Eco-Friendly Car Washes

Washing your car is a true green dilemma.  Conventional commercial car washes like the big ones you drive through as huge mops swoosh chemicals around on your car seem bad because they waste water, electricity, and land.  The truth is, theses car washes use only 45 gallons of water per wash and are required to trap the runoff, keeping all those chemicals out of the storm drains and ground water.

Then there’s the do-it-yourself pressure hose kind of car wash.  You put quarters in the machine and hose the car down yourself, flipping the switch to choose different soaps.  This way uses the least amount of water, traps run-off, and you determine how long the electricity runs for.  These places don’t normally have the same flashing signs as the big carwashes, nor the air conditioned waiting room, so for commercial washes, these are probably the best.

Most people think that washing your car at home is a greener alternative, especially if you park the car on the grass.  Using your hose to wash your car can use between 80 and 140 gallons of water.  That’s a lot of water.  If you don’t use biodegradable, safe soap, then you may be contaminating ground water.  In some cities, it illegal to put “anything but rain in a storm drain” and your car wash dirt and soap soup is no exception.  If you learn to do this with less water and better soap, it’s a great way to wash your car.

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