Temperatures are expected to reach 40 this weekend, which has lots of folks giving their cars a much-needed wash.

BLAKELY, Pa. — Temperatures are finally warming up. Northeastern and Central Pennsylvania just busted an 18-day streak of below-freezing temperatures. For the Williamsport area, it was the second-longest of all time. In the Scranton area, it was the sixth-longest. 

That means many people across northeast and central Pennsylvania are finally getting all the salt and dirt off their vehicles.  

John was out washing his truck to make sure it was clean for the mechanic. 

“I like to take care of my vehicles in the weather with all the salt and the dirt that gets on them and beneath them too. I like to combat the rust a little bit,” John said.

He said this year’s cold and snow have made him wash his truck a lot more than in recent memory. Ryan Kasper, the manager of Kwik-N-Ezy Car Wash in Blakely, tells Newswatch 16 that it’s busier because of the slightly warmer weather.

“We love having the warm temperatures coming because when the sun’s out, we’ll be busy the whole time,” Kasper said.

Kesper said a lot of people hold back from cleaning this time of year because of the threat of ice locking their doors.

“We’re getting a lot more business now because more people are comfortable washing their car. Most people don’t have a garage and are worried about their cars freezing over, ” Kasper said.

Ryan estimates 50 cars came through this past Sunday when the high was near 10 degrees. On a day like Thursday with temps near freezing, he estimates 250 cars will come through. Ryan says it takes temperatures below 10 degrees to cause a problem at the wash. Ryan says they briefly had to close this past weekend because of the cold. 

“We use a warm rinse so most of the time. If you have that light thin layer of ice, it’ll come off,” Kasper said.

Leonard Turissini is one of those people catching up with the lull in cold and snow. He just came back from a road trip.

“The wife always wants the car washed. But when it’s too cold, you can’t do it,” Turissini said.

Temperatures will climb even more this weekend. The Stormtracker16 weather team expects many in Northeastern and Central Pennsylvania to be above 40 degrees