Any Carwash Owners??

[SCT]

Anyone on the board a carwash?I've been looking at starting up a business on the side from my main job. Well, an old school 6 bay car wash just came up for sale a mile from my house. It's an older facility and needs some TLC but it is on a main road and I think it has some potential. Does anyone have any experience owning/running one? Pros/ cons? I know we won't make a fortune off of it but would like to at least break even and then sell the property down the road. And besides my wife and I, we have an older retired friend that would be perfect to come in every morning to clean up and maintain the place. I hear vandalsim is one of the biggist problems with businesses like this one.Any thoughts??

[MercNuts]

I have a friend who has a drive through & quick lube. It's different from a 6 bay coin like you are talking in a lot of ways but he says the EPA has made it a very difficult business. They now have to clean and recycle water and have grease traps and all kinds of enviromental BS. He said the coins are going in the same direction and ones that have been grandfathered in will soon have to do all the recycleing of water and grease trap things also. He says that IRS is targeting the coin washes for agressive audits because so many ownere steal gobs of cash and they are using electricity and water usage to factor how many dollars they should generate. I asked his advice on buying one down the road myself that was for sale in 2010 and he told me not to even consider it. He said that is why so many are for sale. The upgrades are very costly and some body coming in and washing parts or engines and putting grease in the sewer system without the upgrades can generate fines for the owner even on the grandfathered one if they get caught. I would consider this 2nd hand information but those are just some things to look into before you pull the trigger.

[BUSHWACKER]

They did that many years ago to them all up north in Phila, PA, Delaware River area!

They also tried to pass a EPA law years ago that ya could no longer wash, not even squirt off the bird shet or the jet fuel from the planes comming in/out of Phila Int Airport off your boat in the water. You had to take it out wash it over a big bag then it was hazzardous waste that you would have to pay to dump.

[SCT]

Thanks guys, I hadn't really thought about the EPA aspect. I'll have to do some research. Another problem is that when we have droughts in the Charlotte area, they put restrictions on carwash water usage unless you recycle the water.