Service Body Truck Washing for Contractor and Utility Fleets

Service body truck washing gets less attention than it should. The pickups and medium-duty trucks with upfitted bodies that utility, electrical, concrete, plumbing and paving contractors run are the trucks that sit at the curb all day on public jobs, and they come back carrying the mud, concrete and dust of the job in every compartment and on every rack.

Douglas County gives a good picture of the work these trucks are doing. The county describes its Lee Road widening as taking the road from two to four lanes with a 20-foot median between Monier Avenue and State Route 92, adding sidewalks, a multi-use trail and streetlights, at an estimated cost of $22 million. Transportation Department Director Miguel Valentin called it the largest project managed directly by Douglas County. The county has also published plans for a further widening of Lee Road and South Sweetwater Road near Lithia Springs, running about 1.4 miles north to Veterans Memorial Highway with sidewalks, trails and curb and gutter.

Projects like these bring a long line of contractors' service trucks: utility relocation, concrete flatwork, signals and lighting, landscaping. This post covers how to wash those trucks properly without damaging the body or what is inside it.

How Service Body Trucks Get Dirty

A service body is a set of steel or aluminum compartments around the bed, often with a ladder rack overhead and sometimes a crane or compressor. Dirt arrives from every direction. Tires throw clay onto the lower compartment doors and the rear bumper. Crews put muddy tools back in the compartments. Concrete splash lands on the rear and the step bumper. Dust settles on the roof of the body and runs into door seals with the next rain.

Inside the compartments, the floor collects mud, packing materials, spilled fluids and metal shavings. Water that gets in through worn seals pools there and rusts the floor from the inside, which is how a body that looks fine from outside develops a rotten compartment floor in a few years.

Service Body Truck Washing: Order and Pressure

Close and latch every compartment door before the wash. Check that the door seals are seated, because a seal folded over in the jamb will let a jet straight into the compartment. Then pre-rinse from the top down at moderate pressure, around 1,200 to 2,000 PSI, with a 25 or 40 degree tip.

Apply a pre-wash suited to road film and clay, let it dwell 2 to 4 minutes, and rinse. Aim the spray along the door faces, not into the gaps around the edges, latches or hinges. On the lower doors and rear step where concrete splash has set, a mineral-safe cleaner and a soft brush will do more than higher pressure.

Rinse the roof of the body and the ladder rack before the sides, so dirt does not run down over panels that are already clean.

Compartments, Seals and Latches

Compartment interiors should be cleaned dry or nearly dry. Have the crew empty the compartment, sweep or vacuum out debris, and wipe the floor and shelves with a damp cloth. If a compartment needs to be rinsed, open the drain holes, use low pressure, and leave it open to dry before tools go back in.

Look at the seals on every wash. Cracked, flattened or torn seals are the main reason compartments rust and tools corrode. Replacing seals is cheap; replacing a compartment floor or a set of power tools is not.

Latches and locks need lubrication after washing, because water and soap strip the grease. A light spray of the lubricant the body maker recommends keeps them working through the winter.

Ladder Racks, Cranes and Compressors

Ladder racks collect road grime on the crossbars and at the mounts, and the mounts are where corrosion starts. Rinse them thoroughly and check the fasteners while you are there. Ladders themselves, especially fiberglass ones, should be rinsed gently and inspected rather than blasted.

A body-mounted crane is a piece of equipment, not a panel. Rinse the boom and the base at moderate pressure, keep the spray off the hydraulic fittings, the cylinder rods and any control panel, and inspect hoses for wear while they are clean. Our post on bucket truck boom cleaning covers the extra care needed on insulated aerial equipment.

Air compressors and generators mounted in the body need their intakes and cooling fins kept clear. Clean around them by hand and keep water out of the electrical boxes.

Concrete, Asphalt and Paint Overspray

Road and site crews pick up concrete, asphalt and line paint on their trucks. All three get harder to remove each day. Concrete splash comes off with a mineral-safe cleaner and dwell time while it is still fresh. Asphalt and tar respond to a citrus or solvent-based product made for vehicle surfaces, applied to a dry panel and rinsed. Paint overspray usually needs hand work.

Do not try to chip set concrete off with a scraper on painted surfaces. If it has cured, a professional with the right product and patience will save the paint.

Line paint and traffic marking materials are a special case. Fresh waterborne paint may come off with a mild cleaner and a soft brush if it is caught the same day. Thermoplastic and epoxy markings need a product designed for them and patience. Either way, the sooner the crew reports it, the easier it is.

Brand Presentation on Public Jobs

A contractor's truck on a public road project is seen by thousands of drivers a day, and by the residents and business owners along the corridor. A clean truck with a legible company name and DOT number tells all of them the crew is organized. A truck with clay over the logo tells them something else.

For crews working the same corridor for months, a weekly wash at the yard keeps the trucks presentable without taking them off the job.

Clean trucks also make the daily inspection more useful. A driver checking tires, lights and the crane before leaving the yard can see a leak or a cut hose on a clean truck far more easily than on one coated in mud.

Keep the Trucks Ready for the Next Job

PBD Pressure Washing provides on-site fleet washing for contractor and utility fleets in Lithia Springs, Douglasville, Austell and across West Metro Atlanta, washing service bodies, racks and cranes with methods that keep water out of compartments and controls. We come to your yard early or after hours so crews are not waiting.

If your service trucks are coming back from road and site work coated in clay and concrete, request a quote or call (404) 933-8559.

SERVICE BODY TRUCK WASHING FOR CONTRACTOR AND UTILITY FLEETS