Pressure washers: What do you use them for?

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DonMTV

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I am just wondering how a pressure washer can be used in detailing. I have used the two bucket method, and recently bought the foam gun and began using that when I wash my car.

I would like to know if using a "pressure washer" could be harmful? I know a lot of people use it to clean the wheel wells and cleaning the undercarriage, but what about the velocity of the water against dirt and the paint?

Using a regular hose allows for sheeting when rinsing so it will decrease the water spots drying.

Any feedback on this subject would be great.

Don
 
It could blast the dirt into the paint, embedding it into the clearcoat, if you're unfortunate enough, it could catch some loose paint and blast it off. It also depends on which tip you use, what the PSI on the PW is, how far away you are.
 
I use a PW on every vehicle I detail to clean engine bay, wheels, wheelwells and rocker panels B4 washing vehicle. I also do all the plastic trim around the car like mirrors, mirror surrounds, window trim(wipes), wipers and cowl, bumpers, headlamps and fog lamps
you wouldn't think PW water without any cleaner would work on plastic but IMO it takes off the oxidation on these parts and leaves a good base for trim enhancers

As far as on the paint, I don't get too close, use a wide nozzle pattern and hold PW at an a 45 not 90 degree
 
I have a PW but have never used it on my car. We have thick stainless steel plates cut using water jet so I am careful with water under pressure. Water under enough pressure or over enough time can do some serious damage! I know I'm just being OCD and under the right conditions used properly the PW is a tremendous tool. But for me it's too powerfull a tool to use on my car. I see Grand Canyon and S.S. plate being cut!

Merry Christmas!
 
Like stated above. I do wheels, wheel wells, bugs and some underbody. Cuts down on the time I spend claying. It is also great at getting polish residue/dust out of the cracks and gaps after polishing.
 
CEE DOG said:
I have a PW but have never used it on my car. We have thick stainless steel plates cut using water jet so I am careful with water under pressure. Water under enough pressure or over enough time can do some serious damage! I know I'm just being OCD and under the right conditions used properly the PW is a tremendous tool. But for me it's too powerfull a tool to use on my car. I see Grand Canyon and S.S. plate being cut!

Merry Christmas!
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+1 :props:
 
CEE DOG said:
I have a PW but have never used it on my car. We have thick stainless steel plates cut using water jet so I am careful with water under pressure. Water under enough pressure or over enough time can do some serious damage! I know I'm just being OCD and under the right conditions used properly the PW is a tremendous tool. But for me it's too powerfull a tool to use on my car. I see Grand Canyon and S.S. plate being cut!

Merry Christmas!
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If you are careless? Yes you will do damage. They make different spray heads for this reason. I use the gentle "automobile" labeled spray head.
 
I was thinking that a power washer would be a nice tool to have around for the undercarriage, and wheel wells. Plus, this time of year in Massachusetts it might be a good way to clean off the salt residue prior to using ONR or the DP RW&G in a garage to clean the car.
 
Pressure washer with a foam cannon and a snow foam is a MUST! Check this out -
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3c_ExTabPA]YouTube - Snow Foaming The ST with karcher lance[/video]
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7MUNSS6y7o]YouTube - Snow foam time![/video]
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_8NbVP3Y100]YouTube - honda civic type r snow foam[/video]
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tFzurUJ4YMA]YouTube - Refined Details presents Snow Foam[/video]
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKnVtUIOPuc]YouTube - GTI_SS Snow Foam (test 1)[/video]
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RIppGipTkoQ]YouTube - snow foam my bmw x5[/video]
 
I was about to buy a PW, then I found ONR and haven't had the need to buy one since. Most of my customers don't off road so I don't deal with caked on mud.
 
Can get more done and conserve water. As has been mentioned, just pick the correct tip fo the job.
 
I had a Husky 1550 PSI it had an adjustable nozzle so I would put it near the most power fully for the rims exhaust and wheel wells and I would put it on the least powerful for the paint. On the glass I would put it somewhere in the middle to get the bugs off as well as the front bomber
 
sullysdetailing said:
I had a Husky 1550 PSI it had an adjustable nozzle so I would put it near the most power fully for the rims exhaust and wheel wells and I would put it on the least powerful for the paint. On the glass I would put it somewhere in the middle to get the bugs off as well as the front bomber
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The specs say it uses 1.6 GPM.

I have a gas powered one that consumes a lot of water...far more than our well will put out. I can either get a new well pump/larger holding tank or get something that uses less water.

I have others needs than just the car such as cleaning vinyl siding.
 
Bunky said:
The specs say it uses 1.6 GPM.

I have a gas powered one that consumes a lot of water...far more than our well will put out. I can either get a new well pump/larger holding tank or get something that uses less water.

I have others needs than just the car such as cleaning vinyl siding.
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Bunky, could you use one of those kiddie swimming pools as a holding tank,fill it then let the hose keep filling. May give you more volume to use the PW. Would not work to good for doing the house tho, have to drag that pool around.
 
Bunky said:
The specs say it uses 1.6 GPM.
QUOTE]

What does your well output? 1.6 gpm isn't a lot. That's what a typical toilet uses when you flush it. Does it takes more than a minute to fill back up in your situation?

Plus if you read a guide for finding a pump, something like this would say a pump should put out 12 gpm for a modest sized house while ranging from 7 gpm up to 17gpm.

http://www.watersystemscouncil.org/VAiWebDocs/WSCDocs/2567958WSC_INST_20.pdf

I grew up on a well and raced motocross and never ran into a well pump that couldn't run our pressure washers. Electric or gas.

If it still doesn't work, look at like a 30 gallon tank you can mount on a wagon or some sort of trailer you can manuever around. Some of the mobile detailers can give you an idea of where to get a good deal on something.
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frosty said:
Bunky said:
The specs say it uses 1.6 GPM.
QUOTE]

What does your well output? 1.6 gpm isn't a lot. That's what a typical toilet uses when you flush it. Does it takes more than a minute to fill back up in your situation?

Plus if you read a guide for finding a pump, something like this would say a pump should put out 12 gpm for a modest sized house while ranging from 7 gpm up to 17gpm.

http://www.watersystemscouncil.org/VAiWebDocs/WSCDocs/2567958WSC_INST_20.pdf

I grew up on a well and raced motocross and never ran into a well pump that couldn't run our pressure washers. Electric or gas.

If it still doesn't work, look at like a 30 gallon tank you can mount on a wagon or some sort of trailer you can manuever around. Some of the mobile detailers can give you an idea of where to get a good deal on something.
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I think it will put out 1.6 gpm per min that is what got me just interested in it. Our other one is a gas powered unit and can really go through the water so fast the pressure washer runs out in a few minutes. When the well was put in, they said it had great flow but I think they put in a cheap well pump and an undersized holding tank.
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ziggo99 said:
It could blast the dirt into the paint, embedding it into the clearcoat, if you're unfortunate enough, it could catch some loose paint and blast it off. It also depends on which tip you use, what the PSI on the PW is, how far away you are.
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Sorry, but there's no way this could happen. Powerwashers won't damage your vehicle unless your don't understand and respect it's power.
 
David Fermani said:
Sorry, but there's no way this could happen. Powerwashers won't damage your vehicle unless your don't understand and respect it's power.
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David,
Pressure washers used incorrectly will easily damage paint and most people misuse them all the time!

Here's an example: Do you know what is the most important selection at a properly functioning self serve car wash? It's not the high pressure soap, the tire cleaner, the engine degreaser, the high gloss wax or the spot free rinse.

The most important selection at a self serve car wash is the low pressure Pre soak option and it is usually the one that is the most unused because most people don't realize the value of this function. The low pressure pre soak will apply a weak alkaline or acidic solution which will safely loosen the majority of the dirt if allowed to dwell on the vehicle's paint for the prescribed amount of time. It also acts as a buffer between the loosened dirt and the high pressure soap option which is usually the next selection used.

If you skip the presoak option, and go directly to the high pressure soap, you are doing damage to you paint by water blasting the sand that on your car's paint. Basically you are sand blasting you paint and you will see the damage, first as hazing and in it's final stages as clear coat failure and missing paint.

Derrick
 
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David,
Pressure washers used incorrectly will easily damage paint and most people misuse them all the time!
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Easily…yes. If someone was ignorant enough to get too close with and/or touch the vehicle with the wand then that could possibly damage something.

Here's an example: Do you know what is the most important selection at a properly functioning self serve car wash? It's not the high pressure soap, the tire cleaner, the engine degreaser, the high gloss wax or the spot free rinse.
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Neither. It’s the foam brush step. You can pre-soak a dirty vehicle all day long and it won’t remove the oily road film100%. Add weather change into the equation and it makes it even harder to safely clean a vehicle w/o bumping up the acid/alkaline levels. You can’t clean a dirty car @ a Coin-Op w/o using the foam brush step. Skip it and you’re car won’t get clean. Use it and you end up scratching the finish. If Coin-Ops could 100% clean a dirty car they wouldn’t have brushes there. When’s the last time you saw a touchless coin-op system? Especially in a northern environment.


If you skip the presoak option, and go directly to the high pressure soap, you are doing damage to you paint by water blasting the sand that on your car's paint. Basically you are sand blasting you paint and you will see the damage, first as hazing and in it's final stages as clear coat failure and missing paint.
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You keep thinking that...
You’re way overboard with your opinion. I’d love to see any objective proof of this. If high pressure water hitting a dirty surface created damage, then every car on the road would get destroyed during a heavy rainstorm. Not to mention all the cars I’ve owned and maintained in the last 20 years by power washing w/o pre-soaking them. Not a single one has had any hazing, failure or missing paint from stone chips, better yet pressure washing them. I guess you have, so let’s see some evidence. I can’t wait to see your findings that are probably the biggest thing to upset the car wash industry yet……….
 
I find the pressure washer to be an indespensible tool when washing. I use it each and every time when I wash a car (especially my own).

First, I LOVE the foam cannon. FAR superior IMO to the foam gun. It makes washing more fun and faster. How can you beat that?

Second, "carpeted" wheel wells are becoming more and more prevalent especially on luxury vehicles. "Carpeted" wheel wells are nearly impossible to get clean without a pressure washer.

I use my pressure washer throughout my wash process and I think it's a great tool.

This being said have I ever damaged a car with my pressure washer? YES. I was cleaning the wheel wells on my last car with my crappy electric Husky PW and stupidly was using the pencil jet spray pattern. I didn't think it had enough power to do this but after a few moments it cut right through the paint. Luckily, this was inside the wheel well and on the inside of the plastic bumper. So, I didn't really care as you couldn't see it and there was no risk of rust.

As long as you're not blatantly stupid or have a serious brain fart (like I did), the pressure washer is a great tool that won't harm your car.
 
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