# 'Valeting' cars - advice required.



## Jules (May 21, 2006)

By 'Valeting' I mean the wash and chamios that a car gets from the people that give us all a bad name.

I'm still considering a career change and doing this lark as a my main source of income, however I have no idea how many people would be prepared to fork out a couple of hundred notes for a full paint correction job, especially in the current economic climate.

Joe public is not really that aware of 'detailing' and they are usually quite satisfied with a £10 wash and dry down at Sainsbury's car park.

I would imagine (please correct me if I am wrong) that the basic wash and dry is going to be my 'bread and butter'. The question is, what products and techniques do people use (and I would be interested on professional detailers opinions) just for a wash and dry.

Clearly to compete with the '£10 a job' guys, you have to be quick but thorough and use the minimum of materials. Do you find that you are compromising basic detailing standards? Do you even take these jobs on?

All replies gratefully received.

Jules


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## Simon01 (Jan 14, 2008)

Do you do this at weekend now, paid customers? or you just considering?

You Have to consider transport and expenses, tools regular stock etc get it all down on paper then you know what your looking at in respect to what you need to earn there are customers out there who do want detail work and regular maintenance, but you have to find them then keep them woord of mouth works good if your doing a good job its all about getting a reputation for exeptional work:thumb:


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## Guest (Jul 13, 2008)

I'm just really starting doing friends, family and work colleagues at the moment. Like WAX-IT said a lot of work comes by word of mouth if you do a good job. I did'nt think anyone would be interested especially in the restoration part, but once i'd done a couple and people saw the results they soon changed their minds. Some people are just happy with a quick fiver wash at your local swirl city hand wash, but like i said if you can show them what a good valet/paint correction can do they'll soon change their mind.


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## Simon01 (Jan 14, 2008)

ive found people either like a ''clean looking car'' or ''clean car'' 

'clean looking car being your £5 swirl wash with one bucket and sponge with your cheapest suds are us soap' it looks clean ???

Your Clean car has more attention to deatail, better products two buckets etc' these customers know there car is 'Clean' not just 'clean looking'

just my view hope it helps :thumb:


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## Detail My Ride (Apr 19, 2006)

To compete with our Foreign friends, you need to be:

Cheap
Quick
Reliable

Which, probably means that you aren't going to be able to do it yourself. Most set ups i've seen, the person drives in, and they clean the car as a sort of 'production line'. So there are 2 blokes waiting to spray it with TFR, 2 more rinsing, 2 more washing, 2 more rinsing, then moving onto a drying area and so on. Obviously, this is incredibly quick, and incredibly slick, but its going to reduce your profits.

People, want a quick, cheap way to clean their car. So, they aren't going to sit around waiting for you to do a full 2bm wash. 

You've got to weigh up costs really for products. How much your earnings are from each car, what you can spend on products from each car, and then if you have to pay costs for your premises or whatever, or, if you have other people working with you.

I wouldn't count on using Z autowash and the likes on everycar, your best bet is probably going to be the likes of Autosmart. Yes, its Autosmart, but their products are superb and they are cheap if you buy in large quantities.

Its a VERY tough game, 'the cheap car wash business', and it is very much a dog eat dog world.

Best of luck


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## Simon01 (Jan 14, 2008)

Autoglym are just as competitve with the likes of Autosmart too and can buy in bulk :thumb:


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## Jules (May 21, 2006)

Wax-It said:


> Do you do this at weekend now, paid customers? or you just considering?
> 
> You Have to consider transport and expenses, tools regular stock etc get it all down on paper then you know what your looking at in respect to what you need to earn there are customers out there who do want detail work and regular maintenance, but you have to find them then keep them woord of mouth works good if your doing a good job its all about getting a reputation for exeptional work:thumb:


Yes, I am cleaning cars in the local neighbourhood at the moment. Charging £25 for a exterior wash and wax which takes me about an hour using wheel cleaner, foam, rinse, 2bm with mitt, dry and a quick spray 'wax', tyre shine and window clean.

I'm comfortable with this setup and the products that I am using and have now got it to a stage where alot of it comes naturally, so it really does only take an hour (and a bit for larger cars!). Problem is, I don't how to 'condense' this method further (in time and money) without compromising what I am doing. Hence the post.

I've done 3 or 4 full paint correction details for friends and family, I've charged materials only (Plus some beer tokens) as I'm still only learning, but everyone has bulked when I have said "I would be charging a couple of hundred quid for that, if I wasn't learning".

I suppose I have better find some footballers:thumb:


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## Jules (May 21, 2006)

Gaz W said:


> You've got to weigh up costs really for products. How much your earnings are from each car, what you can spend on products from each car, and then if you have to pay costs for your premises or whatever, or, if you have other people working with you.


I've already done this and cannot make it work. I need much cheaper products and even then the profits are minimal.

Thanks for the link, much appreciated:thumb:


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## m500dpp (Feb 17, 2006)

Finda few companies with big car parks full of decent cars - then you have lots in one place and could build up regular business by visiting them every fortnight......cuts out travelling cost as well....


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## Multipla Mick (Feb 5, 2006)

Getting some bulk products for the 'staples' if you like from the likes of Autosmart/Autoglym is the way to go. By staples I mean shampoos, APCs, wheel cleaners, interior cleaners etc. Also as an example, Autosmart Platinum wax is a great product for those wanting a quick wash and a coat of wax, but won't pay top dollar for it. It does a great job of freshening up the paint and cost (may have gone up since I was doing it) around £18 for a (UK) gallon. AG do their bulk versions of SRP and EGP of course too, though I've no idea on prices.


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## MidlandsCarCare (Feb 18, 2006)

I think most of the 5L AG bottles of product are about £20, which is superb value compared to the retail ranges (SRP and EGP etc)

The Bodywork Shampoo Conditioner is about £11


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## timmyboy (Jul 6, 2008)

my advice; ignore the cheap end of the market. you will not make a living!
leave the sponge jockeys to it.........................................
offer a good high quality valeting service with good standards,
using good products and technique. run a detailing service along 
side this as well. you will get more valeting work initially then you
have to build up the detailing side as you develop your business.
there is a massive market for quality valeting, ive been full time 
mobile for five years now! it can be done, no one should think
its easy, but it can be done!!!:thumb:


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## The Detail Doctor (Feb 22, 2008)

Good luck with this one chap.

I am just starting doing detailing (weekends only at the moment) and have had an awfull lot of usefull advice from the majority of people on here.


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## Glossboss (Feb 28, 2007)

timmyboy said:


> my advice; ignore the cheap end of the market. you will not make a living!
> leave the sponge jockeys to it.........................................
> offer a good high quality valeting service with good standards,
> using good products and technique. run a detailing service along
> ...


Well said, I think you have to decide which sector of the market you really
want to cover, and target your market accordingly. You have made a good
start, learning as you go, and this is a good place for guidance on how to move
forward and market yourself.
The more practised you become at paint correction, and the more corrections
you do, the more work you will get.Word of mouth from well satisfied clents
works more than anything. Don't run before you can walk though. Fine tune
your paintwork correction skills,(there are many on here that can help you, along with some good write ups) and build from there.But remember, its
not just a matter of buying buffers etc, and going straight into it. There
is quite a learning kirb on paintwork correction, get it right before offering to customers.
Just my little input.


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## mattjonescardiff (Dec 12, 2006)

timmyboy said:


> my advice; ignore the cheap end of the market. you will not make a living!
> leave the sponge jockeys to it.........................................
> offer a good high quality valeting service with good standards,
> using good products and technique. run a detailing service along
> ...


I'd agree with this. The cheap end of the market is way too competitive. Get practicing and aim high. Word of mouth will be the best selling tool.


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## CzechRich (Jul 25, 2008)

I expect it also depends where you live. Some areas of the UK will be better to get customers, less travelling etc.


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## dominic84 (Jan 27, 2007)

I've learned from experience that the best 'starter' service you can offer is a £20-£25 mini valet. I say this because people generally want a quick wipe of the dash and go round with the vacuum if they are paying someone to come and clean their car.

The mini I do isn't anything fancy, a good wash (TFR pre-spray, pressure rinse, hand wash, wheels, dry, dress tyres - vacuum the interior (no more than 20 minutes), wipe dash & centre console with combined cleaner/matt dressing, dress tyre - spot clean interior glass.

You can add on hand polish or cleaning mats/spot clean seats etc as options if you like.

The above should take you less than an hour. The key to speeding up your service is all about lowering your 'setup time'. For example having to setup your PW or un-wind/wind your hose. If you do what I have done and build your PW into your van with a hose reel then washing a car is like a fire engine putting out a fire - quick and easy


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## rich vrs (May 7, 2008)

what do the guys who work mobile do for water supplies? as im thinking about doing this currently just at weekends.


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## Multipla Mick (Feb 5, 2006)

rich vrs said:


> what do the guys who work mobile do for water supplies? as im thinking about doing this currently just at weekends.


On board water tanks, in varying sizes from (I think) 125 litres up to 1,000 litres in some cases. A litre of water weighs around 1kg so you need to watch the weight limits of whatever vehicle you use. Some people use the circular garden water butts too, not sure on their capacity though.


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## dominic84 (Jan 27, 2007)

> what do the guys who work mobile do for water supplies? as im thinking about doing this currently just at weekends.


If you just want to do it on the weekends then see your local AS or AG rep and get an empty 205 litre barrel for free.

I personally would stand the barrel upright and use a length of hose to syphon the water to the PW. Once the PW catches onto the flow it will suck it through from there.

You don't really want to shell out more than is necessary while your still 'testing the market'.

I wouldn't worry about a genny either as most customers are usually happy for you to plug in an extension, 25 or 50m is ideal.

The reason it's better to carry your own water is nearly everyone has a plug socket you can use but not everyone has a tap suitable for connecting a hosepipe 

Also on a cost saving note, when you buy your chems in bulk you should try and get ones that can be used for multiple uses, i.e. AG PowerMax MultiWash TFR can be used as Upholstery/Interior Cleaner, TFR, Wheel Cleaner, Glass Cleaner and even to create some suds in your wash bucket


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## rich vrs (May 7, 2008)

Cheers for the info guys



dominic84 said:


> If you just want to do it on the weekends then see your local AS or AG rep and get an empty 205 litre barrel for free.


what's the easiest way to find my local rep? contact AG direct?


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## buckas (Jun 13, 2008)

nice advice guys, thinking the same as the first post person - except i'm thinking more down the detail route 

drew


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## dominic84 (Jan 27, 2007)

> what's the easiest way to find my local rep? contact AG direct?


Yeah just phone the main AG number on their website and if you ask the lady who answers for your local rep's number, she will give it to you


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## karl0308 (Mar 11, 2009)

great advice here people,


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