Wand bays and vacuums
Two to eight bays on a commercial parcel, with or without dryers. Coin mechanisms, card readers, or a mix of both — the payment system tells us about the upgrade path, not about whether we are interested.
We buy self-serve car washes directly from the owners who built them.
SprayBay acquires wand-bay washes on commercial parcels across the Mountain West. One buyer, one process, no listing and no commission — and a straight answer on value whether or not we end up doing business.
- No broker commission
- Cash or structured terms
- Underwritten from utility records
- Response within one business day
- Confidential from first contact
Mandate
Self-serve washes are the only thing we buy.
Not tunnels, not in-bay automatics, not a diversified portfolio of small businesses. A single asset class means we already know what your pump room looks like before we walk into it.
Any age, any condition
Deferred maintenance is priced, not penalized. Aging pumps, a tired canopy, vacuum motors at end of life — these are line items in our capital budget rather than reasons to walk away from a good corner.
Revenue we can verify
We do not require audited financials or a reconstructed P&L. Twenty-four months of water and sewer bills establish wash volume independently, which protects an honest seller as often as it protects us.
Acquisition criteria
What we are actively looking for.
Published so you can decide in two minutes whether a conversation is worth your time. Sites outside these parameters are still worth sending — we will tell you honestly if it is not a fit.
| Parameter | What we look for |
|---|---|
| Format | Pure self-serve wand bays with vacuums. Sites with an in-bay automatic are considered only where the automatic is valued at salvage. |
| Bays | Two to eight, with four to six being the most common fit for how we staff and maintain a site. |
| Real estate | Owned commercial parcel, ideally a corner or arterial frontage with existing curb cuts. We buy the land with the business. |
| Geography | Utah, Idaho, Arizona, Nevada, Colorado, and New Mexico. The Wasatch Front is where we move quickest. |
| Condition | Any. Coin-only sites with visible deferred maintenance are squarely within our mandate. |
| Environmental | A Phase I assessment is ordered on every acquisition without exception. Adjacent historic fuel or dry-cleaning use is a diligence item, not automatically a deal-breaker. |
Process
Three stages, and you can stop at any of them.
The same sequence on every acquisition. You will always know what happens next and what we need from you.
Confidential inquiry
Send the basics through the form: bays, location, and roughly what you are hoping for. We respond within one business day. Nothing is listed, published, or shared, and no obligation attaches to the conversation.
Site visit and written offer
We walk the site, review the utility records with you, and put a written offer in front of you with the valuation math shown line by line. Where it helps, we present cash and seller-financed structures side by side.
Diligence and closing
Title work, survey, zoning verification, and the Phase I environmental assessment run in parallel. A clean file closes in 45 to 60 days. If you need longer to plan an exit, the timeline flexes to you.
Operating standards
The commitments we hold ourselves to.
These apply to every inquiry, including the ones that never become a transaction.
You deal with the decision-maker
Inquiries are handled by the principal who authorizes the purchase and signs at closing. There is no associate layer, no investment committee to satisfy, and no chain of people who each need to be convinced before you get an answer.
Our valuation math is shown, not asserted
Every offer sets out how the number was reached: verified wash volume, the multiple applied, the standalone land value, and the near-term capital the site requires. You are entitled to check our arithmetic, and we would rather you did.
We do not retrade
The price in the letter of intent is the price at closing unless diligence turns up something material that neither party knew about. Where that happens, we show you the finding and the adjustment together, in writing.
Confidentiality is the default, not an upgrade
No listing, no signage, no approach to your staff, customers, or neighboring businesses. Site visits look like an ordinary customer washing a truck. Nothing becomes public until you decide it does.
The wash keeps operating
We acquire to own and operate, not to flip a contract to another buyer. After closing we install card readers, repair lighting, and maintain the bays. The site your customers depend on stays open.
Common questions
Straight answers for owners.
Do I need a broker to sell to you?
No. We purchase directly from owners, so no commission is deducted from your proceeds. If you are already represented, we work with your broker without difficulty — we simply do not require one to be involved.
My books are not in good order. Is that a problem?
It is not. Self-serve washes run on cash, and we underwrite accordingly. Twenty-four months of water and sewer bills let us establish wash volume independently of your accounting. Owners who have under-reported cash revenue for years frequently find the utility records support a higher number than their books do.
How quickly can you close?
Typically 45 to 60 days from a signed letter of intent, driven mainly by title work and the Phase I environmental assessment. A clean file can move faster. If you need a longer runway to plan your exit or manage a tax year, we will work to your calendar.
Do you offer seller financing?
Yes, and we will model it against an all-cash sale so you can compare after-tax outcomes. Owners holding property with little or no debt often net more from an installment sale. Our guide on how seller financing works sets out the mechanics, and your accountant should review any structure before you commit.
How confidential is this really?
Completely. There is no listing and no public marketing. We do not approach your employees, customers, or neighboring businesses, and diligence materials stay between the parties. Every inquiry is no-obligation, and a great many of our conversations are with owners who are still years away from selling.
What if my wash falls outside your criteria?
Send it anyway. If it is not a fit we will say so directly rather than string you along, and where we can we will point you toward a more suitable buyer. A quick, honest no costs you nothing but the time it takes to fill in the form.
Considering an exit, even a few years out?
It costs nothing to establish what your wash is worth to a serious buyer before you need to sell. Send the basics and we will respond within one business day.