Essential conveyor maintenance - Professional Carwashing & Detailing

Essential conveyor maintenance

When it comes to your conveyor, make sure you’ve got a maintenance system in place so business isn’t halted.

The abundance of unique services a conveyor carwash can feature offers the opportunity for owners and operators to collect plenty of profits. However, as common sense tells us, without your conveyor fully operational, customers will be turned away.

Essentially all equipment necessitates regular upkeep to reduce downtime as much as possible and keep the profits rolling into your wash. When it comes to your conveyor, make sure you’ve got a system in place so business isn’t halted.

Avoid equipment failure

One of the biggest problems a conveyor carwash can experience is controller loss. Losing a tunnel controller can wreak havoc on your carwash. Since this equipment keeps track of all the functions inside your tunnel, its dysfunction means you can’t serve customers. Prevent this problem by using fresh memory sticks and backing up controller files.

Owners and operators depend on hydraulic hoses to deliver water to the wash area, so their needs should be added to a maintenance plan as well. Since hoses are so essential to operations, inspect them frequently, including when the wash is dry. This way you’ll be able to see leaks and other problems more easily.

If your wash uses variable frequency drives, or VFDs, take steps to ensure they are taken care of as well. Keeping VFDs in a sealed environment with air conditioning will keep them clean; otherwise, operators will need to remove dust and grime monthly or annually. Excessive buildup of dust can cause the drive to fail.

Reclaim system maintenance is rather low-cost and uncomplicated, but that doesn’t mean operators should neglect it. Many washes rely on this equipment to reduce operating costs, as well as lessen their environmental impacts and reliance on city water. Maintain this equipment with weekly cleaning of the strainer basket. You should also service the oxygen concentrator and cells every two years.

A growing trend in the carwash business is the addition of pet washes as additional profit centers. These stations often fit in underutilized space or bays. Their installation also fits right in with a carwash, since it uses plumbing and chemicals just like other carwash equipment.

When it comes to pet washes, owners should perform daily inspections of the equipment for cleanliness. Customers can be encouraged to clean up after themselves, making this process easier over time.

Maintain the finishing touch

Dryers are essential to giving your customers’ cars a professional appearance. They require little maintenance on the part of the owner. Carwash operators should check the air intake to ensure it is not blocked and performs its best for you. Bearings can also become worn. Any vibrations coming from dryers should be heeded and examined so the problem can be discovered and fixed. Manufacturers often offer products that can be used to clean this equipment regularly.

Vacuums also contribute to giving customers’ vehicles the perfect finish touch, so maintaining them is important. This equipment is heavily used, so regular inspections and maintenance is essential to establish a reputation for being a reliable, well-maintained business. Operators should follow their owner's manuals for prescribed maintenance. Every three to six months, change motor brushes. Each day you should knock dirt out of the brushes, and filters should be washed and air dried once or twice monthly.

In addition to keeping vacuums running smoothly, someone should also wipe down the equipment weekly to preserve the wash’s positive image.

Make a plan

We've covered some of the equipment that needs to be included in a regular plan, but more certainly exists. Building a successful team to carry out a well thought-out preventative maintenance plan is key to keeping your wash operating smoothly with little downtime. When equipment breakdowns do happen, employees are the first point of contact to fixing what is wrong, whether that means calling a technician or troubleshooting easy fixes.

You and/or your trained team can also carry out regular inspections to keep equipment running smoothly and catch any problems before they shut down your business. By establishing a routine, you can institute a schedule to reduce downtime.

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