BY NICK FORTUNA

When it comes to the power of LED lighting systems to create a memorable, immersive experience for car wash customers and to build brand loyalty, Ray Cerwinski is a true believer. And if you hear him talk about light-emitting diode lighting systems, or LEDs, you will be too.

Cerwinski is the self-described imagineer at Mercer Management and Development, a Hamilton, N.J.-based company that plans to expand its Valet Auto Wash chain from 10 locations to 14 this year. Cerwinski bills himself as an entertainment technology guru on LinkedIn, with extensive experience in lighting, sound and video design, among other skills. It’s his job to give customers the kind of car wash experience that leaves them wanting more, and he said LEDs are central to his strategy.

When asked what he would tell car wash operators who are interested in installing LEDs, his advice was simple. “I would go all in,” he said. “I would put all my money on that horse.”
Kim Allen, Marketing Director for Delta Sonic, a Buffalo, N.Y.-based chain with 30 car washes, echoed that sentiment, saying LED lighting systems can help car washes set themselves apart from the competition.

“We have a ton of LED lights inside our wash, and we have different colors for the different stages of the wash,” she said. “Our tunnels are very dark, and we do that on purpose so that the lights really jump out at you.

“Customers love it — they definitely do. They take video of it and post it to social media, and we share those posts. Kids usually love it because it’s very bright and colorful. The benefit to us is that it makes it memorable. It’s a car wash, so obviously customers are coming for that purpose, but if you can enjoy it and have fun, I think it just makes you want to come back.”

Reinforcing the brand

At Valet Auto Wash, green is the theme. Cars enter the tunnel through a green archway with green LEDs embedded in the sidewalls, reflecting the brand’s color scheme. If customers purchase a basic wash, most of the LEDs will stay green, but customers who choose the lemon-scented citrus foam will see amber LEDs at that arch. Blue is used for high-pressure washes, and red is used during drying and hot wax application.

Valet Auto Wash has marketed its Brilliance Wax Finish service using the color blue, so customers see blue LEDs throughout that spray-wax tunnel. The tunnel’s LEDs can create a sparkling effect to reinforce the message that this service leaves cars resplendent. The lighting display has helped popularize that service among customers who normally would only use the wash tunnel, Cerwinski said.

“We continue to try to push the envelope as far as we can and add in as much color-changing lighting as we possibly can, just to retain an edge over the competition,” he said. “We’ve had customers who have switched from competitors to us just based on the experience of being inside the tunnel. It’s exciting, it’s fresh, and it’s different because not many people are making the investment in LED lighting.”

Jim McClimond, President of Mr. Foamer, a manufacturer of car wash equipment and signs, said LEDs can be made to flash on and off to help differentiate services. For example, customers might see solid-blue LEDs during an initial rinse and flashing-blue LEDs during the final rinse. The idea is to give customers something different at each point in the wash process, he said.

At Valet Auto Wash, the different LED colors correspond to those used on signage and menu boards, so customers link those colors with those services, Cerwinski said. This has a dual benefit for car wash operators, he said. Not only do the LEDs reinforce to customers that they are indeed getting the services they paid for, but the varying hues often pique the interest of customers who are next in line and have selected only a basic wash.

“If they didn’t purchase the citrus foam, they might say, ‘Wow, I wonder what those guys got,’” Cerwinski said. “The little foamers that just light up green aren’t as impressive as the car being completely lathered in soap and all of the bright amber lighting. It’s a visual cue and an identifier for the purchaser, and hopefully it makes the next customer say, ‘Hey, I want that too.’

“We’re selling more than just a clean car; we’re selling an entire experience. You’re trying to make the car wash a feel-good experience so that people want to keep coming back with their kids. We have a lot of customers that wash their car just because their kids like going through it. They like seeing the signs, the lights and everything flashing.”

A sizeable investment

Cerwinski said Valet Auto Wash has retrofitted some of its locations with LEDs and is incorporating them into its new builds. The cost typically is between $35,000 and $40,000 per location, he said.

Erin Noonan, Director of Marketing for G&G Industrial Lighting, said LED packages are customized to fit car wash operators’ individual locations and budgets, so prices can vary greatly. The more robust packages include not only LED lights at arches but overhead lighting and wall-mounted mood lighting.

“I’ve seen great things done on both ends of that [price] spectrum,” Noonan said, adding that LEDs represent an easy way to market your car wash, especially for operators in highly competitive markets.

“It’s a cutthroat market right now, and it’s all about setting yourself apart from the competition and creating an experience that is going to keep your existing customers coming back for more and attract new customers to come in,” Noonan said. “Once you install it, it’s there, and you really don’t have to do a lot more than just turn your lights on.”
Cerwinski said Mercer Management and Development handles the design, planning and most of the installation of its LED equipment, with help from a licensed electrician. Noonan said manufacturers also can help operators design a system and install it.

“It’s a major investment, but you get it back, without a doubt,” Cerwinski said. “The customers love it. You’ve got to have that visual component to keep people excited about it because regular old soap and brushes just don’t do it. Everybody’s got that.”

Factors to consider

LEDs have become increasingly popular both in commercial and residential applications because of their low electricity usage and staying power, with well-made fixtures often rated to last 100,000 hours or more. Still, given the harsh environment of car wash tunnels and the sizeable investment involved, operators should ask manufacturers a number of questions before buying, Noonan said.

First, operators should find out how long LEDs are expected to last, whether they come with a warranty lasting at least a few years, and whether the manufacturer can provide troubleshooting help online or by phone. Second, lights should have a low physical profile of only a few inches so they don’t stick out from arches and walls, risking damage to the lights and to customers’ vehicles.

In addition, operators should ask about ease of installation and whether the LEDs can endure water, chemicals and high humidity all day every day.

“The durability of LED lighting in the car wash is one of the primary factors that owners need to consider,” Noonan said. “Obviously, high humidity and water are constants there, so you have to find a fixture that can stand up to that, and you have to find something that’s chemical resistant because otherwise, they’ll corrode out in a heartbeat. And then the electronics have to be able to survive in that environment.”

Two other important components of an LED system are its controls and programming. Noonan said a good system will allow an operator to control aspects such as color choice with ease using an app on their smart devices, and manufacturers may provide programmed light shows for holidays and special events.

An operator can make the car wash’s branded color scheme the focus of the light show, or select a premade program featuring red and green lights for Christmas, orange and black lights for Halloween, red and pink lights for Valentine’s Day, and red, white and blue lights for the Fourth of July, Noonan said. Past issues of CAR WASH Magazine have featured the growing popularity of “haunted tunnel” Halloween light shows, bolstered by fog machines, spooky music and employees dressed as scary characters.

Cerwinski said LEDs make for a better investment than another trend in car wash tunnels — fully illuminated arches featuring signage and product information that’s difficult to read once the soap hits the windshield and windows. Many operators have installed these arches to educate customers about the services they are receiving and to drive home their value, but Cerwinski believes LEDs are more effective marketing tools.

“You can’t read the arch from inside the car,” he said. “You don’t know what it says. Put your investment in the things that shine on the car, the things that people can see from their windshields and their side-view mirrors, which really is not signage. We’re not heavy on tunnel signage, we’re heavy on lighting because you get more out of your investment for sure, and it lasts a lot longer.

“Tunnel signage doesn’t look great after three or four years of harsh chemicals, whereas LED lighting, if you buy quality up front from a great manufacturer with a great warranty, it will far outlast anything else that you put in your tunnel to get the customers’ attention and catch their eye.”

Car wash lighting photos are courtesy of G&G Industrial Lighting.