Washing your vehicle yourself can be a fun outdoor activity, but improper car washing can harm our local creeks, watersheds, and oceans. There are many pollutants associated with washing your car, including soap, oil, grease, buildup from exhaust emissions, heavy metals, rust, and much more. All these forms of discharge can have devastating effects on our water quality, fish, wildlife, and plant life.

What about commercial car washers? 

Commercial car washers are highly preferred to the do-it-yourself (DIY) alternative. These businesses are regulated to have all their water run into the sanitary system, where the water can be treated. The City monitors these discharges and keeps pollutants out of waterways. Some car washes will even collect, treat, and reuse their water on-site!

There are smart, environmentally friendly ways to wash your car at home, too:

• If available, try washing your car in an area where water will not flow into the street and the storm drains. Your lawn has one of nature’s greatest water filters in the form of plants and soil and will prevent harmful heavy chemicals from reaching the groundwater.
• Try to use as little water as possible. If you use a bucket instead of a hose, that may help prevent water from flowing to the storm drain.
• If you use a hose, you should use a shut-off valve to prevent excess water from flowing to the storm drain.
• Create barriers using rolled up towels or straw wattles: Use them as a barrier to the storm drain. You can also use these to divert the water to a landscaped area, such as a lawn or garden.

The next time you need to clean your car, please keep these tips in mind, and help protect our creeks and oceans!

For more information on how you can help protect our watersheds, check out our Homeowner’s Guide in English and Spanish.