Eric Morris’ business is ready to make your vehicle shine.
Owner Eric Morris, who also operates car washes in Adair, Anita and Stuart, says he has learned much about the seasonality of the business.
By Rich Wicks | Guthrie Center Times, June 2025
Soap and water are the basic elements of most cleaning, and, at first glance, Eric Morris’ business is not much more complex than that. He owns and operates The Washing Machine carwash in Guthrie Center, as well as carwashes in other local communities.
“Carwashes just come down to very simple things: soap, pressure, the soft water for the spot-free rinse. Other than that, there’s really not a lot to them,” Morris said. “This one was ‘The Washing Machine’ when we bought it and has been since it opened. So, we didn’t change the name; everybody already knows what it is. We have owned this one since 2019.”
The Washing Machine is located on Highway 44 west across from Café on the Hill.
Morris recalled that he had not intended to buy a carwash in Guthrie Center, but when the opportunity arose, it felt right.
“We just got into it by accident,” Morris said. “My friend owned it. His dad had unfortunately passed, and they were selling it, and it just came up organically in conversation.”
Morris also owns car washes in Adair, Anita and Stuart. He has learned about the seasonality of the business.
“When my friend owned this place, he said, ‘You survive the summer; you thrive in the winter,’ ” Morris said. “That’s true, but lately our winters have had very cold snaps for a couple of weeks at a time. When the high for the day is less than double digits, we just close.”
Morris explained why winter is his busiest season.
“In the winter, when the brine is on the cars, people want to get that off. That helps us,” Morris said. “Spring and fall are good, but the dry months — July and August — we don’t do much.”
However, Morris explained that the dry summer weather brings an additional concern for car owners. Morris said that, although people quickly notice when a car begins to look dirty or dusty, the undercarriage isn’t so easy to see. He added how vehicles that frequently travel on gravel roads will quickly accumulate lots of dust and debris underneath the vehicle, and the undercarriage wash is perfectly designed to deal with that unseen issue.
Although soap and water are the foundation of any carwash, Morris admits there is more to his operations. Much of his work involves keeping the equipment in working order.
“A lot of people just wash their car but don’t see anything beyond the spraying water and soap. They don’t see all the moving parts, and how many things can go wrong, and how much it costs to fix all the moving parts,” Morris said. “Technology is making big differences. If you looked at my carwashes in Adair and Anita, they are much older machines. I can work on them a lot easier, but the newer technology makes things a little smoother and a little more efficient.”
Morris lives in Panora with his wife, Jenna, and son, Keaton. He says he has no plans to expand his business in the near future. Keeping four carwashes going provides plenty to keep him busy. He shared the story about an incident that closed The Washing Machine for 42 days earlier this spring.
“The snowstorm in March, that’s what took out our coinbox. It had a vent on the back for letting out the heat, and that got full of snow, and it was outdated anyway,” Morris said. “Now it has a new electronic control system. This new one has cellular backup, so even if our internet goes down, we can still run credit cards and still do everything.”
Morris encourages customers to read and follow posted instructions at the carwash, including to fold in mirrors (if possible), remove extended trailer hitches, remove loose items from truck beds, and note the height and width limits. The Washing Machine can accommodate vehicles up to 90 inches in height (7.5 feet).
Although Morris encourages drivers to come through The Washing Machine often, he admits sometimes a vehicle needs the manual attention that only a handwash can provide.
“It’s still good to handwash a car at least once a year,” Morris said.