Pressure washer

**efnfast** · 04-24-2009, 11:42 AM

When buying a pressure washer (For automotive cleaning), what do you typically look at/want from it?

I`ve been thinking of buying an electric one (I know, electric isn`t as good as gas, but this one gets good reviews for longevity, plus I`m not trying to etch concrete with it, heh), but no idea if there`s somethign specific I Should look at for specs?

**imported_RZJZA80** · 04-24-2009, 12:03 PM

I just bought a karcher electric from Northern Tools, it`s remanufactured and costs 179.99, 1850psi, 1.5gpm. Nice enough unit but only 1 month warranty so I`m returning it and buying the one from Lowes; 179.99, 2000psi, 1.5gpm, looks nice imo.

**SuperBee364** · 04-24-2009, 12:14 PM

Ya know how most all of us detailers have a shelf (or two) of "what was I thinking when i bought this?" products that never get used? My gas pressure washer *isn`t* on that shelf.

It turns out that having good psi and good gpm (which are really the two most important things you need in a pressure washer) takes a lot of energy. The most powerful standard 110 Volt pressure washer I`ve seen is made by Cam Spray, and it requires a 20 amp circuit. Most homes have only 15 amp breakers, so even using the Cam Spray electric isn`t as easy as plug n play. A pressure washer that falls within the normal electrical capacity of your home`s breakers just isn`t going to muster up the power needed for good PSI and GPM; you need gas to do it.

But if you`re going to stay with an electric, gallons per minute, IMO, is the most important, followed by PSI.

**efnfast** · 04-24-2009, 12:27 PM

If you were going with a gas one, would 2500psi/2.4gpm be "good"?

I keep rotating back and forth between gas and electric. As I said, I just want this for cleaning cars (garden hose isn`t cutting it anymore for dirt removal), not etching conrete....but I don`t want to spend $200 on something that`s going to do a half-assed job and be blowing circuit breakers, as opposed to $400 on something that will do the proper job.

Oh, btw, are there any special settings or nozzels or something that you need to use when using it on a car. When I was researching I was reading lots of comments like `Pressure washer will strip paint/clearcoat on your vehicle` which just left me :think: .... but then again, we all know how muhc most people know about car care, lol

**efnfast** · 04-24-2009, 05:33 PM

reading opinions on here about pressure washers (gas powered) is now scaring me

I`m afraid that even standing a few feet back and using a 60* nossel I`m going to strip paint/clearcoat off my cars

**SuperBee364** · 04-24-2009, 05:43 PM

Nah, nothing to fear at all! My PW is 3,000 psi and 2.8 gpm. I would definitely take GPM over PSI, though. Imagine trying to spray off your car with a 32 oz hand sprayer. Low GPM is the same. The stats you listed of 2500 PSI and 2.4 GPM isn`t bad. You do want to make sure you use the wide angle wand attachment. The widest one I have is 40 degrees. My car is covered in vinyl stickers (The SuperBee package includes a lot of black vinyl stickers all over the car), and I have yet to even lift a vinyl sticker on my car with 3000 psi. I have also used it on numerous cars with clear bras and have never lifted an edge.

To me, a PW just isn`t optional when it comes to washing cars.

**efnfast** · 04-24-2009, 08:46 PM

I bought it 2500psi/2.4gpm/$250 (briggs&straton) .

WOW

Can`t believe I used to wash with just the regular gardon hose. This thing kicks ***

**Flawless Image** · 04-24-2009, 09:13 PM

i know mine is pretty EFNSWEET! Home Depot Special, with a Honda Motor. Good on gas too!

Husky 3000 PSI Gas Pressure Washer - HU80432 at The Home Depot

**Showroom Shine** · 04-25-2009, 06:03 AM

Being a former 25 year welder, I never liked water around electric. It was a Shock Hazzard for me in that profession. So when I started my Detailing business, gas was my choice. Also since I`m mobile and go to sometime remote areas. I prefere gas. Noise is a factor, but I don`t show up to early. This time of year people are cutting their grass too. So a pressure washer or generator fit right in.

**imported_Jakerooni** · 04-25-2009, 09:47 AM

if you think those are impressive... Now this is a Powerwasher LOL.

Heated up to 212* makes my life so much easier... However a bit more pricey than the gas powered ones.

**thesacrifice** · 04-25-2009, 05:05 PM

FYI, I saw Honda and Snap On pressure washers on sale at Costco today. The Snap on was 3500psi and the Honda 2500psi (I THINK)

**efnfast** · 04-25-2009, 11:37 PM

I must say as a followup, now that I have a pressure washer I LOVE my CRSpotless unit.

To be honest, with a garden hose it was a knightmare trying to get the `best` flow for it. Killed my first set of resin after 2 washes, and when I saw how slow it flowed out of the hose at 2gpm, and how much water/time it would take to rinse, I said forget this.

But I hooked it up to the pressure washer today and was thoroughly impressed with it - zero water spots, probably 1 or 2 minutes to do a total rinse, and I didn`t kill the resin for once :woot2:

**systemtek** · 04-26-2009, 12:30 AM

Is it possible that a pressure washer could force dirt/contaminates into the clear-coat?

**SuperBee364** · 04-26-2009, 08:06 AM

Originally Posted by efnfast

I must say as a followup, now that I have a pressure washer I LOVE my CRSpotless unit.

To be honest, with a garden hose it was a knightmare trying to get the `best` flow for it. Killed my first set of resin after 2 washes, and when I saw how slow it flowed out of the hose at 2gpm, and how much water/time it would take to rinse, I said forget this.

But I hooked it up to the pressure washer today and was thoroughly impressed with it - zero water spots, probably 1 or 2 minutes to do a total rinse, and I didn`t kill the resin for once :woot2:

Great to hear

Now you just need to get your hoses set up for maximum convenience. Here`s how you do it...

Put one of these on your hose bib...

Attach two hoses, and run one to your CRSpotless, then from the CRSpotless to this:

Run the other hose straight to the splitter in the above pic.

Attach quick disconnects to the PW and the splitter, and you`re done. Now you can instantly change water sources to your PW right there at the splitter. I use regular water most of the time, then just switch to the CRSpotless for the final rinse. Just close one valve on the splitter and open the other.

Oh, you`ll also need two male-to-male hose couplings to attach the hoses to the splitter. They`re shown in the above pic.

**SuperBee364** · 04-26-2009, 08:13 AM

Originally Posted by Systemtek

Is it possible that a pressure washer could force dirt/contaminates into the clear-coat?

Nope.

Believe it or not, but your wash mitt is delivering more kinetic energy to the dirt particles on your paint than a pressure washer does. That`s why it`s easy to get dirt off with a mitt, and hard to get dirt off with a PW.