Work out car wash water usage instantly with clear inputs, formula shown and shareable results.
Automated car washes use 60-90 litres of water per vehicle before recycling, and a reclaim system typically recovers 60-80% of it. Because water charges usually include a sewerage element, the saving from recycling is larger than the supply tariff alone suggests.
Fresh water use
Fresh = Washes x Litres per wash x (1 - Recycling %)
Daily cost
Cost = Fresh litres / 1,000 x Cost per thousand litres
A hose at home commonly uses 200-400 litres. A commercial wash with reclaim uses a fraction of that and captures the runoff for treatment.
Usually yes. Trade effluent consent charges apply to discharged water, which is why interceptors and reclaim systems pay back quickly.