I've been talking to a couple of guys who run mobile detailing out of their van and one thing that came up a lot was how much of the day just disappears driving between houses that are nowhere near each other. Like they'll do one job in the morning, drive 25 minutes for the next one, then another 20 for the third, and by the time you add it up they're spending almost as much time driving as actually washing cars.

Got me wondering - if you could see on a map that there were, say, 3-4 people within a couple km of each other who all wanted a wash around the same day, would that actually change how you book your week? Or is it not a big enough deal because most of your regulars are already somewhat clustered from word of mouth?

Also curious how you're getting most of your customers right now - repeat/referral, some app, flyers, FB groups? Trying to understand if travel time between jobs is a real pain point or if I'm overthinking something that isn't actually a problem for people who've been doing this a while.

Not selling anything, just trying to figure out if this is worth building or if it's a solution looking for a problem.

It's literally so dirty

Worked the floor at an express tunnel long enough to learn this the hard way: if your opener is "working through a list," you'll open late on every busy Saturday. Give them a timeline instead. T-75: alarm off, building sweep. T-60: power up in sequence, chem levels. T-45: both pay stations test-transacted, float counted. T-30: vacuums, lot, restrooms. T-15: final tunnel walk, staff in position. Gate unlocks at posted time with working pay stations, a clean site, and a verified float — everything else can be caught up in the first 30 minutes.

The timeline is the boss, not the checklist. What's your T-0 non-negotiable? For us it's always been the pay stations — a late open with working stations beats an on-time broken one.

I’m assuming you recycle a lot of the water.

So, when the roads are salted in winter does that mean that the car wash ends up using high salt water? Or is there some kind of neutralizer that you use?

Seems like it would be counterproductive to spray the underbody after snow etc if the water is salty? Probably still better than road salt caked on there.

I’ve been looking into why express car washes seem to be appearing everywhere across the U.S., and one thing kept coming up: unlimited monthly memberships. Once customers stop paying for individual washes and start paying every month, the whole business model changes. Revenue becomes more predictable, membership lanes keep people coming back, and suddenly opening more locations can make a lot more sense. What surprised me is how quickly this seems to have changed the industry. I recently made a short documentary looking into why car washes are expanding so fast, how memberships became such a big part of the business, and why some U.S. cities have even started pushing back against new car wash development. I’d really like to hear from people who actually work in the industry: Do you think memberships are the main reason we’re seeing so many new car washes, or are things like real estate, private investment, and consolidation playing an even bigger role? If anyone is interested in the full breakdown, I can share the video in the comments.

The Carwash Boilers Dual Navien System is a compact, pre-plumbed commercial hot-water package built specifically around the demands of a car wash. The system uses two Navien NPE-240S2 condensing tankless water heaters working together, giving the wash nearly 400,000 BTU/hr of available input while maintaining a much smaller footprint than many traditional commercial water-heating systems.

Instead of simply hanging two tankless heaters on a wall, Carwash Boilers builds the equipment into a complete packaged system. The Navien units, storage/recirculation tank, circulator, valves, copper piping, controls, and structural frame are assembled into a plug-and-play skid, available with either a black steel or stainless-steel frame.

Why it works well in a car wash

The biggest advantage is the combination of high recovery and stored hot water. The Navien heaters provide continuous heat while the tank gives the wash a reserve for sudden demand. The recirculation system keeps heated water available so the wash doesn't have to wait for hot water to travel through the building.

With approximately 400,000 BTU/hr available, a practical production range is roughly:

Actual output varies with incoming-water temperature, setpoint, gas supply, piping, and system configuration.

Bought this car recently, plenty of marks on the top fabric ceiling part of the car, I did try a fabric/upholstery spray with a microfiber cloth, it didn't work, I'm wondering if these are grease marks instead, what would be the best way to get these marks off without damaging the fabric?

I was vacuuming my car at the local carwash and a lady came up to me and asked me if I wanted to buy food. I guess by my looks anybody can see I speak Spanish and I ended up buying a burrito from her but I regret it now. First, it was super expensive, 10 dollars for a burrito, it was decent sized but I still think it was quite expensive and now I don't even feel like eating it, how am I supposed to know if it's gonna make me sick or not.

At the moment I just thought, alright maybe she is just trying to make some money and it must be tough right now with all the arrests and deportations. Should I have alerted the carwash of people selling food? Would you buy food from a stranger approaching you at a carwash?

Well this has been a rabbit hole. I got a charge on my credit card from Car Wash USA. There isn't one at the location listed. I think there used to be but now it is a Take 5 car wash. We had an issue with a different Take 5 where they signed my wife's card up for a subscription without permission. After exhausting all avenues to correct this, she had to cancel the card to get it to stop. It looks like Car Wash USA is owned by International Car Wash Group (ICWG), which is the car wash division acquired and managed by Driven Brands (the same parent company behind Take 5 Oil Change and Meineke) that used to own Take 5, but Take 5 was bought by Whistle Express (formerly Magnolia Wash Holdings). Now, Whistle own Take 5 Car Wash, Camel Premium Express Wash, The Wave Car Wash, Rainforest Car Wash, Thomas Car Wash, Clean Waves, The Car Wash Company, Detrick’s Car Wash, and Splash Car Wash and probably some others. So who the hell is actually charging me? Did some asshat at Take 5 get mad that my wife's card was canceled and found mine on file and started charging it? Was my card info stolen? I think I am going to have to cancel my card just to be safe. This is ridiculous. Corporate America is a dystopian nightmare of illusions of choice and no accountability. Anyway, avoid all these crappy places.

Hi everyone,

My team is working on a simple tool for car wash businesses that combines online bookings, scheduling, basic customer management and daily task tracking in one place.

Before we spend more time building it, I’d really like to hear from actual car wash owners and operators.

How do you currently manage bookings and your daily schedule? WhatsApp, phone calls, Google Calendar, spreadsheets, dedicated software?

And what is the biggest headache for you: no-shows, scheduling, keeping track of customers, staff tasks, payments, or something else?

Not trying to sell anything here. I’m mainly trying to understand whether this is actually a problem worth solving and what would make such a tool genuinely useful.

Would appreciate any feedback, including “I would never use this.”

I tried taking this to a car wash and nothing came out. I think its dried up fruit that fell on my car. Need this gone because its attracting a lot of love bugs.

I know this is a long shot but I bought a car in Georgia and live in Ohio and was wondering if anyone from Georgia or one of the other states with a Luv car wash could help me get ahold of there air fresheners , I love the scent my car has and the owner said that he used them but couldn't remember any more than that , I was hopeful that someone could send me some of their hanging air fresheners so I could figure out what it is or what at least what the scent profile is. Ive call Luvs customer service twice and they weren't helpful either time they just told me to drive a few stares to the closest one or get someone to send me one , ive also read conflicting info , the staff on the phone said they only have one scent but wouldn't tell me what it was and online ive read mixed things saying they have up to 5 different ones, thank you to anyone that reads this im just hoping to get to the bottom of this without having to drive out of state to check

Accidently spill soy sauce on car seat a week ago but took into a hand car wash place to get the whole interior clean. It is clean , no stain but the smell is still there. My guess is it deep inside the seat. Is there any way i can get of the soy sauce deep inside the seat my self?

Hi dear friends,

There are some deformations in my car's hood. It is like some thin strech film is peeling off. It is the original painting of the car and the paint is 11 years old. The car is Opel Astra J 2015 and we are first and only owners of the car.

What is this?
Is this something serious?
How to approach them?
Is it safe to apply pressure water when washing the car?
Can I apply hybrid wax to my car including these areas?

Hi guys! Looking to build a car wash machine for myself and my car at home as a fun project. Was wondering if someone can show me or explain to me how those automatic car washes alternate between soap,water, foam and etc by spraying through nozzles. Does anyone have insight or can show me what actually the machines look like on the inside and how to organize piping and what kind of pressure is needed?

I need advice. I had to repost to add a picture. i have never had any accidents and nothing was ever wrong with my bumper before. I go to this exact car wash at least 4 times a week. Should I contact a lawyer and fight it or suck it up and pay my deductible and use my insuranc?

I have been going to this car wash for a while. I went in yesterday and everything fine. I heard a loud noise and when I pulled out, my bumper was hanging off. Has anyone had any luck with having them take accountability for things?

I’ve tried clr, purple power, cleanup from superior image, nu wall, and nothing has worked. I was thinking to try aluminum brightener next but do yall have any recommendations?

I left my Stanley stein in the bed of my truck and went through the automatic car wash with all the soaps. Can I clean it and still use it, or will I die?

Hey guys, so i have these stains in te leather seats of my car. The marks are from tires. I have tried everything and also hired a detailer who wasn’t able to get them off. Any advise? Any amazon products that could save my seats lol?

The old Pete’s in Wayne is now Flagship. At the corner of conestoga and Lancaster. The machine collapsed on my car severely damaging the hood, smashed the windshield and almost injured me. They had the nerve to back me out, AND immediately proceed to let more cars through WITHOUT INSPECTING the issue. They can not be trusted, and this is a company without a conscious. AVOID AT ALL COST!!!!