Advertisement

HRM eco-friendly car wash a Canadian first

Shelton Swinemar works at Geo Wash. A 'first-in-Canada' car washing business that uses only two liters of water to clean a vehicle. Erin Trafford/Global News

It’s hard to tell exactly what it is at first. Upon closer inspection, however, the benefits of the three-wheeled cart become clear. It’s a Geo Wash – a remarkable new car washing system.

Ken Hunter is the only Canadian franchisee right now. “A lot of people have no idea what it is. Now that the weather is getting better, we’re doing it outside, so people can have a better idea of what’s going on,” he says. Hunter has set up shop in Sydney, Cape Breton and in Bedford at the Sunnyside Mall.

The technology behind Geo Wash was developed in Argentina and initially marketed in Europe. “Canada is a different market,” he says. “We’re a colder climate, so just with Sydney and here, we’re learning a lot as we go.”

For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen.

Get breaking National news

For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen.
By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.

There are a handful of full time employees in Nova Scotia right now, but Hunter says he hopes that number will increase as the weather warms up and demand for the service goes up. The process starts with the application of a waterless solution that takes all the dirt off the car, allowing Geo Wash to use very little water.

Story continues below advertisement

Conventional car washes can use more than 300 liters of water per wash. Geo Wash will do the an entire vehicle using approximately two liters. “People are very concerned about the environment,” says Hunter. “That’s one of the big pluses of it, because when you’re washing your car, you’re actually helping the environment.”

Shelton Swinemar works for Geo Wash full-time and says right now, he’s washing up to five cars per day in Bedford. Each car takes about two hours to do. “We can pretty much run one of these carts for a week without charging it, off just ten liters of water if we wanted to,” he says. “It’s pretty remarkable really.” For more information on Geo Wash, you can find them on Facebook.

Sponsored content

AdChoices