Squeaky Clean and Green

Photo: Badseed

Fact

According to the International Car Wash Association, automatic car washes use less than half the water used when washing your car at home. The average home wash uses 80-140 gallons of water while the commercial average is 45 gallons. Commercial car washes often reuse water, send the runoff to treatment centers instead of nearby lakes and streams and also use high pressure nozzles that require less water use.

Get Started

• A lot of gas stations now have car washes right next to the gas pumps. You can save gas and water while getting your car washed at your next fill-up
• Rainy day gotcha down? Unlike your home wash, some automatic washes come with a rainy day guarantee
• If you do wash at home, make sure to wash over dirt or lawn to absorb the extra water. Use biodegradable, phosphate-free soap and empty wash buckets in the sink or toilet

Become a Pro

• The gift of clean – Give gift cards or certificates for local car washes to friends and family
• Borrowing a friend’s car? Take it to the car wash before you return it. Let them know how much water you just saved
• If you know an avid self-washer, give them the a ‘green wash’ giftbasket. Take a wash bucket and fill it with bottles of biogegradable, phosphate-free soap, a power wash nozzle with shut-off option and a list of water saving tips