Green Automotive Service
Let’s face it, automotive service is not exactly a low impact business. Nor does the auto service industry have a stellar history of being friendly to the environment. Unfortunately, the automotive business in general has a rather poor track record for environmental stewardship.
At Atlantic Motorcar, we’re different, we think about what we do, and more importantly, we dispose of or recycle our waste stream responsibly.
We are no stranger to recycling. When we purchased the former CarTest building back in 2003, it had sat idle for nearly a decade. In short order, our team did the ultimate recycle and refurbished the former state emission testing building into a high tech center for imported car service and sales.
Why reinvent the wheel? Why not reuse an existing structure for the benefit of the community? You can read more about the project by clicking here.
Green Initiatives. Every year we set out to do 2 or 3 distinct things that will make the business and grounds better for our staff, our community and our environment. After all, we live here too. It starts with the little things, and little things add up quickly.
How We Handle Automotive Service Waste Products
- A/C Refrigerant (R134) – Captured and Recycled.
- Antifreeze – Recycled.
- Batteries – Recycled and exchanged
- Brake Fluid – Recycled with waste oil.
(For reasons of safety, we use only new brake fluid for service.) - Engine Oil – Recycled into heating oil and other oil products.
(But we don’t use recycled oil in our customer cars, nor do we recommend you use it, instead we only use new factory approved Castrol or Mobil products.) - Part Cleaning Solvent – We contract with Safety Clean to properly recycle this fluid.
- Tires – Recycled into other rubber products, even road bedding!
- Transmission Fluid – Recycled into heating oil and other oil products.
- Waste Water – Oil/water separator catches any waste products before they enter the groundwater system.
Green Technologies Used At Atlantic Motorcar
Passive Solar Heating and Lighting
We’ve installed glass doors into the workshop area to provide both passive solar heating, as well as improved lighting for our service technicians.
Low Energy Workshop Lighting
In 2008 we installed energy efficient lighting into our workshop, not only do the technicians see better, we all feel better knowing we’re doing our part to lower our energy use. You might not think that a simple thing like changing a light bulb can save much energy, but when you have nearly 30 high output fixtures, and each fixture has two bulbs, changing some 60 bulbs can make a big difference. The new lighting system is scheduled to cut our electrical usage for lighting nearly in half.
Road Sign – LED Lighting
Our new road sign, installed in 2009, uses the latest in LED lighting to lower both energy use and eliminate the disposal headaches of mercury containing florescent tubes. As an added bonus, the LED lighting cuts our energy usage by a factor of 5, while lasting 2-3 times longer than the old style florescent tubes.
You’ve Got Ideas, We’re Listening
Some of the best practices in our business started with a suggestion by a customer, and we’d like to hear yours!
We’re always learning, so if you have an idea or suggestion of how we can further improve our programs, be all means we’d like to hear from you. Call, email or just stop in and let us know how we can help!
