Starting a Self-Serve Car Wash? Don’t Forget a Car Wash Vacuum System

Are you getting started in the self-serve car wash business? An important piece of equipment your new car wash will need is a car wash vacuum system. Customers will arrive to get their cars cleaned inside and out. If you just have a car wash, you are missing out on attracting even more customers.
Whether you have a self-serve express car wash with a tunnel or several self-serve wash bays, here’s everything you need to know about car wash vacuums to help you see why you need vacuums at your car wash business.

Is it worth the investment to install commercial car wash vacuums?

To determine whether it is worth the investment to install commercial car wash vacuums, you need to consider your potential profits with and without vacuums. You are limiting your customer base to just people who want a car wash when you do not have vacuums.

If they also need to vacuum out their vehicles, they will need to go someplace else. So when that is the case, you are losing customers to a competitor car wash that has a car wash with vacuums.

Alternatively, if you install a car wash vacuum system at your self-serve car wash, you are attracting more customers. Some customers may only want to sweep out their cars, while others will want to wash and vacuum their vehicles.

Best of all, you still attract customers who just want a car wash. So, investing in commercial car wash vacuums is a sound business decision.

How many vacuums do you need?

It is essential for new car wash owners not to underestimate the number of vacuums they will need. Therefore, you will need to carefully design your car wash site to determine the best placement of vacuums.
Next, you need to consider the customer traffic and flow. Do you want customers to pull into a parking spot and vacuum their vehicles? Or do you want the vacuum set up more like a gas station with access on different sides where customers can just pull up to the vacuum?

Once you pick the layout, your next decision is deciding what type of car wash vacuum system you want. Some modern designs have dual overhead hoses on boom arms that make it easy to vacuum out both sides of the vehicle. There are also dual hose systems where customers can use the same vacuum—much like a gas station pump with dual sides.

Another option is a central car wash vacuum system. This setup works if you have self-serve car wash bays. In each bay is a car wash vacuum hose. To turn the vacuum on, the customer selects the vacuum feature from the car wash control panel. The only drawback to this setup is that customers will be in wash bays longer when they vacuum out their vehicles.

In general, it is recommended to install as many commercial car wash vacuums as possible while leaving room for future expansion. So, initially, you can estimate the number of vacuums you need using the estimated average number of car washes per hour.

For example, if you have an express wash and estimate you can average 50 vehicles per hour, you should have at least five dual vacuum stations or ten single vacuum stations. On the other hand, if you have ten bays and estimate you will average 30 washes an hour, you would still want at least five dual vacuum stations or ten single vacuum stations.

By leaving room for future vacuum expansion, You can always add more if you notice there are always lines waiting to get to the vacuums. The last thing you want is to have customers waiting too long to vacuum out their cars. Otherwise, they could leave.

Paid or free car wash vacuums?

In recent years, a great marketing campaign for self-serve car wash operators has been to promote free car wash vacuums. Some wash operators also offer free vacuuming even if the customer doesn’t purchase a car wash.

Other operators will offer free car wash vacuums with a car wash purchase or wash package. The trick here is deciding what is going to be the most profitable for your car wash.

Initially, during your grand opening, you may want to offer free car wash vacuums with or without car wash purchases just to increase awareness of your new car wash. After the grand opening period, you could switch to a free vacuuming with a purchase and a flat rate for non-wash customers. Another option is to offer cheap vacuumings with unlimited vacuum time, such as charging $2.

To help you decide, visit some of your competitors and see what they are doing. If they are charging for vacuumings, find out how much, so you can price yours competitively if you decide to charge your customers.

What are some essential components of the perfect vacuum station?

When setting up your vacuum stations, you want to create curb appeal that draws people in. Some of the essential components you should consider having at each station include:

• Vacuum Tools
• Mat Holders
• Recycling Bins/Trash Cans
• Operating Instructions
• Advertising Displays
• Air Hose
• User-Friendly Controls
• Multiple Payment Options (Cash, Credit, Contactless, etc.)

Some new car washes are also building canopies over their vacuum stations. This is a great idea since it provides shade on hot sunny days and protection from rain and snow on wet, damp days.

So, even if people are not getting their vehicles washed because it is raining or snowing, they can still vacuum out their cars.

How to market your commercial car wash vacuums?

You need to let people know you have a car wash with vacuums. The easiest way to market your vacuums is with signage that is easy to see. For example, if you are offering free vacuumings, make sure to put this on a sign that people driving by your car wash can see.

You should also place signage in key locations around your car wash. For instance, for an express wash setup, you could have signage at the entrance and exit of the wash tunnel reminding customers to vacuum out their vehicles. Likewise, if you have car wash bays, you could put signage next to the car wash controls reminding customers to vacuum out their vehicles.

LED lighting is another effective way to draw people to your vacuums. White overhead LED lights provide light so that customers can vacuum out their vehicles at night. Adding colored LED lights that reflect your brand’s colors to the vacuums enhances their appearance and enhances your vacuum stations.

What types of vacuum maintenance are necessary?

Commercial car wash vacuums do require regular maintenance to ensure they are operational and function correctly. Customers will not be too happy if they go to vacuum out their vehicles and the vacuum is broken, lacks suction, or has other problems.

You can promote certain aspects of vacuum maintenance, such as asking your customers to hang up the car wash vacuum hose when done or throw away their trash. Ultimately, it is your responsibility to keep vacuum stations neat, tidy, and operational.

You will need to monitor your vacuum stations throughout the day and perform the following tasks:

• Inspect car wash vacuum hoses and tools for damage and replace if necessary.
• Clean dirty car wash vacuum hoses that customers have left on the ground.
• Empty trash cans and pick up trash off the ground.
• Inspect vacuum bags and empty them as needed.
• Inspect lighting and replace any burned-out or flickering bulbs.
• Wipe off dust and dirt from vacuum cleaners and control panels.
• Clean up oil and grease on the pavement around car wash vacuum stations.
• Repair any non-working vacuums as soon as possible.

You may want to hire a few employees to take care of these tasks and to ensure someone is onsite during the day to keep your commercial car wash vacuums and car wash looking great.

Wholesale Car Wash Vacuum Parts

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