New Boat Wash

Brushless ship wash coming to Soo Locks

4/1 - The U.S. Army Corpse of Engineers announced today that they are partnering with Holidaze Gas Station and Convenience Stores to bring new, touch-less ship-washing technology to da Soo.

Corpse Media Technician Coe Essayons said that the massive automated equipment will be installed in a 100-foot-long translucent-sided building. The building will straddle the west (upstream) end of the new navigation lock being built at the Soo. This will allow transiting vessels to be washed in either the upbound or downbound direction while allowing any soap residue to be skimmed off the water in the lock before the next lockage.

A basic wash and rinse will cost about $1 per foot of vessel length. Additional products will be available, such as taconite dust-removing foam and spray wax. Transiting tugboats may wish to pay extra to have Armorall applied to their tires and other rubber fendering.

While captains can pay for a wash themselves, kiosks will also be installed at the nearby public viewing platforms. “We think the ship wash will be a huge hit with visiting BoatNerds,” Essayons added. “They are always complaining about the appearance of certain vessels. This way, for a nominal fee, they will be able to ensure that the ships are squeaky clean when they pass the photographer’s hangout at Mission Point.”