

seeing so many new and old faces. I believe this was my 7th ICA Show. Back in 2011, when things were economically stressed, I noticed a more cautious temperament. However, the enthusiasm from so many self-serve operators this year was encouraging and fun. It was a large show and I appreciate you all taking the time to talk to me and share your stories and ideas. I also learned a lot of great information and am sharing it with all of you who were unable to attend (see: Cover Story Page XX) There were three education sessions held just for self-serve operators and owners, proving that your presence at the car wash show is respected and noted. If you attended and want to share your thoughts with others, log into AutoCareForum.com and look for the ICA The Car Wash Show thread.

Darwin at the Carwash........................ 76

And, as always, please feel free to reach out to me with any questions, concerns, letters to the editor and story ideas.

Editor Posthumous Julia E. Campbell

Until Summer,

VOL. 45, NO. 2, SPRING 2018 Publisher Jackson Vahaly Editor Debra Gorgos Design Katy Barret-Alley Editor Emeritus Jarret J. Jakubowski Editor Posthumous Joseph J. Campbell

Self Serve Carwash News is published 4 times per year and is independently owned by Jackson Vahaly. Web address is www.sscwn.com.

All inquiries should be directed to:

Self Serve Car Wash News 110 Childs Ln., Franklin, TN 37067 jacksonv@sscwn.com Copyright 2014. 2 Dollar Enterprises/SSCWN. All Rights Reserved

4

• SPRING 2018

SURF’S UP. With the newly redesigned Tandem Surfline, throughput and profits will be up too. Now faster and more efficient than ever before, the most innovative automatic friction wash just got better.

A second side brush helps get customers through quicker, and our wall-mount system and Ultimate Cover package is now standard. Pumps and solution controls are off-board.

And with all non-corrosive materials and optional Ultimate Lighting packages, the Tandem Surfline will always look as good as it cleans.

DRIVE | CLEAN.

Copyright 2018 PDQ Manufacturing, Inc., part of OPW,

SelfServe Carwash News_9.5x13.indd 1

pdqinc.com | 800.227.3373

SPRING 2018 4/18/18 9:50 •AM5

LETTERS TO THE

EDITOR

Debra, Jessica Rhodes stated in her article that “if you offer extra services such as oil changes or car detailing.where your employees get behind the wheel of a customer vehicle… you should also have Garage-Keepers Liability insurance”. While this statement is technically correct Ms. Rhodes failed to include that any wash operation using a conveyor system should also have garagekeepers liability insurance. Whether or not your employee “gets behind the wheel” is irrelevant.

The General Liability coverage form excludes coverage for any vehicle that is in your “care, custody or control”. Thus, the Garage-Keepers liability insurance provides coverage for vehicles that are in your “care, custody or control”. Those three words are very important, “care,

custody & control”, if any one of those three are present at your operations – for any length of time – you should have Garage-Keepers Liability insurance.

Here are several examples of how your wash may take “care, custody or control” of a customer’s vehicle.

1. The customer exits the vehicle and waits within a designated area until the wash is completed. (Your wash would be assuming temporary custody of the vehicle) From the moment the customer exits the vehicle and until they get back in the vehicle the Garage Keepers Liability form would be providing Liability & Physical Damage protection for that vehicle.

2. The customer pulls into your tunnel and is told to take their hands off the wheel and put the vehicle in neutral. (Your wash would be assuming control of the vehicle) From the moment the customer relinquishes control of the vehicle and until they shift back into drive and resume control the Garage

Keepers Liability form would be providing Liability & Physical Damage protection for that vehicle.

Note: I currently write regular insurance related articles for a variety of periodicals. It would be my pleasure to do so for Self Serve Car Wash News at any time.

Dan Tharp, CIC, RWCS Vice President of Sales | The Insurancenter

EDITOR’S RESPONSE:

Daniel,

thank you so much for your response and clarification.

There is so much to learn about insurance and I am so glad you’re offering your expertise, and we welcome your contributions to the Self Serve Car Wash News family. Look for Daniel’s article on Natural Disaster Insurance in this issue as well as his article on solar panel installation concerns in the Summer issue.

Touch4Wash Touch4Wash

Now your can purchase purchase Now Now your your customers customers can and activate wash from from their their and and activate activate your your wash mobile mobile phone! phone!

Membership Programs Programs Membership Membership Programs  Include your Automatic, SS SS Bays Include Includeyour yourAutomatic, Automatic, SS Bays Bays

and Aux. Equipment to build the and Equipment andAux. Aux. Equipment to to build build the the perfect program perfect perfectprogram program  Reoccurring Reoccurring payment managed by  managed  Reoccurringpayment payment managed by Touch4Wash services Touch4Wash Touch4Wash services services  Purchase Purchase memberships directly   Purchasememberships memberships directly directly from app from fromapp app  Loyalty Points Programs Loyalty LoyaltyPoints PointsPrograms Programs  Purchase to earn system Purchaseto toearn earnsystem system Purchase

100 95 75

 Text Marketing Tools TextMarketing MarketingTools Tools Text Automated Text Response AutomatedText TextResponse Response  Automated Day & Time Discount Management Day&&Time TimeDiscount Discount Management Management  Day

Tools Tools Tools Certificate feature for promotion, promotion, Certificatefeature featurefor  Certificate fundraising and charity events fundraising and charity fundraising and charity events

Call us us for for more more Call us for more information information information

25

612-787-7278 612-787-7278 612-787-7278

5

touch4wash.com 6

0

• SPRING 2018

Astromatic RYKO Parts 3_375x4_875 ad 011817-B PRINT

SPRING 2018 •

7

Summer/Fall

1998 PRESENTING SOME OF THE BEST, AND MOST NOTEWORTHY HEADLINES AND EXCERPTS FROM THE SELF SERVE CAR WASH NEWS ARCHIVES.

Similar to the issue you’re reading now, the cover 20 years ago was also all about the International Carwash Association (ICA) Car Wash Show!

Also held in Las Vegas, the cover story by JJ Jakubowski included the following highlight: “The Association has seen a 20% increase in membership in the last year alone and anticipates having over 3,000 members by year’s end! Much of this growth comes from the Detailing and the Oil Companies’ Gas Station Carwashes. The SSCWN acknowledges that we hear of some unease over the influx of those traditionally pegged as the “enemy” by “real” carwashers. But, then again, well in the 80s self serve was considered (by many influential tunnel guys) in much the same way…”

INDUSTRY NEWS

Down But Not Out in New Jersey “The last week of July, the Republican Governor of New Jersey — Christy Todd Whitman — did a very un-Conservative thing: she vetoed a bill that would have rescinded the cumbersome, unfair sales tax on the state’s self serve operators.

The effort to educate both houses of the New Jersey legislature about the nature of the coin-op carwashing and its inherent incompatibility with such a sales tax was spearheaded by Ed Cincotta (Board Member of the Carwash Operators of New Jersey Association) together with Linda Feriod (Executive Director).

(Note: operators in Pennsylvania should be advised that a campaign to overturn the self serve tax in that state will soon begin in earnest.

Expect to receive notice by way of the mail…..)”

8

• SPRING 2018

SPRING 2018 •

9

QUICK TIPS

EQUIPMENT TIP

Filter Bag Maintenance The following tip is courtesy of J.E. Adams Industries, Ltd. When it comes to vacuum maintenance, don’t forget to take care of the filter bags. The following checklist will help you in maintaining your filter bags on a regular basis:

PROPERTY TIP Getting Buzzed Wasp season is upon us and those little pests can cause property damage and also a PR nightmare if a customer gets stung. Therefore, be sure to take care of any nests before a flurry of the flying vermin wreak havoc at your car wash.

If you notice wasps (yellow jackets and hornets are part of the wasp family), there is probably a nest nearby. But, how do you know these pests aren’t the nice bees that produce honey? For starters, the harmless and “good” bees are more stout and rounded, have fuzzy fur, and flattened back legs. Wasps have more slender bodies are are mostly fur-less.

BAD WASP

GOOD HONEY BEE

Now, a wasp nest is usually found in roof eaves or in sheds and usually have walls that look like they are made of paper (which makes sense as those walls are usually made from wood chewed by the wasps). Nests usually look like upside down umbrellas, while ornet nests are more football-shaped and yellow jackets’ nests are usually underground.

If you’re able to determine that you definitely have a nest on your property — and it may cause problems for your customers — you should consider calling a professional to get rid of it. Do not poke at it or try to remove yourself without the proper precautions, especially during the day when they are most active.

33 Shake out at least once a week 33 Check bag for damage 33 Rinse with a low pressure hose or put in the washing machine 33 ONLY air dry filters 33 Do not machine dry bags 33 Make sure to have a tight seal to prevent motor damage 33 Change filter bags monthly (or as needed) 33 Have an extra set on hand

MARKETING TIP Four Ways

To Advertise On A Budget

If your advertising budget is on a diet, there are many ways to get your business name out there for little to no money.

1. Place a flyer, advertising your business, location, etc. in community centers, on college campuses, in apartment building lobbies, and on laundromat bulletin boards. Why these places? Because, most likely, the people visiting and living at these places are not home owners and are not able to do any driveway washing.

2. Send out a press release to your local newspapers and tv news stations telling them about your business and also offering your expertise on how people should go about using a self serve wash to wash off love bugs, pollen, etc. (keep it seasonal). Give them your name and number and tell them you are available to be interviewed. Also send out a press release if your wash has made any improvements, will be hosting any fundraisers, or has implemented any eco-friendly practices.

3. Reward social media users by “checking in” at your car wash on Facebook or Twitter. The first user who checks in 5 times and posts a picture of them washing their vehicle, will get unlimited washing for a month, or something similar. Now, in order for this to work, you should also have a Facebook page and Twitter account up and running for your business.

4. This one isn’t exactly free, but it won’t break your bank: Now that summer is almost here and towns will be hosting Fourth of July festivals, or community day events, consider handing out free balloons with your business name and address on them, to little kids. Or hand out free popcorn with your company information on the boxes. Just be sure to check with the event organizers first.

BUSINESS TIP Balancing It Out Properly managing your finances is one of the most important parts of running a business. Well, that and having customers, but for this tip, we will focus on how to keep track of your spending, profits, and budget.

A good balance sheet is where you should start.

According to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), “The balance sheet is the foundation of managing your finances. It operates as a snapshot of your business financials. It helps you keep track of your capital and provide a cash flow projection for future years.”

10

• SPRING 2018

A great and free balance sheet template can be found online at www.score.org/resource/balancesheet-template.

The template will have you list all of your assets, including: Current Assets, Cash in bank, Accounts receivable, Inventory, Prepaid expenses, Other current assets And, because the template is in an Excel format, it does all of the math for you. If you have any more questions about balance sheet and financial management, check out the free resources at sba.gov.

CURRENT LIABILITIES

Accounts payable Interest payable Taxes payable Notes, short-term (due within 12 months) Current part, long-term debt Other current liabilities

OWNERS’ EQUITY

Invested capital Retained earnings - beginning Retained earnings - current

LONG-TERM DEBT

Bank loans payable Notes payable to stockholders LESS: Short-term portion Other long term debt

FIXED ASSETS

Machinery & equipment Furniture & fixtures Leasehold improvements Land & buildings Other fixed assets (LESS accumulated depreciation on all fixed assets) This Total is your net of depreciation

OTHER ASSETS Intangibles, Deposits Goodwill Other

carwash ad color

3/12/18

2:00 PM

Page 1

Security Solutions for the Car Wash Industry

FACTORY AUTHORIZED SALES & SERVICE CENTER Cam Locks • Inner Cylinder (Pop-Out) Locks

Restricted • Commercial Medeco Biaxial Keyways Re-keying to customer specifications Key duplication • Master keying Factory-direct Pricing

Threaded Extension Locks • T-Handles • Padlocks Hasps • Switch Locks • Plug Locks • Safes MEDECO • FORT • AMERICAN • ABUS • MASTER • ABLOY SARGENT & GREENLEAF • CHICAGO • WILSON-BOHANNAN

Competitive Prices

48-hour Turnaround

Fast, Courteous Service

Immediate Shipping from Inventory

800-777-6310 | Fax 972-775-6316 www.ralock.com | sales@ralock.com 3570 N Highway 67 | Midlothian, TX 76065 SPRING 2018 •

11

12

• SPRING 2018

SPRING 2018 •

13

FUN&GAMES

1.

WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE? Think these pictures of a self serve car wash are the same?

Think again!

There are six differences.

Can you spot them all?

Answers: 1. Remove screw/bolt 2. Lengthen coat sleeve 3. Switch Master Card colors

4. Remove cement block line 5. Add period after up 6. Change color of RE

2.

WORD SEARCH...

Can you find the following 12 words hidden in the letters below?

Words can be vertical, horizontal or diagonal. Good luck!

Boom Brush Nozzle Presoak Rinse Soap 14

• SPRING 2018

Spray Swivel Timer Vacuum Vending Wand

Word Search Can you find the following 12 words hidden in the letters below? Words can horizontal or diagonal. Good luck!

Boom Brush Nozzle Presoak Rinse Soap Spray Swivel Timer Vacuum Vending Wand

K O F I L V O T K W U Q I D V A Q J A S V A X R M

Z A B O D J B C P R T O E Z W Y P H N L R P N I W

M D O E F A N U S S W O G N A N R L P H K V Z T Y

W X H S U O M P Y M F Y M D N C A N S L H Z G W I

I R G E E J A S J Y B G B G D G W I P H M V I E W

M B W L C R O O A N E U P B I D N Z W I M Q R L C

D V I V V Q P M O A I A J F T P M G N I D N E V D

X I V T P W M Z M I B G C Q E D H B F Z E P M Q G

P E Y O J Q Z M P X C K N M L N J A V O R D E V Z

B O H F L L S R W F L D N L Z D L D L N G H Q Y L

R V T Y E Q W B L Z P S Z I J I O U Y Y P V T A J

S E S D X O I V W N A D L W P F P Y J I N K O R J

M I M F E D V B A K D W D F P S Y K O E R T F P S

Y O B I P S E V T C W R Y C O T J W E V M N T S O

R Q W W T U L U Q P U K A W Z D B X K Y H Z Y V L

Y E T L E Y B R U S H U P U Z A K W I S P Q K C Z

X M A S A S I Q P G V J M G Z E W K O Z E F N D M

U N N R O A J P K K H U F D C G R A Z V B V L D J

B I O U N Y G K K U T K J U L L P D H N W G C M W

R M J V X T Q J C Q A G M O O B Y V J D G P J S K

D P K A O Q R C G A Y A E E Q V O C Z W H G R T E

J O U Z Z I L E P V P O F P E N G W N U Q I K D Q

M L H Z N A Z H Q N E E I Q H Z M S H X L H G K G

A I D D N N O G F N Y S G T V H Y P R J A E E P U

N M J M A N P G N B O O H B D P T U F F Y Q T K W

K Z M W I M D X P B R S M Y R Y X U B R D J M A N

THE PUMP WITH 9 LIVES

10

JUST GOT ITS CAT PUMP OWNERS,

TH

Have you experienced pitting, Grooving, or wash out in your pump head?

Vilco Supply company, has solved the wash out problem for 30 years with a unique boring and stainless steel sleeve process.

SAVE BIG! With Our Combo Bore, All 9 Ports Sleeved For

ONLY $149.95 An Excellent & Economical Alternative with the Durability of Stainless Steel

VILBORE SYSTEM AVAILABLE ON ALL: 310, 340, 350, 5CP2120, 5CP2130 & 530 HEADS Vilco Supply offers maintenance and pump repair on many other cat pump models

“GIVING YOUR CAT PUMP IT’S 10TH LIFE & MORE!” • Bore all 3 Hi-Pressure Ports – Sleeve with Stainless Steel $74.95 • Bore all 6 Valve Seats – Sleeve with Stainless Steel $99.95

FOR MORE INFORMATION 888 -255-4181 V I L C O S U P P LY @ F R O N T I E R N E T. N E T | V I L C O S U P P LY. C O M SPRING 2018 •

15

AROUND THE WASH

Spring Clean Your Car Wash

By Jessica Rhodes

Spring cleaning is just as important at your car wash as in your home. In some areas the snow has melted, leaving behind a lot of dirt and debris. With warmer weather, you can spend more time outside cleaning up your grounds and your bays and servicing equipment after the busy winter months.

“We tend [to do] most of our larger maintenance projects in the spring because in the cold and windy winter it takes [longer] to get anything done,” said Scott Gray, Owner of Soapy’s Auto Wash in Idaho.

Earl Weiss, President of Niles Car Wash Co. in Niles, Illinois, agrees, because in the spring “weather is conducive and areas can be shut down as needed.”

START WITH THE GROUNDS

Everyone has different cleaning and maintenance schedules for their business, but there are some things that just make sense to do in the spring. The obvious one is landscaping.

Weiss lists landscaping as one of his spring projects. “Landscape can enhance the overall appeal. It is similar to a person being well groomed,” he said.

You can take the time to trim existing shrubbery or add new, clean up any flower beds, spread mulch, reseed patchy areas of your lawn, and plant colorful flowers in planters, hanging baskets, or flower beds. Put weed killer between sidewalk cracks. Attractive shrubbery and colorful flowers can draw the eye in when a customer is driving down the road, and make the difference in someone noticing you among other businesses. A neglected looking property {continued}

Spring Cleaning Checklist Trim existing shrubbery or add new Clean up any flower beds Spread mulch Reseed patchy areas of your lawn Plant colorful flowers in planters, hanging baskets, or flower beds.

Put weed killer between sidewalk cracks Painted buildings (if needed) Clean up signage Clean up lighting 16

• SPRING 2018

Replace bulbs, and add any lighting that is lacking Add any security systems you might need Fill any cracks or holes in concrete Check asphalt, sealcoat and re-pave if necessary Change the oil in all pumps and compressors Change out all HP tips Install new foam brush heads Replace worn hoses

fgm-235-free-vacs-that-make-money-ALN-V1-R1-final

Final

F REE V ACS That make money 5 minutes

5 minutes

90 PSI

MAXIMUM PRESSURE

5 minutes

5 minutes

90 PSI

MAXIMUM PRESSURE

Building Building quality, value-added equipment for 39 years  3021 Midland Drive • Pine Bluff AR 71603 • 800-643-1574 • sales@fragramatics.com

Learn more at fragramatics.com

SPRING 2018 •

17

Spring Clean Your Car Wash will do the opposite.

Landscaping goes along with other exterior projects that enhance curb appeal. Assess whether your buildings need to be painted and get it done before the hot weather comes. Clean up your signs so they are bright and inviting. This is also a great time to clean up lighting, replace bulbs, and add any lighting that is lacking. You can add any security systems you might need while you are servicing the lighting. Fill any cracks or holes in concrete before they become worse.

If you live in an area with freezing temperatures, the winter may have disturbed your asphalt. Sealcoating and paving add to curb appeal as well, but more importantly, ensure a safe driving experience for customers.

CHECK YOUR EQUIPMENT

Gray recommends becoming familiar with the sound of your equipment throughout the year so that you know what needs to be serviced.

“My son just finished his six-year service with the Navy and is planning on buying the car wash from me,” said Gray. “I tell him the most important part

18

• SPRING 2018

of maintenance is to listen to the sounds of equipment and know what it sounds like when it is running properly. Once you learn that you can listen and usually hear a problem with the equipment long before it actually fails, and you can usually correct the problem before it becomes a big problem.”

Spring is a great time to tackle that equipment that is sounding a little off — take it apart and see what the problem is.

Change the oil in all pumps and compressors, change out all HP tips, install new foam brush heads, and replace worn hoses to keep equipment running in top shape, suggests Gray.

DON’T FORGET THE WALLS

A big project that is best done in the Spring is cleaning your bay walls.

Everyone has their preferred way of cleaning their bay walls, but it usually involves harsh chemicals. Many people recommend using these chemicals when it rains so that they are safely washed away when they run out of the bay, which makes Spring a great time.

Owners suggest using everything from pool chlo-

Spring Clean Your Car Wash rine to bleach, Klean Wall and muriatic acid to get the calcium deposits, green moss or brown mold that builds up on the bay walls to come off.

Whatever you choose to use, it is important to remember to wear head to toe safety gear when using these strong chemicals, do not use them on a windy day, and employ a helper to keep customers away from the bay while you are spraying them.

Be sure the seals on your sprayer and any protective equipment is made of a chemical resistant compound like Viton.

ESTABLISH A MAINTENANCE LIST

As for projects that are done on a schedule throughout the year, spring is a great time to get them all up to date and establish a strict monthly cleaning schedule if you don’t already have one.

“Since weather creates huge fluctuations in business,” said Weiss, “most of these tasks are retackled as needed.”

For instance, Gray says he cleans his vacuums once a month. Weiss says he cleans his pits twice a year. In the spring, go through your calendar and

write down when you should be doing these projects so you don’t let them go for too long.

But even projects like vacuums and pits that are done throughout the year can benefit from a deep cleaning. The exact maintenance schedule for pits depends on their size and depth, but all of them need a periodic deep clean to remove the black sand that vacuums can’t easily pump out. Spring is a great time to shut down a bay and hire a backhoe to clear out that sediment and start the season with a perfectly clean pit.

You can also throw your vacuum bags in the heavy duty washing machines at your local laundromat to improve overall performance. Keep spare bags ready to go for when you’re doing this project.

Whatever your spring cleaning schedule, make sure that you use the change of seasons as a convenient reminder of the importance of maintenance.

“Like the saying goes, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure,” said Gray. “[It is] much cheaper to catch something early.”

Jessica Rhodes is a freelance writer, public relations specialist and blogger living in Upstate New York.

BRIGHT BRIGHTBAY. BAY.HAPPY HAPPYCUSTOMER. CUSTOMER. Waterproof LED Lighting | Available at at Kleen-Rite Waterproof LED Lighting | Available Kleen-Rite 800-285-6780 | www.ggled.net | sales@ggled.net 800-285-6780 | www.ggled.net | sales@ggled.net SPRING 2018 •

19

Offer More Ways to Pay for Self Serve with the

CryptoPay™ & Unitec© WashPay

CryptoPay™ In the Bay

CryptoPay™ Meter Closeup

Save on Processing Fees by Consolidating Multiple Charges with the CryptoPay™ Credit System in the Bay, Vacuums, Vending, and Splash-N-Dash System.

CryptoPay™ at Vacuums

Unitec© WashPay Meter

Receive valuable reports and add as many bays as needed with the Unitec© WashPay Credit Card System.

5842 W 34th St, Houston, TX 77092 1.800.999.9878 • 713.683.9878

www.colemanhanna.com 20

• SPRING 2018

Want to Recycle Water?

Read this first.

By Dean Taylor dean@progressivepump.com If the benefits of recycling water are attractive to the self-service operator, there are a few other guidelines that should be addressed with the manufacturer prior to making the investment.

ODOR CONTROL: Foul water odor often associated with reclaiming is one of the fastest ways to lose customers. Be sure the system addresses complete odor control. Get an odor control guarantee in writing from the manufacturer. Beware if they cannot or will not offer an odor control guarantee with the equipment.

PARTICULATE FILTRATION: Be sure the system will filter to below 10 microns.

Many self- service equipment manufacturers require this parameter to warranty their pumps and equipment. Larger particles such as sand and dirt can harm pumps and prematurely wear out spray tips.

MAINTENANCE: Be sure the maintenance isn’t going to cost you more time and money than it’s worth.

What’s the point in recycling if you have to babysit the equipment? Beware of those promoting a “no maintenance” reclaim system.

There are no “magical” water treatment systems. All reclaim systems will require some sort of maintenance and/or filter changing.

BACKWASHING: Systems that automatically backwash are usually returning the dirt to the water it was just removed from. Although backwashing can help reduce daily maintenance, there are tradeoffs that can be very time consuming and costly to the operator.

Monthly pumping of tanks and clogged sewer lines are common with automatic backwashing systems. Many cities do not allow backwash to go to sewer. Foreign materials can be detrimental to backwashing systems and media filters. If at all possible, avoid systems that have media filters and/ or automatically backwash.

SPACE: Be sure you have space for the reclaim system.

Some systems are cumbersome and require more space than an equipment room can offer. Although some reclaim systems can be placed outside or inbay, keep in mind that freeze protection may be required.

TANKS: Reclaim systems also require water collection tanks to be placed in-ground or above ground. Be sure there is adequate space to implement tanks.

Most manufacturers will recommend required tanks with their product information.

going down the drain and the reclaim system will encounter them. Many chemical manufacturers are now offering “reclaim compatible” products.

Ask the reclaim manufacturer if you will need to change the chemical diet of the car wash when recycling with his equipment.

WARRANTY: Be sure the manufacturer is going to stand behind the equipment. Equipment failure can be costly and time consuming. Be sure your warranty covers all components for at least a year.

In short, there are several great methods for the self serve operator to realize increased profits by conserving water. Do your homework and make sure the items you implement to conserve water are justified, cost effective and will not be adversely affected by contaminants such as oil, grease.

COMPATIBILITY: Insure the reclaim system is compatible with the soaps, detergents and chemicals that are being used at your self serve car wash. These products will be

Dean Taylor is the Applications Engineer at Progressive Pump and Treatment, a provider of commercial and industrial water treatment equipment and services, in Sarasota, Florida.

SPRING 2018 •

21

SS SNAP SHOT

NAME OF CAR WASH:

Magic Touch Car Wash Levittown/Chalfont (PA)

NAME OF OWNER(S):

Pete Grzesnikowski

NAME OF MANAGER(S): Barry F

TYPE OF CAR WASH:

7 SS Bays 1 IBA Washworld HV/ 4 SS Bays 1 IBA Washworld HV

NUMBER OF SELF SERVE BAYS: 11

22

• SPRING 2018

From coast to coast, we are profiling different self serve car washes and will showcase photos, business information, methods of advertising and what sets them apart from the competition.

SPRING 2018 •

23

888 920 2646

ETOWAH VALLEY EQUIPMENT

PRICES START AT $2695 OLD FAITHFUL

23

·

Guaranteed Vend — Drop Sensors Never Cheats The Customer

· Interior Lighting For Product Viewing · Stainless Steel 44 1/ ” 2

· Front Loading · 14 Vend Items · Optional CoinCo Or MEI Bill Acceptor Available · Dual Locking System · Only 23 5/8” W X 44 1/2” T X 13” D

WE ARE THE BILL ACCEPTOR EXPERTS !

Etowah Valley is the largest stocking retailer of acceptors in the Car Wash Industry !

2 Year Warranty, Expert Technical Support r e We Off and Repair Service should the need arise.

Bill Acceptors I E Coin Mechs M MEI

We stock all models for quick immediate delivery

PARTS Bill Boxes Bezels Harnesses

o C n i Co

Bill Acceptors Coin Mechs

Always in STOCK

NEW! MDB to Pulse Device

If you are not buying from us you are paying too much !

24

• SPRING 2018

888 920 2646

CUSTOM BUILT EQUIPMENT

Pump Stands

Meter Boxes Custom Made

NATIONWIDE INSTALLER NETWORK How Does Etowah Valley Sell Quality Equipment at such low prices?

We have invested heavily in state of the art manufacturing equipment to insure the highest quality equipment available anywhere. We manufacture everything in house in order to maintain our quality standards. Our sales volume allows us to purchase raw materials at tremendous savings. We then pass these savings along to our customers.

Join our Team!

Looking for qualified installers in select areas of the US, Canada and Mexico. Also have openings at the factory.

www.etowahmfg.com Etowah Valley Equipment

47 Etowah Center Dr Etowah, NC 28729

sales@etowahmfg.com 888 920 2646 SPRING 2018 •

25

BUSINESS INFO YEAR IT OPENED:

Levittown 1968, Chalfont 2017

HOURS/DAYS OPEN: 24/7 METHODS OF ADVERTISING: Social Media

TOKENS ACCEPTED?: Yes HOW MANY VACUUMS? Levittown 7/ Chalfont 12

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE THING ABOUT BEING A SELF SERVE CAR WASH OWNER? Flexibility of time

WHAT IS YOUR LEAST FAVORITE THING? Flexibility of time

26

• SPRING 2018

Invest In Your Future With Equipment That Lasts.

Super Flo - R.O. SPOT FREE RINSE SYSTEM

Crescent Vacuum Stanchions INDUSTRIAL GRADE

Flexible • Profitable • Dependable SSCWN_FullPageSpring2018_InvestInYourFuture.indd 1

(800) 421-5119 225 Crown Blvd., Timberlake, NC 27583 PO Box 488 | Roxboro, NC 27573 www.cpcarwash.com | sales@cpcarwash.com SPRING 4/12/20182018 2:33:49 •PM27

BUSINESS INFO

HOW DID YOU GET STARTED IN THE CAR WASH INDUSTRY?

I was in the cell phone business with a Nextel direct agency, when Nextel merged with Sprint the writing was on the walls with the agents getting cut. I worked a buyout of my contract in 2005 and found out that a wash that I grew up using was becoming available. The wash was owned by the Harm Family (Linda Feriod) and many people in the industry knew her/them. The Harms owned 3 washes in the area. This wash was the last one they had, and in July ‘05 we settled. The wash was a 7 bay ss with a 46’ express tunnel. Wash was a low volume 15,000 cpy facility, until late 2007. Many know how things went in 2007-2008. Add to the general business woes, the road we were on was closed for 13 months for a bridge replacement, so things were bad, almost to the point of closing down. After a year and a half of no traffic, a bad economy, and high gas prices, car counts dropped under 10,000 cars. I tried thinking of ways to make changes. We have a lot of competition in the area, and one wash closed down around us and I decided to make a change to what wasn’t around and with a true average count of 15,000, I decided to go IBA. I located a rebuilt Washworld High Velocity and did a bit of a makeover on the auto bay, and then cleaned out a closed wash in Atlanta claiming a Jim Coleman SS pump stand and vacuums and accessories. I had new Ginsan selector doors made up with bill acceptors and Cryptopay swipers added. Since then things have been running pretty smoothly.

Sadly Ed Harm Passed away this winter. He was a great man, learned a lot from him, only wished I had known him and could have been around him more.

The location I purchased from him is celebrating 50 years at the location and has had the same landlord since day 1. People who wonder, yes it can be done.

My newest location was acquired in Sept 2016 after being closed for 11 years after a woman had a seizure and drove into the building hitting the gas main and causing fire damage throughout. After a 9 month rehab and again installing a rebuilt Washworld HV, Coleman SS pump stand (this time going to Alabama) to pickup and again using Ginsan for selector doors, I reopened in Late May 2017. I acquired the property for this location and it is where I spend most of my time.

WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS FOR THE FUTURE?

Golf, Poker, maybe some traveling!!! Oh you are asking about other carwashes? Ha, wife says no way! No more. But if the right opportunity arose?...

28

• SPRING 2018

Quiet & Simple Quiet & Simple

Enjoy the benefits of a quieter and more efficient pump. UPGRADE to Arimitsu Pumps Enjoy the benefits of a quieter and more on your equipment. efficient pump. UPGRADE to Arimitsu Pumps on your equipment.

Self Serve Self Serve

National Pride National Equipment Pride Equipment

• • • • •

313 313

Etowah Valley Equipment Etowah Valley Equipment

Arimitsu 313 Upgrade From All Brands Arimitsu 313

Self Serve and Single Gun Prep Upgrade From All Brands PN-61000 Left (as pictured) Self Serve and Single Gun Prep PN-61001 Right PN-61000 Left (as pictured)

• PN-61001 Right

• • • • •

516 516

Arimitsu 516 Upgrade From All Brands Arimitsu 516

Self Serve and Single Gun Prep Upgrade From All Brands PN-61002 Left (as pictured) Self Serve and Single Gun Prep PN-61003 Right PN-61002 Left (as pictured) PN-61003 Right

Dual Gun Prep Dual Gun Prep Arimitsu 508 Arimitsu 508 Upgrade From All Brands

Coleman Hanna Coleman Carwash Hanna Systems Carwash Systems

508 508

Sonnys Carwash Factory Sonnys Carwash Factory

• • • • • • • •

QUIET QUIET SIMPLE SIMPLE QUALITY QUALITY PROVEN PROVEN

• • • •

Upgrade From All Brands Dual Gun Prep Dual Gun Prep PN-61004 Left (as pictured) PN-61004 Left (as pictured) PN-61005 Right PN-61005 Right

Upgrade Now Upgrade Now

View “Resources” at arimitsupumps.com for helpful tips!

View “Resources” at arimitsupumps.com for helpful tips!

Request Arimitsu Pumps when refurbishing old or building new!

Request Arimitsu Pumps when refurbishing old or building new!

Special pricing when mentioning this ad!

Special pricing when mentioning this ad!

Call us today: 763-205-8341!

Call us today: 763-205-8341!

Why to ask for Arimitsu Pumps: Why to ask for Arimitsu Pumps: Since 1923, Arimitsu Pumps has been providing these customer recognized benefits.

Since 1923, Arimitsu Pumps has been providing these customer recognized benefits.

Proven high efficiency and reliability, deliver lower costs of ownership.

Proven high efficiency and reliability, deliver lower costs of ownership.

Learn why more now specify Arimitsu Pumps on their new or existing equipment, and are Learn why more now specify Arimitsu Pumps on their new or existing equipment, and are migrating away from old and costly habits. migrating away from old and costly habits.

arimitsupumps.com l 763.205.8341 l greg@arimitsupumps.com arimitsupumps.com l 763.205.8341 l greg@arimitsupumps.com SPRING 2018 •

29

Self Serve Shoutouts In each issue we will give a shout out to a car wash which got a positive Yelp! review. In this issue, we are say “congrats” to the following locations for getting 5-star reviews:

Wash Factor Express of Johns Creek, Georgia

Spirit Car Wash of Scottsdale, Arizona

Hickam AFB Car Wash of Hickam Air Force Base, HI

Buggy Car Wash of North Haven, Connecticut

Spot Free Rinse Car Wash of San Diego, California

Grand & Oakley Car Wash of Chicago, Illinois

30

• SPRING 2018

Equipment that adds value!

An Elite Pro™ is an industry leading self-serve system sure to attract more customers and produce cleaner vehicles from your car wash business. Consumers feel more value and enjoy better cleaning power as a result of the Elite system’s Advanced Product Delivery, which gives car wash operators the ability to customize the delivery pressure for all functions.

9

Industry Standard Functions Include: Rinse, Soap, Wax, Pre-Soak, Wheel & Tire, Foam Brush, Spot Free, Foam Polish & Bug Cleaner Integrated System Design Industry Standard Components Stainless Steel Frame Multi-Pressure Delivery System Quick Purge Functionality Maintenance Friendly 2 – 6 Bay Configurations Many Different Pump Options 5 HP Efficient Motors Integrated Wash Down Feature

Premium High Security Upgrade your MeterBoxes in your Wash Bays to one of the most secure Meterboxes in the industry. Our Premium High Security Meterbox is built from 7 Gauge Stainless Steel has Dual Medco Locks and a Hinge Faced Plate that promotes accessibility for the operator. Inquire about options to upgrade our standard Premium High Security Meterbox to generate more revenue today.

contact us

TO DAY

• • • • • • • • • • •

Standard

7 Gauge Stainless Steel Digital Display Timer 10 Position Rotary Switch Coin Acceptor Bill Acceptance Heater w/ Thermostat Last Minute Horn Alert High Security Dual Locks Easy Access Hinge Face Plate Removable Internal Coin Bucket High Quality Graphics

Optional

• Variety of Credit Card and Loyalty Solutions • Custom Graphics Offered • Up to12 Push Button Select • Multi-Coin/Token Acceptance • 12 Position Rotary Switch

800-528-5733 w w w.hydrospray.com SPRING 2018 •

31

Association News 2018 CALENDAR OF EVENTS

Southwest Car Wash Assoc. Show a success!

MAY 15 MAY 15-17

NEW ENGLAND CARWASH ASSOC. TABLE TOP SHOW

Hogan Center at the College of the Holy Cross Worcester, MA www.newenglandcarwash.org

UNITI EXPO

Stuttgart, Germany www.uniti-expo.de/nc/en/homepage.html

MAY 23

MID-ATLANTIC CARWASH ASSOC. RIVERBOAT QUEEN DINNER CRUISE

MAY 31

NYSCWA METS V. CUBS BASEBALL GAME

JUNE 7

CARWASH ASSOC. OF PA DINNER & TABLE-TOP SHOW

JUNE 18-20

MIDWEST CARWASH ASSOCIATION 2018 EXPO

JUNE 26-27

WESTERN CAR WASH ASSOC. REGIONAL ROAD SHOW

SEPT 16-18

SECWA EXPO & CONVENTION

Wilmington Waterfront, DE www.mcacarwash.org

Citi Field, Queens, NY nyscwa.com/events/

Hollywood Casino, Grantville, PA pacarwash.org

Battle Creek, MI midwestcarwash.com

Washington to Idaho www.wcwa.org/events/

Birmingham, AL www.secwa.org

SEPT 20

20TH ANNUAL GOLF OUTING

SEPT 25

NEW ENGLAND CARWASH ASSOC.’S ANNUAL GOLF OUTING

OCT 1-3 OCT 30 -NOV 1 NOV 2 32

Connecticut Carwash Association wewashctcars.com

Brookmeadow Country Club Canton, MA www.newenglandcarwash.org/

The 2018 edition of the Southwest Car Wash Association Convention (SCWA) & EXPO was another record breaking event with more than 1985 attendees, according to a press release. This gathering of car wash owners and vendors converged at the Arlington Convention Center last February 25 and included an expanding EXPO area with more than 320 booths and over 70,000 square feet of exhibits, plus expanded education sessions from nationally recognized speakers.

According to SCWA President DeWayne Hall, “we are proud of the very positive responses we have had to our Convention & EXPO and in particular our education program. As we continue to expand as an association we want our education

efforts to be relevant to our growing membership.”

The keynote address was given by Rob O’Neill, the leader of Navy Seal Team Six who lead the search for and was responsible for the killing of Osama bin Laden. O’Neill talked about his “Never Quit” mantra and how it relates to running a business.

The 2018 SCWA Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Ron Peterson, retired Mister Car Wash CEO. According to Awards Chair Tyler Furney, “The Lifetime Achievement Award is the highest recognition given by the SCWA and we are proud to add Ron’s name to our honor roll.”

The SCWA also announced the date for next year’s EXPO which will be held February 24-26, 2019.

2018 NECA scholarship application is now available The New England Carwash Association (NECA) offering up $1,000 scholarships to those who work for car wash member companies, as well as family members. Since 2010, NECA has awarded $14,000. The Association’s website

states: Education and training can be very expensive, but it can prove more expensive not to pursue additional education. NECA can help. Could someone in your family (or perhaps you) use $1,000 towards a degree or certificate program?

NORTHEAST REGIONAL CARWASH CONVENTION

Atlantic City Convention Center, Atlantic City, NJ | www.nrccshow.com

CAR WASH SHOW AUSTRALIA Melbourne, Australia www.acwa.net.au

NEW YORK STATE CAR WASH ASSOCIATION FALL CARWASH TOUR & MEMBERSHIP MEETING

Clarion Hotel at The Century House, Latham, NY | nyscwa.com

• SPRING 2018

NRCC 2018 Keynote Speaker revealed The 2018 Northeast Regional Carwash Convention (NRCC) keynote speaker will by Jay Rifenbary, president of Rifenbary Training & Development and author of the international best seller, “No Excuse! Incorporating Core Values, Accountability and Balance into Your Life and Career.”

A professional speaker, trainer and consultant in the areas of organizational culture, personal and

professional core value development, servant leadership and communication, Rifenbary received his bachelor of science degree from the United States Military Academy at West Point, with a concentration in Nuclear Physics, states the NRCC website.

The convention will be taking place October 1-3 at the Atlantic City Convention Center.

SPRING 2018 •

33

HOW

INTERESTING

What is a Venturi Valve?

According to the CarWash College Glossary of Terms, a Venturi Valve is: A fitting or device that consists of a tube constricted in the middle and flared on both ends. A fluid’s velocity will increase and a fluid’s pressure will decrease while passing through the constriction. Placing a tube or pipe at the constriction point creates a vacuum. Fluid or air can then be drawn in through the tube. The system is named after Italian scientist Giovanni Battista Venturi.

Venturi (March 1746 – April 1822) was born in Bibbiano, Italy. A professor of geometry and philosophy, he also worked on hydraulics and tribology with famed scientist Leonardo da Vinci. Venturi is also named for the Venturi tube, and the Venturi pump.

Association News continued...

ICA announces its 2018 Emerging Leaders The International Carwash Association (ICA) has announced this year’s Emerging Leaders scholarship winners. They include: • John Sproul - Clearwater Car Wash • Steve Herard - ScrubaDub Auto Wash Centers • Randy Bennett - The CAR WASH on Hamlin Hwy

Australian Car Wash Association announced new business manager, new $50 banknote Doug Cross ahs been named the new business manager of the Australian Car Wash Association (ACWA).

“The Association conducted a carefully developed selection and interview process to arrive at Doug’s appointment,” the ACWA stated. Cross spent 20 years in the Racing Industry as GM Marketing Racing Victoria and GM Marketing and Communications at Racing Qld. The ACWA also brought awareness to the new $50 banknote.

“As with the other new banknotes this upgrade

Venturi tube demonstration apparatus built out of PVC pipe and operated with a vacuum pump 34

• SPRING 2018

means that machines will require some degree of hardware or software update to enable them to process the new banknotes. This applies to all categories of machines, including those that dispense, accept, count and sort banknotes. Contact your equipment manufacturers or distributors to ensure access to information related to the changes that will be required to equipment, and to plan upgrade strategies.”

The ACWA stated that existing $50 banknotes can still be used and added that the $20 banknote is expected to be upgraded in 2019.

NYS Car Wash Association shares Tip Credit update, ballgame invite The New York State Car Wash Association (NYSCWA) has announced that the New York State Department of Labor (DOL), “has re-scheduled hearings to gather testimony on eliminating or changing the sub-minimum wage for tipped workers. The meetings have been rescheduled due to a scheduling conflict,” the Association’s website states.

Under New York law, “tipped workers can be

The static pressure in the first measuring tube (1) is higher than at the second (2), and the fluid speed at “1” is lower than at “2”, because the cross-sectional area at “1” is greater than at “2”.

• William Hilton - 3 Minute Express Car Wash • Orlando Scott - Zips Car Wash The recipients, who have to be under 45 to qualify, were also granted an “All Access Pass” to recent Car Wash Show in Las Vegas as well as three-nights of accommodations at a host hotel.

paid less than minimum wage by employers who must make up the difference if it is not covered by tips. The Governor feels that eliminating the tip credit will protect immigrants and others from wage theft. Restaurateurs, however, oppose the elimination of the tip credit as do fast food workers.” To see a listing of the rescheduled dates, visit http://nyscwa.com/.

CCA teams up with Federation of Independent Business Canadian Carwash Association (CCA) Members has partnered with the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, granted them access to new business benefits. Effective since March 1, 2018, “all current members of CCA, become full members of CFIB and all new members who join CCA after March 1st will automatically be enrolled as a CFIB group member. Fees for the new joint membership are $395 for operators and $445 for supplier/associate members. Between April 1st 2018 and March 31st 2019, renewing CCA Members will receive a $100 discount off of the new rate in the first year and

a $50 discount in the second year,” states the CCA. The CCA states that some of the many benefits include: • Significant savings on payment processing, group insurance payroll processing, courier shipping...

• Online business training courses and webinars for both employers and employees • Access to CFIB Business Counselors and advice in every province • Proactive lobbying at all three levels of government • A very low CFIB group membership fee for CCA members

Non-acid Wheel Cleaner

Earth Friendly Wheel and Tire Cleaner This non-acid Wheel and Tire Cleaner concentrate cleans quickly and safely. Car Choice® Formula 560 WTC delivers maximum cleaning power to tires and wheels. Just spray it on (wet or dry) and rinse — no scrubbing required. You’ll get confidence to clean chrome, aluminum and magnesium without damage.

And like all our Green Line Solutions™ products, it’s right for the environment. No hydrofluoric acid or other caustic agents. Formula 560 WTC cuts dirt, road film, brake dust and grease fast. Put it to work in your operation.

Car Choice ®. “If your car could choose.”

Cuts dirt, road film, brake dust and grease.

Fast.

Warsaw Chemical P.O. Box 858, Warsaw, IN 46581 Phone: 800-548-3396 Fax: 574-267-3884

warsaw-chem.com

SPRING 2018 •

35

KLEEN-RITECORP.COM • 1-800-233-3873

NEW! POUCH WIPES

CLEANS AND PROTECTS...

PLASTIC, VINYL, AND RUBBER FROM UV DAMAGE WITH A MATTE FINISH

MATTE FINISH

PROTECTANT SPRAY 16 OZ. BOTTLE • 6 PER CASE

AR18226

PROTECTANT CLEANING 24 COUNT • 6 PER CASE

24 COUNT • 6 PER CASE

GLASS

Helps keep surfaces looking like new!

AR18241 $13.40

Powerful cleaning for auto surfaces AR18242 $13.40

Safe on tinted glass & electronic screens AR18275 $13.40

ULTRA SHINE

$28.99

MATTE FINISH

PROTECTANT WIPES

20 COUNT • 6 PER CASE

25 WIPES • 6 PER CASE

AR18227

$19.60

NO WATER? NO TIME?

SPRAY WAX

16 OZ. • 6 PER CASE Long-lasting shine & water beading. Use on a wet or dry surface.

AR18237 $27.75

NO PROBLEM.

QUICKSILVER

WHEEL & TIRE CLEANER 20 OZ. • 4 PER CASE

ULTRA SHINE

ULTRA SHINE

Clings for a powerful cleaning - safe for all clear coated wheels

WASH WIPES

WAX WIPES

12 COUNT • 6 PER CASE

12 COUNT • 6 PER CASE

AR18234 $15.99

Extra-large, pre-moistened wipes allow for removal of soils and grime without using water

Pre-waxed wipes with easy 1-step application.

No waiting, no buffing.

AR18239 $27.75

$27.75

AR18240

GET YOUR ORDER

FAST!

We’re Closer Than You Think!

SHIPPING FROM NEVADA,

TEXAS & PENNSYLVANIA

Maine Washington

North Dakota

Montana

Oregon

Minnesota

New Hampshire

New York

Wisconsin

South Dakota

Idaho

Vermont

Michigan Pennsylvania

Wyoming Iowa Nebraska

Illinois

Nevada Colorado

Kansas

Missouri

Virginia

Kentucky North Carolina

California Tennessee Oklahoma Arizona

New Mexico

Texas

South Carolina

Arkansas Mississippi

Georgia Alabama

Louisiana Florida

1 DAY 36

• SPRING 2018

2 DAY

3 DAY

New Jersey

New Jersey Delaware Mar yland

West Virginia Utah

Rhode Island

Connecticut Rhode Island

Delaware

Ohio

Indiana

Massachusetts

Massachusetts

Automatic motorcycle wash from Moto Spa The Moto Spa Bike Wash solution is a revolutionary fully automated washing and drying system for motorcycles and scooters, which will make your business more competitive, innovative, marketable, and complete.

Moto Spa Bike wash units are automated and durable solutions for cleaning motorcycles and scooters, designing an innovative product that improves the end-to-end cleaning process for bikes of all kinds and sizes.

INNOVATIONS BRIGHT NEW IDEAS, PRODUCTS & SERVICES FOR SELF SERVE CAR WASHES

Complete Suite of Car Wash Solutions from Sonny’s Sonny’s Enterprises, LLC, of Tamarac, Florida, is introducing OneWash™, the industry’s first and only complete suite of car wash business solutions designed to simplify the daily operations and management of any sized car wash business enterprise.

CEO Paul Fazio stated in a press release, “OneWash™ combines everything that we’re already known for providing – from equipment to parts, controls, vacuums, and training – and adds new facets such as chemistry, marketing, and expanded consulting services. Now it’s possible for us to offer the first complete suite of car wash business solutions available from a single provider. We’ve also created an optional membership program – the first of its kind in our industry – designed to reward clients for taking advantage of any or all of the industry-leading solutions that we provide.”

New and Improved ProSheenTM from CSI® The New and Improved ProSheen has been formulated for optimum gloss and cost effectiveness. Using unique surfactant-blend technology, this is a proprietary, solvent-based dressing that is great for hand application or on-line machines using pads or brushes. It’s non-staining and ultra-low sling formula leaves an excellent lasting shine. The water-resistant formula does not bleed or sweat off tires.

Highlights include: • Longer lasting shine • 50% reduction in sling • Improved uniform coverage and no beading (sweating) as the product ages (dries) on the tire • Customer trials show up to 20% reduction in usage per car to achieve high glossy shine on tires

Bug Protectant from JBS Industries After a long winter of fighting snow, ice and road salt, your customer’s will soon be faced with a new battle, bugs, pollen and road film.

Ease their pain with Bugsaw Xtreme®! The breakthrough formula cuts bug grime and spring pollen quicker and easier than before leaving a clean prepped surface. Follow with Shine Time® protectant to give your customer’s the ultimate wash experience.

What you’ll love: • High performance • Profit driver • Marketing opportunities Suggested uses: • Self-Serve: Low pressure cycle • Touchless Automatic: 1st pass • Friction Tunnel: Prep station SPRING 2018 •

37

INDUSTRY HAPPENINGS IN & AROUND SELF SERVE CARWASHING

DIRT

SONNY’s announces its CarWash College Instructor of the Year

Richard Ovalles received the 2017 Shawn R. Brown Award for Instructional Excellence. The award was presented at a luncheon by SONNY’S CEO, Paul Fazio. Ovalles is a 12-year employee of SONNY’S, but only began instructing in the CarWash College two years ago. “Although Richard hasn’t been teaching for very long, it comes to him naturally. He’s very patient and goes out of his way to make the students feel comfortable. He is a very worthy recipient.” said Bob Fox, CarWash College Manager. The Shawn R. Brown is an award given annually to the CarWash College instructor who most exhibits the traits of Shawn Brown, a former instructor and equipment installer whose life was tragically cut short. Past winners include: Bryan Hage and most recently, Jorge Jaramillo.

SONNY’s CarWash Factory announces partnership, new business solution Sonny’s Enterprises, LLC, of Tamarac, Florida, has acquired Mr. Foamer, a premier supplier of car wash foaming applicators, marketing, and signage. Sonny’s has also launched OneWash™, the industry’s first and only complete suite of car wash business solutions designed to simplify the daily operations and management of any sized car wash business enterprise.

Partnering with Jim at Mr. Foamer is the final piece needed for us to deliver the industry’s first and only complete car wash suite, OneWash. Combining not only Car Wash Services of the Southeast, Diamond Shine and now Mr. Foamer, but incorporating Jim, Scott and Zeev onto the Sonny’s team has elevated Sonny’s to an entirely new level in car washing. There’s never been a more exciting time than now in our industry,” said Paul Fazio, CEO of Sonny’s Enterprises, LLC. Mr. Foamer will continue to be led by the same management team with no change in day-to-day operations for the thousands of clients it serves.

Last Fall, Sonny’s also acquired Diamond Shine.

“Our vision is to deliver a complete bundle of products and services that enable our clients to excel at what they do,” said Fazio.

38

• SPRING 2018

Kleen-Rite Corp. hosts open house Supplier of wholesale equipment to the car wash industry, Kleen-Rite Corp., welcomed the public to their Grand Prairie, Texas, distribution center on February 24, 2018. Founded in 1959 and now operating in three states, KleenRite opened the Grand Prairie facility in 2012.

This distribution center allows rapid and reliable shipments of supplies to businesses in the southwest and nationwide.

More than 100 car wash owners attended the event which included tours, giveaways, and dinner from Riscky’s Barbeque. Kleen-Rite President Mike McKonly and Vice President Keith Lutz were on hand to have dinner with guests and attend the Southwest Car Wash Association Convention & Expo in nearby Arlington.

Over $5,000 in door prizes were distributed thanks to generous sponsorships from leading car wash equipment and supply manufactur-

ers. Many manufacturer representatives also joined the open house group to meet car wash owners before the Expo.

Industry professionals will have another chance to visit a Kleen-Rite facility and win more great prizes during the 2018 Kleen-Rite Expo, to be held November 14 in Columbia, PA. Kleen-Rite also hosted The 2017 Lancaster County Toys for Tots distribution initiative.

Many dedicated community volunteers, veterans, and Kleen-Rite employees worked with the Marine Corps for five days in December to give away over 5,000 gifts.

More than 3,500 families were in attendance, benefiting approximately 9,000 children. Each child received a book, stocking stuffer, plush animal toy, and three additional gifts. Families also received a puzzle and a board game.

Mark VII’s parent company WashTec announces 2017 results WashTec AG of Germany, a supplier of innovative solutions for the carwash business worldwide and parent company of Colorado-based Mark VII Equipment, announced preliminary 2017 fiscal year results showing a revenue increase of 52.2m EUR (14%) to 425.0m EUR, a press release reported. EBIT increased by 8.1m EUR (18.4%) to 52.2m EUR during the same period. North America and Europe contributed to the strong revenue growth, and the positive performance trend was sustained across all customer and product segments.

“We’re proud to be the global leader in the car wash industry,” Lee Norton, CEO of Mark VII, stated in the press release. “And I’m especially proud of the key role our Mark VII team in North America played in achieving such outstanding results. We thank our customers for choosing Mark VII as their partner, and we look forward to continuing to drive the growth of their car wash businesses in 2018.”

DRB Systems ships 9 millionth FastPass tag DRB Systems has reached another milestone with the shipment of its 9 millionth FastPass to GATE Express Carwash, a press release reported. GATE Express awarded customer Cierra Early with the 9 millionth tag and a free unlimited Diamond wash pass for one year. The event took place at the GATE Ex-

press location in Jacksonville, Florida. GATE Express opened its first car wash just a few months ago and its second site opened on April 4 and 20 more locations are in the works throughout Northeast Florida.

Protect your team & comPly with oSha! removable Plug locks

removable Plug lock & Puck lock Kits

Puck locks & Disk locks

lockout/tagout locks & clamps

t-handles & t-handle locks

retro Fit Security Kits

All the Security You’ll Ever Need!

Ask About our full rAnge of locks And lAtches for Amusement & vending equipment, gAs dispensers & self storAge.

800-422-2866

9 1 6 8 St el l ar Court Corona, Ca 9 2 8 8 3

w w w.l aigr o uP. C o m S a l e S @ l a i g r o u P. C o m

Ph: 951-277-5180 Fa x: 9 5 1 - 2 7 7 - 5 1 7 0 SPRING 2018 •

39

EXTRA!

EXTRA!

READ ALL ABOUT IT ...

Presenting the news stories featuring self serves car washes

Market Research Store releases self serve outlook report The “Global Car Wash System Market Research Report 2018-2023 by Players, Regions, Product Types & Applications,” is now available for purchase, offering stats, predictions and growth calculations for various car wash setups including self serves.

The Financial Analyst reports, “This report offers an overview of the market trends, drivers, and barriers with respect to the market. It also provides a detailed overview of the market of different regions across United States, Europe, China, Japan, India, Southeast Asia and Others,” Key questions answered in the report include, according to the Financial Analyst, include: What will the market growth rate of Car Wash Sys-

tem market in 2023?

• What are sales, revenue, and price analysis of top manufacturers of Car Wash System market?

• What are the key factors driving the global Car Wash System market?

• Who are the distributors, traders and dealers of Car Wash System market?

• What are sales, revenue, and price analysis by types and applications of Car Wash System market?

• What are the Car Wash System market opportunities and threats faced by the vendors in the global Car Wash System market?

• What are sales, revenue, and price analysis by regions of Car Wash System market?

• Who are the key manufacturers in Car Wash System market space?

• What are the market opportunities, market risk and market overview of the Car Wash System market?

The cost of the report? For a single user license, it will cost you $2980.

Wacky winter weather is affecting self serves

SBA offers up 504 Loan Available with 25-year Debenture

Carwash bookkeeper embezzles $170k

Calendars may say it is Spring, but weather conditions say otherwise. On the East Coast, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Michigan (to name just a few places) snow, freezing rain and temperatures are causing havoc, but are also offering up lots more self serve customers.

According to Ocean City Daily News report, drivers in New Jersey are lining up at carwashes to wash away the salt, muck and wintery debris.

Brian Coggins, owner of the Car Caress Car Wash, stated, “The first day after a Nor’easter, not so much (business) because there is still a lot of stuff on the roads your car will pick up.

But the second day, especially if the weather is nice, a storm’s effect is really going to help us.” Coggins said that on average (without the benefit of a Nor’easter) his wash will be about 35 vehicles per day. But, on a recent Friday, following a storm, they got 85 vehicles and 115 on Saturday.

In Moosic, Pennsylvania, car owners told WNEP News they were happy to wash their cars in between winter storms. With Spring just a few days away, cars were lined up at the Squeaky Clean Car Wash.

What are your numbers so far? Are your car counts up? Let Editor Debra Gorgos (debrag@ sscwn.com) know as she will report it in the next issue of Self Serve Car Wash News.

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is offering a 504 Loan and the Debenture that funds it with a 25-year maturity, SBA Administrator Linda McMahon announced in a April 4 press release. This new 25-year Debenture will be made available for 504 Projects that are approved on or after April 2, 2018.

“This option for extending the payment cycle by an additional 60 months gives small business borrowers the opportunity for lower monthly payments, which can significantly help their cash flow,” McMahon stated in the press release. “This increased flexibility in their loan terms will put them in a better position to manage their capital and face challenges like rising operating expenses.”

The press release states: The 504 Loan Program is an SBA business loan program authorized under Title V of the Small Business Investment Act of 1958, 15 U.S.C. 695 et seq. The core mission of the 504 Loan Program is to provide long-term financing to small businesses for the purchase or improvement of land, buildings, and major equipment, to facilitate the creation or retention of jobs and to support local economic development. Under the 504 Loan Program, loans are made in conjunction with private sector lenders to small businesses by Certified Development Companies (“CDCs”), which are certified and regulated by the SBA to promote economic development within their community.

Editor’s Note: Don’t be afraid to micromanage your bookkeeper!

Katarina Francesca Peralta, the former bookkeeper for the Jefferson Car Wash in Napa, California, has pleaded no contest to embezzling more than $170,000, the Napa Valley Register reported.

The story said Peralta, 28, also worked for other companies owned by George Altamura. When she stopped showing up for work, 84-year-old Altamura hired a new bookkeeper who noticed the cooked books.

A warrant was issued on Aug. 31, 2016, and she was arrested on March 15, 2017, and she has been held at the Napa County jail.

Peralta initially plead not guilty to the charges, but changed her plea and has been charged with 14 counts of felony embezzlement and also admitted to “special allegations of aggravated white collar crime and property damage.” Currently out on bail, her sentencing is scheduled for July 12.

40

• SPRING 2018

SPRING 2018 •

41

42

• SPRING 2018

SPRING 2018 •

43

Natural Disasters Does my business insurance cover my wash operations for Acts of God?

By Dan Tharp, CIC, RWCS DTharp@theinsurancenter.com

Natural disasters devastate hundreds of businesses in the United States every single year. In fact, our agency sits in the center of Joplin, Missouri. A mile-wide tornado ripped through our community on May 22, 2011. That storm destroyed hundreds of homes, dozens of businesses and killed over 160 people. The rain-wrapped, wedge tornado reached EF5 strength (250–300 mph winds) and was the costliest single tornado in U.S. history — causing almost $3 billion in damages. Our agency alone processed over $120

44

• SPRING 2018

million dollars in paid claims. There was no discrimination between car washes, schools or hospitals; everything in its path was destroyed.

In 2017, there were 16 weather and climate disaster events with losses exceeding $1 billion each across the United States. These events included 1 drought event, 2 flooding events, 1 freeze event, 8 severe storm events, 3 tropical cyclone events, and 1 wildfire event. Overall, these events resulted in the deaths of 362 people and had significant economic effects on the areas impacted. I have no intention of

wading into the climate change debate here, however, it must be mentioned that 8 of the 10 costliest natural disasters in recorded history has occurred after the year 2000.

Now that we know the scope of the risk the obvious question is: How do I protect my wash operations? To answer that we need to take a look at the three most common types of natural disasters; thunderstorms (wind/hail), floods and tornadoes/hurricanes. {continued}

ASSISTING OUR CUSTOMERS FROM STARTUP TO SUCCESS

Bringing 40 Years of Excellence to the Car Wash Industry SITE SELECTION We partner with you to identify and lay out the most profitable location for your wash.

FINANCING We match you with trusted institutions that understand the business (and potential!) of car washes.

INSTALL We steer you to the right equipment choices and back you with industry-leading technicians.

SERVICE Stay open to profits with scheduled maintenance and emergency repairs – 24/7, 365 days a year.

PARTS, SUPPLIES & CHEMICALS We are the largest OEM stocking distributor for PDQ Manufacturing, Inc., Carolina Pride, Cat Pumps and many more.

MARKETING Experienced advice on customer loyalty programs, advertising and other ways to maximize profits.

40

TH

HARRELL’S CAR WASH SYSTEMS ® Harrell’s Midwest 1339 Country Club Road Indianapolis, IN 46234

Harrell’s Heartland 5670 NW Beaver Dr Johnston, IA 50131-1340

Harrell’s Northeast 170 Ayer Road Littleton, MA 01460

1-800-274-2777 | www.hcws.com

SPRING 2018 •

45

Carwash Boom Assembly MODEL 203 Zierco’s Original Swivel and Boom Assembly, with New Rebuildable Cartridge

MODEL 203 FEATURES • Feather light rotating action • Twin compression springs are tension-adjustable for a variety of hose and gun weights • Swivel rotates 360˚ - 12 ft. diameter

• Temperatures to 280˚ max., pressure to 2000 psi • Longer hose life as spring prevents kinks • Ruggedly built, satisfaction guaranteed

• Proven performance with over 50 years service in the field (Since 1962)

OPTIONAL

107C CARTRIDGE

FOR COMPLETE INFORMATION CALL

107C Cartridge Features:

FAX: (414) 764-9763 www.ziercowaterboy.com

• Double O-Ring Design Uses Any Type of Grease

414-764-6630 7355 S. 1st. Street Oak Creek, WI 53154 sales@zierden.com

• Field Repairable

• 100% 304 Stainless Steel Internal Materials Eliminate Failure Due to Corrosion

TM

VISA and Master Card accepted

QUALITY PRODUCTS SINCE 1937 DISTRIBUTOR INQUIRIES INVITED 46

• SPRING 2018

Carwash Boom Assemblies

MODEL 204 and 206 FEATURES • Twin compression springs are tension-adjustable for a variety of hose and gun weights • Swivel rotates 360˚ - 12 ft. diameter • Temperatures to 280˚ max., pressure to 2000 psi • Longer hose life as spring prevents kinks • Ruggedly built, satisfaction guaranteed • Optional stainless steel components

Zierco’s Easy Service Swivel and Boom Systems with Full 360

• Proven performance with over 50 years service in the field (Since 1962)

Degree roTATIoN

Booms are Available with 3 Different Mountings STYLE B Flat Plate

ENHANCE YOUR SELF SERVING CONVENIENCE

Mounts directly to the ceiling or beam.

MODEL 204

STYLE C Swivel Base

Easy to Use -"Feather Light" rotating action

Mounts directly to the ceiling.

OFFSET Overhead Carwash Boom STYLE D Wall Bracket

Mounts to wall and is adjustable so boom swings to wall when not in use.

MODEL 206

Allows for TWO Center Boom Installation

Ideal for foaming brushes.

FOR COMPLETE INFORMATION CALL

CONVERSION KIT 204B

EASY 3 STEP PROCEDURE TO CHANGE SEALS. NO TOOLS REQUIRED.

(414)-764-6630 www.ziercowaterboy.com

7355 S. 1st Street Oak Creek, WI 53154 Fax: (414) 764-9763 sales@zierden.com

To Convert Model 203 to a 204 Assembly

Remove boom body from hinge plate

Rotate hinge plate counter clockwise to remove seal elbow

TM

Replace O-Rings

DISTRIBUTOR INQUIRIES INVITED VISA and Master Card accepted

QUALITY PRODUCTS SINCE 1937 SPRING 2018 •

47

POLISHED INSURANCE

Want an insurance plan that’s perfectly tailored to your business? Go with the #1 car wash insurance provider in the U.S.

With over 30 years of experience in the car wash industry, we offer an easy online application, quick turnarounds and a 24/7 online client solution center.

1-800-444-8675 carwashinsurance.com

48

• SPRING 2018

THUNDERSTORM (WIND/HAIL)

If your car wash is in a part of the country that is particularly susceptible to thunderstorms you should schedule a meeting with your property insurance agent to review your wash’s property insurance deductibles. Property policies will generally cover losses from wind/hail damage; however, high risk states often add a separate property deductible solely for wind/hail claims. Some insurance carriers have even issued endorsements excluding coverage altogether for wind/hail losses.

Most wash operations in Texas, Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma and South Dakota have already begun to see changes in their commercial property insurance coverage. Rates have increased significantly for buildings in high risk areas AND/OR many carriers are adding separate wind/hail deductibles to policies.

Insurance carriers rely on data to develop risk profiles for geographic areas and ultimately that determines premium rates. From 2000 to 2015 more than $57 billion in hail losses were paid by insurance carriers. Most of those losses – 70% - occurred during the past 6 years.

Because of this, if you own a car wash in a state where hail/wind storms are a regular occurrence, you can expect to see your insurance carrier taking action to mitigate their exposure to property claims. Insurance carriers have primarily chosen to do this through the use of a separate property deductibles for wind/hail events.

The Wind/Hail deductible come in one of two forms; a flat stated dollar amount or a percentage deductible. Here is how each works.

• Flat Stated Deductible: Under this type of situation if the deductible is stated as $500 that amount would simply be deducted from your total claim payout.

Example: Your insurance carrier approves your claim and has determined that you have an insured loss worth $25,000 - you would receive a claims check for $24,500.

• Percentage Deductible: This is the method many carriers are using to mitigate their risk. It is imperative that you understand completely how this works. The deductible is based upon a percentage of your buildings insured value. (Not a percentage of the claim) Example: Your car wash (building) is insured for $500,000 and your insurance policy has a 2% Wind/Hail deductible. This means that $10,000 ($500,000 x 2% = $10,000) would be deducted from the amount you are reimbursed on a claim.

In the event of the $25,000 insurance loss from above, you would be paid $15,000..

FLOODS

Damage from flooding, including the rising water generated by a hurricane storm surge, is almost always NOT covered under standard commercial insurance policies. This includes losses from water overflowing rivers or streams, heavy or prolonged rain, storm surge, snow melt, blocked storm drains, broken dams or levees or other similar causes. To be considered a flood, waters must cover at least 2 acres or affect two properties. In 2015, the average flood claim amounted to more than $46,000 and the average policy premium was $700.

If your commercial property is n a high-risk flood area and you have a mortgage from a federally regu-

lated or insured lender, you are required to purchase flood insurance. Location is a key consideration in determining the need for flood insurance. To determine your operations proximity to flood areas simply go to FEMA’s Flood Map Service Center (https://msc. fema.gov/portal ) It’s also important to know that even if your operation is not required to purchase flood insurance it may still be prudent to do so. (1/3 of all Federal assistance for flooding is paid in areas outside of flood zones.)

Flood insurance covers damage to property and contents caused by flood. Flood insurance is available from the federal government’s National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). Flood insurance is only available from NFIP and very select private insurers. NFIP coverage may only be purchased through an insurance professional; you cannot buy it directly from the government. To find a local insurance professional who is trained and familiar with the National Flood Insurance Program, contact NFIP at 888-3799531 for an agent referral. Typically, there’s a 30-day waiting period from the date of purchase before your policy goes into effect. So, don’t wait until the water is rising to purchase coverage. Commercial flood insurance provides up to $500,000 of coverage for your building and up to $500,000 for its contents.

(Additional coverage amounts are available by purchasing “excess insurance” amounts.)

{continued} SPRING 2018 •

49

TORNADOES/ HURRICANES

When discussing catastrophic events such as tornadoes and hurricanes the primary item of concern becomes accurate property values as the risk of a major or total property loss is great. Please note that for either of these events, your claim may be affected by wind, hail or flooding endorsements within your policy. For example, if damage is determined to be as the result of flooding your claim would only be covered through a flood insurance program as mentioned in the previous paragraph.

Property is considered to be anything that has value and includes: • Real property: Includes land and the permanent things on it, like buildings, outdoor fixtures, pay stations, permanently installed wash machinery and equipment.

• Business personal property: This is all other property that’s not classified as real property and can be easily moved, such as computers, telephones and office furniture.

Most insurance companies use two different methods for determining the value of property: • Replacement cost: This refers to the amount it takes to replace damaged or destroyed property with new buildings, equipment and furnishings.

• Actual cash value (ACV): The replacement cost

Offer Convenience Give your customers an option that’s already in their wallet

Car Wash Products lIndustry Experts lSocial Events lBus Tour

Call today and provide your customers with more payment options. CryptoPay is a Cost Effective, Secure, and Simple Solution.

l

June 19-20, 2018

FireKeepers Casino • Hotel Battle Creek, MiChigan www.GetCryptopay.com 719-277-7400 50

Learn more at www.MidwestCarWash.com

• SPRING 2018

CryptoPayLaundromatAd_InPocket_SSCWN_FINAL.indd 1

1/9/18 6:02 PM

Top Five States By Insured Catastrophe Losses, 2016 (1) ($ millions)

RANK

STATE

ESTIMATED INSURED LOSS

1 TEXAS

$7,958.6

2 Colorado 1,467.8 3 Louisiana 1,230.3 4

North Carolina

5 Florida

972.2 885.2

(1) Includes catastrophes causing insured property losses of at least $25 millions in 1997 dollars and affecting a significant number policy holders and insurers.

Excludes losses covered by the federally administered National Flood Insurance Program.

Source: Property Claim Services (PCS®) a Verisk Analytics® business.

insurance company, you might have a co-insurance penalty clause. If so, you’ll have to pay a penalty if you under-report your insurance valuation or insure for less than 100% of replacement value. One way to determine real property figures is to engage a local contractor and request an estimate for replacing the building. Most quality property insurance agents should be able to assist you in determining accurate replacement values based upon your wash characteristics. (Construction type, age, square footage etc.)

Determining the value of your business personal property is much simpler. Think of it this way, if you turn your wash upside down and shake it everything that falls out would be considered business personal property. Take inventory of your stock and estimate the average value of it on any given week. If you have antiques, valuable artwork or other hard-to-replace items, have them appraised and include the total in your valuation.

of property, less the accumulated depreciation for age and wear.

When establishing the value of your wash’s real property, you may be inclined to insure it for the tax or market value. However, consider insuring it for the replacement value, because replacement costs have risen across most of the country even though market values have dropped. Also, many business experts agree that insuring for replacement cost is better than insuring for actual cash value, even though it could be a bit more expensive. The initial savings you might realize from a lower premium – even over a 10-year period – would be a drop in the bucket in the event of a major loss and a costly rebuild to your wash’s original state. You need to decide if you can afford that risk.

While some insurers might allow you to insure for less than 100% of the replacement cost, that might not be the best idea. Depending on your policy and

IN CONCLUSION

If your wash operation is located on the top of a magical mountain and you do not have any of these worries — thank your lucky stars and move on. However, if you’re among the rest of us take the time to locate an insurance professional that is well versed in these disasters AND how they may affect your wash operations.

Take the time to review your Commercial Property policy closely, paying particular attention to your property values and deductibles. Ask your agent if your coverage package includes any deductible verbiage for wind/hail losses. If you do have wind/ hail deductibles, ask your agent to offer you several deductible options as it could make a significant difference in your total insurance premiums.

Lastly, if your current agent is not able to advise you about flood concerns and how it may affect your operations contact the National Flood Insurance Program for an agent referral. (Remember there is a waiting period for this coverage so do not wait until the water is rising.)

Now go slay a dragon…

Dan Tharp, CIC, RWCS, is licensed in all states (except Alaska & Hawaii) and is the Vice President of Sales for The Insurancenter and the head of the Car Wash Division. Dan has been assisting business owners protect their operations, customers and employees for over 25 years. For questions regarding this article or any other insurance matter he can be reached at DTharp@theinsurancenter.com or by calling 800-444-8675.

Equipment that adds value!

An Elite Pro™ is an industry leading self-serve system sure to attract more customers and produce cleaner vehicles from your car wash business. Consumers feel more value and enjoy better cleaning power as a result of the Elite system’s Advanced Product Delivery, which gives car wash operators the ability to customize the delivery pressure for all functions.

9

Industry Standard Functions Include: Rinse, Soap, Wax, Pre-Soak, Wheel & Tire, Foam Brush, Spot Free, Foam Polish & Bug Cleaner Integrated System Design Industry Standard Components Stainless Steel Frame Multi-Pressure Delivery System Quick Purge Functionality Maintenance Friendly 2 – 6 Bay Configurations Many Different Pump Options 5 HP Efficient Motors Integrated Wash Down Feature

Premium High Security Upgrade your MeterBoxes in your Wash Bays to one of the most secure Meterboxes in the industry. Our Premium High Security Meterbox is built from 7 Gauge Stainless Steel has Dual Medco Locks and a Hinge Faced Plate that promotes accessibility for the operator. Inquire about options to upgrade our standard Premium High Security Meterbox to generate more revenue today.

contact us

TODAY

• • • • • • • • • • •

Standard

7 Gauge Stainless Steel Digital Display Timer 10 Position Rotary Switch Coin Acceptor Bill Acceptance Heater w/ Thermostat Last Minute Horn Alert High Security Dual Locks Easy Access Hinge Face Plate Removable Internal Coin Bucket High Quality Graphics

Optional

• Variety of Credit Card and Loyalty Solutions • Custom Graphics Offered • Up to12 Push Button Select • Multi-Coin/Token Acceptance • 12 Position Rotary Switch

800-528-5733 w w w.hydrospray.com

SPRING 2018 •

51

TRICKS

Presenting some of the best discussions from the Self Serve, IBA and General Discussions sections of Auto Care Forum. To view more posts discussing some interesting and common problems, as well as some of the best and brightest solutions, visit AutoCareForum.com (Note: Some posts feature minor edits for readability.)

OF THE

Time for a new floor?

FROM GSHICK: ...This winter, the temperature did not get above freezing for several days in a row leaving several inches of ice in our bays. At one of our locations, water got under the cement bay floors in several of the bays and tore it to bits. It literally looks like a groundhog got under there in big chunks some as bad as 8 ft by 10 ft. The concrete was not poured properly when the car wash was built (probably mid 1980s) and we have patched some areas in the past, but this is probably beyond a patch repair. Wondering if anyone has had to re-pour bays and have any advice in regards to expansion joints, angle slope to the pit, as well as 4 ft concrete aprons at the entrance and exit to the bays...

SPARKEY: Do you run floor heat? If the floor heat is on water shouldn’t be freezing on the floor or under the floor?

GSHICK: This location does not have floor heat...may be interested in adding it if we have to bust up the old floors.

MAC: Bite the bullet and tear up and repour.

DIAMONDWASH: ...I second that motion...

SEMI-RETIRED: I’m looking at a complete redo including pits. Would you use a pre made tank or poured concrete?

GSHICK: Poured concrete. My builder years ago... talked me into prefab pits....though architect had spec’ed poured pits. No floor heat close to pit edge means ice damming in winter plus always filling in the transport slots to keep #!@? out.

SOAPY: I have done a repour once. Make sure that when rebar is laid down that it is anchored into the good remaining concrete by drilling into it. Rebar on at least 2 foot centers but I prefer on 1 foot centers. Standard concrete here is 3500lb mix but I stepped it up to 4500 LBs. and added fiber mesh to the concrete. If you are doing poured pits make the mud section as large as you can for obvious reasons.

What color tips should I be using?

BETHEL CAR WASH: I have a 3 bay self serve wash and I have hp soap, fb soap, wax, presoak and tire cleaner. What size tips are you using or should I be using? I am located about 20 miles East of Cincinnati in case the location has an effect? I also have the presoak and tire cleaner running from the same mix. Does anyone else do this? The barrel was there when I purchased the wash and since the soap was from a chemical company the barrel is unmarked so I don’t even know what I am using.

I.B. WASHINCARS: From another post of yours I get the impression that your water softener isn’t working.

If you have hard water it’s going to be a shot in the dark. You will just need to keep increasing orifice size until you get a result that you’re somewhat satisfied with. Even then, the results won’t be great.

You need soft water.

Tip size varies all over the place. It really depends on the chemicals. This sounds like another case of a clueless soap salesman. Try playing with tip sizes so that you get a nice show in the bay. Change them one size at a time and wait a day to see the results. Your customers will notice if you are using the same chemical for different selections.

BETHEL CAR WASH: You are correct, The wash was run down when I bought it and things are improving, but spot free and softener are still in need of repairs.

I bought a filter and used it to fill up the spot free tank for now. I would like to put some inline filters from the main lines to help make everything cleaner. I don’t know if the $60.00 inline filters can take that kind of pressure from the street.

2BIZ: Do you know what the water hardness is?

Does the soap drum have recommendations on tip size?

MAC: Well you’ve got a lot to deal with. Putting filters inline will only keep out small grit. It won’t help with the spot free rinse. And that is an important part of self serve. I would prioritize that.

RANDY: You might to find another chemical supplier, someone who knows the car wash business or learn as much as you can about the car wash business as you can or ask a lot of questions. A good place to

52

• SPRING 2018

BETHEL CAR WASH: I’ve been buying my chemicals from a chemical company that doesn’t know anything about the equipment. I do not know how to test the water hardness. Where would I get a kit for this, Lowes?

start with water quality would be to call the city water department. None of the car washes in my area have water softeners etc. My water from the tap is 2 grains of hardness according to the city, I had it tested once and it was spot on.

MEP001: I’d order a Hach test kit. https://www. kleen-ritecorp.com/p-272...dness-kit.aspx. I tried the test strips but I can’t tell much difference between the colors. The Hach kit is pretty fool proof and very accurate.

ONTARIO CAR WASH: I just made a batch of pp (5g added 10 g h20) and running on a orange tip on 506 hydrominder for hp soap. On ps i use a white tip just because its low pressure and looks very foamy.

My wax i run with a orange tip, but everyone’s system is different, plus water, heat, and all other factors. The only way to really know is wash your car...

Microcoin QL ®

The MICROCOIN ® QL is a high speed, multi-coin, field programmable electronic coin acceptor that can be used in many applications in your car wash including your: WASH BAYS AUTOCASHIERS VACUUMS FRAGRANCE MACHINES CHANGE MACHINES Its features are many. Here are just a few: Quick Learn™ On Board Programming Single and multi-coin programming Programmable for Multiple Currencies Programmable for up to 12 different coins Universal size - one size fits all High speed, multi-coin acceptance up to 10 cps New, revolutionary coin discrimination techniques Highly critical and unique coin path design which virtually eliminates the possibility of coin jams.

Maximum fraud coin rejection For more information on the MICROCOIN® QL contact Hi-Performance Wash Systems or one of the distributors listed below.

Advanced Car Wash Systems – GA JE Adams – IA National Pride Equipment – OH Auto Wash Concepts – CA Jim Coleman Company – TX Ryko – IA Dultmeier – NE Kleen-Rite – PA U-Wash Equipment – IL Etowah Valley – NC Laurel Metal Products, Inc. – IL Water Conservation Services – CA Fragramatics – AR Mark VII – CO Windtrax - KS

3901 East 41st Avenue 800.922.1313 (Toll Free) Denver, CO 80237 303.322.2232 (Local) www.hpws.com SPRING 2018 •

53

TRICKS

OF THE

$1, $2, $3, $4! Should I charge less or should I charge more?

FROM MAIN STREET CARWASH: ...I was wondering, most specifically in Texas or a cost of living market similar to Houston, what your cost to start, cost per minute, vac start and time, and vending product prices…

SOONERMAJIC: I’ve seen a lot of $2 for 3 minutes, in the Dallas area. I am $1.50 for 4 minutes.

CHAZ: S/s cash or credit? $3 first 4 min. Cards count up. Vac $2 first 6 min in Cincinnati, Ohio. I haven’t seen any other $2 for 6 min on vacs in my area.... but it works for me. There’s a $1 min s/s about 10 miles from me, with a $2 start. Never seems busy.

(His vac is $1 for 4 min).

THE 24/7 OPERATOR ROUNDTABLE

MAIN STREET CARWASH: The wash I just opened is 1.50/4min and vacs are $1/4min. The other one is priced low at $1.25 for 4:40 and vacs are $1/4min just raised from .75 last year. I want to raise prices, but it does really well now so I don’t want to mess around too much. I once had an accountant tell me though, about a different business entirely that I was lamenting about high volume and trouble finding enough qualified help, that maybe I should charge twice as much. I said, “but then I will lose business.” He said, “exactly, but most likely not half.” I still think it is a sound principle. Probably run off some of the less desirable customers too.

There is a guy that bought three washes close by me about 2 years ago. He only got one running.

It was a bank owned property and I was thinking about buying it. The other 2, I was actively trying to buy, but I guess he made a better offer than me (mine wasn’t really very good). The one he opened though is a 50 cent wash. I think he briefly opened one of the others at 50 cents as well. I never checked the time given for 50 cents, but I have to wonder how anyone makes any money like that. I assume he bought them to write off losses in his other business.

ONTARIO CAR WASH: $2 start 4min 30c per quarter was 430 dropped it as of 2018. $1 4min on vacs.

LOEWEM: In North Carolina: SS Bays are $3 to start

54

• SPRING 2018

for 5 minutes. That is 1:40 per minute. Going to drop it to 1:30 per minute soon. $5 minimum if using credit card. Vacs are $1/3 minutes. Going to try $2/6 minutes. Air is $1 for 3 minutes.

CAR_WASH_GUY: Colorado: $2.50 to start for 3:30. .21sec for every quarter. $1 4min on vacs. Same prices for CC. Count up with $14.75 ceiling.

SOONERMAJIC: 2 washes I am buying are stuck in the 70s. $1 start up for 4 (yes FOUR) minutes) & each .25 = ONE FULL MINUTE! TDLCONCEPTSLLC: I am at $2.50 for 4:00 mins in bays and $1.50 for 3:20 sec on vacuums. I am located in Hillsborough/central North Carolina and it seems like everyone east of Mebane is at least $2.00 or better in the state. Then you go to Burlington [West] everyone is from $1.00, .75 cents or $1.50 for 4 mins west of the entire state and Greensboro/Burlington especially until you get to the mountains. I was talking to a guy the other day and it’s like everyone west in our state wants to give it away for free like they are scared to raise the price from the early 2000s. I don’t understand it and these cities are very well populated & lots of new growth. Some of the sites I am talking about are not too bad looking they just need to raise the price and get with the program-- makes the rest of us look bad. $2.00 for 4mins has been the industry standard for years now and $1.25 for 4:00 on vacs.

SOONERMAJIC: I’d think it would have to be an older wash, that’s already paid for, to be able to do .75/4 minutes. That’s gotta be borderline break even, if you’re paying a mortgage!

ROBERT2181: $2.50 for 4.30 minutes, CC is $3.00 min.

SEATTLEGUY: self serve bays $1= 1 minute. $3 start with cash or tokens. $5 start with CC. IBA’s $9, 11,13,15. vacs $2= 3 mins changing to $3= 3 minutes. All vending $2 per item.

CARWASH_NETHERLANDS: Maybe not that interesting to you guys, but my price level in the Netherlands is: 0,50 euro for 1 minute.(USD 0.62 atm). No CC. No special add ups.

Can withstand 200 times the impact of glass!

Low maintenance and corrosion resistant design.

SPRING 2018 •

55

,

STEP UP YOUR Step 2

Designed Here.

Here .

Testimonial Built Here.

Backed Here.™ Call Today to Calculate Your Potential ROI What’s your Site’s Potential?

Call us today and Sonny’s will run a demographic report, traffic survey, and create a sitespecific proforma with 5-year revenue projection for your proposed site conversion.

Will it Work?

Next our CAD Design team will lay out your site to determine feasibility and requirements for maximum throughput.

What will it Cost?

Last, we can conduct a comprehensive non-biased car wash equipment audit with recommendations and provide a quote for the proper equipment package to elevate wash performance and consistency.

Step 1

Step 2

Step 3

Step 4

Hands-on Training to plan, manage, and grow your business.

Best Selling Equipment to improve wash quality and simplify maintenance.

Affordable Controls to deliver efficiency and profitability across your locations.

12,000 Parts with $12 million in inventory to keep your business running.

Take the First Step! Call or Visit us Online Today!

56

Stay Social With Us

• SPRING 2018

www.SonnysDirect.com | 800-327-8723

The Tunnel Experts

TM

SELF-SERVE Reload your Bay to be the NEW Express Tunnel in Town!

35ft Bay

50 cars per hour Xtreme Throughput 50+ clean, dry, shiny cars per hour lets you capitalize on spikes in volume without slowing production.

Xtreme Size Requires only 35-feet of bay space. Exclusive shallow pit conveyor and reduced electrical load requirements makes in-bay retrofits easy and affordable.

Xtreme Profit Standard triple foam, total body protectant, and tire dressing application lets you increase dollarper-car revenue without slowing production.

The Original

35ft Bay

Mini Tunnel

45ft Tunnel

SPRING 2018 •

57

Cwguy.com’s

‘Random Thoughts’

How to keep an “eye”on employees

By Eric Wilson Websites are a great place for your customers to find information about your car wash. Websites help search engines find information about your locations and in return help your customers. All car washes could benefit from a good website that can be viewed on a phone and a tablet. But websites can also be helpful for your car wash company as a whole. They can provide a way for your employees to communicate with each other. And, they can provide a location for historical information and questions and maybe even host live video discussions and two way video help.

How the corporate world handles this problem is with bulk email and with email groups. If you wanted to keep historical information and previous questions the corporate world would hire a couple people and start compiling a help desk database. But, if you’re looking for ease of use and something the average employee has used before, a forum might be your best bet.

Using a forum for your employees to communicate helps with creating a central location for all problems in your company. Employees can use their cell phones to access the private site to ask questions, request time off, give updates, make requests for supplies or complain…. etc. This could also streamline efficiency without having to text people nonstop or having to remember who to text for what problems to which people. All these messages could also have different layers of security.

FOR EXAMPLE: So an average worker needs more chemical and posts to the website’s forum that “site 1” needs presoak. You might have it setup that only this worker can see his post from the “worker” group but everyone above this group could see it. Months later you might see a trend that “Employees 1” is always requesting chemical, but it is “Employees 2” job to check the chemical?

Another example might be for an incident being logged and would only be seen by the employee posting the incident and maybe only the owner?

58

• SPRING 2018

A system like this would also help with high turnover. When questions are asked they would be kept, even by an employee that quit five years ago. Their question would still be searchable and would still probably be relevant today. Plus, the old accounts from old employees can stay in the system and should for historic information. They would just need to be disabled so that they cannot log in and “help” after they leave the company.

THINGS TO WATCH OUT FOR WITH YOUR EMPLOYEES. Here are a few of the problems I found a long time ago during my corporate life.

THE PROBLEM: Employees using their personal cell phones. Employees using their cell phone numbers for contacts is problematic, and I understand in some companies this is just the way it is. But, this can cause problems because you’re not able to control the source of the information coming in to your company and you do not want your customers calling your employee’s personal cell phone number.

HERE’S THE FIX: I have setup “forwarding services” before and I believe they have gotten cheaper by now. This way you would own the incoming number and you could forward the number to your employee’s cell phone. So if there is a next employee you can just forward the number to his cell phone. Which will make an easy transition because everyone will be calling the same number.

THE PROBLEM: Employees using their personal email address. My personal believe is all legit companies should not use any generic domains. They should pay for one. An example is my email address: cake@cakebuild.com. It is not a gmail.com or a hotmail.com and never a aol.com address.

HERE’S THE FIX: Get and own a business email domain and make sure you’re employees only use this address. This way you have complete control. If

someone leaves I change the password and I have access to all of the business related emails. If business is not conducted on an email account which you control, you will lose vital information, contacts and paper trails if that employee quits or is let go.

THE PROBLEM: Negative Talk. Employees can cause major problems if they speak negatively about a customer, or you, or the business, especially with all of the online forums and customer-based-review websites that are out there. Employees should probably sign a conduct contract now which might help if you feel the employee starts being negative publically. There has been a couple cases about waiters posting about being entitled to tips and getting fired.

HERE’S THE FIX: It might be a good idea to have a conduct contract signed? A lawyer would be more than happy to help with that.

There are probably more steps I left out in the process and other functions we never implemented. We wanted to implement live conferences for example which would be much easier now (live streaming is more common now). If you have a situation where you have multiple locations and multiple employees, maybe these ideas could help or we could help. Just think about your current website with a special link for “employees” which is protected. Then add special access and abilities for your employees and it could really help your company.

If you have anything to add just let me know, I can be reached at cake@cakebuild.com.

Eric Wilson is a self-serve car wash owner who also blogs online on the popular and very funny website, cwguy.com.

Still making change.

Only now more green.

See a demo at rowebillchangers.com

Century 6

BC-1400

BC-1200

400 RL

500 RL C1-2 500 RL C1-3

Rowe bill changers are a safe option for locations because owners and attendants no longer need to carry cash. Our Model 400 & 500 units recycle a patron’s $5 bills as change for another patron without the owner or attendant handling bills. This boosts profits, increases security of currency and coins, improves cash flow and decreases labor costs- all benefits for store owners! Some models break large denomination bills into smaller bills, other models accept credit cards and dispense bonus tokens. There is a Rowe changer for every application, choose from compact, economy changers to heavy duty, robust, high capacity models.

YOUR MOST TRUSTED SOURCE FOR RELIABLE BILL CHANGERS ROWE BILL CHANGERS, LLC 7121 Belton St. | Richland Hills, TX 76118 | 800.669.7693 | www.rowebillchangers.com

SPRING 2018 •

59

OPEN FOR BUSINESS

NEW BRITAIN,

CONNECTICUT MUNCIE, INDIANA

PHOENIX, ARIZONA

BELTON, TEXAS ORLANDO, FLORIDA

ORLANDO, FLORIDA Two new Mister Car Washes will soon be open in Florida and are under construction at the same time, a press release reported.

Services offered will include express exterior washes with free vacuums.

“Our customers are loyal to Mister Car Wash and we want to repay that loyalty with more locations to serve them. As long as demand continues to grow for our products and services, we plan to meet that demand responsibly through a combination of acquisitions and new builds,” CEO John Lai stated in the press release.

In markets where Mister Car Wash has established market share they will look to expand their presence with newly constructed car washes. Currently, Mister has more than 250 location in 21 states.

PHOENIX, ARIZONA Quick Quack Car Wash is expanding into the Phoenix area after acquiring three Quick N Clean car washes, abc 25 reported. The locations are scheduled to reopen in February following renovations at all three washes. The grand opening celebrations include 10 days of free washes. Quick Quack also has plans for washes in other parts of Arizona including Mesa, Gilbert, and Chandler.

Currently, there are 45 Quick Quacks in the Western United States. “We are very excited to bring our brand of car washing to Phoenix.” CEO Jason Johnson said in the story. “While we are committed to clean cars quickly and provide a fun car wash experience, we are most excited about partnering with our team members, neighbors and communities to make a real difference in people’s lives.”

60

• SPRING 2018

NEW BRITAIN, CONNECTICUT Wave Car Wash opened in March offering touchless and self-serve car wash options, the New Britain Herald reported. The wash is owned by husband and wife Edward and Deb Steremberg who own a second location in Newington, Connecticut.

“It seemed like a good opportunity to improve what was there. The machine I have in Newington is very well liked. So I decided to look for another place to install another machine that people could love,” Edward told the newspaper.

The car wash operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and will be hosting fundraising events, allowing charities to take 50 percent of the profits received during their events.

“I’m a hands-on owner; I answer the phone when people call if they have any questions, concerns or other and it’s the cleanest and best maintained (car wash). I’m very proud of that,” Edward added.

BELTON, TEXAS A new Today’s Car Wash is planned for Eastern Texas with three locations already in Killeen and Harker Heights, Texas, the Temple Daily Telegram reported.

City council members unanimously voted in favor of rezoning the area for the wash. Other Today’s Car Washes include self-serve, tunnel and detailing services, and the story did not indicated the exact service

MUNCIE, INDIANA A $5 million Crew Carwash opened here in February, according to The Star Press.

“We are excited to become a part of the Muncie community,” Sally Grant, executive vice president of the company, stated in a press release. “We are proud to invest in the growth and development of the Muncie area. Being located on McGalliard, along with other new retailers, we’re eager to offer the residents of Delaware County a world-class carwash experience.” This marks the 31st Crew Carwash location. The company has been around for 1948 and more locations are planned.

The multi-million dollar facility features, “self-service, dual-hose vacuums that allow customers to clean each side of their vehicles, light-emitting diodes (LEDs) inside and outside, all-electric motors and an environmentally conscious water reclamation system that cleans and reuses water during certain parts of the washing process,” the press release stated.

offerings for the Belton location.

“Planning Director Cheryl Maxwell said the new zoning will allow for the car wash while protecting the surrounding area from commercial uses that may not be appropriate in the area,” the story reported. When asked if there will be fencing installed around the vacuum area, Maxwell said there will not be fencing, but instead a 10-foot buffer area and landscaping.

Your carwash insurance experience can be hassle free. You don't have to spend hours comparing coverage options. You don't have to stumble through confusing paperwork.

You can get a specialized insurance policy custom fit for your carwash business with Western Carwash Insurance Program (WCIP).

Coverage Options: • • • • • • •

Carwash Building & Equipment Commercial Li ability Commercial Auto Umbrella Garagekeepers Legal Liability Persona I Property Employee Dishonesty

• Employment Practices Liability • Business Income • Equipment Breakdown • Money & Securities • Workers' Compensation • Cyber Liability & Network Security • Surety Bonds and much more!

Brandi Evans Account Manager-Lead email: Brandi.Evans@alliant.com http://wwwwesterncarwash.com

CA DOI Lie. #OC36861

SPRING 2018 •

61

FUNNY BUSINESS

Presenting stories of car wash hilarity, foolishness and mishaps from your fellow owners and operators. Got a funny story to share? Send them in to Editor Debra Gorgos at debrag@sscwn.com or post them at AutoCareForum.com

Something So Strange WHAT STRANGE THINGS HAVE CUSTOMERS WASHED IN ONE OF YOUR BAYS?

“About 10 years ago I had a Chrysler Town & Country pull into one of my bays mid-summer.

The car probably had not been washed in 3 years. Just completely filthy. Missing a bumper, dents all over. A woman get out, opens the rear sliding door. Out pop 4 kids. The oldest was 7ish. The youngest was around 2. All got undressed and lined up against the bay wall.

The woman proceeded to spray wash all 4 kids with soap and water.

She brought her own towels and dried each kid. They put on the same clothes, hopped in the car and shut the doors. She left without washing the minivan.” - Jerry

“Twice, I have seen a customers put money in the coin meter of an empty bay. They turned the bay on and pulled out the gun only to realize their car was in the next bay.”

- Pat Hall “We have customers late at night sometimes bring up laundry on wash them on the floor, had a lady just the other night drying her car with a sponge in my self serve bay while it was raining then left.”

- DiamondWash

“Animal rescue group with horse trailer hosed off black bear due to summer heat.”

- Swamp

donkey

“A 300 -pound hog, alive and kicking, tied down in the back of a pickup.”

- MEP001

“Hearse Horses Cows ...

We country...”

- soonermajic

Over the years I’ve seen just about everything. On the opening day of hunting season a few years ago right at sunrise I hear heavy gun fire about 200 yards in back of my car wash. About 20 minutes later I’m in the equipment room and I hear chain hitting steel. The hunter is in the back of his truck

trying to hang the deer he had just shot so he can dress it out, skin it and leave the mess at the car wash. He thought it was perfectly OK to do that. He didn’t like it when I told him to leave.

We get to the car wash at around 5 a.m. Shortly after we got there 2 young ladies in the early twenties came in and striped down naked and proceed to shower. I don’t think they knew we were watching them on video.

We’ve gotten livestock, horses, pigs, goats, sheep etc. They used to have a large auction on the edge of town and they’d get more for their livestock if they were clean. - Randy

“I have contractors/outside construction workers come in and start the bay....Just to HP wash their boots...While still on their feet...The Car or truck is muddy, but they don’t wash it...Just their boots!” - 2Biz

He tried to get a bath!! I got paid! pgrzes

“Hunters cleaning off their deer. Mountain bikers (cycles) riding to the wash to get the mud off their bikes and their shin guards.” - Roz

This is one of the latest things I’ve seen Ghetto Wash “U-haul box truck full of marijuana.

Occasional Elk skull.”

- Car_Wash_Guy “When we had an outside bay, we had a helicopter (small one on a trailer) a couple of different times. My dad once saw someone washing a tree stump and root wad.”

- I.B.Washincars

62

• SPRING 2018

Offer More Ways to Pay for In Bay Automatics with the

Optiva Virtual Attendant

Cashless Model

Accepts Credit, Bills, Coins, and Dispenses Coins

EMV Level 2 Certified Security accepting: Traditional Credit/Debit Cards, Contactless Payments, Smartphone Payments, and Chip Credit/Debit Cards for Added Security.

Accepts, Credit, Bills, Coins and Dispenses Coins/Bills

Retrofit Model available for Unitec© Wash Select II™ Wash Select II™ is a registered trademark of Unitec©

WashMax Remote Management with equipment and uptime monitoring, remote reports in real time, fleet programs capabilities, gift and loyalty programs, and other marketing programs.

Optiva,LLC PO Box 5301 Clearwater,FL 33758 727.544.0104

www.colemanhanna.com/Optiva SPRING 2018 •

63

64

• SPRING 2018

SPRING 2018 •

65

r e v e t Wha

n i s n e p Hap s...

a g e V …you’ll find in

SSCWN!

By Debra Gorgos debrag@sscwn.com Self serve operators and owners were dealt winning hands at this year’s Car Wash Show™, which took place in Las Vegas from April 26-28. Between the educational offerings, hundreds of booths, various meets and greets, attendees were given plenty of opportunities to learn, grow, and win. In comparison to past Shows, this one paid even more attention to the self serve car wash dynamic. Attendee John Pugliese, who owns a self serve in Colorado, stated, “Yes, I thought the Show offered a bit more for us [self serve operators] compared to last year.”

For starters, there were three educational sessions devoted just to self serve owners and operators.

And, for those of you who were unable to attend, you’re in luck, because, I am giving you all of the highlights, insider tips, suggestions and stories of success procured from the session, Keeping Your Self-Serve Car Wash Competitive. The session was presented by Heath Pomerantz, Business Development Manager (Western Region) of Sonny’s Diamond Shine Car Wash Solutions (see sidebar), and focused on how to diversify, effectively market and promote, and how to renovate and expand your business successfully.

66

• SPRING 2018

Pomerantz, who has owned self serve operations in Florida, knows first-hand the ins and outs of running a successful wash. Having struggled to increase car counts, he shared some trials and errors, even having to turn one of his bays into a coffee shop to make ends meet, as well as his successful strategies.

Pomerantz has since sold his washes, but wants self serve owners to know that by arming yourself with tenacity, risk-taking strategies, and education, you, too, can increase car counts and impress current and potential customers. The following is a summarization of his session.

How to Stay Competitive  Diversify  Offer in-bay dryers  Offer tire shiner  Offer a dog wash  Install LED lighting  Accept credit cards If you’re a self serve operator, what are you selling? The answer, says Pomerantz, is: Time. You are leasing out that bay to every customer that goes through. How can we keep them in the bay for as long as possible, while providing the most value possible? The key is to diversify your wash.

According to Pomerantz, sales, new construction and new builds of self serves have drastically dropped off over the last 20 years. “You have got to really search for a new self serve site and I am utterly surprised when I hear of someone building a new site. So, how do you make an existing self serve that is 10, 15 to 20 years old look new and still be profitable? A drawback is that we do not have the innovation on the self serve side of things. Those conveyor guys are getting all of the innovations, all of the new toys, the lights, the foamers. But, there are ways to adapt that to the self serve world. Just because it is not intended for the self serve, does not mean we cannot incorporate it.”

Here are a few of Pomerantz’s suggestions In-bay blowers/dryers: Offering these will increase time spent in a bay by a minute or more, providing significant value. Now customers can leave with a dry car.

Tire shiner: Some companies have hand-applied tire shiners for self serve bays that can be attached to the vacuum or inside the bay.

LED lights: What do they do for the customer?

®

CAR WASH

NEWHORIZONS

®

CUSTOM GLASS CAR WASH STRUCTURES

Automatic, Tunnel, Self-Serve Buildings

Extensions, and Canopies!

PERFECT FOR YOUR OUR SELF SERVE BA BAY All Paws Pet Wash is pleased to offer you two ways you can get more usage from your self-serve bays! Providing your customers with extra services and creating more revenue for your business.

Option 1: Flip-Tub

We are seasoned builders of glass car wash buildings, we also build custom options like kneewall upgrades, equipment rooms, additional vacuum bays and extensions.

Automatic

Tunnel

69in

Self Serve

81.25in

• Fully Customizable - over 80 colors to choose from • Functional Buildings • Cost Effective • Low Maintenance • Fast Construction • Beautiful Glass An extension from New Horizons will add new life to your old structure. A larger building not only improves your car wash’s performance, it also gives you more flexibility with the types of car wash equipment you can use.

Or, use it to turn a self serve bay into an automatic bay!

Tunnel Extension

Double Extension

12in

Our Flip-Tub station was specifically designed to maximize the usable area in self-serve car wash bays. It allows a vehicle to fit in the bay, while the tub is in its flip-up position. When the user is ready to wash their pet, the tub is placed in the flip-down position and the unit is ready for use.

Option 2: APW Option A & A-Stainless Steel

Converting a self-serve bay into an enclosed pet wash station is easier than you think and an excellent way to generate additional revenue while expanding the services your business offers.

70in

Extension

**NEW PRODUCT** New Horizons is pleased to announce our latest product. Pay Station Canopies the perfect addition to all car wash businesses! Made to the same high standards as our car washes and customizable to match a new or existing structure

29in 95”(inc. step)

OTHER MODELS AND OPTIONS ARE AVAILABLE Want more info? Visit our website:

www.allpawspetwash.com 800-537-8231 • info@allpawspetwash.com

*NEW PRODUCT* Canopies

Built in-house at our IL factory.

®

WWW.FINDAPETWASH.COM

Want more info? Visit our website:

www.newhorizonscarwash.com 800-537-8231 • info@newhorizonscarwash.com

grooming shop or pet wash business!

Sign up to sponsor a map marker and get your business found today!

CCSI International, Inc.

For half a century, CCSI International, Inc. has manufactured and distributed wet environment structures and retractable roof systems to both residential and commercial customers. Our attractive products are built with corrosion-resistant aluminum frames and shatter-proof safety glass, to withstand the harshest weather conditions. Operating out of our state of the art facility in Garden Prairie, Illinois.

pet w sh supplies® WWW.PETWASHSUPPLIES.COM

Need soaps? Treats? Marketing materials? your pet wash right here.

Call or email us for coupon codes!

Contact Us Today! 800-537-8231 • 8642 U.S. Highway 20, Garden Prairie, IL 61038 SPRING 2018 •

67

www.manniwashsystems.com

1-800-552-4492

1131 Greensburg Road • Lower Burrell, PA 15068 • Phone 724.337.8255 • Fax 724.337.8554

THE HI TECH CAR WASH SYSTEM

IS BACK AND STRONGER THAN EVER! Touch Free In-Bay Automatic The WORLD’S finest self service automatic continues to set the standards for CLEAN CARS and HIGH PRODUCTION. While our competitors claim their equipment is high tech because of its good looks and aesthetics that does not mean it will make you successful in the car wash business.

This business is all about clean cars and happy customers. It is not about having the prettiest equipment.

All Turbo Wash units come with the Rear Blaster!

Top Reasons to buy a TURBO WASH        

68

Clean cars! Better than any other touch free Available to fit in existing bays easily Simplicity of operation Extensive use of Stainless Steel Highest quality components throughout High production – you wash more cars Will STILL be running when you make your last payment UL approved electrical throughout

• SPRING 2018

High volume car washes that can deliver clean, shiny cars need to be a “WORK HORSE”, and that is what the TURBO WASH is often called. In fact, there are more units of the TURBO WASH basic design that are 10, 20 even 30 years old that are still out there washing cars. What other manufacturer can make that statement?

1200-1500 psi • 3 hp • 3 phase Available up to 8 Bays.

SIX BAY WASH MODULE·UL Listed

Includes: Soap • Wax • Rinse • Pre-Soak • Foaming Tire Cleaner and Foaming Brush

Standard Features • • • • • • • • • •

Stainless Steel Frame Construction Stainless Steel Holding Tanks Stainless Steel 360o Boom Stainless Steel 180o Brush Boom Stainless Steel Coin Box (vault ready) Coin Box Heaters Electronic Coin Acceptors Digital Readout Timers Motor Starters with Overload Protectors Low Pressure Air Pumps

• • • • • • • • • •

Trigger Gun and Hose Assembly Hogs Hair Foaming Brush Automatic High Pressure Weep Roof Trough Manifold All High Pressure and Low Pressure Hoses and fittings 100 KVA Transformer Per Bay Stainless Steel Pre-Soak Pump Sign Package Wire from Coin Box to Panel U.L. Listed Control Panel

Call us for our Special Pricing on Upgrading your Present Equipment

Manni's WASH SYSTEMS

Check us out on the Web: www.manniwashsystems.com

Manni’s Wash Module

The Total Self-Service P ackage

1131 GREENSBURG ROAD • LOWER BURRELL, PA 15068 724-337-8255

800-552-4492

Fax: 724-337-8554

SPRING 2018 •

69

COVER STORY They enhance the customers’ experience. If you are happy doing something, you tend to do it longer.

They also brighten up the bays and encourage customers to visit late at night and allow them to feel more safe. You know your wash is safe, but do your customers? Try and visit your wash at night and look at it from their point of view.

Dog Washes: You know the best part about a dog wash? It’s a $10 start up. A start-up in a self serve bay is $3-$4. So, if a dog wash starts at $10, that is a huge bonus. And, again, it keeps the customer on your property longer.

Another idea is to rent out the bay. Pomerantz admitted he had to think outside the box and do something different at one of his washes. “I was doing something wrong. I could not get the lines back at this one self serve. It was a site in Tampa and was a 10-bay self serve with two in-bay automatics (touch free). The bays closest to the changer were the most profitable. I was averaging somewhere between $1,200-$1,500 a month in the bays closest to the changers. In the ones further away, it was more like $200-$300. I had to do something. So, I went to a detailer locally and leased the very last bay to a detailer. We did some cross promotion, but that was it. He paid $1,500 to lease the bay. I then had a new service provided to my customers.”

At another South Florida location, which was a four-bay, self serve only location, Pomerantz admitted it was dying. “No matter what I did, it was dying. I tried everything. So, I rolled up the doors and made it into a coffee shop. This is a business.

And we are diversifying. We are surviving. We don’t want to just get by, we want to be competitive. At another location, we decided to do oil changes. I leased it out, paid for the lift. I kept the equipment, ran the electric. Don’t pigeon hole yourself.”

Other things to consider adding, according to Pomerantz include an ice machine, water machine, and atm (see sidebar).

As for credit card acceptance, no one carries cash anymore, according to Pomerantz. “There are very affordable wireless/wi-fi credit card pay stations you can add to your existing self serve doors. It will transform how long a customer stays in the bay. Customers don’t want to add more quarters. Putting in a credit card is not only more accessible to the customer, but it keeps them in the bay longer. If you didn’t put them in your bays yet, you have to put them in.”

The trick here, says Pomerantz, is to become the one stop shop. “A customer needs ice? Go to the self serve. A customer needs water? Go to the self serve. A customer needs to wash their dog? Go to the self serve.”

Update/Renovate  Add new or enhance lighting  New paint  New tile  Landscape  Add new decals  Fix, add new signs  Replace old and outdated equipment You have to make sure your bays are bright and 70

• SPRING 2018

Thoughts on 2018 The Car Wash Show?

The numbers are in for this year’s Show. Hosted by the International Carwash Association (ICA), the show is co-hosted by the Western Carwash Association (WCA) and the Automotive Oil Change Association (AOCA) of the iFlex event, the Australian Car Wash Association (ACWA) and BOVAG. It covered more than 160,000 square feet of exhibit space, hosting over 400 exhibitors. More than 8,000 people attended and with a keynote by NFL icon Howie Long, people seemed pleased with the Show overall.

“This is an amazing industry,” said Haji Tehrani, president of the International Carwash Association, in his state of the industry address.

“The future of this industry has never been brighter. …the sky’s the limit.”

As for the self-serve operators in attendance, they had the following to say: “Been in the business for 15 years and this year was the first one. And [it was] a last minute decision at that. I have been going to the N.E. Regional show for years, but have just found it too difficult to get away for the amount of time needed. I really wish I could have stayed longer cause wow that place is huge! One day at the show is certainly not enough time. Bought a few things I really wanted/needed (Diskin, Tokens, some misc items) and saved enough to pay for my trip! Got to talk to and meet a ton of people that I have spent numerous hours in discussions online and on the phone with over the years. It was a great trip and well worth the time and expense.”

- PETE GRZESNIKOWSKI

“Yes, it was a good show and it’s always great to see other operators. There isn’t a ton of new stuff for SS operators, but I enjoyed the tunnel

inviting, shared Pomerantz. If you don’t have bright lights, you don’t have customers. “Think about your customer’s impression of car wash. Stop thinking about your car wash (which you know is safe) and think about it as your customer. If it is dark, unwelcoming and uncomfortable, you are cutting your sales by more than half at a certain time of day. I like LED lighting as it saves you money. In Colorado, they are doing significant rebates and will actually pay for your lights.”

When was the last time you put a new coat of paint on your building? asked Pomerantz. “What about the canopies, the bollards, the concrete pad for the vacuums? If you have not painted something on your site in over 18 months, it has been too long. A coat of paint goes a long way and you should paint something every year.”

How about promotion signs? Whether it a sign promoting triple foam or the tire shiner, those signs need to be refreshed. Think about adding banners.

Go to your chemical guy and ask them for one, suggested Pomerantz.

seminars. All operators should be paying attention to trends in the express segment- they are steamrolling and are projecting double digit growth in this segment for years to come. Being around enthusiastic operators always re-energizes me. I’m going to make a strong push to modernize my IBA graphics and menus with some products from Mr Foamer. Already looking forward to Nashville.

BTW, there are lots of changes in the industry. Sonny’s has bought both Diamond Shine and Mr. Foamer. Several new franchise offerings for express exteriors. Small chains are being bought up by bigger players in a another push for regional or national chains. Paul Fazio mentioned in his presentation [that] new big money is coming into the industry wanting to construct chains of 50+ locations.”

GREG PACK

“Since I am hoping to be retired in a couple of years, I wasn’t really looking for anything in particular, so nothing really blew me away, although I did spend over 3 grand there. I also was wishy-washy about paying the extra for the all access pass, but I thought with the networking I could possibly rub elbows with a potential buyer. I actually made two good contacts that I would not have made if I hadn’t been at the sessions. You never know. I always seem to make another friend or two in the process as well.”

- PAT HALL

“I thought the show offered a bit more for us compared to last year. Most notably Everwash with their app and WashCard with their LCD screen panels. The show seems larger, brighter inside, with some great seminars speakers.”

- JOHN PUGLIESE

Buying New Sites  Identify viable locations  Identify successful existing washes The reason I am a fan of having multiple sites is that you can build a brand, stated Pomerantz. You can also sell fleets to multiple areas and you’re not pigeon-holed to a three-mile radius. However, before acquiring a new site, you have to make sure the location is viable and you have to agree to its value.

“Books on a self serve are not always easy to verify. So, you have to do it yourself,” stated Pomerantz. “Look at traffic counts. Looking at a self serve, you want it in a residential or retail area. The people who typically wash as a self serve are usually close to their home. …When I was acquiring new sites, I would camp out across the street for weeks. The only way I could verify numbers was if I verified the numbers myself. So, I would camp out with a clicker and would go to the DOT and get car counts. I would also play secret

Pull money out of thin air • Keep 100% of revenue • Eliminates theft and collection • Real-time on-line reporting • Credit / debit – cashless transactions • Wireless – no wires, no mess • Free air check attracts more customers • 25’ coil or wire braid hose • Wall, pedestal or vault mount • 1.25 HP high-output, continuous use (HOCU) industrial compressor

• 16-guage stainless steel 2.25” x 20.25” x 14.25” cabinet • Digital model – inflate or deflate to desired pressure with easy-toread electronic push buttons • LED readout on digital models • Free toll-free support • Striking professional graphics are a customer magnet • Factory direct prices and support

Fragramatics Big Dog Air with coin and ePort

Fragramatics CVA Big Dog Air and Vac • Fragramatics 1600 hr Turbo Vac Motor • Poly or aluminum dome • Computer controlled timer • UV protected graphics • Filters – Four-bag system uses high performance, synthetic filtration media with 15 sq. ft. filtration area. Two easy-access service doors on rear • SmoothBor 1-1/2” x 15 ft. crushable high-flex vinyl vac hose with cuff and polyethylene hand tool • ¼” x 25’ Wire braid or coil hose with in line gauge •1.25 HP ‘Big Dog’ high output compressor

Fragramatics Big Dog Air Digital with coin only

Fragramatics Economy and Turbo Vacs Our new economy and turbo vacuums are equipped with computer controlled timer, 4 bags, poly dome, and a SmoothBor 1-1/2” x 15 ft. crushable high-flex vinyl vac hose with cuff and polyethylene hand tool These features combined with our next-generation electronics are unmatched in the industry.

CALL FOR MORE INFORMATION

CALL FOR MORE INFORMATION

FACTORY DIRECT PRICES AND FACTORY DIRECT SERVICE Building quality, value-added equipment for 39 years 

3021 Midland Drive • Pine Bluff AR 71603 • 800-643-1574 • sales@fragramatics.com

Learn more at fragramatics.com SPRING 2018 •

71

72all_paws_compass_full_page_ad.indd • SPRING 2018

1

4/30/18 2:57 PM

Replace or upgrade your ACW. Installs inside an existing ACW cabinet!

Accepts Cash, Coins and Credit Cards The most economical 24hr Automatic Entry System!

CryptoPay provides secure credit card processing that ‘Simply Stops Fraud’ Features CryptoPay Consolidation reducing Merchant Fees Compatible with CryptoPay In-Bay credit card system*

PayStation Features: l 4 - Selection Large backlit LCD display and voice prompts. l Accepts cash, coins and credit cards securely with CryptoPay! l Connect this Paystation CryptoPay to your existing CryptoPay system or add CryptoPay to your In-bay boxes for one complete credit card solution*. (*CryptoPay Coordinator is required for each car wash location) l Program up to 25 discount codes. Add an “optional” 2nd hopper to vend a bonus token that can be redeemed for a free vacuum or a discount on your next car wash purchase.

CryptoPay Security: Prevents credit card data from being ‘in the clear’ and at risk by encrypting the credit card data at the moment, and point, of the credit card swipe. CryptoPay provides secure credit card processing that ‘Simply Stops Fraud’.

CryptoPay Consolidation: Reduces merchant and credit cards fees which are essential for small ticket purchases. Here’s an example of CryptoPay Consolidation: Imagine that a customer visits your carwash. He swipes his credit card at the PayStation and purchases an $8.00 wash. Ten minutes later swipes his card again at the vacuum, and is charged $1.00. CryptoPay combines these two charges into one $9.00 charge that is submitted to the credit card company, which results in only one merchant fee for the purchase.

CryptoPay GoGreen Receipt Service: Allows your customers to get their receipts from credit card purchases made at your car wash. Receipts are available online 24/7, two hours after last usage.

It provides end-to-end encryption delivering receipts safely online.

American Changer Corp.

(800) 741-9840

for more information visit: www.americanchanger.com

SPRING 2018 •

73

AVAILABLE IN 24 CARD PACKS OR 72 COUNT VEND PACKS TWISTED BASIL

HEIRLOOM TOMATO

VS50297 24 PACK VS10297 72 PACK

CORAL REEF

VS52225 VS52226 VS52232 VS52233 VS52234 VS52231

CARIBBEAN COLADA NEW CAR SCENT BAYSIDE BREEZE BLACK ICE

4 PACK

Vanillaroma®, New Car Scent, Bayside Breeze and Black Ice.

VS52425 VS52426 VS52432 VS52433 VS52434 VS52431

VS52220

SHIPPING FROM NEVADA,

TEXAS & PENNSYLVANIA 1 DAY 74

• SPRING 2018

2 DAY

3 DAY

24 PACK 72 PACK

CARIBBEAN COLADA CHERRY BLOSSOM HONEY VANILLAROMA® NEW CAR SCENT BAYSIDE BREEZE BLACK ICE

INCLUDES 4 EACH:

We’re Closer Than You Think!

VS57347 VS17347

The air blowing from your vent captures the scent and spreads it around the vehicle.

Clips to almost anywhere!

Lasts up to 30 days!

FAST!

DAISY FIELDS

VS57365 24 PACK VS17365 72 PACK

4 PACK

4 PACK

GET YOUR ORDER

VS57340 24 PACK VS17340 72 PACK

EUCALYPTUS

VS57186 24 PACK VS17186 72 PACK

VS52025 VS52033 VS52034 VS52031

CREAMY AVOCADO

VS50331 24 Pack VS10331 72 Pack

CARIBBEAN COLADA CHERRY BLOSSOM HONEY VANILLAROMA® NEW CAR SCENT BAYSIDE BREEZE BLACK ICE

Maine Vermont

Washington

Oregon

Minnesota

North Dakota

Montana

New Hampshire

Wisconsin

South Dakota

Idaho

Iowa Illinois

Indiana

Nevada Colorado

Kansas

West Virginia Kentucky

Missouri

Arizona

Arkansas

Texas

South Carolina Georgia

Mississippi

o New Mexic

nd

ey

New Jersey New Jers

Virginia

North Carol

Tennessee

California Oklahoma

nd Rhode Isla

Connecticut Rhode Isla

ware are Delalaw De Maryland

Ohio

Nebraska

Massac

Michigan Pennsylvania

Wyoming

Utah

setts

Massachu

husetts

New York

Louisiana

Alabama

Florida

ina

COVER STORY shopper. The hardest thing to do with an existing business is change people’s minds — even when you put up a new sign that says: ‘New Ownership!’ You think it will fix everything. It doesn’t.”

Pomerantz added that you don’t want to buy an existing site that people are sick and tired of things always being broken. Or has or had a rude owner.

Or a site where no one could ever reach the owner. Instead, find one that is simply not diversified and find ways for you to increase value and sales through some of the aforementioned tips. You also have to change the mind frame of how people view self serves. “One thing I did when I acquired a site which had a particularly hard customer base [was work to change their opinion],” said Pomerantz. “My attitude was, it’s a culture problem that needs to be fixed. So, I started going to local high schools, the local youth football leagues and said, ‘If you want to do a fundraiser, you do it at my car wash.’ …It creates buzz. You have young, happy kids, smiling and washing cars. It’s busy. People drive by thinking, ‘I want to be a part of that.’ And, it brings in new business. The other thing it does is it creates great PR. Those families become customers.”

Another plus to expanding is a lot of sites are affordable. “A lot of the owners are leaving town, they’re tired, they don’t want to put the money into it. So, go and get that site. Let’s turn it around.

Let’s make a profit,” suggested Pomerantz. “Then we can grow our brand. We become a recognizable

self serve brand and that’s a huge selling point to customers. Pushing our self serve, touch free benefit is a huge proponent. Those tunnels think we’re not big competition, I beg to differ.”

Sell the fact that you don’t touch the car. Sell the fact that the customer controls the pressure.

Sell the fact that the customer is in charge. Do this at all of your locations and you can then change the way a self serve is viewed and you will be successful.

Who is Heath Pomerantz?

Heath Pomerantz started in the car wash business in 1992 when his family built a full service out in South Florida. They built a couple more in the mid-90s until they were bought out by Wash Depot in 2000. That is when their self serve world began. They acquired five self serve sites throughout southern Florida, spanning from Miami Beach to Fort Lauderdale. Slowly growing, they grew through construction and acquisition of new properties, and ended up with 13 locations with a total of 14 inbay automatics throughout those sites. They expanded into Tampa, Florida, where they built three more sites in the late 2000s. Like many people, they experienced 2007’s downturn and had to reevaluate how to handle, promote and enhance their self serves. Eventually, they sold the washes and Pomerantz moved to Denver to be with his wife’s family.

He is now the Business Development Manager for Sonny’s Diamond Shine.

TAKEAWAY TIP

Put yourself in your customer’s shoes “[One] thing we are guilty of is we are so focused on what we think is valuable, we sometimes forget to think of what the customer finds valuable. Just because you don’t think tire shiners or in-bay dryers are valuable, what does your customer think? When is the last time you asked or did research and talked to your customer? There is some value in that, getting their opinions on what will keep them in the bay longer.” - HEATH POMERANTZ

TAKEAWAY TIP

Fill a community need “I had a customer in Burlington, Kansas, right on the border of Kansas and Colorado. He gets up and goes to work one day and over the radio he hears a warning: Do NOT drink the water in Burlington.

So, this genius decides: I am going to put a water station at my car wash. He goes and gets an RO water filling station so that customers can go and get water and take it home. Providing more value.

Another operator in Oregon, right where the University of Oregon is in Eugene, put an ATM on his property. The first thing I thought was, ‘Great, I already have to worry about people coming in and stealing my changer, the last thing I need to worry about is someone breaking into an ATM!’ But the best thing is that the way most of these companies structure their ATM is they are leasing the property from you. They hold full responsibility. If someone

SPRING 2018 •

75

COVER STORY

breaks into it, it is not your problem. All they usually require is a camera pointed at the ATM. He says on average, at the end of the year, he makes about $10,000 per year.” - HEATH POMERANTZ

TAKEAWAY TIP

Don’t Make Customers Wait in Line “We have lines at our wash. We put two video cameras on our website to show people how long the lines are so that they can estimate the wait time.” - AUDIENCE MEMBER

TAKEAWAY TIP

Give back the money “I once had a customer flag me down while I was onsite to tell me their car was still dirty. I thought, maybe something wasn’t working. So, I put quarters in and tested all of the features and everything was perfect. What didn’t work was the customer didn’t use the foam brush. He just used the high-pressure gun. Never once in my 20-something years of owning self serves had I had someone at a self serve complain about a dirty car. I gave him his money back and told him to have a good day. I am a big proponent of not arguing with the customer and instead giving them their money back. It’s not worth it. They are going to come back. Bad news travels a lot further and a lot faster than good news.” - HEATH POMERANTZ

76

• SPRING 2018

TAKEAWAY TIP

Rotate the signs, change up the bay “I rotate the signs between the bays. That way, if a customer has a favorite bay, they will see a different sign.” This keeps things fresh. - AUDIENCE MEMBER

TAKEAWAY TIP

Cross-promote “Think about cross promoting with other automobile-related businesses. I went over to a business that was doing lubes, tinting, and I had gift cards made that they could sell at their businesses and then gave them a percentage of those sales. …Also consider having another business use the outside walls of your building to promote their business.”

- HEATH POMERANTZ

TAKEAWAY TIP

Free washes? You bet.

“We bought [a wash] five years ago that went back to the bank. It was a really nice building in a wonderful location, but it had a really bad name with equipment that was even worse. We ran free washes for three weeks. And, when I mean ‘free,’ I mean free. And it probably cost me almost $10,000, but it was probably the best 10 grand I ever spent. We covered the sign with, ‘New Ownership,’ and on the street it said: Free car wash. We had lines like you could not believe.

And the best was one customer told me he thought he would never come back to the wash because the [former owner yelled at him].” - AUDIENCE MEMBER

TAKEAWAY TIP

Charging an admittance fee “In a lot of my travels, I see some interesting concepts. When I was in Alaska, I visited a car wash owner who put their entire facility (two in-bay automatics and six self serve bays) inside of a building and instead of paying at a bay box customers drive up, get a ticket, and can then wash as long as they want.

They don’t have to put quarters in or swipe a card.

And when they are done, similar to a parking garage at an airport, they go through the exit, put in their ticket and they are charged for the amount of time they were inside. A gentleman in Florida did something similar. He said he bought a failing self serve and tried everything [but wasn’t making money]. So, he did the same thing. Although it was not indoors [like in Alaska] he put gates up for the entrance and the exit. In three months, his revenue was up over 200 percent. He even gives them the first 5 minutes for free. The guy in Alaska charged $1 per minute. In Florida, he charged 50 cents and the average customer would spend $20 per visit.” - HEATH POMERANTZ

TAKEAWAY TIP

Best place to find employees?

“Who’s the face of your carwash? Most of us do it ourselves, but when I had 13 locations, I had to hire somebody to help me manage everything. What I found, was the best employees for a self serve are: Retired veterans. They are the best. They take great pride in the appearance, the cleanliness of the site.”

- HEATH POMERANTZ

A LEADING MANUFACTURER OF CONTROLS, INCLUDING DIGITAL TIMERS FOR THE CAR WASH INDUSTRY.

CONTACT YOUR DISTRIBUTOR

TODAY!

WWW.DIXMOR.COM 1-888-234-9667 FOR A DISTRIBUTOR IN YOUR AREA. SPRING 2018 •

77

bugsaw_xtreme_full_page_ad.pdf

C

M

Y

CM

MY

CY

CMY

K

78

• SPRING 2018

1

4/30/18

2:57 PM

We provide expertise with every part we sell…

Call us!

(800) 443-0676

WINDTRAX

WINDTRAX EAST

Our second location in Ohio now gives us twice the capacity to ship worldwide!

6800 Foxridge Drive . Mission, KS 66202 . Phone: (800) 443-0676 . Fax: (913) 789-9393

Order on-line at www.windtrax.com

SPRING 2018 •

79

DARWIN CARWASH at the

The investment in security cameras pays off for carwash operators

(and the readers of SSCWN) with these mostly frustrating, sometimes funny

What is the going rate for aluminum these days?

-- and always cautionary -- stories of Darwins Caught on Camera. Images of these criminals and/or their vehicles were given to police and the press. Many have been caught thanks to the prowess of security cameras.

One of my favorite movies is Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window.

I won’t give away the ending if you have not seen it, but its plot is the first thing I thought of when I read this story.

What is the debris?

What is that sheet for?

Creepy.

This story, as reported in the Houston Chronicle, involves a man in La Porte, Texas, who drove to a self serve car wash, pulled out a light-colored plastic sheet covered in debris and soil. Surveillance footage then shows him pulling out more debris from his white pick-up truck. This all took place on March 22 at 10 p.m. The footage also shows he is wearing jeans, a baseball cap and a t-shirt. Police are still looking for the suspect.

The taming of the screw? Well, for driver Jesse Vigil, what was supposed to be a nice trip to the car wash, in Lakewood, Colorado, ended up costing her $1,000.

How? Why? When a car stopped suddenly in line while waiting for the conveyor wash, Vigil slammed into the car and the car’s license plate screw went right into her bumper, according to a Fox 31 report. Thankfully, surveillance footage of Bucky’s Car Wash shows the car and license plate of the car which stopped suddenly, causing the damage.

It also proves that Bucky’s is not at fault.

It also shows that the driver, who stopped suddenly, had taken off before any information could be exchanged. Clearly, he had a screw loose, if he thought he would not get caught.

80

• SPRING 2018

In case surveillance cameras cannot catch a good glimpse of your getaway vehicle the first time, why not circle the property, not one, not two, but three times just in case?

That’s exactly what this criminal did at a car wash in Branson, Mississippi. According to WAPT News, a man was caught after burglarizing the 5 Minute Express Car Wash.

Surveillance footage shows his car, a white Pontiac Bonneville, circling the car wash three times before stopping. He then opened up an interior gate, went into the office and stole money. What’s the kicker here, is that the man was also an employee. Making it easy for police to identify the vehicle and the thief.

I want to start off this segment of Darwins at the Car Wash by stating that this story involves one of the best car wash names I have seen yet.

According to The Telegram, a drug deal took place at the...wait for it… Big Bunny Car Wash in Southbridge, Massachusetts. (Editor’s Note: If the owners of Big Bunny are reading this, please contact me at debrag@sscwn.com as I want to hear more about this moniker).

Apparently the couple has been charged with trafficking, “36 to 100 grams of cocaine, conspiracy, possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine, possession with intent to distribute marijuana and possession of oxycodone,” the story said.

The duo was caught after parking behind the car wash’s vacuums. Police had been following the couple after receiving a tip. No word on why Big Bunny’s was chosen. Or if other transactions took place at Big Bunny. Or how and why the car wash is called Big Bunny.

Apparently whatever it is worth is equal to time in jail because two men men were caught on camera stealing several aluminum beams from a car wash in Oklahoma City.

According to Fox 25 News, there is pretty clear footage of the first man, and his vehicle, stealing beams from the Aqua Express Car Wash. And, what’s strange is that three days later a different man, according to surveillance footage, stole even more beams from the same car wash. Now, last I checked, scrap aluminum is worth about .50 cents per pound. Not sure how much the beams weighed, but I’m sure they are worth a lot less than a lawyer?

SPRING 2018 •

81

In a classic cat and mouse, 1920s caper quotation, this statement from Detective Donald Kays is pretty perfect.

Kays, who is trying to capture a car wash thief, told the Indianapolis Star, “We’ve only really had two dealings with him, but he’s a large pain.”

According to the story, a man is stealing from change machines using a $20 on a string. He has so far stolen thousands of dollars.

The man has been caught on camera and does not hide his face, but does cover up his license plate. He apparently likes to target car washes near major highways, the story said. He has so far stolen from washes in Indiana, Illinois, New York City and Ohio.

Last year, he stole $700 from the Splash N Shine in Boardman Township, Ohio. “The man continuously used a $20 bill to trigger a purchase then hit refund,” Boardman Detective Richard Romeo said the story. He then cancels the transaction, collects the change and then fishes out the bill.

If there is one thing I know about myself, it is that I wouldn’t go near a young man’s gym bag with a 10-foot pole. The odors, germs and grossness is enough to probably ward off most people, but not a thief in Plum, Pennsylvania, according to KDKA-TV. “Ryan Adams, 16, a two-sport athlete at Franklin Regional High School, stopped by the Country Car Wash in Plum Sunday afternoon to vacuum out his dad’s car, after getting in a little baseball practice,” states the story.

Adams opened the door and set his bag down on the ground. Then, he took the floor mats out and cleaned them off. When he was finished cleaning them off. He drove off, but soon remembered he left behind his gym bag containing baseball bats, his wallet, a bank card, school ID, some cash and his driver’s license.

He soon circled back to the car wash, but the bag was gone. “The theft of Ryan’s gym bag was captured on a car wash surveillance camera, and it involved a man who was cleaning his dark Infinity SUV in the bay next to where Ryan was vacuuming,” the story said.

The teen’s father is especially perplexed. David Adams told the news station, “A grown man driving a nice vehicle decides to come over and steal my son’s bag. It’s 3 o’clock in the afternoon on a Sunday. It’s just sad to see, he just wants to play ball and have his gear, and unfortunately, the man just sped off with it.”

82

• SPRING 2018

This thief didn’t stand a chance because not only did he leave behind dna, he also committed his crime in front of car wash cameras.

Police in Tellico Plains, Tennessee, arrested a man who apparently drove his Ford Focus through a car wash and through a storefront. Monroe County Sheriff’s Deputy David Kilby said he went to “Teague’s Service Station on New Highway 68 outside of Tellico Plains and found the front doors of the store broken and glass all over the floor…

The officer said he saw blood on the door handles and on the handles of a cooler door inside the store. He also found busted beer bottles in the parking lot,” the story reported.

Video footage also showed the man going into the broken storefront and returning with stolen beer. Police caught the man the next day, after they were able to track down the Ford Focus with obvious damage. When they found the driver, he also had a cut on his hand and seemed to be intoxicated.

“The officers looked at the car,” the story said, “and saw a black bag covering part of the license plate, cinder blocks in the back seat and several packages of Bud Light in the passenger seat.”

The driver has now been charged with felony vandalism over $10,000, burglary and theft of property under $1,000.

I mean, I bombed a few physics exams, but I didn’t take it this far!

A car wash in Marble Falls, Texas, was evacuated after a “suspicious package” was found near a trash can. People were told to take shelter, and the bomb squad showed up, and police posted surveillance pictures of the person who left the package, News 4 San Antonio reported.

Thanks to the surveillance footage, police tracked down the person who left the package, and it turned out to be a ‘“high school physics project’ where students try to keep an egg from breaking when it’s dropped it from high up,” the story said.

The student said he was cleaning out his car and couldn’t fit the box into the trash can.

Backing up a vehicle can be tricky.

According to Driver’sed. com, “Backing up requires you to turn your head to see beyond the head restraint. Do not depend on mirrors alone when backing. One loses depth perception when using the mirrors to guide the vehicle while backing.” Now, clearly this driver didn’t read his Driver’s Ed manual because he backed into an entire building. As reported by Bayshore News, a man, driving a black GMC one ton pickup, backed into a self serve car wash in Shelburne, Ontario. Footage shows that he did get out to look at the damage, which is nice, but then footage also shows him driving away. No note. No phone call.

No nothing. And, he apparently caused thousands of dollars in damage.

WASH SYSTEMS

CUSTOM METER BOXES

ELECTRONICS

BAY SIGNAGE

PET WASH

SELF-SERVICE

CAR WASH

SYSTEMS

PURE QUALITY REVERSE OSMOSIS SYSTEM DIRECT DRIVE SES (SPACE EFFICIENT SYSTEM)

VERSA STAINLESS WASH SYSTEM

CUSTOM METERBOXES

ULTRA & ULTIMATE COMPACT WASH SYSTEMS

TRIPLE FOAM SYSTEM

800-446-7267 | WWW.GINSAN.COM SPRING 2018 •

83

www.CarolinaPrideDirect.com

The Best Price in Industrial Grade Car Wash Systems

NO WATER SOFTENER REQUIRED!

Super Flo - R.O. SPOT FREE RINSE SYSTEM

Retrofit Meter Doors

Replace your existing meter doors for ultimate dependability and profitability.

Dilling Harris, Ginsan, I-Wash, Jim Coleman, Magic Wand, Mark VII, Ryko, and more.

INSTRUCTIONS Add coins, bills or swipe card to start.

Add coins or bills for additional time before time expires.

Horn sounds when one minute remains.

Credit cards will continue to count up until the STOP button is pushed.

The Ultimate in Carwash Payment Systems

.

STOP

PUSH TO STOP TIME WHEN USING CREDIT CARD

• Cloud Based • Wash Cards • Promotions • Multi-locations • Expanded reports

SO1121116

Token Dispensors

Offer a FREE vacuum token in your self serve bay.

(Shown with Vault Self Serve Meter)

Make the Switch Today!

ACCEPTS $1, $5, $10 AND $20

Eye-catching graphics for your meter doors in push button or rotary styles.

Mercury Payment System

Add new customers and increase revenue with credit card acceptance.

Giving you the freedom to monitor your carwash from the office, home or car from any mobile device. Create revenue reports, monitor your bays indivlly, process credit cards.

Whether you are a new investor or looking to upgrade your current equipment, Carolina Pride can deliver what you need!

Turbo Dry II Raises the Bar in Performance, Profitability and Durability for Self Serve Dryers!

www.CarolinaPrideDirect.com

1-800-421-5119 225 Crown Blvd., Timberlake, NC 27583 PO Box 488 Roxboro, NC 27573 sales@cpcarwash.com SSCWN_FullPageSpring2018_CPDirect.indd 1

4/12/2018 2:32:17 PM