What You Need to Know About Drive Thru Car Washes
Drive-thru car wash services give drivers the convenience of cleaning their vehicle on the go. All they need to do is enter the car wash track, and they will come out with a squeaky clean car. However, is the drive-thru car wash process ideal? Does it really clean everything? This post will tell you everything you need to know:
Step 1. Entering the track
When entering the track, you have to put your car in neutral so the track wheels will be the one to move your vehicle along. It will engage either the front or rear wheels of your vehicle.
An infrared beam will measure the length of your car. This information will be sent to the system to determine the amount of water, detergent, and rinsing needed.
Step 2. Spraying the cleaning solution
In this part, a cleaning solution will be applied to your car and a curtain cloth will perform the initial scrubbing. This is intended to loosen the superficial dirt on the vehicle.
Step 3. Applying the detergent
Next, a detergent will be squirted onto your car, creating a foamy consistency. This is intended to wash the car further and to reach other areas that aren’t cleaned by the initial solution.
Step 4. Scrub, scrub, scrub
In this phase, your vehicle will be scrubbed using vertical scrubbers. These have activated cloth pieces that will prevent streaking and dings on your car. Most of these scrubbers have a speed of 500 RPM. This process removes deep-seated dirt.
Step 5. Rinsing and arching
Once the scrubbing is done, your car will be rinsed with a lot of water. On average, vehicles will be rinsed by up to 400 gallons using rotating sprays. It’s similar to power washing a patio deck as the water is ejected with force onto your car.
After that, a series of arches will remove any residue left on your car. Again, this will use clean water to ensure that no suds are left.
Step 6. Optional waxing
Most drive-thru car washes nowadays have a waxing phase to add shine on a vehicle. The wax works on most rubber, plastic, chrome, glass, and painted surfaces. However, don’t expect it to remove any scratches present in your vehicle. Deep scratches require a visit to a body shop.
Step 7. Drying and touch-ups
The last part consists of drying your vehicle using large dryers that produce heated air. Most dryers in a drive thru car wash have silencers to dampen the noise. After drying, personnel from the car wash service will check for spots to ensure that you have a thoroughly cleaned vehicle.
At some car wash shops, vacuuming, dusting, and deodorizing the interior of the car are additional services. Some will also offer upholstery wipe down among others. You’re free to skip this part if you don’t need it.
Final words
Drive-thru car washes are a convenient choice for cleaning your vehicle. They offer a holistic cleaning process, so you no longer have to deal with manual scrubbing.
