Car Wash Winter Preparation: 6 Areas to Check Before the First Freeze
The first hard freeze should not be the day you find out something at your car wash isn’t ready for winter.
Once temperatures drop, a small equipment issue can quickly turn into frozen lines, closed bays, service calls, and lost revenue. Add winter wash volume to the mix, and an unexpected shutdown can become expensive fast.
September and early fall are the time to work through the systems that will matter most when cold weather arrives.
Here are six areas worth checking now.
Start With Your Heating Systems
Test your wash bay heaters and HVAC systems before you actually need them.
Make sure each unit starts, runs properly, responds to its controls, and is ready for sustained cold weather. This is also a good time to schedule preventative maintenance with your HVAC or service provider.
Replacement components are not always sitting on a shelf waiting for you. Finding a problem now gives you time to repair it before temperatures drop.
Inspect Your Floor Heat and Ice-Melt Systems
Your floor heat can make a major difference in keeping the property safe and operational through freezing conditions.
Have the system inspected along with your other heating equipment. Pay particular attention to:
- Boilers
- Zone pumps
- Zone manifolds
- Temperature sensors
- Glycol levels and freeze protection
- Leaks or signs of circulation problems
A floor heat system that worked last winter still needs to be tested before this winter.
Test Your Garage Doors
Garage doors become especially important when the temperature falls overnight.
Confirm that doors open and close properly, timers are programmed correctly, controls are communicating with the doors, and rollers and other moving components are in good condition.
A door that fails to close can leave you dealing with a freezing bay and an after-hours service call. Testing it now is much easier.
Check the Weep System
Your weep system helps protect plumbing and equipment when temperatures fall below freezing, so it needs to work exactly when called upon.
Test the temperature probes, controls, valves, and solenoids. Make sure water is flowing where it should and that the system activates at the proper temperature.
FCS can also perform site visits and inspections to help identify problems before cold weather exposes them.
Stock the Parts That Keep You Running
Winter can be one of the busiest and most profitable periods of the year for a car wash. That makes downtime especially costly.
Review the wear items and replacement parts that could take you offline if they fail. Depending on your equipment, that could include:
- Wash material
- Bearings
- Hoses
- Nozzles
- Pumps
- Solenoids
- Sensors
- Common electrical components
Look at your inventory and order what you are likely to need before winter demand hits. Some components can have long lead times, particularly during periods of high demand.
FCS supports every major car wash equipment line, along with many smaller manufacturers, and can help operators identify and source the parts they should have on hand.
Adjust Your Chemistry for Winter Conditions
The contaminants hitting vehicles change with the seasons, and your chemistry may need to change with them.
Summer bug residue gives way to road salt, sand, magnesium chloride, brine, and winter grime. Your chemical program needs to handle those conditions while continuing to deliver the clean, shiny, dry vehicle your customers expect.
Before winter arrives, review your chemistry, application rates, equipment performance, and chemical delivery with your supplier.
If you have been dealing with inconsistent results, slow service, or supply problems, fall is a good time to address them.
Prepare Now for the Season Ahead
Winter preparation comes down to finding problems while you still have time to solve them.
Test the equipment. Inspect the systems that protect your site from freezing. Build your spare-parts inventory. Make sure your chemistry is ready for winter road conditions.
A few hours spent preparing today can help prevent days of downtime during some of the busiest wash weather of the year.
Focused Car Wash Solutions can help you prepare your site for winter with equipment inspections, preventative maintenance, parts, chemistry, and on-site support. Contact FCS today to schedule a site visit and make sure your wash is ready for the cold months ahead.
