RECORD BREAKING WINTER SEASON IN CARWASHING

When the snow started falling this winter of 2021, it seemed like it did not want to stop. And we’re not just talking our usual suspects of the Northeast and Midwest … we saw relentless snow NATION wide all across the board!

This meant lots of street cleaning and salt on the road, and in turn, a record-breaking season for carwashes all across America. Winter is always a busy season in car washing, however, what was quite interesting that we heard from many car wash operators was how consistently sunny days lined up perfectly with weekends, causing for some of the biggest wash counts our customers have seen! Buddy Bear, an operator of 11 chains in Chicago, told us he had an especially successful wash month in February hitting car count days of 22k easily on Saturdays, increasing his belt conveyor speed to keep up with the high demand. The snow just would not stop this winter, and everyone kept needing a nice good rinse just to keep the new salt off. And then the beautiful “slush/mud” state that follows all large snowfalls of course.

On top of the unforgiving snowfalls and freezing temps, you have to take into account the car wash being one of the main events for the majority of people spending more time at home due to the ongoing pandemic. With the majority working from home or having more limits on places to go or things to do, one of the excursions people looked forward to was going to the car wash this winter.

From a car maintenance perspective, this is always important to get the salt off of one’s car and essential to prevent erosion. Salt and other chemicals from snowfall and clean-up can accumulate under one’s car and can cause severe unseen damage over time that can be expensive to reverse later. Regular carwashes throughout the winter can remedy this.

But enough talk of winter and snow! Spring and sunshiny days are ahead! All we know is no matter the season, cars always need cleaning. Happy washing.