The Wall - Extrutech Plastics, Inc.(Artwork Gratefully Adapted From Pink Floyd’s Movie & Album...

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the Southeast) that, yes, use concrete blockconstruction, but right from the get-go they“dress” and cover them brightly with a varietyof different materials.

I’m a second generation SS carwash op-erator who has picked the brains of innumer-able other operators at a slew of WCA and ICAExpos over the last couple decades. Over thattime, I’ve heard of so many options for SScarwash walls and there are as many differentopinions on which choice is the best one.

I do believe, however, that there wouldbe consensus about my wish list of qualitiesthe very best — the ultimate! — wall productshould be:

• Easy to install — taking only a coupledays to cover your walls ... by yourself.

• Very durable — last a long, loooonnngtime ... about 20 years would be ideal. Duringthat time, it’d be virtually “bullet-proof”against graffiti, vandalism, and any climateconditions.

• Low maintenance and easy to clean— not too much more than a hi-pressure rinseoff would be great.

• Aesthetically pleasing — adding adimension of design and color to improve theappearance and curbside appeal of your wash.

And last but not least, it would be ... • Inexpensive — okay, cheap ... lets

say, less than $2 a square foot!C’mon now — is that really too much to

ask?!! We’ll see.

Things ChangeBack in the SSCWN Spring 1991 issue,

Pat Crowe wrote an article on walls for the SScarwash. After reviewing the article, it wasinteresting to note that a few things have

changed over theyears. Addressesand phone numberswere listed for theproduct informa-tion, but there wasnot one website ad-dress listed in thearticle. While re-searching this ar-ticle, however, I sel-dom found a manu-facturer that did nothave a website with a lot of information abouttheir products, along with other websites com-paring different products, talking about waysto maintain and install them properly, forums,associations websites supporting the manufac-tures of various products, and more good info.Actually, there was so very much informationit was easy to get lost in the details.

Most of the materials listed in earlierSSCWN article are still popular choices forthe SS carwash. But there have been somenoteworthy new products introduced sincethe 90’s that are very promising.

Has the perfect — that “ultimate” —wall covering been discovered? I’m inclined tosay, “not yet”. But I’d bet that within thisdecade, someone will have developed a “spaceage something” that can withstand the age oldchallenge of the rough and tumble environ-ment of SS carwash walls and meet all thediffering criteria we operators have long beensearching for. And, I must say, that theremay be options out there — here and now! —that approach “perfection”. I just haven’tseen them rigorously tested/proven over asufficiently lengthy period of time.

Let’s start with a wall covering thatalways generates diverse opinions —

(Artwork Gratefully Adapted From Pink Floyd’s Movie & Album “The Wall”)

The WallThe Wall

BY LISA LYONS

An Eternal QuestionI can trace

the genesis of myinvolvement withthis article on baywalls to an inter-esting and spiritedexchange on theAuto Care Forum(autocareforum.com).The thread thatpulled me in wasthe eternal, infer-nal question thathas long nagged at virtually every long timeowner of a SS carwash. If Shakespeare’sHamlet had been a SS operator, he might’vesaid it thus:

“To paint or not to paint my bay walls —THAT is the question!” Beyond that classicquery, there was another regarding stuccoand if might be a good choice for a bay wallcoating. As often happens on the Forum,there were a number of diverse opinions onthe topic of paint. But when you seek tobroaden the topic of how to best cover anddress up bay walls beyond paint — braceyourself for a ton of diverse and conflictingopinions.

Concrete block and brick seem to havebeen the building material of choice for muchof the SS industry for many years. But evenwith the very best maintenance practices,block and brick will eventually start showingtheir age. And that is when the “fun” begins— trying to find a way to refresh and updateyour carwash. On the other hand and for thelast dozen years or so, many new washes havebeen built around the country (especially in (Continued On A Following Page)

Why Oh Why, AreSS Bay Walls Such AFrustrating Bugaboo?!!

They Can Make Ya Wanna Scream!

Could There Be An“Ultimate” Wall Material?

... An Operator SearchesFor Some Elusive Answers.....

Why Oh Why, AreSS Bay Walls Such AFrustrating Bugaboo?!!

They Can Make Ya Wanna Scream!Could There Be An

“Ultimate” Wall Material?

... An Operator SearchesFor Some Elusive Answers.....

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Editor’s Note: Before going one stepfurther, the SSCWN realizes that there areoperators out there who have had experi-ences (proven over time) that may contra-dict some assertions and observations re-garding the wall reatments discussed inthis article. If so, let us know ... please!

We ‘re especially interested in gettingmeaningful, substantive input on the firstsubject — paint and “industrial coatings”.

PAINTEvery spring, the community of City

Heights in San Diego has a fair where theyclose down the street in front of my carwash.I’ve been told the fair is done so it will attractpeople to the area so it will improve the busi-ness climate. Of coarse, every year the streetis shut down on a weekend, so I lose a primetime for business. But since I know I’ll be shutdown then, it’s the time I choose to put an-other coat of latex paint on my sad-looking,painted carwash walls. The yearly paintinghad been going on long, long before I took overthe wash 4 years ago. I can’t even imaginehow many coats of paint are on the walls.

I use to follow the paint manufactures’recommendations and spent a lot of time prep-ping the walls. They would look great for a fewweeks, then someone would come along andget the walls dirty by getting tar or cement onthem, or graffiti them really bad. After about6 months, they would start looking a little“tired” again. But then it was the yearly fairand it was time to do it all over again. The lastcouple of years, however, I decided not tospend a lot of time prepping and the resultsare just about the same. I am currently in theprocess of updating the carwash and a newtype of wall covering — something consider-ably more permanent — is on the top of my listof things to do.

One concrete block manufacturer’swebsite described the proper way to painttheir product was to use latex epoxy paint.

They also noted that it would have to berepainted every 3 to 5 years to maintain itsappearance. This was not for a SS carwashwhere the environment is a lot harsher. PatCrowe’s article in 1991 also recommendedlatex epoxy paint as the only paint productthat paint companies would recommend forpainting a self-serve carwash. Pat was aformer painting contractor and has experi-enced the same problems I have with paint inthe carwash environment. He also has thesame opinion: namely, do not get on the paintmerry-go-round! Following are experts fromPat’s article:

Carwash Paints Of ChoiceThere are basically three types of paint

used in carwashes:Latex — the least expensive; water

soluble and the easiest to “splash on”; and theleast durable.

Alkyd/enamel — oil based; commonlyused and referred to as “swimming pool paint”;moderate in cost, durability, and ease of appli-cation.

Epoxy (“plastic-like”) paint — mostdurable, most expensive, and most demand-ing of skill, wall prep and patience … and, weemphatically note:

Epoxy is the only paint recom-mended by all the manufacturersfor carwash walls.

Because oil base and latex paints expandand contract at different rates, it’s generallyrecommended not to put one on over the other orpeeling and cracking can result — especially inclimates with dramatic shifts in temperature.Dry surfaces are absolutely essential to manypaint applications and not at all to some others.Some exterior paints are designed to “chalk”,thus covering the dirt on light colors, especiallynice for urban areas. Paint manufacturers varytheir formulas for different climates becauseweather conditions make a difference. In short,paint chemistry is high tech stuff.

For many owners, paint seems like itjust has to be least expensive. Most carwashowners have at least limited experience withpainting. And since many owners do theirown rehabbing, paint appears to be an appeal-ing solution and well suited to do-it-yourselfapplication and inexpensive.

Having been a painting contractor, let metestify unequivocally there’s much more to it. Inpresenting bids to potential customers I oftensaid, “I’m fairly sure you’re going to be pleas-antly surprised at how little it is going to cost topaint your building. But I’m afraid you’ll beabsolutely shocked at the cost of prepping.Often the cost of preparation exceeds the cost ofpainting per se. Sandblasting is often recom-mended in wall prep. As Paul Edwards ofPittsburgh Paints told me, “Surface prepara-tion is extremely important. You must applyany paint on a solid base. We recommendfirst sandblasting the walls, then a coat of fillerfollowed by two coats of our epoxy. It will thentake 7 to 10 days to be fully cured.

In many cases, sandblasting is the onlypractical way to get a “solid base” on which toapply paint. Sandblasting is time consuming,messy and not cheap. Even though somerental stores willrent sand-blast-ers, it’s generallybeyond whatmost do-it-your-selfers would careto attempt. Pro-tective equip-ment is a must:beyond air tighteye covering, youshould use a res-pirator/mask toprevent breath-ing in silica dust— which cancause silicosois and lead to lung cancer.

One can throw on a cheap coat of paintand redo the job every 6 months or so. Intoday’s world of professional carwashing, thatsure seems questionable. But 25 years agothat’s exactly what I was doing. It took awhile, but I’ve learned my lesson. One finalobservation. If painted walls were the bestanswer to carwash wall coverings, I’m surethat we would see many more of them. Prop-erly done, paint is one way to cover walls incarwashes. But as the industry has grownand evolved, painted walls are becoming moreand more rare every year.

The message should be clear.

After re-reading Pat’s information onpaint, I thought I would go and price some ofhis suggestions for good latex epoxy paints.The only problem I had was that none of them,believe it or not, were available in California!California has lower VOC (Volatile OrganicCompounds/Chemicals) standards for paintthan most of the other states. The mostcommon definition of a VOC is any organic(carbon-based) compound that evaporates atambient temperatures. One paint contractortold me it’s all the good stuff that makes paintstick to walls and keep its gloss. Do a Googlesearch on the internet if you are interested inknowing more! What does this mean if youare trying to find a good paint for a self-servecarwash bay in California? Well, I was givena sly “a nod ‘n a wink” by two of the three paintsuppliers I went to who said that maybe Ishould try buying my paint for my carwash inArizona instead. Yeah — thanks a lot, guys,but that’s illegal.

The third paint supplier at first tried tosell me a low-VOC version of a latex epoxy. Hewanted me to use a block filler first, and alsowanted me to put an urethane coating on topof the paint. I think we were up to approxi-mately $151 a gallon when he just looked atme and said, “here, try this oil-based water-proofing paint”. He said I would have tosandblast first, but it just might hold up.

(Continued On A Following Page)

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Okay, enough horror stories about paint.Let’s talk about the good side of painting. Yes,there really are some SS operators who arepleased as punch with paint! For example,Pat Hall in Bardstown, Kentucky is well knownon the Auto Care Forum website for having asuccessful paint story. He used both the latexepoxy and oil-based epoxy on his carwashes.The oil-base began to peel almost immedi-ately. However, latex epoxy has held up verywell for him. It has been almost 6 years sincehe painted. Looking at the picture of Pat’swash (see photo above), I’d be happy if mypainted walls looked that good after 6 months.

I also spoke to several operators whohave used the acrylic/enamel paints andafter 4 years’ use, they are still looking good.

Another option often used is to paint justthe top and exterior walls of the carwash andthen use another kind of material (such asfiberglass panels) for the majority of the interiorbay wall — the central “splashwall” sections oneither side of a bay which can be cleaned aggres-sively and replaced easily. This leaves theoption of using paint as a means to bring differ-ent colors into and around your carwash, with-out the headaches of dealing with trying to keeppainted bay walls clean.

At one of my washes, the CommunityDevelopment Agency painted two murals onmy exterior wall as a project to spruce up thealley and neighborhood. It has been 5 yearsand the murals still look great. And similar tothat — in the Spring 2004 issue of the SSCWN,there were photos of the Whale Of A Wash

near Seattle. It too had a great mural paintedon an exterior wall that helped create a verydistinctive identity for a wash surrounded bycompetitors. One of the undeniably best thingsabout paint is the wide variety of colors anddesign possibilities it offers you to make yourbusiness’ appearance appealing and moreunique looking and memorable.

I tried — I really tried! — to find some

things in common with operators who havebeen happy with their painted carwashes tosee if there was a common thread so we couldfollow their example. The only common threadI found was:

They painted block or brick wallsthat had never been painted before.

Other than that, there was such a vari-ety of types of paint used, block filler or noblock filler, dark or light color, dry walls ordamp walls, extreme ranges in temperature,etcetera, etcetera — just too darn many vari-ables to get a definitive answer. Although itworth the mention that operators in the al-most perpetually arid Southwest, such as thosein Arizona (see photos below), report moresatisfactory results with paint type productsthan any other part of the country.

“Coatings”There are some new products on the

market that look interesting and would beworth looking into further. These are prod-ucts that really aren’t paint per se, but rather“waterproof coatings”. They can be ap-

Oil Epoxy versus Latex Epoxy — one operator’s experience: Pat Hall has tried both on his brick SS built in Kentucky in the ear ly 90’s. The bay onthe left was prepped/filled according to manufacturer’s specs and painted with oil epoxy — it began peeling in less than 3 mont hs! The wash wallon the right, however, was painted with latex epoxy (Coronado brand) almost 6 years ago and still looks great! Pat is convinc ed that the porousnature of concrete brick and its tendency to attract/retain moisture enables it to better absorb and cling to a water based lat ex.

If you’re determined to jazz up your bay walls with paint — it appears that the sunny, dry Southwestis THE place to do that. The owner of this patriotic red, white ‘n blue Magic Wand Washin Tucson is among many in that region relatively pleased with paints ...even with some of the less expensive options.


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plied to the walls like paint, but dry to form awaterproof membrane on the wall. Examples:Poly-Wall Industrial Coatings at www.poly-wall.com (800-846-3020), and UGL HomeProducts makes Drylok Masonry Productswww.ugl.com (carried at most Home Depot’s)and various paint suppliers also offer varia-tions of “industrial coatings”.

The manufacturers’ brochures tout theremarkable durability of industrial coatingswhich are somewhat similar to epoxy paints.These coatings are sold to industries aroundthe world based on the fact that such brush-onmaterials are guaranteed for at least 10 years’use on oil derricks in the North Sea wherethey’re exposed to extreme shifts in tempera-ture, constant moisture, corrosive chemicals,and salt from the sea. The latest and mostadvanced variation on these coatings is FPU(Fluorinated PolyUrethane) which is said

to “provide protective properties (againstchemicals, weather, impact, extreme tempera-ture shifts) that far surpass high performanceepoxy or conventional urethane systems ...while having a very low VOC rating.” Geez,that sounds like truly bullet-proof “paint”,doesn’t it?!! Unfortunately, we couldn’t locateand interview any operators who have had longterm experience with genuine FPU or “indus-trial coatings”. And so, if you have used thistype of heavy duty coating at your wash —

Please contact the SSCWN [email protected] or 616-949-5618and tell us about your experience. Wewant to share your opinion (pro or con) withour readers in the next issue’s update onthis topic. But for now ...

Enough of paint. Let’s move on to someother choices.

STRUCTURAL TILE/PRE-FACED BLOCK

There are a couple of structuralmasonary products that have seen consider-able use in SS bays and many tunnel washesaround the country. They are very similar inlook, installation, performance and price:

• Structural Glazed Tile is a productthat has a ceramic tile glaze fired onto bothsides of a clay block suitable for weight-bear-ing, structural construction ... not just a tile“veneer”.

• Pre-Faced Concrete Block also hasboth sides coated but uses a very durable“plastic-like” polymer coating that is appliedand baked on so it becomes an integral part ofthe concrete block unit.

They both come in a great variety of colors— “from white to black and every color in therainbow” — and if you want to go first class andhave the budget for it, these are very elegantlooking walls. They are generally used in newconstruction, but they can been used in rehab-bing existing “plain” block walls. Danny Bryantat Elgin-Butler, a manufacturer of structuralglazed tile described using a standard 4" two-sided block and having your contractor cut it in

half. This is called a “soap unit”. A wall tieattached to the existing block is used, then thesoap unit is put on, using an epoxy grout to makeit impervious to water penetration. Obviously,all that brick cutting is going to add substan-tially to installation costs.

Glazed brick has an incredibly long his-tory and has been proven over time ... over theages. Elgin-Butler has been in the brick/tilebusiness since 1873, and they have an interest-ing photo in their brochure of an Egyptianglazed brick that’s more than2,000 years old. I’ve see car-wash walls less than 10 yearsold that don’t look muchworse than that ancientbrick. Of course, being in asuch a perfectly dry/arid andstable environment can helppreserve everything from glazed brick tile wallsto mummies. Which, yet again, underscores theadvantage that operators in arid parts of thecountry have when it comes to walls.

If you’re looking to build or totally rehaba wash “on the cheap”, this is probably not theway to go. I’ve received cost estimates rang-

ing from $7-$8 a unit (1 double sided block)and an installed price from $16 to $25 a squarefoot. The installation price varies dramati-cally, depending on what part of the countryyou are in. For example, it can eaily cost 5-7times as much in the Northeast states andCalifornia versus the Southeast!

Regardless of the relatively high upfrontcost of structural tile or pre-faced brick, theoperators I spoke to who had a carwash withthese products were quite satisfied. Theytake a long term view. First of all, their wallsare finished bright and beautiful right fromthe get-go. And then consider that the cost ofnew installation is less with a 2-sided finishedfaced block when compared to the total cost ofhiring masons to first build a basic concreteblock/brick walls and then (maybe 6 yearslater) to cover that grungy block with new tileveneer — first on one side of the wall and thenon the other. And, of course, not having toreplace or cover the walls for 10 years or sowith relatively easy maintenance along theway may make it worth the investment formany operators.

Jim Coleman has been using Elgin ButlerBrick exclusively for almost 10 years now intheir new construction projects. (See photos ofsome spectacular examples on the followingpage.) The walls have held up really well ... evenin the Northern “Freeze Belt”. They had beenusing a hydrofluoric acid cleaner on the walls,but had trouble with it removing the glaze. Theynow recommend using the Kleen-Wall (info al-ready in my article) quarterly to clean the filmoff the walls if you are a “picky” carwash opera-tor, or at least semi-annually. The walls remainclean by just a daily spraying down with hi-pressure rinse. The glaze is very reflective atnight especially and has great, classy curbsideappeal. The Elgin Butler bricks used by Colemanresemble elegant ceramic tile veneer ( check outphotos on the following page), but given the“unibody” construction of structural tile, it’sconsiderably more durable than the ceramiclook-alike wall covering.

You’d think any coating tough enoughfor this environment, would surely haveto be adequate for a SS carwash.

You’d think any coating tough enoughfor this environment, would surely haveto be adequate for a SS carwash.

Since the early 90’s, we’ve seen “basic” pre-facedconcrete block being used quite extensively (andgenerally successfully) in automatic bays ...especially in oil company washes.


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Installation was challenging. Becausethis material is so tough, they were havingsome problemswith brick crack-ing using a ma-sonry drill bit to at-tach the signage,so now they attachthe signage in the bays using siliconeadhesive. When they must drill the brick (forbrackets for the wands, mat and Bubble Brushholders) they use diamond bit drills and nylontapit anchors.

About 95% of the new washes the JimColeman Company washes has built use“ivory” as the main color. The bricks costabout $4.90 each for a double sided brickwhich are 8 x 8 block and 4" thick. They thenuse accent color ($6.50 a double sided brick) ina checkerboard, stripe or zig zag design. Theequipment room walls, however, are done in asingle sided brick which only costs $3.50 each.

The bricks have held up amazing well inthe SS environment and continue to look re-ally nice. “Normal self serve dirt” comes offeasily. The bricks can be scratched or broken,you really must try todamage them.

Bill Sartor,past president of theICA and owner of sev-eral SS washes inTexas, used ElginButler blocks to buildhis wash. After liv-ing and working withthe material for morethan 4 years now, Bill tells us that he woulddefinitely build another wash with the prod-uct. He said after looking at the options overthe years of having to renew brick/block hethought the structural tile was cost effective— “... it’s low maintenance ... no problemswith it at all and it looks super!” Bill also usesKlean Wall ($55/5 gallons) to clean his walls.

One contractor I spoke with did pointout a couple of problems. This is very toughstuff! So you will need to use a diamond tipdrill bit to drill holes in the walls. And youshould be sure that your building is madefrom the same lot because there can be colorvariations. The pre-faced concrete block willhave minimal color fading over the years,while the ceramic tile glaze keeps its originalcolor ... but not forever. Afterall, I did noticethat after 2,000 years, that ancient Egyptian,white glazed brick appears to be a bit faded.

Some ContactsStructural Glazed Tile

• Elgin-Butler www.elginbutler.com(512-285-3356)

Pre-faced Concrete Block• Trenwyth Industries - Astra-Glaze-

SW www.trenwyth.com (800-233-1924)• Johnson Concrete Company - Spectra-

Glaze www.johnsoncmu.com (800-476-5858)


Bill Sartor’s sweet little 4 bayin San Antonio features solid,stylish structural tile fromElgin Butler. With fairly easy(but regular) maintenance, itstill looks great after 4 busyyears of traffic.

The Jim Coleman Company has built and supplied many hundreds of washes throughout NorthAmerica and around the world. JCC has used a variety of wall and wall covering materials over theyears, but they were pioneers in the use of structural “designer” tile blocks. The examples belowdemonstrate some spectacular results . While structural tile has been their successful mainstay, JCCis also beginning to explore the use of the bright, durable new plastics now being adapted to SS apps.

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CERAMIC TILESome of the very most beautiful car-

washes I’ve seen have used tile as a wall cover.Tile can be a dynamic, elegant choice for acarwash. Using different shapes, textures,colors, and patterns can create a very attrac-tive, clean and modern looking carwash. Acarwash near me used tile to renovate their30 year old, painted block walls. It lookedbeautiful! Its gleaming white tiles reallymade the place look sharp. I was jealous.However, it’s been about 5 years since theyinstalled the tiles, and on a recent visit I sawone bay was missing about half a wall of tile.The other bay tiles were covered in soap scumand mildew, the tile was pitted, and the glazewas just a memory. What went so terriblywrong?!! It’s true with virtually all wall cover-ings, but especially so with tile. And that is —

Proper material, installation, andmaintenance are all essential toachieve a long lasting finish.

Classes And StandardsTiles in a SS carwash environment need

to be highly resistant to stress (mechanical/physical impact, chemical, and temperatureextremes). There are established guidelinesand minimum performance levels for themanufacture of tile. Tile guidelines made inthe United States are done by the AmericanNational Standards Institute (ANSI) togetherwith the American Society of Testing andMaterials (ASTM). The International Orga-nization for Standardization (ISO) covermanufacturing standards for tiles made over-seas. These standards can be very helpful inchoosing the right tile for a carwash. Estab-lished guidelines and criteria include:

Water Absorption — very importantin a wet environment like a carwash.

Bond Strength — measures how wellthe tile is able to remain adhered to mortar(Portland Cement).

Breaking Strength and Impact Re-sistance — resistance to physical impact,weight, and bending.

Abrasive Hardness — specifies thesurface finish’s tolerance to scratching andand various forms of abrasion.

Chemical Resistance — the ability towithstand exposure to acid and base caustics.

Crazing — establishes the tile’s glazeresistance to forming very minute, tiny sur-face cracks that somewhat resemble hazing.

Freeze/Thaw Resistance — a mea-sure of the tile’s ability to withstand the ex-pansion and contraction cycles that come withchanges in temperature.

When selecting tile, the industry ex-perts say that there is one most importantquestion to ask your supplier. Namely:

Is this tile manufactured in ac-cordance with the standards speci-fied in ANSI 137.1-1988?

If the answer to that question is “yes”,you will then be relying on your supplier’sreputation and honesty that your tile willperform as promised.

While there are no absolute industrystandards, the above criteria are factored into a 5 point scale by the ASTM that thePorcelain Enamel Institute uses to classifytile. Class 1 is spec’d for “Very Light” interioruse only with no foot traffic, up to Class 5 tileswhich are suitable for “Heavy to Very Heavy”traffic and exterior use.

Do you have to be absolutely familiarwith all these standards? Perhaps not, butyour tile supplier sure should be! That’sespecially true in those areas of the countrythat experience dramatic shifts in tempera-ture. It’s an important question to ask beforechoosing a tile for your carwash. You mayexpect Class 5+ performance, but be disap-pointed in a “bargain” priced tile that’s from aClass 1 or even a defective lot. All tiles arecertainly NOT created equal!

Ceramic Vs. PorcelainSo what is the best tile to use for a SS

carwash? Generally, fired clay tile is classi-fied as “ceramic” or “porcelain”. But you’llnote that the title of this section is “CeramicTile”. You should be aware that technically,all fired clay tiles come under the broad clas-sification “ceramic” — even those processedinto a porcelain product. So there can be someconfusion and concern when you hear somesuppliers refer to their porcelain products as“ceramics”. While all porcelain tiles are tech-nically ceramic, all ceramic tiles are definitelynot porcelain. So what’s the diff?!!

The basic difference between true porce-lain tile and ceramic tile is that porcelain isconsiderably more dense and fired to be moredurable and, most importantly — much moreresistant to water absorption.

Tthere always seem to be exceptionsconfronting and befuddling the carwash in-dustry, and there can be some exceptions inthe case of tile. But as a pretty sound rule ofthumb:

100% porcelain tile is the best,most recommended tile for carwashes.


Here are a couple examples (both from Polynet Carwash Systems of Sarasota, Florida) that give a hint as to the design possibili ties provided bytile. On the left a very stately wall of 4 X 4 “royal” violet that is rather forgiving of overspray scum. And on the right, m ostly 8 X 8 white tiles (installedfaster and use less grout) that reflect/maximize light and is offset by a very lively band of colorful 3 X 3 tiles.

Problems with tile adhering or cracking? Well,chances are your installer did not follow the TileCouncil of America’s guidelines for proper instal-lation of tile on exterior walls. And/or did not usefreeze/thaw resistant materials.

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There are 2 types of porcelain tiles spec’dfor exterior use:

1) Vitrified which is rated by the ANSIto have a water absorbtion rate of .5% — 3%.

2) Impervious which only absorbs 0.0to .5% water.

The water absorption rating is very im-portant in selecting tile in a wet environment... especially so in areas that are subject tofreeze/thaw cycles. The less water absorbedthe better — obviously. It’s also is one of themajor reasons some ceramic tiles fail in acarwash environment. Besides being imper-vious to water absorption, porcelain tile holdsup very well to chemicals and also to chippingbecause it is both very dense and strong, plusit’s the same color throughout the tile.

You’ll also find that tile is also classifiedby its application — as either “Wall” or themore durable “Floor”. We’ve heard fromoperators that they have gotten the longest,best performance after choosing “Floor” tileeven though they were put on bay walls.

Is tile a do-it-yourself project? Laying tileis not difficult if you have had any experiencewith it. However, unless you are familiar withall the correct material to use, the proper use ofthat material and the proper installation tech-niques, the investment of tiling your carwashshould probably be left to the professionals.

The other important question to ask is— does your tile installer really know whathe’s doing?!! Before you choose an installer,familiarize yourself with the proper techniquesrecommended for installing tile on an exteriorwall in a wet environment. One website witha lot of detailed information on tile installa-tion is www.thetiledoctor.com. A few pointedquestions can make sure you are choosing aqualified installer.

Jim Reeks is the owner of T&K Car-wash, a four bay self-serve carwash in Sydney,New York. What is unusual about Jim is he isalso a tile distributor. He installed porcelaintile on his carwash when he built it in 1994. A

The owner of this SS in Texas has gottena good, strong look and performance onhis walls from his 12 X 12 floor tiles.

Here’s a wash (Pronto Wash in St. Petersburg) that demonstrates anespecially colorful and rather “artsy”, free spirited use of tile in its SS bays. The “eclectic”design/layout of tile in diverse colors tends to be a bit more forgiving of overspray stain andmakes for less noticeable replacement of any broken tiles.


12 x 12 porcelain tile installed on block walls(the equipment room) and on wood studs 12"on center with Wonderboard as a backing.Wonderboard was used because it is impervi-ous to water (several tile suppliers recom-mended Wonderboard also as the best choice).Unglazed porcelain tile was used and if he hadto do it again, Jim would use glazed tile be-cause it would be easier to clean. The ivorycolor tile with a blue strip does look good after10 years of use. It reflects light and was a goodchoice for the appearance of his carwash.

The cost for installation of good porcelaintile is about $4 to $8 a square foot (labor andmaterials). Seconds at his carwash were usedto save money. He has only replaced one tilebecause of damage in the 10 years he has had thewash. Jim noted there has been no verticaldamage to grout, but there have been a fewproblems with the horizontal grout surfaces.Water in a few problem areas tends to collect onthe surface and has required regrouting andalso a silicone caulk to seal the problem areas.

Jim also recommended using a mortarwith a latex additive to increase the dimen-sional flexibility of the tile. All tile expandsand contrasts with temperature and moisturechanges. The expansion joints are a criticaldimension in tile installation.

Greg Frey of Polynet (Sarasota, Florida)has specialized in creating beautiful, imagi-native SS carwash walls using tile for over 15years. Over those years, the SSCWN has doneseveral articles that have featured numerousoutstanding washes designed/built/supplied

by Frey’s company. He uses colored epoxyresin grout that matches the accent tile in thebay. By using the colored grout, it preventsthe dirt from showing easily. The tile they useis a fired ceramic tile usually 8 x 8, but re-cently they have been using larger 10 x 10 oreven 12 x 12 tiles. Greg recommends usingKlean Wall (see info under Spray-on Fiber-glass for more detail), a mild acid cleaner toprevent etching of the tile.

Bottom line: tile can work for a SS car-wash, but you must be prepared to pay what ittakes to make sure it’s done right and thenmaintain it properly. I recall an “On TheRoad” story in a past issue of the SSCWN thatrecounted what happened at a wash wherethe owner didn’t do his due diligence when itcame to tile walls. He bought “bargain” ce-ramic tile which lost its glaze after only a fewyears. The frustrated owner then added in-sult to injury and put paint over the tile ...which pealed like crazy!

Here’s a good example of using a darkcolored grout (red in this case) which ismore forgiving when it comes to stainsand maintenance.

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FRP PanelsPat Crowe’s article back in 1991 noted

that the FRP Panels headed the list as the mostpopular wall covering materials for a carwashrehab. FRP continues to be extremely popularin rehabs and even some new construction.However, within the last several years we haveseen more choices become available. In fact,many operators I talked to for this article arerehabbing their FRP panelled walls with someof these newer breeds of materials. Some saythey were tired of trying to keep the FRP cleanand they wanted something “more modern”looking. We’ll review some of those choicesshortly. But for now, lets take a look at what theSSCWN had to say about Fiberglass Panels inthe early ‘90’s. The info still holds true ...

The technical name for the panel mate-rial is “Fiberglass Reinforced Plastic (FRP) —a uniform matt of glass fibers imbedded in anorganic (plastic) resin. So these panels areactually as much plastic as they are fiberglasswhich is added to increase durability. Yetthey are most often referred to as just “fiber-glass” or “glass board”

They are available in a variety of colorsand the five manufacturers listed also offerdiffering grades, thicknesses, and sizes of thismaterial. FRP’s has been the product ofchoice as a wall covering material for rehab-bing many carwash walls around the country.

Just as a professional quality paint jobinvolves a good bit more than throwing on aquick coat of paint, there’s a bit more to theinstallation of these panels than one mightanticipate. The panels can be glued on, screwedon, or attached with nylon truss head driverivets. The combination of rivets and adhe-sives is the method most commonly suggestedby the manufacturers to cover carwash walls.

Once again, surface preparation is im-portant. The surface to which the panels areto be attached should be smooth and flat.Block walls may appear to be flat, but ininstalling these panels care must be taken toavoid a wavy appearance. Some irregularitiesin block surface can become more noticeablewhen the large, smooth panels are laid downover them. To totally avoid little waves orbulges requires doing a number of thingsright. A “flawless” surface is possible if pro-truding surface irregularities are removed orrecessions in the walls are filled.

One manufacturer says, “Concrete blockwalls (if especially irregular) may require aleveling coat of plaster.” Plastering to prep bayswalls is certainly an extraordinary thing to do.If, however, the walls are made nice and smooth,it may be possible to attach the panels withadhesive only — 100% coverage with very thor-ough sealing of seams and ends — thereby,eliminating the time and expense of drilling andhammering in many hundreds of rivets. Thistechnique is mentioned as an option in somemanufacturer literature, but as far as we knowit’s only a “theory” because we’ve heard of no onewho has actually done it.

Manufacturers provide numerous acces-sory pieces to use with the panels. There aredivision bars for joining adjacent panels, endcaps, inside and outside corners, two piecevinyl moldings which snap into place are avail-able to cover the seams.

The panels do expand with heat andcontract with cold. In an 8 foot span one needsto allow 1/4" for expansion and contraction.Moreover, the holes for fasteners must bedrilled slightly oversize also to allow for ex-pansion and contraction. The head of thefasteners (truss head nylon rivets) keeps theoversize holes from showing and the accessorypieces used at the seams hide the necessaryexpansion space between panels.

The recommended method of installationis to use both adhesive and fasteners on a clean,dry, flat surface. The fasteners should be ap-proximately 16" apart; should start about 1"from the edges of panels; and should be stag-gered at the seams. Pre-drilling of a stack ofpanels in a symmetric layout will insure a neatlyorganized appearance. Start fastening at oneedge and work toward the other to avoid bulges.

It is possible for one man to install thesepanels. But all by yourself, it is very difficultto wrestle, position, hold and fasten such largesheets — most commonly 4' x 8' or 4' x 10' witheven larger sheets available. FRP installa-

tion is really a 2 man job, and even a thirdcould be kept busy cutting, drilling, and trim-ming sheets while the other two focus onattaching the panels to the walls.

Adhesive can be used in 100% coverageor applied in beads. For 100% coverage applyabout 1/4" of adhesive and spread it with anotched trowel. If beads are to be used applythem at least every 8". In either method thepanel should be touched to the wall and pulledback 8" or 10" so that any solvents can be“flashed off”. Once the panels have beentouched and pulled back then they should bepressed in place with sufficient pressure toinsure full contact.

In order to insure a moisture proof in-stallation all the edges of the panels (which

will be in end caps or division bars at theseams) should be sealed with a flexible sili-cone caulking. The sealant goes in the space

FRP is available in a great variety of colorsand textures. However, it’s the white andcream pebbled panels that are seen almostexclusively in carwash bays.

FRP has long been the standard workhorsewhen it comes to bay rehab. Here’s a classicexample of the power of FRP to revitalize olddingy bays — relatively fast and inexpensively.

FRP can be a fine way to brighten andreinvigorate bays. But all those rivets and seamshave no fans. And while it’s fairly easy to clean,FRP has to be cleaned regularly or soap scumand stain will become tough and unsightly.


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allowed for expansion and contraction, butbecause it’s flexible it allows for the panels toshrink and expand.

I asked manufacturers/suppliers if anaverage do-it-yourselfers could install FRPpanels. I was told by Sequentia, “Carefulinstallation is important to keep the panelsflat on the walls. We furnish detailed instal-lation instructions and if a person followsthose and uses 100% adhesive coverage it canbe done. I’ve seen some amateur installers doa very respectable job, but they must followthe instructions.”

Out in the real world, however,manufacturer’s instructions are rarely followedto the letter. In fact, many operators who buyfactory seconds do not get any specific, writteninstructions at all! I know that most operatorscertainly do not have a smoothing coat of plasterput on their block walls. I even doubt than verymany use bead adhesive, let alone “100% cover-age”. Perhaps that’s because they don’t wantthe additional hassle with panel removal andreplacement after some severe damage; or, evenmore likely, they don’t want to “waste” the extratime and glue. And looking around from washto wash, as often as not you’ll not even see end-cap moldings nor beads of silicone sealant. Andyet these panels still manage to look pretty good— aside from an occasional “dimple” or wave.

IMPORTANT UPDATE: the above inforegarding FRP installation was what carwashowners were being told by the FRP industry’ssuppliers in the early ‘90’s. Within the last fewyears, however, their instructions regardingadhesives have changed considerably. You’llnow find, for example, in Sequentia’s latestinstallation manual very specific new guide-lines for high moisture applications. Namely:

Adhesives are NOT recommendedfor mounting FRP on carwash walls —“ rivets only” they now say! Nor shouldadhesives be used on any non-porous walls(such as tile, glazed block, metal, etc.)

When it comes to allowing for expan-sion/contraction, these panels are less for-giving and you cannot be casual in installa-tion. The panels can develop unsightly bulgesand even crack if there is insufficient clear-ance for the rivets and between panels.

Another aspect of FRP panels that somefind a bit “unsightly” are the seams. There arethose who think that seams may be harder toclean. Or, perhaps, they just don’t care for theway seam strips “interrupt the visual flow” ofa wall. Sequentia suggests that type of indi-vidual consider rolled FRP which comes onrolls up to 500' long and 9 1/2' high. It can becut (on site or at the factory into single sheetslarge enough to cover an entire bay walls.

There are few operators who have avoidedseams and minimized rivets by installing long,custom cut sheets of FRP (or cutting their ownto size from a continuous roll) that cover theentire length of a nice, smooth block wall. Wenote, however, that the Spot Not SS wash fran-chise (headquartered in Joplin, Missouri) hasdone a number of their bay walls throughout theMidWest in that slick, distinctive manner.

FRP CostsSomewhat amazingly, the costs for FRP

mentioned in the SSCWN article some 13years ago are still valid today ... with theexception of labor.

As you might expect, costs vary widely. Inpricing the panels from several suppliers I wasquoted as low as 55¢ a square foot and a highprice of about $1.25 a square foot, with a halfdozen prices in between. Quite a spread! Andbear in mind to rehab walls one needs more thanjust the panels. There are also the accessorypieces for top and bottom, seams and corners;rivets, adhesive; and caulking/sealant.

One can find 4 x 8 sheets at local lumberyards at about $30 a sheet. Seemingly goodbuys and deals abound. But, as we saw withceramic tiles — all FRP panels are not createdequal, and there are basically 3 things thataffect FRP panel price:

• Color — you can get virtually anycolor you want, but there is a surcharge andminimum quantity involved with custom col-ors apart from white, cream and about 10“standard colors”.

• Thickness — panels range in thick-ness from about 4/100" to 12/100". The gaugeuniversally recommended for carwash appli-cations is 9/100" (just under 1/10"). Anythingheavier is unnecessary, but if you go anythinner (the next size down is 6/100") youmust have a smooth, solid wall to help reducerisk of damage.

•Quantity — all manner of quantityprice deals can be cut with retailers. Many arewilling to “negotiate” down from suggestedretail price. In fact, we’ve heard that in largeenough quantities (even less than two 6-bays’worth) it’s possible to buy direct from somemanufacturers.

Bought in quantities of 1000, the rivetsshould be about 6¢ each with each 4 x 8 sheetrequiring 28 rivets. The accessory pieces runabout $1 to $2 each depending on type. Theadhesive in 5 gallon buckets using 100% cov-erage should add about 20¢ a square foot tothe cost, plus there’s a tube of silicone sealant($3-$5) needed for each couple of sheets.

A typical 4 bay carwash with the panelsput on the 8 interior walls would need 2,000 to

3,000 square feet of material; 8 to 10 five gallonbuckets of adhesives; accessory pieces for eachtop, bottom and seam; and a half dozen or sotubes of sealing caulk. That puts the overallmaterial cost in the $2,000 to $4,000 range for a4 bay carwash. That’s $500 to $1,000 per bay formaterials only … no labor.

But, as usual, careful shopping can save“tons” of money. Factory seconds (panels“blemished” by chipped corners or perhaps avirtually invisible pin hole, irregular sizes,etc.) are sometimes available. I was, for ex-ample, offered 44" wide panels (cut down fromstandard 48" and left over from a specialorder) at a deep discount.

For the person not inclined to do-it-yourself activities, the cost of labor has to beincluded. The best source of contractors whodo this type of work is usually the supplier ofthe materials. In strong union areas whichcraftsmen install the panels is sometimes apoint of jurisdictional dispute, but generallythe work goes to the carpenters.

To get a focus on the cost of a turn keyinstallation of the panels I called Gordon Light.He is a veteran carwash owner and recentlyoutfitted a 10 bay carwash. He rehabbed allthe walls using 4' x 8' white panels. Heshopped around for the panels and hired alocal carpenter he knew. The carpenter hadnot done such panels before, but he was askilled craftsman and carefully read the in-structions. The carpenter charged $10 anhour and $5 an hour for his helper. Gordonsaid “The materials were about $500 a bayand the labor about $300 a bay. And I’vegotten lots of compliments on how it looks!”

Most readers probably know those laborrates are very modest. But that does tell usthat it takes about 40 man hours to do eachbay. Perhaps a little less, since these menhadn’t done this exact type of work before.The numbers also confirm that in areas wherelabor rates are $25 an hour the labor alonecould be $1,000 a bay.

I got much the same sort of cost informa-tion from Ross Alexander, a Canadian carwashoperator who gives the FRP panels rave re-views. Ross said he spent about $4,200 (Ameri-can $) to get his 6 bay covered with the panels.


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He used rivets only (no adhesive) to mount hispanels. Ross said, “they’re a little loose andflexible in places, but I like that because we getso much ice in cold weather. All I have to do ithit the panels and since they’re a bit flexible theice cracks and falls right off.”

Ross also mentioned that in addition tothe daily wash downs with the wand in thebay, that about once a month the panels arecleaned with an acid solution and a stiff nylonbrush. “That keeps them,” he said, “shiningand bright — just like a new nickel!” Depend-ing on volume and ambient dirt those cleaningswith a good acidic solution are more typicallydone every other month to as infrequently astwice a year.

It’s clear the cost is higher than paint-ing, even when sandblasting is included in thecost of preparing walls for painting. But witha life expectancy that well exceeds most paintsand such a bright, neat, clean appearance —it’s easy to understand the lasting popularityof FRP panels in the carwash industry.

Some FRP TipsI got this piece of advice from several

operators: as a hedge against expansion/con-traction problems, “try to pick the hottest,most humid day to install your FRP panelsand save yourself from having to do it again”.

Also, nowadays FRP panels come in de-signer surfaces that look like granite and

marble for a really “fancy” carwash bay.One other benefit worth mentioning is

that you don’t have to close your whole washto install the FRP panels. Many of the otherwall coverings require anywhere from 2 daysto almost 2 weeks to complete the installation.When it comes to rehabbing a wash, minimiz-ing that down time for a wash can be a hugedeciding factor in choosing FRP panels.

I also spoke to Scott Gray (Soapy’s Car-wash in Idaho Falls, Idaho) who put FRPpanels on most of his SS bay walls and some ofhis automatics about 4 years ago. Scott saidthey clean up much easier than painted wallsand are much brighter too. He installed themhimself and at his first wash he used a lot ofadhesive and nylon rivets. This helped keepthe panels from rippling. Scott said, “We gofrom minus 20 degrees to over 100 degreesduring the year and they have held up fine”.

He prefers to install at least 9 foothighpanels in the bays and has not always gone tothe ceiling with them. “If the wall is paintedwhite behind them, you don’t notice that theydo not go all the way up the wall,” Scott said.

“Another big plus — during our bitterlycold winters, ice does not build up on the wallswith the FRP panels. Before I installed FRP,in the cold winter months ice would some-times build up over 1 foot thick on the baywalls. The only way to get rid of it was to chopit off with an axe. One time I did not get it done

quick enough and on a warm day a huge sheetof ice fell off the wall and landed on the side ofa car. It did over $1600 damage to the car. The$1600 would have paid to install two baysworth of FRP. With FRP you can just slap thewall with your hand and a small thin sheet ofice falls off with no fuss”.

Contact informationMajor brand names and sources for FRP:• Kemlite/Sequentia Structoglas from Spe-cialized Building Systems, 800-433-5419;www.kemlite.com• Kal-Lite from Kalwal; 800-258-9777.• Glasteel; 901-877-3010; www.glasteel.com• Lasco Panels; 800-877-2005

SPRAY-ONFIBERGLASS

Several operators told me howthey were searching for asleek, modern looking walltreatment that would allowthem to incorporate moredynamic colors into the de-sign of their carwashes. Something like theeffect you can achieve with paint, but theydefinitely did not want to use paint. Theirsolution was found in “SOF” — Spray-OnFiberglass.

The existing walls must be sandblasted toremove old paint, dirt, grease and grime beforeapplying the fiberglass. Generally, the processwill take about one week to prepare the wallsand apply the material to a typical existingmasonary 5-6 bay wash. New construction,however, can be coated in as little as 10 hours.The polymer can be applied to virtually any-thing, but the fiberglass is not very compatiblewith metal (corrugated especially).

Unlike FRP panels, paint, or even tile —this is not a do-it-yourself application! Thisform of fiberglass coating is technically trickyto apply — requiring time, skill and correctmix of proper materials. It’s a 6 step processinvolving very thorough surface prep followedby resin sealing coat; fiberglass and resin; resin

barrier coat; finish preparation; and finally ahigh-build top coat. That creates a coatingabout 1/4” thick. The finished surface is notexactly like glass — not super smooth and flat.The finished product does have a slick, veryhard surface and resembles ceramic tile inweight/density and finish. It has a very subtlemottled or just barely perceptable dimpledlook, which can only be discerned on an anglein the right light. Actually it looks better (tomy eye) than a super high sheen, “glass-glass”look that is not so forgiving of any impactdamage or overspray film/stain.

The warrantee is for 10 years and the costis approximately $4 a square foot for both mate-rial and labor. The finished surface is bright,highly light reflective and seamless. Being (Continued On A Following Page)

FRP easily sheds ice greatly minimizingthe potentially dangerous problem of icebuild up as seen on these masonary walls.

such a smooth, slick surface, SOF cleans upeasily and “bay algae” (mold and mildew) can-not easily get a toe hold either. Another benefitof SOF is the ability to add different colors, logos,stripes, and even signage into the design.

Five years ago, Bill Sartor of San AntonioTexas had the fiberglass applied to the walls ofone of his older SS carwashes that needed reno-vating. He picked a white background with ateal blue and red stripe. (See before and afterphotos on following page.) Bill reports that thewalls have held up really well and only has hadto repair one spot where a customer’s vehicle hithis wall damaging the fiberglass coating. It wasrepaired with fiberglass tape. Other operatorshave reported to us that do-it-yourself repairs(certainly on more major damage) are often notpossible. Typically to get a clean, discreet “patch”applied to a damaged wall, you’ll need the ser-vices of the pro who did the initial application.

To maintain that sleek, clean look of thewalls, once about every 4 months or so Bill usesKlean Wall which is manufactured by AP For-mulators Chemical Company (888-893-SOAP)and distributed by Jim Coleman Company.Klean Wall was developed by the owner of APFormulators, Allan Palermo, and does not con-tain hydroflouric acid. It does contain, however,phosphoric acid among other ingredients to cleanthe walls. As with any product that has a causticacid component, it is important to follow thecompany’s safety data on wearing the correctprotective equipment when using the product.

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Bill Sartor transformed the walls of this tired ol’ grungy 8 bay in San Antone via spray-on fiberglass. The result: bright, s lick, durable, easy toclean/maintain walls that incorporate a sharp, lively blue and red “racing stripe” as an integral part of the wall coating.

Four years ago, Dean Smith in Fort Collins,Colorado also used the spray-on fiberglass withgood results. He had concrete block walls thatwere getting old and tired looking. It took aweek to complete the process at his 3 SS wandbay + 1 in-bay automatic carwash. The fiber-glass was blown on all the way from ceiling tofloor to prevent moisture from getting behindthe fiberglass onto the walls. It has held up wellagainst the harsher climate. He is very pleasedwith the results and agreed that it is laborintensive, specialized skill and was more thanhappy to pay someone to do it professionally ...and guarantee the work. Dean had tried severalmethods of maintaining the walls. He has nowsettled on a simple formula for a brush on, sprayoff cleaning solution that consists of one partmuratic acid and one part water used approxi-mately every 6 months.

Our Little Ol’ Acid TestA couple issues back in the SSCWN, the

editor recopiunted a little test he performed ona 4 X 4 inch sample section of a fiberglass “tile”.A half a teaspoon of Nu-Wall (from ArcadianChemical) on 2 sections of thefiberglass. NuWall is a mix of 3 different acids includinghydroflouric and is one of the most powerful,corrosive, (and potentially dangerous), butextemely effective acid cleaners that I have everused. Still, he put Nu-Wall on the sample

undiluted — about 5 times the recommendedworking strength.

The raw acid concentrate was allowed toremain on one section of the fiberglass tile for 15minutes, and then for one hour on the other halfof the section. There was no discernible differ-ence (to the eye or touch) on either section fromthe rest of the untreated surface — no etching.That was verified by soaking the fiberglass incoffee for 15 minutes — no stain on any part ofthe sample.

THE stain test is found in using a heavyduty, permanent black felt tip marker. Thesample was scribbled all over and allowed to“cure” for an hour. There was only the slightesthint (a vague “ghost”) of a stain after a cleaningwith isopropyl alchohol. But again, there nodiscernible difference in clean up of the sectionsexposed to acid — further substantiating thatno etching had occured.

We were favorably impressed by thisproduct’s tested performance and operator tes-timonials.

If you’re considering such wall coatings,the SSCWN urges operators to thoroughly checkthe references and previous jobs (preferablydone more than 2 years ago) of anyone sellingthis service. Given the complexity of this pro-cess, we suspect that there could dramatic dis-parities in application performance and quality

of materials from supplier to supplier. You canfind companies in the yellow pages that reno-vate pools using the spray-on fiberglass. You’llwant to use a company that has trained techni-cians certified by the Composite FabricatorsAssociation. The CFA’s website is at www.cfa-hq.org/index.cfm. They also have a list of termsused in the industry that might be helpful to alay person to understand the terminology andthe process. According to Cristi Roberts ofPremier Fiberglass in Austin, Texas, “the typeof fiberglass composites used for the carwashindustry are thermoset resins, which begin asliquid polymers and are converted to solidsduring crosslinking — an irreversible moldingprocess. Check out that list of definitions on theAssociations website if you didn’t understandthat last sentence.

ContactHere are several suppliers of this prod-

uct/service who have had experience with itsapplication in carwashes:

Premier Fiberglass, 888-424-0022premierfiberglass.com

Fiberglass Concepts, 877-537-6692,fiberglassconcepts.com

Seguin Fiberglass, 830-372-1790,seguinfiberglass.com

SPRAY-ON PLASTICSpray-on plastic polymers are probably

familiar to most everyone who is into pickuptrucks. These polymers are commonly sprayedon to line/protect truck beds. We should notethat spray-on fiberglass and spray-on plasticsmay appear to be somewhat similar, but theyare distinctly different ... especially in thelevel of satisfaction from carwash operators.

I did not find any operators who werepleased with the results after having used thespray-on plastic polymer material applied totheir masonary bay walls. For example, ScottGray (in Idaho Falls, Idaho) paid $6,000 tohave plastic polymer sprayed on his auto-matic bay with split-faced block. He is verydissatisfied. While the product sprayed-onwhite, it soon discolored and in a few places

has even turned brown! And we spoke withtwo operators (one from the dry, hot Soutwestand the other from New England) who sharedidentical horror stories. Both had “Rhino” (aplastic-polymer brand) truck bed lining

sprayed on their walls. Within 8 months bothsaid their walls looked terrible — pealing andsplitting everywhere ... especially all aroundthe edges. One of the very bitterly disap-pointed operators said he was going to have it

Here’s an example of what might be a satisfactory application of spray-on plastic. The CarwashExpress in Tacoma, Washington was a fine rehab effort which utilized a polymer coating on its metalwalls — very similar to a metal truck bed. After a couple years use, the walls continue to look fine!

Here’s an example of what might be a satisfactory application of spray-on plastic. The CarwashExpress in Tacoma, Washington was a fine rehab effort which utilized a polymer coating on its metalwalls — very similar to a metal truck bed. After a couple years use, the walls continue to look fine!


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Under all that protective gear, is Lisa Lyons who isdemonstrating the smart, safe way to dress whencleaning walls with caustic chemicals — especiallycleaners with hydrofluoric acid as a component.

Operators often use acids and other causticchemicals on their walls. And many rely onhydrofluoric acid due to its remarkable power andperformance when it comes to rejuvenating baywalls covered with alkali scum and stain. But evenusing diluted hydrofluoric demands very serioussafety precautions!

Several of the operators in this article have decidedthat it’s a good idea to hire a professional cleaningcompany (licensed and insured) to do this job. Asone operator said, “I do not want to take the chance.So I always hire someone to do the job for me.”

If you are going to use products that contain acids(especially hydrofluoric), it’s VERY important tofollow all of the manufacturer’s directions and wearthe proper equipment to protect yourself or youremployees. Clean walls are not worth your health!

• A full face plastic shield and/orsafety glasses.

• Approved respirator (complyingwith AS/NZS 1716) fitted with anacid-gas filter when working inconfined areas or when sprayinga solution of hydrofluoric acid.

• Long-sleeved, protectiveoveralls and gloves.

• Protective Apron (covering topof boots) when handlinghydrofluoric acid.

• Hi-rise, protective rubber boots.

Better Safe Than Sorry ... Much Better!

“Keeping It Clean” — Wall Maintenance Tips And Chemistry

Here are some commercial cleaners andgeneric chemicals that we have gotten opera-tor endorsements for over the years. It seemsto comes down to personal preference, whichmeans you usually have to shop around andexperiment until you find a product, tech-nique and wall maintenance schedule thatworks for you.

Klean Wall is manufactured by APFormulators Chemical Company and distrib-uted by Jim Coleman Company. Klean Walldoes not contain hydroflouric acid, so may notbbe quite as “aggressive” as those products thatdo. KW, however, does contain phosphoric acid,and therefore still requires similar safety proce-dures and protective gear. As seen in thisarticle, we interviewed several operators whoare very pleased with KW on a variety of walls.

Klenztone is brand name,a non-acid cleaner that has somevery enthusiastic proponentsamong some experienced opera-tors. It’s available and rated forstrength in 4 different formulaseach targeting different types ofsoil and wall surface — Formula 1,for example, is the most powerfuland used for oil/grease on concretepavement and masonary. And For-mula 4 is the least aggresssive andsafest for all round use on masonrycarwash walls and unglazed ce-ramic tile. Klenztone can be scrub-brushed on, but more often it is sprayed on atlow pressure and allowed to dwell. The manu-facturer recommends allowing max dwell time(30 minutes to an hour). Allowing it to dry is noproblem. It can then be HP rinsed/sprayed off.

Nu Wall from Arcadian Chemical hasmany fans among operators. It’s powerfulstuff! However, it contains hydrofluoric acidso wearing serious protective gear (similar toLisa’s seen below) is not exactly optional.

Muriatic Acid is an long time “downhome”, generic favorite. We hear that about 4parts water to one part muriatic is a good allround formula for a variety of wall surfaces. Itcan be sprayed on with a low pressure plasticweed sprayer (not galvanized metal which theacid will eat up), let it set for a few minutes, donot let it dry though, scrub if necessary with along handled fairly stiff bristled brush, andthen rinse with high pressure.

Phosphoric Acid may not be aspowerful or dangerous as hydrofluoric, but itstill requires no nonsense safety precautions

and proper protective clothing.Mixing it with water to about a25% solution, spraying on with anacid resistant plastic sprayer, let-ting sit 5 to 10 minutes, and (be-fore it begins to dry) rinsing offwith high pressure.

Power Washing is an-other standard for rejuvenatingand cleaning walls. Many opera-tors will rent a unit that will gen-erate 2500+ PSI pressure and goat it once a year or so. Quite a fewoperators have purchased theirPressure Washers and conve-

niently use them whenever the need arises.You can buy a real heavy duty PW that’llpump out 3400 PSI and 3 or more GPM for$700-$800. But, man oh man — you gotta be

cautious. You couldamputate your footwith one of those badboy on wheels! Youcould also chew upyour walls too. Othercautious operators hireexperienced, licensed, in-sured professionals who haveall the right protective gear and know how tobest blend the proper cleaning agents intothat very High Pressure blast.

Sodium Hypochlorite or good ol’generic household “bleach” has been an inex-pensive but quite effective mainstay for op-erators (especially those in the humid South-east) who battle “bay moss” and mildew stains.Bleach, however, can be stymied when it comesto your porous grout/mortar lines. So sealingthem (and resealing as needed) will makecleaning easier and faster.

Tire Cleaner as found among thefunctions on your SS bay meter is a handydandy cleaner for routine wall cleaning main-tenance.

“Etceteras”— here are a couple otherbrand products that we don’t know too much aboutbut at least have gotten a positive report or two:

• Foaming Tunnel Cleaner,from Zep Mfg., has kelating agents that ap-pear to work especially well on painted walls.

• VS3 Power Wall Cleaner, fromthe VonSchrader Co., is an all around productthat touts it’s being “very safe but effective.”

Here’s the mandatory “wardrobe” when it comes toheavy duty wall cleaning with heavy duty caustics:

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all redone with a spray-on wall coating doneby a fiberglass wall coating specialist.

Polymers do work quite well on metal orpainted truck beds, because eliminating mois-ture is not a real problem on non-porous sur-faces. So we suspect that those problems withpolymer spray in carwashes may have some-thing to do with the deep, residual moistureoften found even in apparently “dry” masonary.That moisture could prevent perfect adhesionand then precipitate pealing and discoloration.

The only operator we know of who hasbeen pleased with spray-on polymer is Corey

Campbell owner of Classy Chassis and Car-wash Express in Tacoma, Washington. Coreyhad the walls of an old, dilapidated “tin” 3-baycoated with the material in blue. After acouple years’ heavy use (and no shortage ofmoisture) his walls still look darn good. (Seephoto on previous page.) Apparently suchpolymers were made to stick especially well tometal ... as it does to truck beds. If anyoperator has had sustained good performancefrom a polymer app — we’d love to hear aboutit. But for now and apart from possibly metalrehabs — we cannot recommend it.

PVC WallsWhile FRP Panels and spray-on fiber-

glass walls have their proponents, a number ofoperators are turning away from fiberglass be-cause of the need to use acid products to cleanthem. They are trying PVC walls and panels.While doing research for this article, I wasrather surprised at the number of operatorschoosing to use this product. They all had triedseveral different options including FRP panels,spray-on fiberglass, tile, and many differenttypes of paint. The other thing they had incommon were the reasons they decided to trythe PVC walls. They were looking for somethingthat was easy to install, did not require closingtheir carwash for a long length of time, easy tokeep clean, and they also all like the look of thePVC panels after installation. The PVC wallsreflect light really well and give an old carwasha new, bright shiny look.

PVC panels are relatively lightweight,easy to install, can be used on the ceiling, exte-rior and interior walls and can be attached tocover just about any building material. Therigid PVC does not buckle like FRP panels andcontains UV inhibitors to prevent yellowing.Panels can be installed in any climate area, evenin extreme hot and cold climates.

There are two main manufacturers ofthis product that are serving the carwashindustry: Extrutech Plastics, Inc. inManitowac, Wisconsin, and Royal BuildingSystems, headquartered in Ontario, Canada.Both companies manufacture very similar PVCpanels for covering and rehabbing existing

While spray-on plastic polymers get the jobdone on metal, we have to have our doubtsabout it on masonary carwash walls.

bay walls. Recent price quotes indicate thatthe Extrutech Plastics panels cost about $1.50per square foot (material only). The panelsare 1/2 inch thick, 12 inches wide and can bepurchased in any length up to 20 feet.

Royal Building System’s ReNew panelscost between $2 to $2.50 a square foot (materialonly). They’re 14 inches wide and can be ob-tained custom cut to any length up to 20 feet.

My personal interest in this type of wallcovering product has increased for a couplereasons. First, PVC panels have been creatinga real growing “buzz” in the SS community overthe last couple years — a lot of operators aretalking about it, and quite a few have beeninstalling it. And secondly, I have had a PVCdoor at one of my washes for 5 years and havebeen more than happy with the results. It facesthe truck bay so it is always getting dirty fromthe trucks and it’s always wet. I had to replacetwo metal doors in 10 years and was look-

ing for something that would hold up to theabuse of being right next to my truck bay. ThePVC door is washed down daily with the hi-pressure gun and I clean it once a month with409 using a nylon brush. After 5 years, it stilllooks as good as the day it was installed!

Jim Allen in Radcliff, Kentucky had theExtrutech panels installed on his All Star Car-wash concrete blocks walls almost one year ago.He had tried paint and FRP board but was nothappy with the results. He spent approximatelya total of $20,000 for material and labor to havethe ExtruTech installed on the walls of his 6 + 2carwash. Jim said, “I installed all new equip-ment, signage and have 4 lights in each bayalong with putting up the PVC panels. A nightthe bays look like operating rooms they are sobright! My customers all tell me it looks great!”

Jim used anchor lag bolts to install thesignage and tightened them down just beforethe panel starts to dimple. He hasn’t had anydamage to the panels except for one freakyincident. Pigeons had been chronically splatter-ing his pristine, sparkling wash bays with theirdoo-doo. One day, Jim had enough and he wentafter one of the mess making birds — swinginga broom handle like a Louisville slugger. Hemissed the bird, but whacked the heck out of thePVC and put a small dent/hole into it.

Bob Ivory (owner of Buggy Bath Car-washes in Utah and Arizona) also installedthe PVC wall panels and at the same timechanged out his light fixtures. While mostoperators remodeling decide to add higherwatt fixtures or put up more fixtures, Bobmade the decision to reduce the wattage in hisbays. He was using two 400 watt fixtures perbay which were replaced with only two 175watt fixtures per bay. His canopy was usingsix 400 watt fixtures and he reduced that to

ExtruTech PVC panelsare the latest “rising star”in carwash wall coveringmaterials — easy toinstall and maintain aswell as a good way toreally brighten up a bay.


The brilliant white wall rehab using Extrutech PVC panels at the All Star Carwash has gotten rave reviewsfrom Jimmy Allen’s customers in Radcliff, Kentucky — “the bays now look like operating rooms!”

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six 250 watt fixtures. He reduced his electri-cal load almost in half — from 8000 wattsdown to 4300 watts. And yet Bob is happy toreport that the bays reflect about double thelight! Saving almost 50% on his electrical billsshould pay for the panels in a few years time.He’s become a very enthusiastic convert toand proponent of PVC panels. Beyond utilitysavings, Bob’s really gung-ho on the fresh,new and super clean look his bays have now.

Three years ago, Lorie Cady and PeteMosteller, (MoCady Carwash in Colorado) in-stalled the Extrutech panels on just one wall oftheir automatic bay. That one interior wall onan end bay had degraded badly. To save thewall, they had to stop it from being wet all thetime. It took Pete about 6 hours to install thepanels himself. Lorie said “After 3 years, thepanels still look good and our wall is doing justfine. I really like the fact that ice doesn’t buildup anymore. The only drawback I see, is if youhad to replace one of the panels for some reason,it’s tongue-in-groove so you would have to re-move several panels to get to the one you need toreplace. But that’s not all that much of aconcern. We plan to put up more Extrutech ...certainly on the other side of the automatic bay.”

(Editor’s Note: in case an Extrutechpanel should ever need replacing, there apretty easy techinque to do so. Check out thesidebar column on the right of this page re-garding Panel Replacement.)

Installing ExtruTechGreg Pack, MetroWash in Alabama has

a variety of wall coverings at his washes -FRP, brick and painted concrete block. Hemade the decision to go with the PVCExtruTech panels because he like the look ofit and the lower maintenance aspect of keep-ing the walls clean. Greg with the help of his

brother and another worker installed the pan-els in less than a week on his 4 + 2 carwash.

They started by drilling holes and usingthe recommended fasteners. However, Gregfigured the job would require them to drill2,000 holes in the concrete block — time for anew power tool! He bought a propane Ramsetfastening tool for $600. It shot zinc platedfasteners (check the manufacturer’s websitefor the recommend fasteners) into the con-crete block and it really sped up the process.Before he got the tool it was taking just toolong to install the firring strips. Greg said theinstallation went pretty smoothly after thatexcept for the last J-trim piece was really hardto get in. He’s happy with the results of their

The Extrutech walls panels are tongue-in-groove,so removing and replacing a panel might seem challeng-ing. At the recent WCA convention, Scott Charles ofExtrutech showed us how. It’s not a difficult process.With just a little patience and practice, it’s fairly easy todo. Because this supposed “replacement problem”seems to be a concern for some operators, we’vedescribed the correct procedure as follows ...

To replace a damaged panel, you’ll need a utilityknife, two 3" putty knives, and a saw. Then followthese 8 steps:

1. Cut the bad panel down the middle the longway. Use a reciprocating saw or skill saw set at 9/16".

2. The half with the tongue will pull out easily.Pull it out and discard.

3. The section remaining will be the side withthe nailing fin. To remove this piece, take a sharputility knife and score the nailing fin right at thesplice. You may have to score the fin several timesto free the bad panel.

hard work though. It cost about $8,000 inmaterials (plus the new power tool) to install.

As noted above, Extrutech panels are verycompetitively priced. But beyond an appeallingprice point, the Extrutech Plastics companywants people to know that, “... we take greatpride in manufacturing products that are all100% American-made, and our committment to

provide good jobs to hundreds of folks righthere in Wisconsin.” Chances are

that the many operators whohave told us over the years

(especially since 9/11) that“buying American is impor-

tant to me” would like to know that fact.

4. Pull on the remaining half and it shouldrelease from the fin. If not, score the fin again witha little more pressure.

5. Once the second half is removed, you are readyto prepare the new panel. Take the new panel andremove the nailing fin. You may accomplish this byscoring it with a utility knife or cutting it off on a table saw.

6. Next, slit the back of the panel down themiddle, from one end to the other. Do not cutthrough to the front face! This cut will allow you tobend and “cup” the panel.

7. Once the fin is removed and the panel is slit, takethe new panel and start at one end (top) and placegroove side into the tongue of the existing panel. Cupthe panel slightly and place tongue of new panel intogroove of the opposite existing panel on the wall.

8. Work the tongue and groove of new panel inas you go down to the floor. You may wish to usewide putty knives on each side to help snap thepanels into place.

You Can Easily Replace ExtruTech Panels. Here’s How:

Royal’s RenewTony Baker decided to use the Royal

Building Renew wall panels at his VillageCarwash in Louisville, Kentucky. Tony de-cided on using the Renew panels because theyappeared thicker, more durable. He also likethe ease of replacing them if they becamedamaged. Renew wall panels are reversible.If one side is damaged, it is easily removed

and can be turned around and reinstalled.Tony has had 2 holes put in the panels since heinstalled them one year ago. He just removedthe panel, turned it around and it looked goodas new. He used the panels to cover concreteblock walls that had been painted in 1996with latex epoxy paint that hadn’t held upvery well. He cleans the bays daily with the

Royal Building System is credited with more than “just” fine rehabs via its Renew PVC panels. Theirsemi-modular wall forms are now being used in many spectacular new construction projects too.


Royal’s ReNew PVC panelsgo up quick ‘n slick!Plus, they’rereversible andcan be easilyflipped in caseof damage toone side.

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“Interesting” Alternative Walls

Metal walls?!! Yes, we’ve seen a number of new rehabs (as above) that may not be the “step backwards”many might assume. Monitor Buildings has coated steel products they say can now stand up to the rigorsof the SS environment. We’ll see. The wash below is one we discovered many years ago that used the“Ultimate metal” on its walls — stainless steel! For whatever reason, that was both the first ... and the last.

Vertical Vinyl Siding is loved by many, andhated by some. It’s inexpensive, easy toinstall and clean. However, VVS is not allthat durable. But then again — it’s cheapand easy to replace. Will it work for you? Only you can say.

These extraordinaryflag stone bay walls (inSan Antonio, Texas)are truly monumentalin their presentation,and offer durabilitythat’s quite literally“rock hard!”

Glass walled carwashes offer another way to make a very spectacular presentation ... especially atnight. They demand, however, more cleaning much more often than more “forgiving” wall materials.

Stucco walls are still “out there” but they have become quite rare. Theyprovide a wash with great “texture and character” but they do have a nastyhabit of “biting” onto overspray scum and holding it. Stucco is also ratherprone to cracking and spalling ... especially in the freeze zone.

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hi-pressure spray. For a more thorough clean-ing, he uses one part pre-soak to 8 parts water,uses a soft-bristle brush, and then rinses cleanwith hi-pressure water. He said they still lookexactly like they did when he installed them 1year ago. He paid $15,000 for material andabout $10,000 in labor to have the panelsinstalled at his 4 + 3 carwash. Tony hadpreviously paid $13,000 to have the latexepoxy painted on his walls and he thinks theRenew panels will look a lot better for a lotlonger while being easier to keep clean.

Tony also decided to have his menusigns made up on a vinyl decal. He went to thesign shop and showed them what he wanted.He just sticks the decal to the panel. He didn’twant to put holes in his new walls and byusing the decals he can update them easily.The vinyl can also be used on the panels as adecorative stripe to add color to the walls.

We would be remiss if we did not men-tion that Royal Building Systems is probablybest known for developing very innovativePVC wall forms that is comprised of solid

concrete encased in rigid and durable polymerforms and is used primarily for new construc-tion. Royal says that with their semi-modularPVC wall system, construction time for a typi-cal carwash can be as much as 2/3 less thanconventional concrete masonary construction.And that overall cost with their system isabout 20% less. The wall components areavailable in four standard colors: tan, gray,light gray and white. All trim, window anddoor frames are available in white only. Youcan apply stucco to the exterior walls and addvinyl graphics for designs on the bay walls.

Chris Mathews in Concord, New Hamp-shire acted as his own general contractor tobuild his new 4 + 2 Integra Carwash using theRoyal Building wall system. He discoveredthe product at the ICA’s convention in LasVegas. He liked that it didn’t require paintingand was low maintenance. Another decidingfactor was that the building went up quicklycompared to concrete block buildings.

Chris cleans the walls using his baystire and engine cleaner and then rinses off

with hi-pressure rinse. During construction,a 4 x 4 section of the building was damaged byequipment. He used the manufacturer’s rec-ommended product to repair the damage,sanded it down and painted it. Chris said youcan’t tell where the damaged section was.

My PVC Torture TestI had a sample of the PVC paneling, so I

decided to do a few tests to see how well thematerial holds up to “torture” in a real worldcarwash. My customers may be a little morerowdy then some, so I wanted to see how wellthe panels held up doing the various thingsmy customers and vandals have done to mywalls over the years. My tests included: usinga permanent black marker, spray paint,crayon, wood stain, adhesive spray, joint com-pound, wood glue, hammer and golf club, wandtip, screw driver, grease, and graffiti paintremover spray. I even tried to set it on fireusing a lighter and kept it in the freezerovernight.

I had heard from all the operators thatdirt, soap and wax buildup was very easy toremove, so I didn’t bother trying to do that.Besides, for that sort of test to be really valid itwould have required letting overspray buildupand cure on the wall material for several weeksor so. But, again, I trust the consensus ofexperienced opinion from operators who haveactually had PVC on their walls.

Please note, there are recommendedproducts to clean the walls. So before usingany cleaners you should check with the manu-facturer to find out if it will damage the pan-els. I started by trying wiping off the materialwith my hand, then moved on to a moist cloth,then to using the recommended products toclean, and finally used non-recommended prod-ucts to see what it would do to the panel. Note:I do not consider this a truly scientific test!But it at least provided me with some tangibleevidence as to what I might expect from thismaterial after some pretty tough SS carwashvandalism and “torture”.

ResultsAs shown by the previous SSCWN test

done on spray-on fiberglass ...

Permanent Black Marker is one ofthe most (if not THE most!) difficult substanceto remove. I started with a water-based cleaneras recommended. I used the popular, multi-purpose stain remover Goof-Off which smearedthe ink. I reapplied and let it sit for a fewminutes. I had to keep wiping it down with acloth and using the Goof-Off, but eventuallymost of it came off with just a shadow of themarker readable. I also used a citrus basedcleaner with better results and also acetone.Both got most of the marker off, but these arenot recommended products and over timewould dull the finish.

Spray Paint was sprayed on and leftovernight to dry. I then used just a water wettedcloth and with my fingernail pressed on thecloth, I got the majority of the paint off easily! Iused Goof-off to remove the last trace of thepaint with no damage to the surface at all.

Crayon rubbed off very easily with justmy thumb. I buffed with a dry cloth to removeall remaining color.

Wood Stain was a dark mahoganywhich I applied and let dry overnight. It cameoff with only a wet cloth and buffed up wellwith a dry cloth. No remaining stain.

Adhesive Spray: I used 3-M AdhesiveSpray and let it dry for a few hours. There isa reason this stuff is good — it really is sticky!I started trying to wipe it off with a cloth, butit wouldn’t budge. I then used Goof-Off and acloth. It took a bit of time and effort, butfinally all glue was removed without damageto the panel.

Wood Glue (water based) wiped off eas-ily with my thumb.

Joint Compound: I have a lot of dry-wall companies coming to my carwashes so Iget this a lot of that stuff splattered on thewalls. It’s a big pain to remove dried jointcompound from block walls, but the PVC wipedoff easily just using my thumb.

Grease: Most of it came off with a drycloth rub. I then used the water-based clean-ers to remove the remaining residue.

Screw Driver: I took a common, smallslot screwdriver and hit the panel. With justa couple of hits the screwdriver penetratedthe panel easily. I also used the screwdrivertip to write my “tag” (name) on the panel. Thedamage was easy to do and noticeable. Plugsan be purchased from the supplier to fix smallholes, but I do not know of any remedy forgouging scratches.

Hammer and Golf Club: I had towhack the hammer on the panel several timesbefore getting a good dent in it. I also helpedmyself to my husband’s golf bag and took hissand wedge and I banged the panel hard a fewtimes with that too. It dented it, but didn’tbreak the panel. The golf club survived too,but let’s keep the fact that I used my husband’sclub just between us, okay?

Wand: I tried using the wand against thepanel like a customer if they just accidentally hitthe wall. It either showed no damage or just aslight scratch. If a customer really intended todamage the wall, they could use the wand todent up the panel. And after three attempts todo so, I was able to put a hole in it.

Graffiti Remover: This is a productfrom Klean-Strip that is used for removinggraffiti off of concrete and masonry surfaces.It is not recommended for plastic. My employ-ees don’t seem to remember this. Even thoughI’ve written “DO NOT USE ON SIGNS!” inbright blue bold letters, they still do so occa-sionally. I used it on the panel and it damagedthe finish of the panel just like it said it wouldon the label of the graffiti remover.

Lighter: Tested by holding a lighterright next to the panel first for 5 seconds.There was black residue and slight melting of

CONCRETECONCRETECONCRETECONCRETECONCRETE

POLYMERPOLYMERPOLYMERPOLYMERPOLYMERENCASEMENTENCASEMENTENCASEMENTENCASEMENTENCASEMENT

REBARREBARREBARREBARREBAR

ELECTRICALELECTRICALELECTRICALELECTRICALELECTRICALRACEWAYRACEWAYRACEWAYRACEWAYRACEWAY


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About the author —Lisa Lyons has an exceptional SS

resume and credentials. She’s a secondgeneration SS carwasher who was virtuallyborn into the coin-op industry as the daugh-ter of SS pioneer, Frank Piersall. Lisa “cuther teeth” in this business as co-manager ofher Dad’s chain of washes in SouthernCalifornia. She has independently owned/operated her own 3 washes in the San Diegoarea for 15 years. Lisa has been on theWestern Carwash Association Board of Di-rectors for 5 years, a member of the Interna-tional Carwash Association’s SS AdvisoryCouncil, and is also currently on the ICABoard of Directors.

the panel. Most of the residue wiped off easilywith Goof-Off but there remained a light burnmark and slight damage to panel. Then testedfor 10 seconds. The panel started to blister at9 seconds, residue did not come off and panelwas damaged (blistered) but did not meltthrough. The panel never caught on fire ineither test. (See the manufactures specs formore details on meeting the fire codes.)

Freezer Test: I left the PVC panelovernight in the freezer with some waterpoured on it. The ice came off very easily, butit was also 80 degrees in San Diego so that’sreally not a fair test. The paneldid seem alittle stiffer, but not brittle. And when I triedhitting it, I didn’t notice any difference thanwhen it was at a normal temperature. I spoketo several operators in cold climates and theredid not seem to be a problem using this panelsin the cold weather. In fact, it was mentionedseveral times how the ice was easy to removefrom the panels.

Every operator has their own experiencewith their customer base. I told other operatorshow much painted graffiti and scratched namesI find on everything — stainless steel vacs,signs, pole covers, meter boxes, etcetera, etcet-era. But I find those problems not a real bigproblem for the majority of SS operators I’vetalked to. I would encourage you to request asample of the panels and run your own test onthe problems you encounter to help determine ifthis is a good choice for a wall covering for youroperation. All the operators I spoke to were veryhappy with the choice they had made and wereplanning on installing it at their other washes.

ContactBoth of these companies have very good

websites with detailed information on how toinstall their products, pictures, specs, andhow to maintain them. If you are interested inthese products, check out the websites or con-tact them by phone.

Extrutech Plastics, 888-818-0118, atwww.epiplastics.com.com

Royal Building Systems, 877-747-9255 at www.rbsdirect.com

HDPE PanelsSomewhat in-between FRP board and

the PVC panels is a product an operator sug-gested we look. It’s called Polymax and ismade out of HDPE plastic (High DensityPolyEthelene) which is used for many diverseand often quite rugged applications such asoutdoor furniture and dairy farms. PolyMaxcomes in rolls and a wide variety of differentsized panels. It can be found at a farm supplycompany at www.Farmtekcatalog.com. Theinformation is on page 67 of their catalog.

Apparently, PolyMax is an especiallypopular choice for dairy stalls and has beenused by many rural carwash owners on theirbay walls too. Every now and then, over theyears the SSCWN has been told by such op-

erators that they use a product highly es-teemed by their associates in the dairy farmindustry. In the past, the SSCWN assumedthat they were just talking about an FRPproduct. Apparently, we were mistaken andthat this hi-density plastic PolyMax may verywell be what they were actually referring too.

It only comes in white, but is available ina half dozen thicknesses and as many differentsized panels. Polymax panels are affixed towalls pretty much as is FRP. It’s quite inexpen-sive — an 1/8 inch thick, 4 X 8 foot sheet suitablefor carwash apps only costs about 90¢ a squarefoot. We don’t know as much about Polymax aswe’d like, so we hope some of our “GentlemenFarmer/Carwash Operator” readers will get backin touch and fill us in sometime in the nearfuture. Speaking of the future ...

Looking to the FutureThe PVC wall systems are certainly be-

ginning to create a buzz in the industry thatwill linger and evolve further. I’m confidentthat we’re going to see more varieties of space-age plastic polymers adapted to self servecarwash walls in the future — even moredurable, slicker, stylish, colorful, with greatcreative design potential, easy to clean ... and,hopefully, inexpensive.

I should add that glass walls have beena interesting development in the carwash in-dustry over the last few years. They are veryunusual, dynamic looking structures that com-pel people to take notice of them ... especiallyat night. Glass walls are mostly used fordeveloping conveyor washes, but LighthouseCarwash Systems (800-204-4358) has also de-

veloped really spectacular looking SS car-washes that have glass walls.

Without a doubt, glass repels virtuallyall dirt and cleans relatively easily. Glass,however, is not at all forgiving — a little dirtand film on glass can look like a lot. I know Idon’t like to clean my own windows at home.So the idea of having to keep clean a wholebuilding that’s almost “all windows” soundsquite daunting. However, there is also newtechnology that has been in the housing mar-ket for several years, and is just now beingtried out in the carwash industry. IlluminatorBuilding Company (800-542-7221) is currentlyin the process of building a glass conveyor thathas self-cleaning glass! The glass uses the UVenergy from the sun to keep the glass cleannaturally. Wow, that sure sounds good to me!The SSCWN will keep you posted as to howwell that technology actually works and if itwill be of potential benefit to our segment ofthe industry. Hmmmm ... if someone wouldonly come up with a way to make self-servecarwashes self-cleaning, my husband and Icould finally go on that two month vacation toEurope we dream about.

Let me close with an expression of sin-cere appreciation to the operators, manufac-turers and companies across the country thattook the time to help with this article.

“SELF Cleaning Glass Walls in your future?!!” — could be. The Illuminator Company is currentlyexperimenting with such technology in a prototype tunnel.So we shall see what we shall see.

“SELF Cleaning Glass Walls in your future?!!” — could be. The Illuminator Company is currentlyexperimenting with such technology in a prototype tunnel.So we shall see what we shall see.

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