Fleet’s waterless carwash contract saves 33 gallons per wash

Crossposted from KC Employee News

The “spray on, wipe off” method is the latest and most environmentally sustainable way of washing vehicles, saving 33 gallons of water per car wash, and the Fleet Administration Division (Fleet) is a leader in this effort.

Fleet recently finalized a five-year contract with Eco Service USA for fleet vehicle cleaning, after using their service on a pay-as-you-go basis for the last year. The new contract is already helping King County tackle climate change and reduce its environmental impact.

Fleet Personal Property Supervisor Russ Johnson oversees the Motor Pool Dispatch Program and the Online Reservation System used by King County employees to check out vehicles.

“A component of my role is ensuring vehicles are cleaned on a monthly basis,” Russ said. “In the first six months of this year, they [Eco Service USA] performed 356 car washes, saving 11,748 gallons of water.”

With this initiative King County is projected to save more than 20,000 gallons of water per year. The savings amount to over 100,000 gallons through the five-year contract. The cleaning agent is also plant-based and environmentally neutral.

In addition to the water savings, King County is also saving on gas. “Eco Service comes to us and cleans several cars at a time, so we don’t have to drive the vehicles to them,” Russ said.

Eco Service USA performs exterior and interior cleaning to 65 different vehicles, from hybrid Priuses to 12-passenger vans located in Goat Hill Garage, King Street Center and a few in Renton.

As part of the contract, Russ strongly encourages other county agencies to take advantage of the services offered by Eco Service.

The convenient at-your-doorstep service makes life much easier for vehicle users, but drivers can do their part to take care of the County’s vehicle fleet.

“Fleet encourages drivers to keep vehicles clean to present a professional image of King County to our residents,” Jennifer Lindwall, Director of Fleet Administration Division, said.

For more information contact Russ Johnson, Personal Property Supervisor, at 206-477-3889.