Exterior wash on nasty cars.

L

Lightman Corp.

New member
Hi! I have a question and I'll be more than happy to read your opinions and good ideas related with my problem.

I have several contracts to wash repo cars and trucks, those vehicles are in very bad condition because are just almost abandoned on the lot for at least one month plus the dirt from the original owners so, you can imagine what I'm talking about! almost junk but not at all because many of those once are clean looks really decent.

My clients don't like soap, only water and make the miracle (some times really hard!) with a simple wipe but we do our best and the vehicles looks very decent at the end (We are talking about 400 to 500 cars at week)

My question it's this; I was thinking in make a little inversion ($4,000) and buy one hot water pressure washer to wash those vehicles, same technique like the guys washing trucks and semis. I can have any problem? Thanks in advance :biggrin:
 
The vapor steamers do not work to clean the car unless you wipe off the dirt after steaming the car with a microfiber towel.



A better alternative and much cheaper would be to buy a pressure washer, if you want to pay for a hot water pressure washer that is ok, or just use high pressure water to knock off the dirt.



Then spray the car with waterless wash solution and wipe it down and you have not only a washed car, but a shiny car as the product I am thinking of has some "wax-like" ingredients that leave the car shiny.



You can pick up a cold water pressure washer with good pressure for about $1000 or less.



The waterless wash solution is from $15.95 to $19.95 a gallon and it takes about 8oz to 10oz per car to clean, including wheels.



Let me know and I can direct you to some suppliers.



Bud Abraham

DETAIL PLUS SYSTEMS
 
Hi! first at all I have to say thanks for this link my friend. This machine its awesome! but I don't think can works for high production and mobility. We are talking about 300 cars, SUVS and trucks to be cleaned in around 12 hours, the space are reduced and the cars can't be moved from the spot so, I have to extend a line of 150 ft long to get the last one.

Like you see this machine are wonderful but not exactly the solution for the problem I have on hands, any way the tip are great and I love it. Probably this machine could be good for other contract I'm working right now so, you really help me my friend! Thanks!
 
Lightman Corp. said:
Hi! first at all I have to say thanks for this link my friend. This machine its awesome! but I don't think can works for high production and mobility. We are talking about 300 cars, SUVS and trucks to be cleaned in around 12 hours, the space are reduced and the cars can't be moved from the spot so, I have to extend a line of 150 ft long to get the last one.

Like you see this machine are wonderful but not exactly the solution for the problem I have on hands, any way the tip are great and I love it. Probably this machine could be good for other contract I'm working right now so, you really help me my friend! Thanks!
Click to expand...



The unit can have two people using at once, as it has two steam hose connections. You can also buy extra long hoses of 65' So if you have the unit in the middle, you would have 130' of reach. I know the machine can be used in production. Call them and maybe they can give you more answers.



Seems like anything would be pushing for 25 cars an hour.
 
Anybody have hands on experience with the Optima steam machine? I'm looking to add it to a fixed location business and wondered if I should go with this machine or maybe a Daimer hot water pressure washer (they have scw model for detailers) or maybe a Dupray hill injection. I looked at a vx5000 but it doesn't have a continuous fill and I don't think it would be appropriate for exterior wash.
 
Yes I have had experience with the Optima Steamer and others. A couple of years ago I was in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia meeting with a company that wanted to add car washing and express detailing to their some 100 lube centers in the Kingdom.



When I toured some of the locations in and around Jeddah I saw that they had the large Optima Steamers. (they were there on trial, they had no purchased).



Now mind you the cars in Jeddah are not particularly dirty as there is very little rain, mostly dusty with some road film from the asphalt roads.



The workers were steaming the cars and they wiping them off with towels. I watched this process for awhile and finally took hold of a steamer hose and blasted the black Suburban we were driving that had some heavy dirt on the side (it had just rained the day before). It did not remove the dirt at all. After steaming I wiped the dirt off with my finger. My conclusion was, "what good did the several thousand dollar steamer do?"



Then I tool a sample of the "WATERLESS WASH 'n SHINE lotion I had brought with me for demonstration purposes and sprayed that on the same spot on the black Surburban and voila, it came clean and shiny.



So we began going some further testing.



1. Waterless wash and the steamer. That is, steaming cars and then applying waterless wash and removing the chemical and dirt with towels.



2. Then applying waterless wash and then steam and then removal



3. Finally just waterless wash and wipe off



The conclusion reached, not be me, but by the management level people and the workers was, "gosh, the chemical alone does as good or better a job than the steamer and there was less scratching because the lotion provided a barrier between the remaining dirt on the finish after steaming and the towel.



We sold them a HUGE waterless wash program.



Bottomline, I would not spend the money on a steamer of any kind to clean the exterior of a car vs using traditional water or waterless wash chemical.



The Koreans have been trying to sell the large steamer concept in the USA market for years and have never been successful. Optima set up a direct sales office I believe in LA and have been trying to be aggressive but I think anyone in the know in the carwash/detail business finds the same result that I did, waterless wash works just as well and it is less expensive and easier to maintain.



Just some well intentioned thoughts and experiences to help you in your decision.



Regards

Bud Abraham

DETAIL PLUS SYSTEMS



PS: Smaller steamers are great for interior detailing in certain situations; for wheels, door jambs, etc.
 
Thank you for the detailed information! I was checking into using a steam machine for exterior washing after seeing the youtube videos of the optima (and a few others) because I need to limit the water runoff in my area. I was thinking the steam would speed up the process, but experience with trying the different methods really makes a lot of sense. It also will save me a lot of money as well! What type of waterless was program do you sell?
 
newtech said:
Thank you for the detailed information! I was checking into using a steam machine for exterior washing after seeing the youtube videos of the optima (and a few others) because I need to limit the water runoff in my area. I was thinking the steam would speed up the process, but experience with trying the different methods really makes a lot of sense. It also will save me a lot of money as well! What type of waterless was program do you sell?
Click to expand...



If you want a waterless wash, the Chemical Guys EcoSmart is great. Car Wax, Car Polish, Auto Detail Supplies : CHEMICAL GUYS WHOLESALE AUTO DETAILING SUPPLIES CAR WASH PRODUCTS PROFESSIONAL CAR DETAIL SUPPLY FACTORY DIRECT
 
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