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Want to learn about different car wash water recycling methods?

This is intended to help educate you as a consumer. This information may very well save you a lot of time, money and headaches. Once you have an understanding of other systems on the market, you will see why CATEC continues to be the industry leader in reclaim technology. Over the years, we have seen many reclaim systems come and go, all with broken promises and very unhappy clients. When dealing with water and water issues, it is most important to have a company that understands the clients wants and needs. A company that specializes in water treatment.

Shopping for Price

If you are looking for a system to get through permitting, then shopping for the lowest price is advised. If you are looking for equipment to do the job and withstand the test of time, then a little more investment is required. Just remember, " the bitterness of poor quality is remembered long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten." This doesn't necessarily mean the highest price system is the best system but you can bet the lowest price system is probably the lowest in quality. CATEC systems are high quality and hi reliability at "middle of the street" pricing.

Ozone Based Reclaim Systems-

Many reclaim system manufacturer's on the market today (including CATEC) use Ozone to kill bacteria and help clarify water. Ozone is a great tool and is very effective for car wash water treatment.

Here's the problem with most...

A. Our competitors who use ozone purchase ozone generators from a second source. This tells you that they know Ozone works but are not involved in the science of Ozone. CATEC is the only reclaim company that designs, develops and manufacturers it's own line of ozone generators. Our engineers are world renowned in Ozone Science.

B. We have tested many competitors ozone generators and have found that most are only producing 1/3 to 1/2 of the Ozone outputs advertised and specified by the company. They do this because they know the end user does not have capability to test ozone outputs. Customer perception is "the more ozone, the better the machine"...this is simply not true, and in fact it is most likely a lie anyway. CATEC's Ozone generators will meet specifications on a bad day. CATEC Ozone generators are scientifically matched to the task at hand and are digitally controlled. Competitors systems typically run 24/7, costing a lot in electricity.

C. Often times competitors ozone systems fail between 12 and 24 months. We know this because we have replaced many of our competitors ozone generators. The replacement cost for a good ozone generator is upwards of $5,000.00. Do you want your savings to go to the reclaim manufacture or in your bottom line? Don't get me wrong, CATEC systems do have failures from time to time however, we carry a five year warranty and can rework or replace failed systems at little or no cost to the system owner. Our ozone generator failure rate is less than 5% in the first year and less than 10% in five years.

Bacterial (BIO) Systems-

These systems can work in certain situations however, they are very maintenance intensive and typically very expensive.

A. Ongoing Cost of bacteria (typically $100 / mo. or more)

B. Bacteria require "dwell time" to work effectively in wastewater therefore very large storage tanks are required. This is costly and also takes up a lot of space! Unfortunately, even with these huge tanks, they still do not allow enough dwell time in a car wash for bacterial systems to work.

C. Bacteria go dormant if the water is too cold, as well, bacteria die if water is too hot.

D. Chlorine in city water kills bacteria. Anytime the colonies die off, it can take weeks to re-establish colonies. In the interim, expect dirty, smelly water.

F. Bacteria does not remove color from dies such as triple-foam etc. Water color is often undesirable.

F. pH levels as well as several other parameters require constant monitoring and adjustment to maintain.

G. Cost of basic bio systems is typically $50,000.00, and go up from there.

Filtration methods and their capabilities-

Do you know the difference between 5 microns and 50 microns? Can you see the difference in a glass of water? Probably not........

Did you know car wash pump manufacturers require a minimum of 10 micron water to honor their warranties?

A. "Vortex" (aka-centrifuge, spinner, sand separator) filtration technology is only capable of 50 micron filtration at best. Those boasting 5 micron water using only vortex separation are not being truthful. This filtration is effective however additional filtration is required.

B. Depth or Media filtration can be good filtration however, where do you put the dirt when the system backwashes? What happens when oil grease or other materials are introduced to the filter? Recently a new CATEC distributor spent $ 5,000.00 each on two competitors media filters because someone dumped oil down one of their self service bays, turning the media into sandstone. Depth/media filters are also rated for a specified flow rate. Most competitors are far exceeding this flow rate to meet the wash demands. The recommended flow rate for a 3.0' diameter media filter is only 15 GPM! How can you effectively filter at flow rates of 100 plus GPM?

C. Typically it takes 400 gallons of water to backwash a depth filter. Are you saving on the wash but spending more on the cost of backwashing? OR do you backwash with dirty water? CATEC does offer "self-cleaning" (not backwash) filters however, they use compressed air and a sludge interceptor is used to trap the particulate matter, removing it from the system. Backwashing directly into the pits is returning the dirt to where it was just removed from, it doesn't make sense.

D. Barrier Filtration such as bag filters- These are probably the most effective and reliable however they do require changing or cleaning. CATEC does employ bag filters in some situations. With CATEC's filter evacuation system, changing bag filters is made easy.

Magical Mystery Systems

Any system that seems too good to be true and it's manufacture will not disclose what is in his magical blue box should be avoided. CATEC knows what is in the magical box and I can promise you, it nothing more than a gimmick. We have feedback form many clients that they have dirty, smelly water. If it doesn't make sense to you, it simply doesn't make sense at all!

Self Service reclaim-

Many competitors refuse to reclaim self service bays. This is for a good reason. People tend to use self service bays as a dumping ground. Many contaminants such as oil, paint, RV holding tanks etc. can devastate pumps, filters and media beds. CATEC systems are not immune to these contaminants however they are very easily and inexpensively recovered from such. CATEC has many self service car washes on reclaim and have never encountered a catastrophic failure.

Soaps, Surfactants and Wash Chemicals-

The chemicals used to wash a vehicle are all going down the drain. This means the reclaim system will have to address these chemicals. Wash chemicals and reclaim system compatibility are very important and should be discussed early on with any reclaim system. Beware of reclaim manufacturers that boast their system will work with ANY wash chemicals. A chemical incompatibility with a reclaim system can be a disaster.

CATEC has done extensive research on chemical compatibility and can recommend compatible chemicals from most suppliers. There are preferred chemicals, acceptable chemicals and unacceptable chemicals that we can recommend for or against.

It is important to use chemicals that will A.) Provide a good wash and B.) Will not be detrimental to the reclaim systems performance.

Sizing the System-

It's acceptable to buy a tee-shirt in small, medium or large. Purchasing a reclaim system involves a little more than this approach. CATEC gathers information about each site and owner as an individual in order to match equipment that will meet the demands of the wash system AND the expectations of the owners. Every wash system is a different animal. Geographic location, type of wash equipment, wash chemicals, maintenance requirements, wash loads and many other factors are to be considered. Offering small, medium or large is not a good way to buy or sell water reclaim equipment.

Company Name Changing-

Quite a few reclaim manufacturers have gone out of business because their systems didn't work. Several have changed names and continue to sell junk systems that don't work. They tend to deliver a machine and a manual and then divorce their clients.

Trade Shows-

You will find quite a few reclaim manufacturers trade shows with exotic booths and demonstrations. All seem to be boasting how their technology is the best. These shows are VERY expensive for vendors to attend, and as you already know, everything works good in a booth. Besides that, you will most likely leave the show more confused about reclaim than you were when you got there. Exhibiting at a tradeshow includes shipping equipment , personal, hotels etc, etc comes out to about $10,000.00 per 10' X 10' booth space. i.e. 20' X 20' booth costs around $ 40,000.00 total.

As a conservation minded company, we don't spend money on big flashy booths, socializing and playing golf. Instead, we spend money to better serve our clients by visiting their sites. We can visit 10-15 clients for the cost of one tradeshow. Where would you rather see us? In a booth or on your site? We do attend the ICA show annually however we will not be in a big booth. We'd rather save you money coming to visit you, at your site.

Support and Service-

CATEC has acquired many clients (some very substantial accounts) because of lack of service and support from our competitors. From permitting to site-specific CAD drawings to installation and on-site visits, CATEC is there to insure each and every project is a complete success. When you chose CATEC, it's as if you have hired a team of reclaim professionals to work for you.

"You will find no better reclaim system with the support and service that CATEC offers"

You have my word on that- Dean Taylor, Reclaim System Specialist

“Your Wash, Our Reputation”

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