How many gals. water to detail?

[LeMarque]

I'm going to bite the bullet, take some training and open a shop.

Since there are no shops with in floor drains in my neck of the woods, I'm going to need some sort of water containment system and I'm wondering just how many gallons of water are used to wash and detail the 'average' car. It'd be a bummer to invest in something that couldn't hold the water used.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: How many gals. water to detail?

You may have to wait for one of the mobile pros to respond, but there are containment matts available that you drive the car onto and then essentially vacuum up the used wash water for later reclamation. The guys who use these regularly can probably recommended a make/model to look at. But beyond that, you might want to look into some of the rinseless wash products on the market, or other tools that will allow you to use less water than traditional bucket and hose type methods do. We can only assume you'll be paying a local water utility for your water usage so it's probably in your best interest to look into this even further.

[LeMarque]

Re: How many gals. water to detail?

If Michael Stoops doesn't know how much water is used to detail a car then I'm in BIG trouble

Thanks for the suggestions about waterless car wash and I may consider that as an offering but ...

I have and am currently looking into different containment systems and it seems to me that if I just purchase the 22 oz. vinyl I can build my own cheaper. For that and other reasons I need to have some idea about how much water is used.

[RDVT4ME]

Re: How many gals. water to detail?

I got some statistics from our city's water district last year during our drought. They said that the average washing of a car in the driveway uses around 60 gallons of water. Now I suspect that a good mobile detailer will use less, so you will hopefully hear from some of them. I switched to rinseless washing for my own cars and also for when I detail customer cars (I am only very part time on detailing). You only use 2-3 gallons that way. Hopefully that gives you at least some range on water usage.

[LeMarque]

Re: How many gals. water to detail?

I got some statistics from our city's water district last year during our drought. They said that the average washing of a car in the driveway uses around 60 gallons of water. Now I suspect that a good mobile detailer will use less, so you will hopefully hear from some of them. I switched to rinseless washing for my own cars and also for when I detail customer cars (I am only very part time on detailing). You only use 2-3 gallons that way. Hopefully that gives you at least some range on water usage.

Thanks RDVT4ME

Although there's pre-rinse, maybe foam, rinse, etc. I don't see the two bucket system using 60 gallons.

I'm hoping to hear more like 20-30 gallons.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: How many gals. water to detail?

If Michael Stoops doesn't know how much water is used to detail a car then I'm in BIG trouble

LOL!!! Gee, maybe I should attach a flow meter to my hose at home and take some reading next time I wash a car!!!!


Bob, we're curious if those 60 gallons are when the user is just letting a hose without a nozzle run the whole time, essentially wasting a large amount of water. If you're doing it right, which includes a nozzle that automatically shuts off the water flow when not in use, then we suspect that figure is far, far lower than 60 gallons. Looking at how long it takes to fill a 5 gallon bucket even just to the 3 gallon mark, and then looking at how long the hose is run to wet down the car and then rinse off, that 60 gallon number seems a bit extreme. Think about it: if you're using 3 gallons of soapy water in one bucket and 3 gallons of plain water in a second bucket (2 bucket wash method, remember!!) to wash the car you would then need, effectively, another 18 buckets similarly filled for rinsing purposes in order to reach that 60 gallon level. That just doesn't sound right.

[STRIFE]

Re: How many gals. water to detail?

I figure using a product like ONR would be beneficial for any environmentally friendly detailer?
I have no water restrictions in Vancouver, but feel it's important to think of the environment 1st

Yea....60 gallons is a LOT of H2O.....but it all depends on how much water pressure is going thru the hose!..... my hose in the back of the house is way lower then the front of the house due to the settings .....i figure I would use about 25-30 gallons on a traditional bucket wash....very proud to say with ONR....i prob use 5-6 gallons total

[Innovative Detailing]

Re: How many gals. water to detail?

With my conventional PW unit I would have to say that between 3-6 gallons of water is used per vehicle, depending on how dirty that are. Using my Detailing Caddy and a rinseless solution I can clean anywhere between 8-10 vehicles using only 5 gal of premix, which would be about 64 oz of liquid roughly that is atomized on the vehicles surface + 1 gal of water with 1 cap of rinseless product in a bucket....give or take a little.

[RDVT4ME]

Re: How many gals. water to detail?

guys, my statistic on 60 gallons came from our water district. Not sure of all their criteria for measurement. I suspect some of it is scare tactic to make sure people don't use water. I suspect a lot depends on how you rinse the car.

[DrdetailNashville]

Re: How many gals. water to detail?

I carry a 100 gallon water tank, which I rarely ever fill all the way. I can do my full-detail package on about 6-7 cars with 100 gallons of water. And that's with me not being very conservative with the water.

[LeMarque]

Re: How many gals. water to detail?

Hey, thanks everyone for your input.

I will definitely look into waterless car wash in my training. Here in New Mexico, EVERYONE watches their water use so it probably would be well received.

Still being a NooB, and especially about waterless, my perception is that you just can't get it done without a traditional wash. But I'll for certain give it a try.

[STRIFE]

Re: How many gals. water to detail?

^ with ONR.....washing regularly really helps...

[LeMarque]

Re: How many gals. water to detail?

Thought I'd follow-up after thinking about this a bit. A 'water containment system' of some sort is going to be a requirement from the landlord.

Since I'm going to be doing details/washes that require a fair amount of water - from the replies, anywhere from 5- 20 gals. -. I was thinking about how to avoid sloshing around in the runoff. So somehow I'll have the mat on a very slight incline so that the water pools to the back. As well, protecting the mat somehow, I'll drive it onto four wood(?) blocks to keep the tires out of the runoff.

I've come to realize this is going to be more work (dealing with a mat and the runoff), but again, since there are no facilities available with floor drains, I'm stuck.

[Jossy92]

Re: How many gals. water to detail?

I can only offer 4 years of experience using minimum water when "newbtailing" friend's cars:

I use 2 buckets (#1 ONR, #2 plain water) and a small wastebasket (Foam).

Before you read on, I am only posting this in the hopes that we both get some better suggestions, the following is the result of 4 years of trial and error. Mostly error:

The amount of water is very little, less than 4 gallons. I use a foam gun [with super soap for thickness & dwell time] and quickly foam the wheels/tires and anything horizontal that is LESS than 2 feet off the ground. If I wind up with more foam on the ground than on the car, I have used too much or the foam wasn't thick enough.

I have a narrow cylindrical wast-basket which is just tall enough and wide enough to accommodate a Daytona (style) wheel brush. I fill the basket from the foam gun. That way I am still using the minimum water.



I work the foam into the wheels, ww's, grill, etc. with the brush, then, while the foam is working downstairs, I start washing the car from the very top down, a section at a time per the ONR protocol with the ONR which IS the rinse for the whole car.

I wring out the mitt after each pass, toss it in the clean water, and ring it out again (if needed) before tossing in the ONR bucket. At the end I shake out the wheel brush dip it in the clean water, shake it out and dip it in the ONR to rinse the wheels, wheel wells, grill, etc. I don't put anything in the water unless it has been rung out on the ground, not in the bucket.

Definitely could be improved, but trial and error without the "pain" of doing this for a living is the missing ingredient. Some pro mobile detailer here "knows" the real secret or at least the part that doesn't require a lot of overhead.

[LeMarque]

Re: How many gals. water to detail?

I can only offer 4 years of experience using minimum water when "newbtailing" friend's cars:

I use 2 buckets (#1 ONR, #2 plain water) and a small wastebasket (Foam).

Before you read on, I am only posting this in the hopes that we both get some better suggestions, the following is the result of 4 years of trial and error. Mostly error:

The amount of water is very little, less than 4 gallons. I use a foam gun [with super soap for thickness & dwell time] and quickly foam the wheels/tires and anything horizontal that is LESS than 2 feet off the ground. If I wind up with more foam on the ground than on the car, I have used too much or the foam wasn't thick enough.

I have a narrow cylindrical wast-basket which is just tall enough and wide enough to accommodate a Daytona (style) wheel brush. I fill the basket from the foam gun. That way I am still using the minimum water.



I work the foam into the wheels, ww's, grill, etc. with the brush, then, while the foam is working downstairs, I start washing the car from the very top down, a section at a time per the ONR protocol with the ONR which IS the rinse for the whole car.

I wring out the mitt after each pass, toss it in the clean water, and ring it out again (if needed) before tossing in the ONR bucket. At the end I shake out the wheel brush dip it in the clean water, shake it out and dip it in the ONR to rinse the wheels, wheel wells, grill, etc. I don't put anything in the water unless it has been rung out on the ground, not in the bucket.

Definitely could be improved, but trial and error without the "pain" of doing this for a living is the missing ingredient. Some pro mobile detailer here "knows" the real secret or at least the part that doesn't require a lot of overhead.

You mean this 'protocol'? http://www.autogeek.net/optimum-no-r...hannelid=FROOG

You wax afterword, right?

Gonna have to give this a try...