The trucking industry is an international powerhouse. In the U.S. alone, 70% of goods are transported by commercial trucks. These trucks accumulate a lot of miles, meaning they are susceptible to potential corrosion and other equipment damages caused by the buildup of dirt and grime that accompanies life on the road.
This creates a significant demand for commercial truck wash businesses. Trucks will always exist, and they will always need to be washed.
How to Start a Commercial Truck Wash Business
Starting a commercial truck wash business presents a unique, profitable business opportunity within the larger trucking industry. To help you get on the right track, we’ve put together a step-by-step guide on how to start your own truck wash business.
Step 1: Decide which type of truck wash business you want to start.
When planning your truck wash business, you must determine if you will start from scratch or buy into a franchise.
Consider Commercial Truck Wash Franchises
Commercial truck wash franchises are one way to start a semi truck wash business. Franchise programs can help you get started with full guidance from business planning to marketing. Whiting Systems does NOT offer a franchise program, but we do sell equipment to franchise owners.
Consider Starting A Commercial Truck Wash From Scratch
We provide everything you need to start your own commercial truck wash business. Whiting Systems is your partner that will provide all necessary equipment, detergents, and service to guarantee wash cost, wash quality, and wash time.
Here's how Whiting Systems can help you start your truck wash business from scratch:
- Provide ready-made business systems and process to start implementing with your own team
- Make decisions about what products and services to sell at your truck wash
- Market test new products and services to keep you at the top of the industry
- Advise on truck wash layout and contracting decisions
- Offer training and financial planning to build your path to success
Contact one of our truck wash business experts today! Call 501-847-9031 or send us a message.
Choose Your Type of Truck Wash System
Commercial truck wash systems can be divided into two categories, manual and automatic. Choosing which one you’d like to venture into will influence a lot of your decisions moving forward.
Manual Truck Wash Systems
Classic manual truck wash systems offer a thorough, personal truck wash environment. There are stationary or fixed-site manual truck wash systems, mobile truck wash systems, and even self-service truck wash systems.
For fixed-site or mobile truck wash systems to operate, employees utilize specialized pressure washers, scrubbers, brushes and detergents to hand-wash each vehicle. While this process does create a more interactive experience for your customers than a self-service or automatic truck wash system, it requires significantly more manpower.
In addition, both self-service and employee-powered manual wash systems are highly dependent on the speed of the one washing the truck. This could create potential bottlenecks in your system and greatly limit the number of trucks that could be washed on a daily basis.
Automatic Truck Wash Systems
While manual truck wash systems get the job done, automatic semi truck wash systems are the preferred choice by the trucker whose time is at a premium.
Drivers understand the cost of downtime and how it affects their business. In order to compete in the space as a growth company and be sustainable while receiving the highest compliment a business can receive (repeat satisfied customers), you should plan to fully automate the wash process and keep manpower to an absolute minimum. By doing so, you will significantly reduce driver wait times while increasing your facility throughput.
There are two main types of express truck wash systems to consider:
Automatic Drive-Thru Truck Wash System
The automatic drive thru truck wash is an automatic vehicle wash system where the driver powers the vehicle through the truck wash. The speed is controlled by the driver since the wash machinery is in stationary position.
Advantages: Wash times range from 2-3 minutes.
Disadvantages: Provides less control over wash quality
Automatic Gantry Truck Wash System
The automatic gantry truck wash is an automatic vehicle wash system where the driver powers the vehicle in-bay to a parked position while remaining in the vehicle. The gantry truck wash is programmed to perform a number of passes over the vehicle while applying detergents, pre-rinse, dry aid and final rinse. Depending on vehicle configurations, the gantry will use soft tip brushes for the truck’s sides, top, front and rear or operate without soft tip brushes in high pressure oscillating mode.
Advantages: Offers the best wash quality.
Disadvantages: Wash times range from 5-7 minutes.
Step 2: Choose your location.
The success of your new truck wash business will depend upon many factors. One of these key factors will be location. A successful truck wash is also a high-wash-volume business.
To maximize location throughput, an express truck wash should be located near a major brand truck stop where 24-hour, two-way truck counts are highest. Alternate locations may be feasible depending upon site analysis and other key factors.
For the best amount of space, you want approximately 5 acres of land although some owners work with smaller acreage.
Step 3: Budget out your initial project expenses.
Starting an express truck wash business will require initial expenses of $1.5 million - $2.5million depending upon location, property size, number of wash bays and equipment selection.
It’s important to think through the initial expenses your business will require to get started. Here is a list of potential initial expenses to consider before starting your truck wash business:
Equipment and maintenance
Property
Legal fees, insurance and permits
Hiring a team
Advertising and marketing
Step 4: Define your truck wash business plan
Developing your official business plan will help you organize the operational details of your truck wash business. A thorough business plan should include the following:
A summary of your business and its services
A description about how your business will provide value for your clients
A budget and projected income
Proposed marketing and business strategies
Step 5: Select hours of operation.
Peak volume times for your truck wash business will be between 7 p.m. and 11 p.m. In most cases, a third shift will be incremental business, not justifying the expense and associated liability.
Step 6: Purchase the right truck wash equipment.
Whiting Systems' Business Development team recommends utilizing plant validation tours to help those looking to start a truck wash business choose the right truck wash equipment and supplies manufacturer to work with.
"You are building a new business," a Business Development representative said, "That is exciting, and the companies you are entertaining should be complimented you called on them. In fact, they should be rolling out the red carpet for your business and invite you for a plant validation tour.”
“You should make sure you are partnering with an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) who is looking at you as a mutually beneficial, long-term relationship instead of a simple cash flow infusion. Your business requires an OEM who is competent and knowledgeable. They must have a good reputation in the industry they serve.”
It’s extremely beneficial to get references from those who have worked with particular OEMs before. You should ask yourself the following question when choosing an OEM to partner with:
Does the manufacturing company reinvest in itself?
Is the manufacturing company a growth-centered company?
Do the employees speak well of the manufacturing company?
How does the manufacturing company handle your call on a Saturday when you report a breakdown?
Is a truck wash profitable?
Commercial fleet washing businesses are profitable with a strong, recurring customer base and consistent income. The trucking industry currently operates at over $700 billion dollars.
Right now on America’s roads, there are more than 5 million semi truck trailers in operation running 140 billion miles a year.
Each of these large vehicles need maintenance and wash solutions that can come from mobile truck wash systems or drive thru wash systems. Whiting Systems offers the smartest drive thru wash systems on the market available to truck wash owners.
Ask us for a free consultation with our truck wash experts.
By making smart decisions and implementing our proven systems in the right place, you have the opportunity to focus on high margin products and services.
When you add on large vehicle wash system capabilities that rely on eco-friendly chemicals and smart wash systems, you consistently create revenue.
We help you learn how to keep your truck wash profitable.
How much does it cost to start a semi truck wash?
The cost of starting your commercial semi-truck wash can vary depending on the size and location of your land. We recommend five acres for a strong layout, although we do see truck wash owners work with as small as two and half acres.
In addition to the cost of land, you will need start-up construction and equipment costs.
Ready to start your own commercial truck wash business?
Ask us for a free consultation with our truck wash experts.
The Whiting Systems Truck Wash Solution
Whiting Systems, Inc. is the global leader in providing customers the best fleet wash systems and equipment. From our humble beginnings selling pressure washers to manufacturing and servicing large automatic wash systems for buses, trucks, trains, and other large vehicles, we make it our mission to improve the quality of your business by equipping you with tools and support tailored to fit your needs.
We believe that it is our job to foster long-term, mutually beneficial business relationships with our truck wash partners.
Our team values our partners’ patronage and understands that delivering a customer services experience that is unmatched by our competitors. In addition to our fleet wash equipment, we also provide fleet image programs tailored to the unique needs of your business, no matter your industry. Whether you are searching for a complete maintenance program with account monitoring, custom reporting, and detergent replenishing or a detergent and maintenance program to support your equipment and meet your detergent needs, we are here to serve you.
Contact us today to get a quote for your commercial truck wash needs!