Home
>
Small Business
>
De-Ionization Decisions in Mobile Car Washing

De-Ionization Decisions in Mobile Car Washing

Many mobile car wash operators would like to add de-ionized water to their cleaning process. However before you do this you need to understand the reality of the return on investment. You must also realize how the de-ionization process works.

De-ionizing tanks take the water and clean it from 16 parts per million to 1-2 parts per million. They usually last for 2,000 gallons if a water softener is put in line before the de-ionization system. De-ionizing tanks are usually rented. They typically require a $100 deposit. They consist of two tanks side by side. One contains an acid wash solution and the other contains a filter, which catches solution and whatever attaches itself to the acid solution though ion polarization. This works great and the water is totally free of contaminants; in other words; no water spots. Spray off a black car in the sun and simply walk away. It costs $30-60 to recharge the tanks and $40 (approximately) to rent them. Since they only last about ten days with regular washing or ten car lots, it gets kind of expensive. It would cost the average crew $190 per month for such service if you were washing personal cars. If you were doing two to three car lots per day, it would cost: 250 Gallons Per Lot X 3 Car Lots Per Day = 750 Gallons Per Day. 750 Gallons divided by 2000 Gallons To A Recharge = 3.5 Days Until A Recharge.

If you wash car lots on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday mornings, that's four days per week times four weeks per month. That equals sixteen days per month. Let's look at the numbers; 16 Days Per Month divided by 3.5 Recharge Interval = 4.6 Recharges Per Month times $50.00 Cost Per Recharge or $210.00 Per Month +190.00 Cost To Use Tanks On Route = $420.00 Total De-Ionizing Costs Per Month.

Many competitors will swear by de-ionizing tanks. That's because they are lazy. They don't feel like drying the cars. Let's say they have a truck payment. See break down below of Competitor A: Truck Payment $ 250.00; Insurance $125.00; De-Ionized Water $190.00; Printing And Advertising $100.00; Supplies $150.00; Labor $1,000.00; 20 Working Days X $50.00 Per Day = Total Expenses $1,815.00. You can see very quickly how adding additional costs of De-Ionized water filtration can significantly impact the cost. Now lets look at his income; Income Of Competitor A: $150.00 Average Income X 20 Working Days = $3,000.00 Total Income. $3,000.00 Total Income - $1,815.00 Total Expenses = $1,185.00 Total Profit Of Competitor A.

I guess competitor A is not only too lazy to dry cars, but also not making enough money to be a viable business model. Not much of a competitor with those kinds of margins, is he? There are problems with de-ionized water. There is usually dirt on the car, which re-ionizes the water, which means it can then spot. Especially whatever doesn't blast off with the pressure washer; For instance: dirt in cracks, door jams, trunk jams and inside rear view mirrors. When you walk away, water, which drips from these places leaves drip marks, very noticeable white lines. It looks horrible on black and it makes customers irritated. On car lots, the cars are new and are rinsed off twice per week. There is no road grime because the cars don't move. On personal cars there is road grime and the cars must be hand washed and soaped. To rinse a car with soap with de-ionized water takes twice as long and that means twice as much water, which means you can only do one-half as many cars before refilling your water tank. This will cost you travel time to fill up with water. It also means that unless you are washing pretty clean cars with only dust and bird droppings, you will expense twice as much on recharging your tanks. In other words, your $190 becomes $380 per month.

You must think of these things when choosing to go de-ionized water on your mobile car wash rig. Pencil out the costs, keep the pencil sharp and be serious about your costs. If you are rocking your local market and can afford the additional costs to help streamline your efficiency and you have additional work you are not getting to then it might make sense, but do not fool yourself with the numbers, stay reality based.

"Lance Winslow" - If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.worldthinktank.net/wttbbs

family-safe home cleaners Lincolnshire ..

In The News:

Texas family reunites with missing 11-year-old cat Grayson after 103 days using Petco Love Lost's AI photo matching technology and community help.

Tired of AI customer service loops? These insider tricks help you escape "frustration AI" and get real human help when you need it most for urgent issues.

Unlock richer audio from your streaming apps with simple tweaks to volume normalization, equalizer settings, and quality preferences for cleaner sound.

Scammers are sending fake Facebook settlement payout emails that mimic legitimate notices from the privacy settlement administrator to deceive users.

Holiday shopping scams surge as fake refund emails target distracted consumers during Black Friday and holiday seasons, costing Americans billions annually.

The AI-powered IRMO M1 exoskeleton features four modes, including turbo, eco, training and rest for hiking, running, cycling and sports with eight-hour battery life.

OpenAI announced upgrades for its ChatGPT Images platform on Tuesday, saying the program can now make more precise edits and produce images more quickly.

Chrome for Android now turns web articles into AI-powered podcast conversations. Get hands-free browsing with Google Gemini's natural audio summaries.

LastPass faces $1.6 million fine from U.K. regulators after 2022 data breach exposed 1.6 million users. Password manager failed proper security controls.

Petco disclosed a data breach exposing customer Social Security numbers, financial account details, and driver's license information due to a software error.

Baseball teams can now analyze complete swing mechanics in normal training environments using Theia's markerless AI system that processes standard high-speed footage.

Smart home hacking fears overblown? Expert reveals real cybersecurity risks and simple protection tips to keep your connected devices safe from hackers.

MIT develops needle-free glucose monitor using light technology. Revolutionary device could replace painful finger pricks for diabetes management.

The ClickFix campaign disguises malware as legitimate Windows updates, using steganography to hide shellcode in PNG files and bypass security detection systems.

Researchers from Osaka Metropolitan University designed a 21-foot dome that combines aquaculture and hydroponics to create a self-sustaining urban food system.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

ChatGPT data breach exposes personal info of users through partner Mixpanel. OpenAI confirms names, emails compromised in security incident.

Android rolls out Emergency Live Video for 911 calls, letting dispatchers see real-time scenes during emergencies. Great for holiday travel safety.

Malicious Chrome and Edge extensions collected browsing history, keystrokes and personal data from millions of users before Google and Microsoft removed them.

Google's new Call Reason feature lets Android users mark calls as urgent before dialing, displaying an urgent label to recipients using Phone by Google app.

Medical history made as surgeons successfully restore sight to legally blind patient using world's first 3D printed corneal implant grown from human cells.

Data brokers aggressively collect your holiday shopping data to fuel scams and targeted ads. Learn how to delete your digital profile before 2025 starts.

Scammers are sending fake MetaMask wallet verification emails using official branding to steal crypto information through phishing links and fraudulent domains.

Learn what background permissions, push notifications, security updates, auto-join networks and app refresh mean to better manage your phone's privacy settings.

Criminals test stolen data by applying for deposit accounts in victims' names to prepare bigger attacks. Learn why banks won't share fraud details.

De-Ionization Decisions in Mobile Car Washing

Small Business