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Pressure Washers

BoostN

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I'm looking at big box stores as I'm just a home owner that's going to use it every now and then for random cleaning, plus about once a week to wash my truck.

Looking at this:

Dad has one like this:

Thoughts? I know I'm not comparing two of the same kind, but I'm unsure of the extra money is worth it for my use.
 
I would think so. For the extra money.
That looks like a real nice unit.
Check the specs and see what the maximum hot water input can be and possible to hook it to Your home water heater. Then You could have it as a hot water washer too.
 
4000 psi is kinda overkill for around the house..good way to take paint off..the one you say dad has is cold water only I believe... MAKE SURE the unit you buy is capable of running hot water as well as what temp it can handle... Some are built with seals etc that will give up life if you run hot water through them... If you hit up Lowes or home Depot they may have last year's models on sale...mines was 2800 psi and could handle just about anything I needed it for. Had to sell in but gonna get another one when $$ flow gets better.
 
I bought one from Canadian Tire a few years ago (Simoniz), it's 2800 psi., wide fan, narrow fan, jet nozzle and one for applying soap. The jet nozzle takes the paint of my trucks. They are old I know. It was about $300 cdn at the time on sale. with the dollar value today, it could be double now?

It is only cold/warm water compatible. It still takes oil and grease off my farm equipment. If I needed real cleaning I would go with a Hotsy or similar diesel fired washer. No soap needed.
 
I have a 3000 psi unit with a Honda engine. I just finished power washing the house for paint and cleaned gutters and concrete. With a turbo style tip it will strip about anything off of anything. I'm not sure what 4000 psi would be like. Might be a little harder to hold on to.

I agree with what others have said.

If you like overkill, go for the 4000 psi. Otherwise I doubt you will have any issues with a 3000 psi unit and may save yourself some money.
 
Under truck washing is an advantage of higher pressure units, because the undercarriage washers with 3 or 4 tips reduces the power a lot. If you are dealing with a lot of mud and grime that really counts.
Then again if you have the oil coatings to protect from salted roads, you just want to rinse the salt, not blast you coating off.

i have the delta 2450 psi powered by honda engine. Had it for about 15 years or so. It was strong enough to do a good job on most stuff and with the turbo spinny whatever it’s called tip- it made short work of most everything. Took the smooth finish off the driveway at my last house by mistake- but the oil stains were gone! Haha.

Made the best choice ever in loaning it out. Not sure what is siezed the pump or the engine. project #714, repair pressure washer- ugg! I want to just go buy a nice 3,000 psi unit, but $ on it is less for hummer- so for now i load parts into bed of Toyota pickup and go pay $3 for 5 minutes a couple times, only 5 minute drive away. Man I wish i had driven hummer there for complete wash before ripping apart the engine. Dirt in my eye 2 days ago when removing rear under carriage protection. I miss having my pressure washer.

I don’t see the 4,000 being worth it unless you are going to run multi nozzle item often
 
I've got an old unit from sam's club that is 3.5 gpm and 4k psi. Rarely do you need all it can offer. I can personally attest that at 4k psi with a 15 degree nozzle you can filet your toe if it hits it. Took my shoes off because they were soaked and starting putting everything up, seen a spot I missed, went over to get it, slipped, and took the skin right off of my pinky toe. 3k psi is more than enough for most any job you would beed to do, just make sure you get one that moves good volume at the pressure you plan on working at. I would look at sam's club as they have good prices on honda powered units.
 
I think thats the same one I was looking at. I'm looking to get a smaller, easier to start one(my back has gotten worse and that one should start easier than a 13hp Honda, I currently need surgery). I was going to get the one from harbor freight, but they jacked the price up to $400 on there china mart special.
 
Make sure still available, but electric starter kits were made for that engine.

Or there is always the 15/16 socket on a cordless drill ...
 
Am going to buck the crowd.

Once upon a time I used pressure washers. Have since moved away from them.

Vehicles get cleaned with a rag using the two bucket method. No soap. If the vehicle has dirt on it, I put the hose attachment in either fan or jet setting to remove the dirt before washing. If I need to degrease, SimpleGreen goes on first and then use the hose attachment in jet mode.

For cleaning under the vehicles, I use a lawn sprayer (the wand kind that rotates back-and-forth) and drag it under the vehicle. This method is also great for washing out winter brine.

House and walkways get sprayed with a ~70% water / ~30% bleach cocktail. Do this when it drizzles to keep from killing desirable plants. Put another way, if plants are not already wet from rain, they will burn when the bleach hits them. This method is much faster and easier than pressure washing. It also works great on wood decks. Cleaned the RV this way too as it sits in the shade under trees where stuff grows on the roof and sides.
 
If I had it to do over , and since I use it at home a lot.. I would buy an electric unit.. so much quieter and do need gas or have to worry about leaving sit was gas and so on.
 
I've never used a electric unit that had more power than a water hose. If they made one (affordable) that would replicate Gas power I would in a heartbeat!
 
I developed an allergy to electric units. Went through a bunch of them where they all had a short life. One was fixed under warranty and died again shortly after the expiration. Different brands too. No real reason as they were fed quality city water. Granted that this was a while ago and QC may have changed, so YMMV.

I was about to buy a gas powered unit when a contractor buddy told me about the bleach cocktail. After I tried it once, I never looked back.
 
I have the harbor freight electric unit. I added a 25 foot extension hose to it because the 15 foot hose that came with it was a huge downfall to it. It works great and is super handy for washing the cars, boat, and small jobs, but it is not up to tasks like cleaning my wooden deck or vinyl siding. I use good cleaners, but they are not the end all be all. Having a gas pressure washer that can move some volume of water under pressure makes the job go do much faster.

I actually have an electric start kit to go on my generator (it also has a 13hp Honda), but I don't think one would hold up well on a pressure washer where it's constantly wet and operated around corrosive chemicals.
 
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