I do a considerable amount of drop-off laundry at my store, and I always seem to have a problem removing chewing gum from garments. Can you offer any suggestions for removing it?
There are two ways to deal with this problem. One way is to spot it with a good paint and oil remover. If you use this method, be certain to work it until it dissolves completely and then flush it with hot water. After that, run the item through a standard wash cycle.
The other way to remove gum is to place the item in a freezer until the gum gets rock hard. Once the gum is frozen, it should easily crumble into a powder and simply fall off of the garment.
I’m building a new self-service laundry, and I’m confused about what to do with regard to my store’s plumbing. I have the choice of going with a solid pipe drain system or a trough drain system. What do you think I should do?
In my opinion, a trough system is definitely the better way to go. With a trough, you can dump a much higher volume of water, thus preventing backups. In addition, such a system is easier to clean. And, if it’s properly installed, you will eliminate the need for very much main line rodding for several years. Plus, coins won’t plug up the main line, because they will remain at the bottom of the trough where they can be easily picked up.
The only negative factor of a trough system is that you may on occasion need to pour in a gallon of bleach, if you develop any odors. However, your drain system is pitched correctly, you shouldn’t have that problem.
I’m looking into rebuilding a store that’s been closed for about eight months. It’s pretty rundown. I’ll have to replace all of the equipment and rework the plumbing. Do you think it’s even worth doing?
I would do some research before getting involved with this type of store. Try to find out why it went out of business in the first place. Was the rent too high? Did the demographics within the neighborhood shift? Did strong new competition enter the marketplace? Was the store not large enough to accommodate the volume of business it was required to handle? Was the laundry built in the wrong area? Is there enough parking availability, especially for the weekends?
These are some of the questions you need to ask. After all, when a laundry just closes, rather than being sold, there’s always a reason. Often, the story is that the previous owner was just “a terrible operator.” However, the fact of the matter is that I’ve seen some pretty awful laundry operators make a lot of money in this business. So, be aware that most of the time that “bad owner”reason is not the real reason.
All I can tell you is to do your due diligence and then do a lot of checking and re-checking of the facts. Most importantly, be sure to study the latest demographics for your potential marketplace – it’s critical to know whether or not there’s even a customer base to support the type of vended laundry you plan to open.
