Why a 24-hour car wash helps
The best time to wash in winter is set by the weather and the roads, not by business hours. A wash that never closes lets you pick that time.
Timing is most of the winter battle
Washing salt off the car only helps if it stays off for a while. Wash in the middle of a snowfall, or while the roads are still wet with brine, and the car picks up a new coat within the first few kilometres. The useful window is after the storm has passed and the roads have started to dry, ideally on the mildest part of that day.
That window does not keep a schedule. It might be two in the afternoon on a Tuesday, or ten at night after a warm front comes through. A wash that is open 24 hours, 7 days a week means you can go when the roads are right, rather than waiting until the weekend and washing in worse conditions or not at all.
Shift work and long days
A lot of people in London work hours that do not line up with a regular business day: hospital shifts, plant shifts, overnight warehouse and delivery work, early starts at the airport. For them, a wash that closes in the evening is a wash they can only use on days off.
Being able to stop on the way home at six in the morning, or before a midnight start, is the difference between washing every week or two through the winter and washing once a month. The second is not enough to keep salt from building up underneath.
Quieter hours
Washes tend to be busiest on weekend afternoons and on the first nice day after a storm, when everyone has the same idea. Going early in the morning or late in the evening usually means less of a wait. If you see a line out the entrance on a Saturday, coming back that night is often quicker.
Washing at night in winter
Night is often the coldest part of the day, so it needs a bit more care. After a late wash below freezing, wipe the door seals, open and close each door once, blot around the fuel door and lift the wipers off the glass for a moment. Then drive for a while with the heat on before parking outside. If you can, park in a garage that night.
The other thing to watch at night is the bay signal. It tells you when to drive in and when the wash has finished, so wait for it rather than going on the car ahead.
Fast Lane's hours
Fast Lane at 2263 Dundas St, near Veterans Memorial Pkwy, is open 24 hours, 7 days a week, which suits people coming off the 401 late or heading to and from the airport area at odd hours. The bay entrance is on the side of the building under the red CARWASH ENTER sign.
In short: In winter, wait until the roads have dried after a storm and wash then, whatever time of day that turns out to be.
