Pressure Washers....

[JohnDB]

Good greif....
I'm in the market for a heavy duty pressure washer. (For home renovations and etc)

So I've been looking at various pressure washers online. Used Gemeni and grok....both were absolutely stupid on the subject. Couldn't tell that something happened to the gizmos along the way.

The most recent claims are that the washers shipping our are ALL rather poorly constructed, designed or damaged during shipping.

And that just the recent reviews. Older ones are glowing about how well they work and how sturdy..

So....kinda at a loss here.

Anyone bought one recently that has 4,00p psi or more thT is reliable and comes intact?

 

[shockedcanadian]

Good greif....
I'm in the market for a heavy duty pressure washer. (For home renovations and etc)

So I've been looking at various pressure washers online. Used Gemeni and grok....both were absolutely stupid on the subject. Couldn't tell that something happened to the gizmos along the way.

The most recent claims are that the washers shipping our are ALL rather poorly constructed, designed or damaged during shipping.

And that just the recent reviews. Older ones are glowing about how well they work and how sturdy..

So....kinda at a loss here.

Anyone bought one recently that has 4,00p psi or more thT is reliable and comes intact?

I rented one long ago to revarnish my deck and fence. It was an older one and quite durable, worked for hours without problems. The fence and deck looked like new when completed. A great investment if you plan on using it more than a few times.

I can't say I know much about brand names so I cannot help you in this regard. If you buy second hand test it out and you should get a feel for its effectiveness I suppose. It would depend on how often you expect to use it.

 

[airplanemechanic]

You're not going to use it nearly as much as you think you will.

Rent one. It's cheaper in the long run. Ask me how I know.

 

[JohnDB]

You're not going to use it nearly as much as you think you will.

Rent one. It's cheaper in the long run. Ask me how I know.

I live in the middle of nowhere. There's no place to do that. My BIL just got one but his is kinda underpowered for what I need. His is great for washing trucks and cars or the side of his little vinyl wrapped house. But my home is 3 times the size and at least 3 times as tall. Also, I'm needing to strip loose paint.... and do a lot more industrial work than he is.

The 4,000 psi is the low end paint remover. Mines chipping and peeling....and it needs a good soak in some TSP soapy water to get rid of years of dirt as well as mildew in spots. The higher PSI will help me reach high and wide at the same time. The GPM will help with the rinsing off. (TSP is difficult to remove once on).

So....then in just 5 years down the road I'll need to do it all over again. Wash my home top to bottom.....lots of large trees around here....no avoiding the scrubbing.
Just part of the game. Trees are nice but they do terrible things to the house and deck. Nevermind the gutters I'm about to install. (House has never had them before but it's time and they will help stop the damaging effects of rain. )

 

[airplanemechanic]

I live in the middle of nowhere. There's no place to do that. My BIL just got one but his is kinda underpowered for what I need. His is great for washing trucks and cars or the side of his little vinyl wrapped house. But my home is 3 times the size and at least 3 times as tall. Also, I'm needing to strip loose paint.... and do a lot more industrial work than he is.

The 4,000 psi is the low end paint remover. Mines chipping and peeling....and it needs a good soak in some TSP soapy water to get rid of years of dirt as well as mildew in spots. The higher PSI will help me reach high and wide at the same time. The GPM will help with the rinsing off. (TSP is difficult to remove once on).

So....then in just 5 years down the road I'll need to do it all over again. Wash my home top to bottom.....lots of large trees around here....no avoiding the scrubbing.
Just part of the game. Trees are nice but they do terrible things to the house and deck. Nevermind the gutters I'm about to install. (House has never had them before but it's time and they will help stop the damaging effects of rain. )

You've apparently never used a pressure washer before.

Higher PSI pressure washers to do not "reach further." The rated PSI is right at the end of the nozzle anyway. 24 inches away from any pressure washer nozzle tip and the pressure will be nothing.

And if you love your car like I love mine, you won't go NEAR that thing with a pressure washer. The ONLY way to wash a car is garden hose pressure, a soft micro fibre cloth using car soap, NOT dish detergent. The micro fibre cloth is MUCH easier on the clearcoat than the pressure washer is and the car soap will remove the dirt and grime and not the wax job, if you wax your car. Dish detergent will take EVERYTHING off, including all wax that you put on. So your wax job will be wasted with one wash job with Dawn. Dish detergent won't harm the finish, but it will remove any paint protection coatings that you have applied.

You should not use a pressure washer to clean any kind of mechanical thing like a car, tractor, lawnmower etc, as the high pressure can force dirt into sealed bearings and such, and for cars, damage the finish. The only exception to this is obviously cleaning the underside of implements for the tractor like tines and such, and also the underside of the mower deck. You can hit that with a pressure washer too, but afterwards it would be best to repaint it as well. But just make sure you let it dry before you store the lawnmower. Wet mower decks rust rapidly.

 

[1srelluc]

You're not going to use it nearly as much as you think you will.

Rent one. It's cheaper in the long run. Ask me how I know.

Yep, I have a guy pressure wash/treat the house, walks, deck, and patio every-other year.....$350.00 this year.

He does a great job and I don't have to buy, store, and maintain a power washer.

I think it's about $50.00 a day to rent one at Lowes not counting any chemicals you might want.

 

[mudwhistle]

You're not going to use it nearly as much as you think you will.

Rent one. It's cheaper in the long run. Ask me how I know.

I use mine a couple of times a year.

I bought a gas powered Craftsman and it went bad on me in a couple of years. The fuel line broke. I ended up throwing it away.
Then I bought an electric Greenworks and have had it now into year 3.

 

[JohnDB]

Yep, I have a guy pressure wash/treat the house, walks, deck, and patio every-other year.....$350.00 this year.

He does a great job and I don't have to buy, store, and maintain a power washer.

I think it's about $50.00 a day to rent one at Lowes not counting any chemicals you might want.

The Lowes closest to me (30 minutes away) stopped renting equipment.

And I'm old and retired....meaning slow.
By the time I get one from a place that rents them (90 minutes away) and by the time I get finished needing to rent one....I will have paid for it completely. I went through the same thing with scaffolding. 40 feet of scaffolding for rental would have been more than purchasing it....definitely when I sell what I have later. I'll get at least half of what I paid at a minimum. (Including shipping)

Same thing with a pressure washer renting it for 9-11 months....and again later when I need to use it again. (I'm slow and work in stages because my joints are toast....I'm not an invalid but I am not capable of working 8-12 hours every day anymore)

I'll have spent at least $500-600 on rental fees....uhhhh....I can buy one for that. A fairly nice one at that.
and always the possibility of selling it if I don't want it around anymore one day.

That's why I need to purchase one.

And my house is at least two stories tall....close to three. And a garden hose will NOT get enough pressure to go high enough nor will a manual pump pressure sprayer. (I've tried)
So....pressure washer with soap wand it is....and I'll have to climb up to do it. Then swap it out for the rinsing. (Not to mention this process will remove the need for brushes and scrubbing....which is a reality otherwise) I will still need to spend hours sanding and scraping paint chips off....but I don't want that work to just grind the oils and dirt into the wood either.

I understand the processes I'm needing to use. I'm on-site with a completed thorough inspection that I did myself. I've researched local equipment and come up dry. (Tractors and tank sprayers can be had easily lol).

 

[airplanemechanic]

Yep, I have a guy pressure wash/treat the house, walks, deck, and patio every-other year.....$350.00 this year.

He does a great job and I don't have to buy, store, and maintain a power washer.

I think it's about $50.00 a day to rent one at Lowes not counting any chemicals you might want.

And one of the main killers of pressure washers is, believe it or not, COLD.

People normally just turn the pressure washer off and set it aside until next spring. Possibly running the gas out of it or whatnot. That's fine, but what they DON'T realize is that the pump is still full of water. When it gets cold, that freezes, when it freezes it expands, cracking the pump.

I got a free Honda pressure washer out of the garbage one time. I hooked water up to it, started it right up and immediately I had the most beautiful display of water spraying in all directions. It was actually spraying in one spot reaching like 60 feet away. That pump was all cracked up. I found a new pump for 100 dollars. I haven't started in it in years though, so probably will be fucked up. But it showed I really didn't need one. I just wanted to see if I could fix it.

 

[leftwinger]

A big one is heavy to get home for one person. Not fit in many cars. Have it delivered maybe if you buy a powerful one?

I imagine in-out of pickup bed is rough too?

 

[airplanemechanic]

The Lowes closest to me (30 minutes away) stopped renting equipment.

And I'm old and retired....meaning slow.
By the time I get one from a place that rents them (90 minutes away) and by the time I get finished needing to rent one....I will have paid for it completely. I went through the same thing with scaffolding. 40 feet of scaffolding for rental would have been more than purchasing it....definitely when I sell what I have later. I'll get at least half of what I paid at a minimum. (Including shipping)

Same thing with a pressure washer renting it for 9-11 months....and again later when I need to use it again. (I'm slow and work in stages because my joints are toast....I'm not an invalid but I am not capable of working 8-12 hours every day anymore)

I'll have spent at least $500-600 on rental fees....uhhhh....I can buy one for that. A fairly nice one at that.
and always the possibility of selling it if I don't want it around anymore one day.

That's why I need to purchase one.

And my house is at least two stories tall....close to three. And a garden hose will NOT get enough pressure to go high enough nor will a manual pump pressure sprayer. (I've tried)
So....pressure washer with soap wand it is....and I'll have to climb up to do it. Then swap it out for the rinsing. (Not to mention this process will remove the need for brushes and scrubbing....which is a reality otherwise) I will still need to spend hours sanding and scraping paint chips off....but I don't want that work to just grind the oils and dirt into the wood either.

I understand the processes I'm needing to use. I'm on-site with a completed thorough inspection that I did myself. I've researched local equipment and come up dry. (Tractors and tank sprayers can be had easily lol).

The problem is, if you own it, you owns its problems too. And pressure washers tend to be some of the most problematic power equipment a homeowner owns.

You haven't spent 500 dollars renting pressure washers, I can promise that. But with renting, if it stops working, you bring it back and say give me another one. If it's yours, good luck. If it's a cheap fix it might be 50-100. A new pump could be 250+. Due to the nature of the beast, most pressure washers come with very limited warranties that cover very limited items.

But if you really want a beast of a pressure washer, the Love's truck stop chain uses Hotsy's to clean around their diesel fuel islands. That thing is a BEAST. It actually boils the water first. (why its called a HOTsy) It's not cheap, but this is probably one of the best ones you can buy.

Hotsy Gas hot water pressure washer Gas Engine Roll Cage Series

The smallest gas engine hot water pressure washers in the Hotsy line-up offering portability.

www.hotsy.com

 

[JohnDB]

The problem is, if you own it, you owns its problems too. And pressure washers tend to be some of the most problematic power equipment a homeowner owns.

You haven't spent 500 dollars renting pressure washers, I can promise that. But with renting, if it stops working, you bring it back and say give me another one. If it's yours, good luck. If it's a cheap fix it might be 50-100. A new pump could be 250+. Due to the nature of the beast, most pressure washers come with very limited warranties that cover very limited items.

But if you really want a beast of a pressure washer, the Love's truck stop chain uses Hotsy's to clean around their diesel fuel islands. That thing is a BEAST. It actually boils the water first. (why its called a HOTsy) It's not cheap, but this is probably one of the best ones you can buy.

Hotsy Gas hot water pressure washer Gas Engine Roll Cage Series

The smallest gas engine hot water pressure washers in the Hotsy line-up offering portability.

www.hotsy.com

I'm aware....
The winterizing and storage needs to include some antifreeze in the pump. Also completely rinsing out the pump of detergents and watching oil levels.

If I could rent one cheaply...I would. But...not in the cards for me in my location. By the time I get through renting and paying for the gas to haul it back and forth....not worth the cost. Same with chain saws. Better off buying one and having it serviced locally if I don't want to do it myself. That I can get done. Lots of small engine mechanics around me. Lots of second hand shops too....unfortunately they are all devoid of pressure washers.

 

[airplanemechanic]

I'm aware....
The winterizing and storage needs to include some antifreeze in the pump. Also completely rinsing out the pump of detergents and watching oil levels.

If I could rent one cheaply...I would. But...not in the cards for me in my location. By the time I get through renting and paying for the gas to haul it back and forth....not worth the cost. Same with chain saws. Better off buying one and having it serviced locally if I don't want to do it myself. That I can get done. Lots of small engine mechanics around me. Lots of second hand shops too....unfortunately they are all devoid of pressure washers.

Well I made my recommendation of a brand based on the fact that it's the one chosen by the largest truck stop chain in North America to keep their facilities clean.

They do make smaller ones than that thing, but that's the one the truck stops use.

 

[JohnDB]

The problem is, if you own it, you owns its problems too. And pressure washers tend to be some of the most problematic power equipment a homeowner owns.

You haven't spent 500 dollars renting pressure washers, I can promise that. But with renting, if it stops working, you bring it back and say give me another one. If it's yours, good luck. If it's a cheap fix it might be 50-100. A new pump could be 250+. Due to the nature of the beast, most pressure washers come with very limited warranties that cover very limited items.

But if you really want a beast of a pressure washer, the Love's truck stop chain uses Hotsy's to clean around their diesel fuel islands. That thing is a BEAST. It actually boils the water first. (why its called a HOTsy) It's not cheap, but this is probably one of the best ones you can buy.

Hotsy Gas hot water pressure washer Gas Engine Roll Cage Series

The smallest gas engine hot water pressure washers in the Hotsy line-up offering portability.

www.hotsy.com

Yeah....they need the hot water to cut the petroleum spills.
I'm not needing the hot water. Still needing the pressure washer though.

I've looked at Simpson, Dewalt, Westinghouse, and some other brand I can't remember the name of. ALL are having issues right out of the box lately as if the shipping container they were shipped in tumbled around or were assembled by drunks at the factory.

Dunno what exactly I'm going to do yet. Might just drive to Home depot and open the box while in the store. (90 minutes each way to drive)
No sense in waiting to find out I need to return it when I get home after spending 3 hours picking it up and going home just to do another 3 hours swapping it out.

 

[airplanemechanic]

Yeah....they need the hot water to cut the petroleum spills.
I'm not needing the hot water. Still needing the pressure washer though.

I've looked at Simpson, Dewalt, Westinghouse, and some other brand I can't remember the name of. ALL are having issues right out of the box lately as if the shipping container they were shipped in tumbled around or were assembled by drunks at the factory.

Dunno what exactly I'm going to do yet. Might just drive to Home depot and open the box while in the store. (90 minutes each way to drive)
No sense in waiting to find out I need to return it when I get home after spending 3 hours picking it up and going home just to do another 3 hours swapping it out.

That's what I said in my previous reply. Hotsy makes smaller ones, as well.

 

[JohnDB]

The problem is, if you own it, you owns its problems too. And pressure washers tend to be some of the most problematic power equipment a homeowner owns.

You haven't spent 500 dollars renting pressure washers, I can promise that. But with renting, if it stops working, you bring it back and say give me another one. If it's yours, good luck. If it's a cheap fix it might be 50-100. A new pump could be 250+. Due to the nature of the beast, most pressure washers come with very limited warranties that cover very limited items.

But if you really want a beast of a pressure washer, the Love's truck stop chain uses Hotsy's to clean around their diesel fuel islands. That thing is a BEAST. It actually boils the water first. (why its called a HOTsy) It's not cheap, but this is probably one of the best ones you can buy.

Hotsy Gas hot water pressure washer Gas Engine Roll Cage Series

The smallest gas engine hot water pressure washers in the Hotsy line-up offering portability.

www.hotsy.com

They have a dealer over in Columbus and another in Alabama....
Might have to give them a visit.

 

[1srelluc]

And one of the main killers of pressure washers is, believe it or not, COLD.

People normally just turn the pressure washer off and set it aside until next spring. Possibly running the gas out of it or whatnot. That's fine, but what they DON'T realize is that the pump is still full of water. When it gets cold, that freezes, when it freezes it expands, cracking the pump.

I got a free Honda pressure washer out of the garbage one time. I hooked water up to it, started it right up and immediately I had the most beautiful display of water spraying in all directions. It was actually spraying in one spot reaching like 60 feet away. That pump was all cracked up. I found a new pump for 100 dollars. I haven't started in it in years though, so probably will be fucked up. But it showed I really didn't need one. I just wanted to see if I could fix it.

LOL....I bought an electric one 20+ years ago (in my peak Joe Homeowner years) and it was more of a PITA than anything else. I gave it to my next door neighbor to do his porch/deck and just told him to keep it. It ran fine but it was stored in a temperature controlled garage.

 

[JohnDB]

LOL....I bought an electric one 20+ years ago (in my peak Joe Homeowner years) and it was more of a PITA than anything else. I gave it to my next door neighbor to do his porch/deck and just told him to keep it. It ran fine but it was stored in a temperature controlled garage.

Electrics are little more than expensive water pistols. They never perform as advertised. Always use a gas powered model with sufficient torque and HP to get the pump moving.

Now if they put a real three phase and/or three horse 220V squirrel cage motor on the thing....ok. but those types of electric motors run $5-10K. Or a more cheap alternative is just a 270-440 CC gasoline engine. (Which is what most companies do)
That's what is needed for a pressure washer pump. Triplex, axial or whatever....electric motors that derive their torque from rpm speed alone (like hand tools do) are simply not going to cut it.