In the vehicle wash industry, there are two different types of reclaim systems.  Ozone-based water reclaim systems and aeration-based water reclaim systems. Aqua Bio manufactures only aeration-based systems.  

Water reclaim systems are designed to recycle all the water that is captured in the vehicle washes’ drains. However, only some of this water should be reused in a portion of the vehicle wash.  The reason for this is that the used car wash soaps, detergents, waxes, etc. are still present in the reclaimed water.

Ozone-based water reclaim systems inject ozone gas into the reclaimed water to mitigate odor and to chemically break down the used car wash chemicals.  Unfortunately, ozone systems are not only incapable of injecting enough ozone into the water to mitigate odor and to chemically break down used vehicle wash chemicals, they also kill the very microbes that remove odor and consume used vehicle wash chemicals.  In addition, ozone has been found by the EPA to cause health problems ranging from headaches to long-term lung damage to death. If ozone equipment were to ever malfunction in a closed environment, it could become toxic. As a results of the kill-off of microbes in the water, a vehicle wash using an ozone-based water reclaim system can expect poor water quality, caused by a combination of black sludge or slime (dead microbes) and used wash chemicals, and continued odor issues.  Also, ozone systems require ozone gas replenishment and parts replacements both of which can be quite costly. 

 Aeration-based water reclaim systems infuse oxygen into the water to mitigate odor.  The infusion of oxygen into the water aids in the conversion of anaerobic microbes to aerobic microbes.  The byproduct of this conversion is CO2 (which has NO ODOR) and H20.  An aeration based water reclaim is completely safe to operate and only requires a weekly strainer basket check and annual aeration air filter change.

A water reclaim system mitigates odor and filters out suspended solids (dirt) down to a certain micron level, however the chemistry (used vehicle wash soaps, detergents, waxes, hydrocarbons, etc.) are still present in the processed reclaim water.  For this reason, a vehicle wash operator should only use reclaim water in the early wash stages ie. pre soak, pre rinse, undercarriage, etc.

One step beyond a water reclaim system is a full water restoration system.  In a water restoration system, the used vehicle wash water goes through the same aeration and cyclonic separation as a water reclaim system, but then goes through an added step: biologic consumption.  The biologic consumption stage removes the remaining used wash chemicals out of the water, resulting in clean water that is able to be reused throughout the wash cycle. With the recent breakthrough of the biosoftreat system, a vehicle wash can now take it even one step further and use biologically restored water to feed a reverse osmosis system to make spot-free rinse water!

Vehicle wash operators should choose Aqua Bio systems because they are safe, effective, low-maintenance, and produce results in the form of cleaner water and reduced water and sewer costs.  Cleaner water results in a better wash quality for your customers, while a reduction in water and sewer costs is added money to your bottom line.

A vehicle wash owner/operator would see some of the same benefits mentioned above.  No odor (guaranteed with Aqua Bio systems), a safe environment, excellent water quality, and the ability to recycle more of your used water and witness a reduction in water and sewer costs are all benefits of our systems.

No ground level ozone, little to zero discharge back into the sewer system or a leech field, and the water that does discharge has the same, if not better, water quality than municipal water.

Recycling more water means more savings in water and sewer costs, which means more money to your bottom line.  ROI with our systems is consistently in the neighborhood of 1-2 years.

Whatever your needs, Aqua Bio can tailor a system to fit them. If your location has a water odor problem, you would like to capture clean water from the roof of your facility, you would like to recycle your water and reuse but don’t have the space for a full bio system, you would like to do the full gusto and recycle and reuse through your whole wash, or you have another water recycling system that hasn’t been working to your standards and needs some rehab, we can work with you to address your concerns.  Please contact one of our distributors or sales professionals in your state for more information.