Local businesses such as car washes and rental companies are seeing a lot of folks coming down from the playa now that Burning Man is done.
Reno Car Wash is a local business that opened last November. Co-owner Jake Banks says this weekend has been great for business.
"Yesterday was the busiest day we've ever had, but it was a lot of fun," Banks says. "We had people from all over the world, and it was really interesting talking to them all."
Banks says some folks weren't used to self-service car washes, so all of the owners trained them on the spot.
Stop me if you've heard this before, but he says this year's weather brought some unique challenges for Burners.
"It was a little bit worse this year," he says, "because you had rain in the front end of the burn. So, we had people coming in with a lot of mud caked on."
Burner Dave Jackson says he washes here because it's right next door to Emigrant Storage, where he stores his RV. He kept it in the Bay Area for a few years but recently moved it back to Reno.
"I had it on Treasure Island in between San Francisco and Oakland, where the Bay Bridge goes across," Jackson says. "And it was just getting rusted from all the salt air."
On top of their wash service, Reno Car Wash rented a dumpster so Burners can dump their trash and wash their RV in the same place. The trash service costs $10.
Banks says it's a great help for Burners flying out.
"A lot of them have to catch flights at the end of the day," he says, "so they need to get everything detailed before they bring their RVs and cars back, so they don't get charged extra fees."
Those fees are especially important to keep in mind for U-Hauls. Katelynn Donley is the General Manager for U-Haul Moving & Storage at Virginia Street. She says quite a few vans and trailers have come back from the playa in poor condition.
"They come back in, and the filters will be all messed up, all the AC ducts, everything," Donley says. "Like, the whole back will be full of playa dust."
Donley says cleaning fees can range from $750 to upwards of $10,000, and the cleaning itself can take up to six hours. The process also needs some special care.
"The cleaning is a lot longer, and a lot more extensive," she says. "You can't use water. You have to use white vinegar."
Donley says it takes about a week to get a Burning Man van ready to rent again. Anyone looking to rent a U-Haul might have to wait a little longer for a dust-free van.
