Anyone own a coin-op Car Wash?

[NetViper]

There is a nice piece of land very close to where I live and I am thinking about opening up a coin-operated car wash. It is a new developing area where a Kroger is set to open soon and a Firestone.

Does anyone have any experience with these? They seem relatively low maintenance.

Thanks.

 

[hoops7k]

I would also like to know the same thing.I was considering purchasing one.I was talking to an owner and he told he made enough money to pay the loan but he hated the banks because they are now charging for quarters???I think there is some maintence required with these but it does provide solid cash flow.I would add the credit card option like some now have.Or go to some kind of token system to prevent people from just getting change and not using the wash.

 

[Shumdit]

I can give you some info first hand. I am busy at work right now, but I will try to give you a few details if I get caught up.

 

[jlindy]

I seriously looked into this a while back. My best friends father in law has several of them and I sat down with him to go over cost, plans, expectations, etc. To open a five bay carwash in Missouri of all places was about 800 grand to do it right. You could buy a used one, but you have to worry about maintenance on the equipment. I didn't want to put a life's savings into it. Too risky for me.

 

[NSX01]

I were consider open one up several years ago and back out of it. Spoke to the owner and he said after expense he only made around $20k a year.

 

[NetViper]

I were consider open one up several years ago and back out of it. Spoke to the owner and he said after expense he only made around $20k a year.

That doesn't sound bad considering it is very low maintanance -- or at least seems like it would be.

 

[NetViper]

. To open a five bay carwash in Missouri of all places was about 800 grand to do it right. .

 

[NSX01]

NETVIPER, $800k is average price for a coin operated car wash. The one I looked at years ago go for 1.2M.

 

[Yellow Rose]

Several years ago, a guy new-built a coin-operated spray car wash a few blocks from my house. It has ten bays, each with a spray nozzle and a separate soap brush. Costs $1.25 and you can add $0.25 when you hear the beeper that time is almost out. It also has five vacuum stations for $0.75 a pop. All of this is under covered parking. He said it cost him (at the time $50,000) and paid for itself in three years. Wow.....fifty-grand annually tax-free to walk around in sandals a few days a week. :tongue:

 

[xsn]

He said it cost him (at the time $50,000) and paid for itself in three years. Wow.....fifty-grand annually tax-free to walk around in sandals a few days a week. :tongue:

I do not understand your math.

 

[NSX01]

Several years ago, a guy new-built a coin-operated spray car wash a few blocks from my house. It has ten bays, each with a spray nozzle and a separate soap brush. Costs $1.25 and you can add $0.25 when you hear the beeper that time is almost out. It also has five vacuum stations for $0.75 a pop. All of this is under covered parking. He said it cost him (at the time $50,000) and paid for itself in three years. Wow.....fifty-grand annually tax-free to walk around in sandals a few days a week. :tongue:

Where you live that $50k can get you a 10 bays car wash?
I must live in the wrong state.

 

[Yellow Rose]

Oh Shit.....

I do not understand your math.

.....you are correct. Fifty divided by three equals seventeen. My bad.

 

[Yellow Rose]

Where you live that $50k can get you a 10 bays car wash? I must live in the wrong state.

This was many years ago.

 

[steveny]

I have a coin-op laundry as well as coin-op laundry in most of my apartment buildings and houses.
I was able to get the equipment slightly used from a local guy who had, no kidding, over 3000 washers and 3000 dryers in a warehouse. He charged me $450 a set and I bought many sets. At first it was kind of a pain setting everything up and getting all the kinks worked out of the machines and plumbing systems.
I really like the cash flow and low amount of effort it takes to keep it all going. I would not set one up where there were no city municipalities. The sewer system you would need would cost a freaking fortune if there was not a city sewer connection.
As far as collecting the money goes, it was a pain at first wrapping all the quarters. After a while I got sick of doing it and I was just dumping them in trash cans in the basement of my house. Then I bought a machine that counts and wraps them automatically. This made the collection much easier and less time consuming. Money smells pretty bad and when you handle quarters all day the stink doesn't come off your hands for the rest of the day.

 

[Shumdit]

Steveny,
Buy a klopp counter (electric) and just bag them. My bank takes them in $1000.00 increments, which is far easier than rolling them.

I agree about how nasty money is, as my hands are always black after sorting bills or counting coins. I read somewhere that they had done studies and found something like 60-70 different germs/bacteria on the average paper bill.

 

[heathbar0]

I agree about how nasty money is, as my hands are always black after sorting bills or counting coins. I read somewhere that they had done studies and found something like 60-70 different germs/bacteria on the average paper bill.

Let me get you a tissue to dry your eye :biggrin: I hate money too :biggrin:

IMHO any buisness that can make you 20 grand a year for a few hours of work a week with ***NO EMPLOYEES*** is very good.

after expense he only made around $20k a year.

 

[NetViper]

Let me get you a tissue to dry your eye :biggrin: I hate money too :biggrin:

IMHO any buisness that can make you 20 grand a year for a few hours of work a week with ***NO EMPLOYEES*** is very good.

I agree, but I am having a hard time with the $800K part.

 

[Shumdit]

Let me get you a tissue to dry your eye :biggrin: I hate money too :biggrin:

IMHO any buisness that can make you 20 grand a year for a few hours of work a week with ***NO EMPLOYEES*** is very good.

I am going to get around to my diatribe of the cons to this business (and there are a few biggies). Give me time, and hold your kleenex on standby :biggrin:

 

[NSX01]

I agree, but I am having a hard time with the $800K part.

Netviper, open one up and tell me how much you end up spending at the end.

 

[NetViper]

Netviper, open one up and tell me how much you end up spending at the end.

I am not doubting you, I just thought it was cost a fraction of that.

 

[NSX01]

I am not doubting you, I just thought it was cost a fraction of that.

It my be a fraction, depend on the area. Here in STL it would cost at less $500K to start one up.

 

[menuserve]

shumidt - i'd like to hear what you have to say about the cons?

 

[jlindy]

It my be a fraction, depend on the area. Here in STL it would cost at less $500K to start one up.

The 800k was here in St. Louis when I priced it out a few years back.

 

[4AU4LIFE]

are the machines involved very technical or pretty simple in design?
We had a story here a while back about kids taping a piece of string to a $5 bill and feeding it into the machine. Once the change came out, they would simply pull the money back out of the machine and wait a couple of minutes and do it all over again. Got away with it for a while.
Kinda hard to explain to the cops why you have ~$100 worth of quarters in your book bag though.

 

[robr]

a change machine obviously has nothing to do specifically with a car wash, they're used in many other places. i think pretty much every bill changer made today has a string cutter, they can also detect counterfit bills. here's some basic info

http://www.moderncarcare.com/Articles/061feat5.html