As a car wash, you sell the perception of clean. You sell a look, a feeling. You need your customers to go away happy, seeing the clean on their vehicles.
The Fully-Clean Problem
One of the major issues over time has been the perception of a wet car not being clean. Over the years, the back end of the car wash experience has been tailored to provide a clean, dry car. You want the customer to get out, take a look, and say “That’s clean!”. That being said, it’s always been a nagging issue. This led to the industry searching for the right solution over the years, with mixed results.
We added towels at the exit end of the tunnel. We pay laborers to dry vehicles as they pulled away from the conveyor. We would say, “We rinsed with Spot Free water, two minutes down the road the car will be dry and spotless!”. We install blowers and driers that would use cold or warm air to blow off as much water as possible.
Unfortunately, all of these came with drawbacks. Full service requires line attendants, managing labor, dealing with stocking and laundering towels, and training and oversight headaches. Spot-Free rinse requires a significant investment in an RO system, and to explain to the customers that it’s not immediate – and if you miss an RO filter change, the end product suffers. Even with nozzle adjustment and a dozen units, blowers don’t always get the job completely done. Sometimes they leave tiny micro spots on exterior surfaces and window glass that is easy to… spot.
What car wash operators needed was a product or system that would provide surface tension to remain in a state that would allow water to bead and sheet off the surfaces and leave a clean vehicle devoid of spotting. A product that would act as an enhancer for the drying processes already in place.
The Flash Dry Solution!
This is where drying agents came in! This process creates a hydrophobic surface on the vehicle – a “water fearing” surface. Blending a cationic surfactant and a hydrophobic chemical emulsifies the hydrophobic chemical. This then allows it to be blended with water for spraying and application to the surface of the vehicle. As the mixture is applied through a tunnel arch, IBA process, or self-serve gun, the emulsification breaks. This allows the active ingredients to attach to the surface, and the water and emulsifier to shed off, leaving a hydrophobic surface behind.
Once the drying agent is in place, all the other drying processes will be turned up to 11! Blowers will be able to push off more water thanks to increased beading, leaving a better, drier result. Spot-Free rinse will slough off faster – in seconds, not minutes – with little to no spotting left behind. Attendants will be able to dry faster and more complete, and will use less towels!
Shore Corporation has developed Flash Dry Plus to be the ultimate in drying agents! Flash Dry Plus is a highly concentrated, silicone based clearcoat that can be used in tunnels, in-bay automatics and self-serve systems. As a low pH cationic (positively charged ion) system, it is designed to repel water, improve drying, and create the WOW factor by presenting a shiny, dry vehicle. With an added UV protectant, the silicone, solvent, and water microemulsion system is balanced for infinite dilution with site water to create spectacular results. Applications of high pressure, low pressure or even by hand will bring the always amazing results. Check out Flash Dry Plus in 5 gallon buckets or 55 gallon drums today in your drying agent process – or consider adding the process if you don’t have it already, we bet you’ll love the results!
