Epa

M

Mobilejay

Active member
I'm sure there are some threads about this. have any of you run into problems? Im mobile, and was wondering if the epa has sprung up on anyone and caused problems. are there still chemicals that arent voc? I use auto magic, black fire, zaino and some megs. and im pretty sure they're all voc. the only thing you have to look for is soaps right? cause polish unless spilt and washed away isnt going to cause anyproblems, or window cleaner tire dressing may be a problem. I dont know, if there are other posts about this please post for me if not then your info on the subject please. thanks in advance
 
I think the regulations apply to the manufacturers, not the end users.



They can have my Meguiars #16 when they pry it from my cold, dead fingers.
hahano.gif
 
lol, yeah but cant you get find if you are washing and that "contaminated" water finds its way down a drain or no?
 
In some states the EPA delegates their enforcement autority to state agencies (for instance, here in NJ, to the NJDEP). As with any of these things, if you are a mobile detailer you need to be aware of federal, state, and local regulations for the areas you are working in.
 
In my 16 years of mobile auto cleaning I haven't had a single problem. I haven't even had a customer bring it up in conversation. I also haven't heard from any local detailers that have had a problem. My old auto magic rep mentioned someone in Richmond (north of me) got fined for cleaning an engine on a city street. I think he heard it from someone else so who knows. I did stop cleaning engines at that point though :) I was going to stop anyway but that was good incentive for me. Only water recovery systems I've ever seen in my life have been online. I also haven't met a mobile detailer (other than myself) that uses a low water product like QEW (I use some of the time). Different cities and states seem to enforce and interpret the regulations differently. Some seems to depend on how the city handles water runoff. Research your current area to avoid finding out the hard way.
 
well hopefully i can go 16 yrs and not have any problems. i probably should stop doing the engines though. thanks guys and i will look into how houston handles water runoff.
 
If i was more than 8 cars a week i am required to have a water reclaimation system in place. Regardless if i use ONR or not.



After talking with the local epa lady about it. They are basically after car lot washer (the guys spraying off the cars with a mobile pressure washer)



If your mobile and doing 1-2 cars a day at diferent locations and break that 8 car rule in a week she said it was highly improbable they would look at you unless they recieved a complaint.



***

edit

on a funny related side note. I brought up the fact that the epa wants the cars washed on a hard surface with good drainage.



But it can't drain to a storm drain, it must be reclaimed and dumped into the sewer for treatment



But the city, and county's official stance is the car is to be washed on grass to keep run off to a minimum. If you do have runn off they do not want it in a storm drain. And when it is reclaimed you are NOT to dump it into the sewer system. They would prefer you use it when watering your lawn, flowers, garden.



Am i the only one that wishes the left hand would talk to the right hand..
 
Grouse said:
If your mobile and doing 1-2 cars a day at diferent locations and break that 8 car rule in a week she said it was highly improbable they would look at you unless they recieved a complaint.
Click to expand...



I guess that's the risk you take. I remember reading in my local paper a couple years ago that some guy in my town poured some gasoline from a lawnmower can into a storm drain. Some neighbor saw this and called the police. Apparently that resulted in a visit from the police, fire department, and regional hazmat team, who went downstream to plug the storm line and then collect everything upstream. IIRC, criminal charges were filed as well. Considering how hard it is to dispose of gasoline around here (once or twice a year county hazardous waste day, drive it way over there, wait in line, etc. and they only started those collections 2 or 3 years ago, there used to be NO way to do it, that I'm aware of) I'm not surprised that the guy did what he did, and I don't know what happened to him, but I would bet he had to pay for the hazmat team response.



My point is it only takes one phone call to put you in a world of hurt, for what might be federal charges. And you can't plead ignorance because you already talked to the EPA (you didn't give them your name, did you? lol). Of course, I don't know how they would prove you did over 8 cars a week, anyway. That's actually almost unbelievable that they let you do 8 cars instead of having a zero-tolerance policy, unless the 8 cars applies to homeowners as well. Hmm...if you talked to the EPA lady that would be a federal law?
 
Grouse said:
on a funny related side note. I brought up the fact that the epa wants the cars washed on a hard surface with good drainage.



But it can't drain to a storm drain, it must be reclaimed and dumped into the sewer for treatment



But the city, and county's official stance is the car is to be washed on grass to keep run off to a minimum. If you do have runn off they do not want it in a storm drain. And when it is reclaimed you are NOT to dump it into the sewer system. They would prefer you use it when watering your lawn, flowers, garden.



Am i the only one that wishes the left hand would talk to the right hand..
Click to expand...



Just sounds like the EPA is going after the higher volume generators, while the local guys are targeting the car owners in their yard. Makes sense to me.
 
Setec Astronomy said:
I guess that's the risk you take. I remember reading in my local paper a couple years ago that some guy in my town poured some gasoline from a lawnmower can into a storm drain. Some neighbor saw this and called the police. Apparently that resulted in a visit from the police, fire department, and regional hazmat team, who went downstream to plug the storm line and then collect everything upstream. IIRC, criminal charges were filed as well. Considering how hard it is to dispose of gasoline around here (once or twice a year county hazardous waste day, drive it way over there, wait in line, etc. and they only started those collections 2 or 3 years ago, there used to be NO way to do it, that I'm aware of) I'm not surprised that the guy did what he did, and I don't know what happened to him, but I would bet he had to pay for the hazmat team response.



My point is it only takes one phone call to put you in a world of hurt, for what might be federal charges. And you can't plead ignorance because you already talked to the EPA (you didn't give them your name, did you? lol). Of course, I don't know how they would prove you did over 8 cars a week, anyway. That's actually almost unbelievable that they let you do 8 cars instead of having a zero-tolerance policy, unless the 8 cars applies to homeowners as well. Hmm...if you talked to the EPA lady that would be a federal law?
Click to expand...





here is a quote from the pdf

Small

Dischargers

Small dischargers are defined as those where washing is carried out

infrequently:

+ Involving 1 or 2 pieces of equipment and/or vehicles per day, not

exceeding eight during any week; and/or

+ Discharging less than 100 gallons of washwater each day; and

+ Washing of the vehicle/equipment is not the primary business

activity of the discharges. For example, mobile washers are not small

dischargers. Recommendations in this manual for “Mobile washers�

should be followed.

Do ! Discharge to a sanitary sewerage system when possible. If you are

not sure the nearby drain is a sanitary sewer, contact your local sewer

utility.

! If a sanitary sewerage system is not available, discharge to a

landscaped, grassy ground surface, or dirt area where the washwater

can soak into the ground or evaporate. Note: soapy washwater may

adversely affect landscaping. Discuss this option with the building

owner.

! Keep a distance of at least 100 feet from a well head if discharging to

ground.

! Minimize the amount of soaps and detergents used.

Don’t ! Do not discharge to a surface water or a storm sewer.

! Do not clean engines or do any cleaning involving strong acids,

caustics, or other metal brighteners.
Click to expand...

here is the link. Pages 14-16 apply to detailers in general

http://www.ecy.wa.gov/pubs/95056.pdf
 
Oh, that's your state regs. You said "epa lady" so I thought you were referring to the federal gov't. Still the difference in policy is the difference between the car owner washing his own car and mobile car washers.



Thanks for the link, that was interesting.
 
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