How to wash a car at a self-service car wash

The boom of self-service car washes in Our Country occurred in the “tenth” years of the XXI century and continues to this day. This is a fairly profitable business even in the context of the ongoing economic crisis. There are no fewer cars on the roads, and they need to be washed constantly. Europeans have long appreciated all the advantages of a contactless self-service car wash. In the West, such posts can be found literally at every second gas station, while in our country there are two or three self-service car washes per million city. But each of them has queues of cars. If you still doubt whether it is worth washing your car at a self-service car wash, now we will tell you how to do it right. This will help us CARWASH self-service car wash manager Sergey Shvanov.

Step by step instructions for car owners

Washing a car at such a car wash is quite easy and simple, but there are nuances that will save you strength, time and money.

Be prepared to stand in line. Express car washes, although they have several posts, are often very popular with city motorists even at night or on holidays.

Having arrived at the box, check if the payment post accepts cards. Do not rush to smirk – many owners of sinks are cunning and turn off this option, preferring cash. In this case, we recommend that you either have small bills with you, or change a large one at the sink. This can usually be done around the clock.

So, the car is in the box, money or a card is at the ready. We approach the terminal and pay a certain amount. Then we select the mode that we need. For example, hot water.

The terminal will tell you which pistol you need to pick up right now. Of course, high pressure washers are used here (in Our Country they prefer a pressure of 140-200 bar), so be prepared for recoil and grab the handle with both hands. Slowly walk with a hose around the perimeter of the car, knocking down the dirt with a jet of water.

After the water, it is worth covering the body with foam, which corrodes road dirt and stains. To do this, go to the terminal and select this program. The foam comes out of the gun with less pressure, but be careful not to get it on your clothes and avoid getting it on your skin or eyes.

So, the car is in the foam. Take a short pause (up to three minutes) for the active ingredients to do their job. Now again go through the body with a hose with water (do not forget about the wheel arches, but it’s better not to climb into the engine compartment), now the car should be clean. Return the gun to the attachment point, get into your refreshed “swallow” and leave the box. Actually, this is the whole process of washing. But there are many more interesting things.

Features of the complexes

Self-service car washes are most often open car washes that do not require capital construction. Roughly speaking, quick-assembly structures are placed on the foundation and water treatment under it. This approach gives a huge advantage – the cars pass through the “portal” and there is no need to turn back. Conditional boxes are separated from each other by banners. There are 2-4 pistols in the box with a special suspension, thanks to which you can easily bypass the car 360 degrees. In addition, there are areas for rugs, which should also not be forgotten about washing. The “brain” of each box is the terminal, into which the washing programs are “wired”. And they should be discussed separately.

Car wash programs

As you may have guessed, the main programs that any self-service car wash has are water and foam. The first can be hot or cold, but with shampoo everything is somewhat more complicated. “Chemistry” is supplied under pressure (an additional kinetic effect on the dirt) or thick foam, which literally covers the entire body with a thick cap. The second option is good because the active mousse easily covers the car and you do not need to pass the gun several times, as you have to do with pressurized foam. But keep in mind that owners very often save on “chemistry” and simply dilute it with water, and you need to be mentally prepared that instead of thick foam we will get a completely different consistency.

In some sinks, you can find the “osmosis” mode. Simply put, this is highly purified water (ideally distilled). What gives such a regime? Firstly, when drying, there are no streaks or “droplets”. Secondly, such water freezes at a temperature much below zero. But “osmosis” – so far a rarity in Our Country – is saved on it by both owners of car washes and motorists, who find it easier to walk with a rag on the body.

Under the “wax” mode, there is an opportunity to cover the paintwork with a thin film based on silicone. It gives not only shine, but also the effect of hydrophobicity, in which drops of moisture roll off, and do not linger on the body. But silicone has one problem – it seems to conserve poorly washed areas, and the dirt from there will have to be washed off with the help of brushes.

Brush guns are not uncommon in self-service car washes. They are usually equipped with a water or shampoo supply. And they are very fond of adherents of contact car washing, because the brush allows you to quickly remove dirt, and therefore save money. But you need to be very careful with them – road dirt largely consists of abrasive particles, which, when rubbed, will definitely scratch the paint.

At self-service car washes, you can often find the “discs” and “insects” modes. It would seem, where are the discs, and where are the midges, but no, in fact, this is one and the same. In these modes, acid chemistry is supplied to the gun, which allows you to clean the most severe contamination. But with them you need to be very careful and wash off immediately after application. Otherwise, rubber and plastic parts may be damaged.

Finally, in the list of the most common programs, you can find “drying” or, as it is often called, “turbo drying”. A separate hose is used for it, which blows off the remaining water after washing. The program is useful, but many owners prefer to save money and wipe the body with a suede cloth on their own.

And yet – at a self-service car wash, you pay for the time, and not for the mode. That is, a minute of conditional “chemistry” costs the client the same as water.

Useful life hacks

Here are a few tricks that can save you money if you decide to wash your car at a self-service car wash.

Try to break down the amount that you are going to spend on the “shower”. Example: 50/50/50, where the first “fifty kopecks” will go to the water, which will moisten the dirt, the second to the shampoo, and the third to wash off the foam. The fact is that the washing software is usually set up in such a way that from the moment the money is launched, it “drops” without a pause, so you will have to pay even for changing the program. But small amounts allow you to do everything measuredly and wash the car normally.

Take the gun in hand before paying. This technique contains another trick that is put into the terminals – the time starts counting immediately from the moment you select the program, which means you will save 10-15 seconds this way.

You should not come to the self-service car wash in full dress. The fact is that it is very difficult to avoid getting foam on clothes and noticeable traces remain from it. Dress like you’re doing the dirty work.

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