| Car wash: A definition
A car wash is a facility used to clean the exterior, and sometimes the interior, of automobiles. There are several types of car washes, ranging from do-it-yourself coin-operated facilities to fee-based full-service operations. Mechanized car washes, especially those with brushes, are sometimes avoided by many meticulous car owners because of the possible risk of finely scratching the paint surface which can adversely affect both its appearance and its durability. These owners may only use car washes that use cloth or they may even avoid mechanized car washes entirely.
The simplest type of car wash is a coin-operated or token-operated self-service system. The vehicle is parked inside a large bay that is equipped with a soap/water sprayer and a scrub brush. When customers insert coins or tokens into the controller, they can choose to have soap or water dispensed from the sprayer, or to scrub the vehicle with the brush. These facilities are often equipped with separate vacuum stations that allow customers to clean the upholstery and rugs inside their cars.
Mechanized car washes consist of tunnel-like bays that customers drive their cars into. Drivers remain inside the parked car while machinery inside the bay alternately sprays water, soap, and sometimes wax on the vehicle. This style of equipment is referred to as an "in-bay automatic". Some car washes (a style referred to as "conveyorized") have the cars park on conveyor belts that pull it past stationary cleaning machines. While soap is being sprayed on the vehicle, roller brushes spin around and slap the car's exterior, scrubbing dirt off it. Both conveyorized car washes and in-bay automatic car washes provide an "underbody wash" in which streams of water are directed at the bottom of the car from below. This removes mud and harmful salt residue.
Old-style automatic washes used rotating brushes with soft nylon bristles, but these tended to put faint scratches in the vehicle's paint. Newer brushes are made of soft felt, but even these can pick up dirt and debris over time, which tends to cause scratches. In order to avoid the problem, "touchless" or "no-touch" car washes use high pressure water and very strong chemicals to clean the car. If a car is heavily dirty, the car will never be fully cleaned with a touchless car wash. It is very similar to washing your hands, but never scrubbing them together.
At "full-service" car washes, the exterior of the car is washed mechanically with conveyorized equipment, but attendants are available to dry the car manually and to clean the interior.  | 
01-24-2006, 11:47 PM
Linear Mode
