Which pressure washer?

Joseph Rogers said:
Define low GPM for me. I'm not sure what you guys are used to using. For the applications I'm familiar with, anything less than 8GPM is low...but seems like it might be a bit excessive for cars. Help me understand.

If you're ok with taking something back once a year and replacing it, then so be it. I'd rather shell out a bit of money and have it run for 5-7 years daily before it crapping out.
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A lot of home spigots put out less than 8 GPM
 
Joseph Rogers said:
No, I get it. What kind of cheddar are you talking about for these low-flow machines, and what sort of psi? Do you use the normal wand that comes with it, or are there tips designed for this particular application?
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They only cost between $100-$200 so the price difference between that and a good gas option can be pretty large. I do have a gas PW as well but I don't use it for detailing just home tasks (like when I had to refinish the deck). PSI on the AR I have is 1800 PSI at 1.6 GPM. They make attachments like the foam cannon and turbo nozzle lances but I mostly only use it to foam and rinse on really dirty card otherwise I go with ONR.
 
i was doing lots of research on buying a gas pressure washer and spoke to a few different online pressure washer suppliers and they all gave me some good info. most all of them said that gas pressure washers that are under $500 (not to say you can't find a good one for the price sometimes, but you have to look) aren't going to last very long if you plan on using them for hours on end daily and are meant to be used a few times a month or year. the first thing to go is usually the pumps and the cheaper units are the axial cams that are mounted vertical (also depends on the kind of pump it is). if the pump goes then it's not worth fixing because the parts and labor will be just about as much as the pressure itself. i decided to go electric for now and if i do buy a gas one in future, i'll definitely pay a little more for a better quality unit (example below, notice the horizontal mounted pump) that's made to run for longer periods of time and that will last for years...
DS3532_7011_600.jpg
 
VISITOR said:
i was doing lots of research on buying a gas pressure washer and spoke to a few different online pressure washer suppliers and they all gave me some good info. most all of them said that gas pressure washers that are under $500 (not to say you can't find a good one for the price sometimes, but you have to look) aren't going to last very long if you plan on using them for hours on end daily and are meant to be used a few times a month or year. the first thing to go is usually the pumps and the cheaper units are the axial cams that are mounted vertical (also depends on the kind of pump it is). if the pump goes then it's not worth fixing because the parts and labor will be just about as much as the pressure itself. i decided to go electric for now and if i do buy a gas one in future, i'll definitely pay a little more for a better quality unit (example below, notice the horizontal mounted pump) that's made to run for longer periods of time and that will last for years...
DS3532_7011_600.jpg
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I have this same pressure washer. I'm a Window washer and I pressure wash houses daily. ( part of my service) this is a great tool, it gets used about 6 hours a day. I highly recommend it. Just make sure you get the warranty and save it. I bought this at home depot btw.
 
allenk4 said:
A lot of home spigots put out less than 8 GPM
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Yeah, they do. The big boys in PW have these huge tanks they fill up in the morning that are installed on the truck/trailer. 500 gallons, and sometimes the big commercial guys have multiple tanks that size. They pull from the tank, instead of the spigot.

dirtdestroyer said:
They only cost between $100-$200 so the price difference between that and a good gas option can be pretty large. I do have a gas PW as well but I don't use it for detailing just home tasks (like when I had to refinish the deck). PSI on the AR I have is 1800 PSI at 1.6 GPM. They make attachments like the foam cannon and turbo nozzle lances but I mostly only use it to foam and rinse on really dirty card otherwise I go with ONR.
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Try this link: Eagle Series Electric Pressure Washer

Can you give me a link to the nozzles you're talking about?

VISITOR said:
i was doing lots of research on buying a gas pressure washer and spoke to a few different online pressure washer suppliers and they all gave me some good info. most all of them said that gas pressure washers that are under $500 (not to say you can't find a good one for the price sometimes, but you have to look) aren't going to last very long if you plan on using them for hours on end daily and are meant to be used a few times a month or year. the first thing to go is usually the pumps and the cheaper units are the axial cams that are mounted vertical (also depends on the kind of pump it is). if the pump goes then it's not worth fixing because the parts and labor will be just about as much as the pressure itself. i decided to go electric for now and if i do buy a gas one in future, i'll definitely pay a little more for a better quality unit (example below, notice the horizontal mounted pump) that's made to run for longer periods of time and that will last for years...
DS3532_7011_600.jpg
Click to expand...

Exactly. I'm of the opinion if you go below $1200 or so on a gas PW that it's not really cut out for commercial work. You should avoid direct drive machines for commercial stuff.
 
To be fair that's 600 PSI less, .4 GPM more (the range I gave being a .3 spread to begin with) and $600 more expensive not including freight cost lol. I could buy 3 of the ARs for the price so it would have to be 3 times as good to even make it a consideration. At that point I'd be looking at gas anyway but for what I need the AR units are super portable and take up little space with low cost and easy to return if I have an issue.
 
Dan_335i said:
I'm getting the karcher g3050 which has 3000 psi. Will this damage the paint?
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Yes. Any pressure washer will damage the paint if you get close enough. 3000 psi will damage paint fairly easily without getting too close.
 
3000 psi with a 0 degree tip will cut asphalt and concrete. 15 degree tip will eat wood pretty quickly. 25 will eat wood when you get close enough. I think you want to stick with a 40 degree or more fan tip when dealing with cars.
 
dirtdestroyer said:
To be fair that's 600 PSI less, .4 GPM more (the range I gave being a .3 spread to begin with) and $600 more expensive not including freight cost lol. I could buy 3 of the ARs for the price so it would have to be 3 times as good to even make it a consideration. At that point I'd be looking at gas anyway but for what I need the AR units are super portable and take up little space with low cost and easy to return if I have an issue.
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I'm not saying one is better than the other. Just giving an example of what I was talking about.
 
Dan_335i said:
Since i am only using to wash my car. I will give electric PW another try.

How about this one? Good enough to wash car?
Karcher 2000 PSI 1.4 GPM Electric Pressure Washer
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this one doesn't seem to be too bad (there's a lot of good reviews on both) and won't break the bank. i was going to get one of these until i found an electric pressure washer on CL. this is the same unit as the ryobi for $20 less...

Black Max 1,700 PSI - Electric Pressure Washer - Sam's Club
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Ryobi 1700-PSI 1.2-GPM Electric Pressure Washer-RY14122 at The Home Depot
 
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