Recent features on car wash wastewater reclamation and results obtained in a full-scale car wash wastewater
treatment and recycling are reported. The technique employed comprises a new flocculation-column
flotation (FCF), sand filtration and final chlorination. Water usage and savings audits (20 weeks) showed
that almost 70% reclamation was possible, and less than 40 L of fresh water per wash was attained.
Wastewater and reclaimed water were fully characterized by monitoring chemical, physicochemical and
biological parameters. Results were discussed in terms of reclamation aesthetic quality (water clarification
and odour), health (pathological) and chemical (corrosion and scaling) risks. Noteworthy, this work
showed a high count of fecal and total coliforms both in the wastewater and in the treated water, making
the need of a final disinfection mandatory. The cost-benefit analysis shows that, for a car wash wastewater
reclamation system in Brazil, at least 8 months were needed for the FCF-SC equipment amortization,
when considering a demand over 30 washes per day. It is believed that the discussions on car wash
wastewater reclamation criteria may assist alerting wash cars units and institutions to create laws in
Brazil and elsewhere.