5 Ways to Improve Your Wash Performance

By: Anthony Analetto
Originally Published in AutoLaundry Magazine

More satisfied customers. Lower labor costs. Decreased detergent costs. These are just a few of the reasons operators are constantly looking for ways to improve wash performance. Although new technologies are constantly hitting the market, many improvements can be made by simply optimizing what’s already in your tunnel. There are many ways to get your equipment to produce cleaner, shinier cars. Below I’ve listed 5 areas that you should constantly evaluate.

1. Set Your Conveyor Speed

Controlling your conveyor speed is vital. Accurately measuring the maximum potential cars per hour that the set chain speed can process is the foundation to optimizing equipment performance, required labor, and detergent consumption. The quickest method of determining your chain speed is to measure the number of inches a roller travels over a fifteen second period. Every inch traveled equates to one car per hour. For example, if a roller travels 60 inches in 15 seconds, your maximum throughput is 60 cars per hour. This is the maximum number of standard sized vehicles that could be processed if every roller was loaded for a one hour period.  As tunnel speed increases, vehicles receive less cleaning action from each equipment item. To improve your wash performance you must either add equipment items or slow down the conveyor.

Slowing down conveyor speed during slow volume hours will boost the dwell time detergents have to loosen dirt from the vehicle. Additionally it maximizes the friction contact time of mitters and side brushes for better cleaning. Drip time before drying also increases, resulting in cleaner, shinier, drier cars with less prep and finishing. Changing your conveyor speed several times a day is not uncommon at a busy location and setting the proper speed continuously is imperative in a slow to medium volume location.

It is also important to know your conveyor speed to correctly schedule labor. Setting the proper speed establishes a tempo for the property to most efficiently process anticipated volume. Setting the proper rhythm maximizes the efficiency of the equipment in relation to the labor available. This ensures a consistent product and a happy customer. It is better to have cars being washed more thoroughly on a slow moving conveyor than to be backed up at the exit end forcing production to stop.

Full service car washes must learn how to adjust conveyor speeds based on demand and weather to balance labor and deliver consistent service. Express exteriors often fix conveyor speeds to meet a promised wash time. The tunnel length and equipment package are designed to deliver optimal wash quality at the pre-determined conveyor speed. Other Express exterior operators are experimenting with changing conveyor speed to get a better car on slower days.

2. Maximize Your Initial Detergent Application

To maximize cleaning efficiency, do not use only an alkaline or a low PH detergent – you must apply both. For those of us who can still remember a few decades back, most friction tunnels had one barrel of lubricating soap. Combined with the fact that most operators tried to use it sparingly – we basically rubbed the dirt off the car. Needless to say this outdated technology could damage painted surfaces – part of the inspiration for touchless high pressure only tunnels. Unfortunately, pressurized streams of water don’t do a great job of rubbing the car clean. The one barrel of lubricating soap wasn’t really sufficient for friction washes and was completely useless with high pressure. Achieving a satisfactory product in a touchless environment demanded careful attention to the chemistry of the detergents used. Most touchless washes use both alkaline and low PH detergents, applied at different times to get a clean car. If you have ever worked in a touchless wash where one of the detergents run out, the effect can’t be missed. If the alkaline runs out – painted surfaces will look untouched. If the low PH runs out – glass and chrome look dirty while painted surfaces are shiny but difficult to dry. Touchless forced operators to really examine the chemistry of getting a clean car.

Today most of the focus is on the hybrid combination of both friction and high pressure cleaning equipment in the tunnel. Don’t stop there. Although touchless has some distinct disadvantages as a stand alone wash technology, incorporating both touchless wash components and its detergent chemistry into a friction wash is fast becoming the recommended method of getting better results more efficiently.

3. Completely Cover The Car In Foamed Detergent First.

Improving your wash quality is impossible without detergent reaching every part of every surface you intend on cleaning. The advantages of applying first an alkaline detergent followed by a low PH detergent was touched upon earlier. The next critical area is making sure the detergent is applied correctly. It is hopeless to think about improving your wash performance at any conveyor speed without a complete and even coating of detergent on all vehicle surfaces. I recommend foaming all detergent. First, you can visually monitor that all areas are covered. Second, a properly applied wet foam detergent will drag dirt off the car even before the first equipment item touches the surface. Third, the lubricated detergent keeps friction wash media moving smoothly over surfaces for a safer wash.

Making sure that all vehicle surfaces receive precise detergent application may require supplementing or substituting some application equipment. Even the best equipment cannot clean a car without proper detergent application. Application will occur from multiple directions from top, side, and floor mounted applicators. The numbers and quantities will vary depending on the speed at which you run your conveyor.

4. Mix Your Cleaning Materials

When looking to improve wash performance examine mixing different wash materials. Although cloth still delivers excellent performance and durability, many new materials have excellent properties that can complement or replace cloth in certain areas. Tufted materials that feature a soft pile can dramatically improve mitter performance. They are also available from several manufacturers for use on wrap around washers. Additionally, closed cell foam materials have proven very effective and safe when lubricated properly. The principal is to experiment with mixing media within a wash to leverage the advantages of each.

Another interesting trend is the increased return of bristle in the car wash. Why bristle, the product that had been practically eliminated from car washing for years? Simple, because when it is used properly, it works very well. Several new products are on the market using bristle to clean both tires and wheels. For similar reasons, some operators have also begun experimenting with using bristle on 18” lower rocker panel brushes with foamed detergent for lubrication. Will it become a popular option? The jury is still out – but bristle definitely seems to be rediscovering its place in professional car washing. Operators are realizing that cloth, foam, tufted materials and yes even bristle each have their place in a tunnel. Often mixing the different media can improve wash performance without adding additional or updated equipment.

5. Mix Your Cleaning Technologies.

One of the greatest challenges in car washing is the tremendous variation in the size and shape of the vehicles we are expected to wash perfectly in only a few minutes. With automotive designs changing daily, the reality is the top brush that washes one SUV perfectly may miss parts of a pickup truck that gets perfect contact from a front to back mitter. For this reason, just as with mixing wash media, it is also recommended to mix wash motion and angles. One common belief is that wrap around type washers replace side washers. This simply isn’t true. They rotate with the vehicle to move down the side smoothly, while the side washer rotates against the surface. These different actions will produce different cleaning results for changing vehicle profiles. Wherever possible you want to introduce as many variations in wash action that you can. For an operator with two front-to-back mitters looking to improve cleaning performance, first change the wash material on one mitter. If that doesn’t fix the problem the next step would be to replace the item with another action such as a top brush or side to side mitter. If space permits you may want to consider additional components to improve performance.

Another consideration is the addition of high pressure touchfree wash components. One of the best technologies available to clean wheels and wheel wells, these components can complement a friction wash. Many types and configurations of equipment are available and all are very sensitive to conveyor speed. You will want to consult your equipment supplier for advice on placement, type, and sizing to achieve best results.

Summary

Competition is always increasing and every business must constantly push forward to maintain a competitive advantage. Car washing is a harsh and constantly changing environment. By nature, equipment and wash materials take a constant beating. Vehicle sizes and designs are constantly changing with improved technology in the automotive industry delivering more dramatic changes in body styles and contours. To keep up with customer expectations for a fast, consistent, quality product, in this changing environment, every operator must constantly evaluate their equipment and the wash they can deliver. This does not mean always investing in new equipment. Carefully maintaining and maximizing the performance of what you’ve got in your tunnel can go a long way.