Over the past few years shipping costs have skyrocketed due to many factors such as inflation, rising interest rates, and labor shortages, to name a few. Unfortunately, shipping prices don’t seem to be dropping anytime soon. Our operations manager, Steve Deeg, shared a few tips with us that will save you valuable cash so you can invest in your wash!

Take Advantage of Kleen-Rite Rewards Club

Have you signed up for our rewards program? If not, you are missing out on a plethora of amazing rewards! It costs absolutely nothing on your part to sign up. Plus, you can earn points for every purchase, even when you redeem rewards such as free shipping. Some other ways to earn points are by completing reviews on our website and sharing the Kleen-Rite Facebook page with friends. We also occasionally have special offers to earn points on social media, so make sure to follow us and keep up to date with what’s happening on our pages!

The best way to save money on shipping is to take advantage of the free shipping offers. We have a reward that gives you free shipping on a 40 lb. box and one for an 80 lb. box. We also offer rewards that give you free shipping on orders of $750 and $1250 or more. Sign up today to start earning points and redeem rewards to offset your shipping costs.

Special Free Shipping Offers

Throughout the year we offer free shipping for special events such as tradeshows, Soaptoberfest, and when an issue of the Kleen-Scene drops. An important thing to note is that you’ll still earn reward points on purchases made using these offers. If you plan out your orders you can earn enough points to redeem a free box reward or a larger free shipping reward between these free shipping promotions, which is like getting free shipping all the time.

Commercial vs. Residential Addresses

According to Deeg “UPS charges an additional $5.50 per package to deliver to a residential address.” It is important to note this rate can change at the drop of a dime, so this number might not be accurate a few months from now. You can ship a package to a commercial address to save money or utilize a Hub Group and ship your order to a UPS access point. This will help you avoid additional fees associated with using a residential address.

If you are using common carriers to deliver pallet-size shipments, they also charge additional fees to deliver orders to residential addresses. When an order requires a liftgate this can add additional fees to your order and even create delivery delays since many carriers might not equip every truck or trailer with a liftgate. They may even need to make special arrangements to make a delivery. Make sure to consider this when placing orders.

Top Off Pallets of Soap

Pallets of soap ship free. This includes 5-gallon pails, 30-gallon drums, or 55-gallon drums. You can even top off the pallet with extra items. Deeg said, “Everything on top of that pallet will ride along for free, so fill it up.” Even better, if you need to order smaller containers of soap that involve a hazard fee, but only need a pail or two, add them to the top-off deal and eliminate the hazmat fee. Deeg explained, “Small package carriers charge a $48 hazmat fee per package for all of the paperwork, packaging, and special stickers required to move these items small package.” This hazmat fee does not apply when hazardous items are shipped on a pallet. You can even do this during Soaptoberfest. Examples of these items are wheel cleaners, presoaks, and antifreeze soaps. Take advantage of these savings opportunities and keep that money in your pocket!

Small Parcel Carrier Tips

We have programs set up with our small parcel carriers to move higher-weight (400 lb. – 600 lb.) shipments using small package services.  Deeg asks, “Who would you want to roll into your car wash, the little brown truck where the driver hands you the buckets or a 40 ft. tractor trailer with all that weight on one pallet, and then you have to dispose of a pallet?” Plus, the small package driver in the little brown truck will usually attempt 3 times to make the delivery before returning it to the sender.

Additionally, small parcel carriers will have a minimum they charge per package. So, if the box is not full, you can put more items in there and save more money. When you put a 40 lb. order in one box it is less than shipping two 20 lb. boxes. How much can you save? About 30% on your shipping cost. Steve told us, “We do our best to consolidate your orders into the fewest number of boxes within reason and still get the contents to you safely.” This helps us both save money. Plan your orders and consolidate them into larger orders to save money on shipping. Ordering multiple packages over a few weeks costs more money than combining everything into one order.

Now that you are armed with these tips, you can begin to chip away at high shipping costs. With all that extra money in your pocket now, you can invest in the future of your wash by upgrading equipment, trying new soap, or even maintaining the appearance of your property!

This article originally appeared in Kleen-Scene 42.