What pressure washers are you guys using ?
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briarpatch
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- Sep 9, 2015
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I believe the PSI is the spec that's the most important, as it pertains to the foam cannon, but flow rate (GPM) is more important as it pertains to getting good foam out of a cannon. I use a SunJoe SPX3000, rated at 2030 psi/1.76 gpm.....both overstated. It is more than sufficient for washing cars and works well with my two foam cannons, one a PF22 and the other an Amazon 20.00 special. A Comet 1700 is in my future as soon as they're available in the U.S.
PaulMys
Active member
- Jan 14, 2014
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:laughing::laughing:
I thought they discontinued the Cheezy models.
I read that the Moderately Crappy units were outselling them..........
I thought they discontinued the Cheezy models.
I read that the Moderately Crappy units were outselling them..........
When you have a PW with over 2000psi the most important spec is the gpm it has. The more the better with gpm from the PW to clean with. When you have a high gpm you use a nozzle tip that you have a size that is getting you in the range of 1500psi-2000psi.
When it comes to foamcannons it's on what gpm from the PW you have. And get the suited orifice in the foamcannon to get the right dilution from the foamcannon. Cause if you use a smaller orifice in the foamcannon than it's able to handle. The psi from the foamcannon is getting to high and wear on the PW more than needed. MTM has an awesome calculator for getting the right orifice in the foamcannon and also the wanted orifice in the nozzle tip to get the psi you want. Without going over the specs to what your PW can handle. With a to large of orifice in the foamcannon you get it to not foam as good. And with a to small orifice in the foamcannon you get a to high of the psi and also the PW pump is working to much. When you have a to small orifice in the nozzle tip. The psi is to high and with an electric PW it can start to pulse as a safety precaution. If a to big orifice in the nozzle tip you get a to low of psi to effectively cleaning with the water pressure from the PW. So it's a good thing to look this up and with knowing the specs on the PW it's easy with the calculators on MTM website.
I have a Kärcher K7 Premium Full Control Plus Flex with the specs 2600psi 2.6gpm and it's a 240v electric motor. It's the highest spec PW I can have on the 240v. I have the specs on the gpm from the PW that is on the edge to have the standard 1.25mm orifice in the foamcannon or use the 1.30mm orifice in the foamcannon. It works good with the 1.30mm orifice now. But with the new foamcannon I have bought I will test it with the standard 1.25mm orifice in it for a while. I got a set of nozzle tips with a to small orifice on them. The PW started to pulsing in the pressure so that's how I noticed that. But all don't do this and also with foamcannons it's harder to notice if the orifice is too small. Especially on gas PW. So it's even more important to follow the recommendation to which orifice in the foamcannon and nozzle tip you are going to be useing. They are not the same either in these.
When it comes to foamcannons it's on what gpm from the PW you have. And get the suited orifice in the foamcannon to get the right dilution from the foamcannon. Cause if you use a smaller orifice in the foamcannon than it's able to handle. The psi from the foamcannon is getting to high and wear on the PW more than needed. MTM has an awesome calculator for getting the right orifice in the foamcannon and also the wanted orifice in the nozzle tip to get the psi you want. Without going over the specs to what your PW can handle. With a to large of orifice in the foamcannon you get it to not foam as good. And with a to small orifice in the foamcannon you get a to high of the psi and also the PW pump is working to much. When you have a to small orifice in the nozzle tip. The psi is to high and with an electric PW it can start to pulse as a safety precaution. If a to big orifice in the nozzle tip you get a to low of psi to effectively cleaning with the water pressure from the PW. So it's a good thing to look this up and with knowing the specs on the PW it's easy with the calculators on MTM website.
I have a Kärcher K7 Premium Full Control Plus Flex with the specs 2600psi 2.6gpm and it's a 240v electric motor. It's the highest spec PW I can have on the 240v. I have the specs on the gpm from the PW that is on the edge to have the standard 1.25mm orifice in the foamcannon or use the 1.30mm orifice in the foamcannon. It works good with the 1.30mm orifice now. But with the new foamcannon I have bought I will test it with the standard 1.25mm orifice in it for a while. I got a set of nozzle tips with a to small orifice on them. The PW started to pulsing in the pressure so that's how I noticed that. But all don't do this and also with foamcannons it's harder to notice if the orifice is too small. Especially on gas PW. So it's even more important to follow the recommendation to which orifice in the foamcannon and nozzle tip you are going to be useing. They are not the same either in these.
Coatingsarecrack
Well-known member
- Dec 9, 2018
- 7,853
- 527
I use ryobi electric 2300 psi 1.2 gpm. It works well with foam cannons and cleans car well. I bought it cuz it used a brushless motor so hoping to get 3-5 years out of it. Got it on sale for around $200. Currently around $279-329.
If I had to do again would buy a sun joe commercial model. One your looking sounds like gas. If gpm is over 1.5 I say go for it.
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If I had to do again would buy a sun joe commercial model. One your looking sounds like gas. If gpm is over 1.5 I say go for it.
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Markymapo1
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- Jun 26, 2018
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As a hobbyist I use the cordless spx6001c. Up here in the Northeast all outdoor water lines are turned off in winter so when we get above freezing I wheel this out and wash 2 cars on one battery charge no problem. When the weather warms And the water is turned on the Sunjoe is used as a final rinse in which I have 1/2 filled the tank with DI water. Can also wheel it on to the dock to wash the boat
Calendyr
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- Jun 9, 2013
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If you decide on a 3100 PSI pressure washer, make sure to use a while fan nozzle (40 degrees, the white one) and don't get the lance close to the paint. Normally for cars 2000 PSI or lower is safest. More power will allow you to do a faster job at cleaning but you have to be more careful because you can damage the paint with that much pressure.
I use a 1800 PSI electric pressure washer.
I use a 1800 PSI electric pressure washer.
FUNX650
New member
- Dec 1, 2010
- 21,057
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^^^Not too bad of a deal (and Costco
has a nearly unmatchable return policy);
but I prefer pressure washers that come
with Honda engines.
Bob
PaulMys
Active member
- Jan 14, 2014
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Honda small engines are incredible.
However, do not get lazy on winter care of the fuel system.
Honda carburetors are finicky when it comes to ethanol gas.
Always use a fuel stabilizer and drain the entire fuel system for storage, or just use ethanol-free gasoline if available.
That is an awesome setup. What are the specs on the battery PW?
I have learned resently that the Kärcher K4-K7 I think it was. Is able to draw water from a tank or bucket. So I'm going to look a little more to find bigger volume of DI water. To use the Kärcher K7 I have also with the last rinse with DI water. The price on DI water here in Sweden on around a gallon is $5-$6. I can lower the pressure and think it lowers the gpm too but not sure about it. If not lowering the gpm from the PW and my PW draw 2.6gpm. That's a lot of DI water for the rinse LOL.
Hondas patent on some of their smaller gas motors has gone out about a year ago. So it's coming out copies on some of those that is actually quite good. The snowblower my stepfather has is one of these copies of Honda engines. Worked last winter and this winter very good. The price difference is huge between them so for some it can be worth it. Just a friendly notice.
- Thread starter
- #15
So i picked this up 2.4gpm 3100psi Yamaha Powerstroke gas powered pressure washer last night. It seems to me, that its probably too powerful for using as a foam cannon / cleaning cars. Which is fine cos i do have a lot of other uses for it.. I didn't buy it for cleaning my car, but it would be nice if i could use it for doing so....Anyway according to the documentation, even the white 40degrees nozzle doesn't have a car listed as a recommendation. Lawn equipment, RV and boats are listed to be used. I don't know of a way to dumb down the PSI other than nozzles. Are there any other nozzles out there, that'll bring it down to less pressure so that it'll be more suited to an automobile??
I would get a set of 40-25-15 degree nozzle tips in the orifice size of 4.0. With that size of the nozzle tip your water pressure from the PW is 1400-1500psi. If you want to be very safe I would go with these. For a little more cleaning ability from the PW I would go with the 3.5 nozzle orifice in the nozzle tip. That would give you 1900psi which is still safe to use on the vehicals. If you go down to the 3.0 nozzle orifice you would get 2500psi and is on the high side and very powerfull. The benefit is that you hold the nozzle tip farther away from the vehical and cover more surface. The Kärcher K7 PW I have has a 2250psi from the nozzle tip and 2.6gpm. And it's awesome to clean the car with and does it in a short time. It's a little how experienced you are with useing PW. It's not that high of a cost to buy another set of nozzle tips if you want more or less psi from it. Often the gpm is the same but not always. And if it changes when you lower the psi it will get you a higher gpm from the PW.
For the foamcannon you are good to use the standard 1.25 orifice in the foamcannon. With the smaller orifice 1.1mm is getting you a high psi from the foamcannon. With the 1.25mm orifice in the foamcannon you have around 1900psi which is great when produce high foam. With the 1.1mm orifice in the foamcannon you get 2500psi from the foamcannon. And that's on the high side when you use the foamcannon but it works if your foamcannon can handle the 2500psi.
The calculation comes from the calculator that MTM has on their website. It's great to look at what orifices you can use with your PW. I think that what is recommended from some people to have a 1000psi. Is to low of psi to effectively cleaning with the PW. I have so I can set the pressure from 600psi-2250psi in my spray gun handle. Which is remote synced to the PW. And I use the 2250psi setting all of the time when cleaning of the prewash foam and rinsing off the car soap. When doing a rinse in the engine compartment I lower it down to around 800psi. If you still want to be in around the 1000psi range your PW would be used with a 5.0 orifice in the nozzle tip.
Hope it helps you some.
swanicyouth
New member
- Mar 3, 2011
- 9,388
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Bought this the other week. Mainly for giggles and cleaning my siding on my house. I also have AR's top of the line consumer electric and a Hydroshot.
Of course, I had to try it on a car + w/ foam cannon. I have the original MTM foam cannon from years ago. Got super thick Chemical Guys video shaving cream like foam you don't get with an electric. The 40° nozzle is good for cleaning cars.
BTW, I've had my foam cannon maybe 8 years? and have never rinsed it out once and it works perfectly. I'm not sure the point to rinsing it out - you're using soap in it - which is non corrosive and can stay in a cheap plastic container forever without damaging that. It's diluted in the cannon. Shouldn't ever have an issue really.
Honestly, not a lot of love for gas pressure washers from detailers. But TBH they are faster & just work better. The hose on this specific unit is real rubber - so much better to use than the vinyl kink hoses that come with electric. You can get around the car so much faster with the higher volume & pressure. No electric to plug in - only external you need to worry about is a hose.
This specific machine has idle down and auto choke. Basically you just pull the cord & yr in business. It's fairly quiet as well.
So far I'd recommend this machine. It has a Briggs engine as do all my other motorized equipment & I've never had an issue yet. I do maintain them & run Stabil & Seam Foam in the gas.
minerigger
Member
- Jul 19, 2017
- 870
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What did you spend if you don’t mind my asking
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- Thread starter
- #20
Me ? I paid up the full amount of $350 at Costco. It sparked my interest last week when it was on discount for either $60 or $80 off. However by the time i decided yep i want it (as in cleared it with the wife lol) erm like a day later, it was back up to full price. It also comes with the surface cleaner add-on. So i didn't mind biting the bullet. I'm a bit of a sell confessed Yamaha fanboy so i was drawn in by the logo as i walked past it. I previously had a Karcher Power washer, that took up too much valuable garage space, so i ended up selling it to a friend and just borrowing it when i needed it.. Which was the reverse as he'd always borrow it from me when he needed it. lol, but with this surface cleaner add-on and being a Yamaha, it thought why not ! Plus i can give all this snow foam a try out, even though i know its a gimmicky way to clean a car.