Pressure Washer?

[seamonkey]

Hi guys

I need to get a pressure washer for a variety of jobs including washing the boat down obviously. Had a few cheapy's but now's the time to get a better unit. Anyone got any recommendations?

Thanks
smky

[Ripen lips]

Hey mate. I have a gernie. I think that's how to spell it. Lol. They have mettle gears ect. And are Aussie. Has been going strong for yrs. tops IMO.

[rooboy]

Look at the good brands like a gerni or karcher. The pump is the important bit, so make sure that its not Chinese crap.

[samt]

I have a Karcher and it is great. Once the water is pressurised in the hose, the motor turns off until you squeeze the trigger again to release the water. they may all do this now but I think it is a great feature as the work pressure washer has to be manually turned off each time you want to stop and do something else.

Check out how much it costs for common replacement parts as the hose on the work machine has been replaced a few times (gets run over and twisted up) and it is fairly pricey.

[Juzza]

All the smaller Gerni machines are made in China, all the <$600 Karcher machines now have plastic pumps. If you want a decent washer look for something with a brass cylinder head and an induction motor. If you have a lot of work planned for the unit have a look at the BAR K250 , brass head, 4 pole slow speed motor, auto shutdown , detergent injection, hose reel, 15 mtrs wire braided hose, turbo head, vario lance and made in Italy. Retail $1500. With washers you get what you pay for. Cheaper models are the KL1600A and the KT 1800.

Originally Posted by samt

I have a Karcher and it is great. Once the water is pressurised in the hose, the motor turns off until you squeeze the trigger again to release the water. they may all do this now but I think it is a great feature as the work pressure washer has to be manually turned off each time you want to stop and do .

Called full auto stop and karchers have a big warning in their user manual to say physically turn off the machine after 5 mins of no use to avoid overheating if the motor and pump head - also the pump heads are plastic still... Karchers are the most returned / warranted pressure cleaners on the market! I've personally gone through 3 of the K2.18's and they keep on being returned.

Gurney is a respected brand! I personally have a AR Blue 'scorpion' from work - has a full metal pump, brass fittings and has full auto stop as standard! Has waned everything from bikes, cars, kayak, house, dog, letterbox and even managed to squirt the neighbor...

Awesome machine for the price!!!

[Nix88]

Mate if you want the best get yourself a little Honda pressure washer will outlast anything on the market

[CLAY]

honda all the way, i got 1 off ebay, not sure of the exact brand but it has the 4 banga honda motor on it, no need to give it a rest like electric ones even thou i still do, but blasts everything off without a drama and 5 different heads so theres one for almost any job, and its so much quicker than a smaller unit, mate has the same one and i borrowed hes to try b4 i got mine, hes would be 2-3 years old and mine 1-2 and no dramas

[seamonkey]

Thanks all - now to go shopping!

Originally Posted by CLAY

honda all the way, i got 1 off ebay, not sure of the exact brand but it has the 4 banga honda motor on it, no need to give it a rest like electric ones even thou i still do, but blasts everything off without a drama and 5 different heads so theres one for almost any job, and its so much quicker than a smaller unit, mate has the same one and i borrowed hes to try b4 i got mine, hes would be 2-3 years old and mine 1-2 and no dramas

Problem with 'Hot Washers' is that they need petrol and spark plugs and all that - with little portable pressure cleaners all you do is plug them in.

There are pro's and con's with both styles however you can really take a hot washer on a roof and give it a going over - just isnt capable / safe.

99% of people buy electric style washers whereas the 1% of those that demand atom splitting power get the hot washers from respectable brands like Honda (which make the engine) not the pump pressure motor and the ancillary head, hoses etc.

[rooboy]

Originally Posted by SLAZMO

Called full auto stop and karchers have a big warning in their user manual to say physically turn off the machine after 5 mins of no use to avoid overheating if the motor and pump head - also the pump heads are plastic still... Karchers are the most returned / warranted pressure cleaners on the market! I've personally gone through 3 of the K2.18's and they keep on being returned.

Gurney is a respected brand! I personally have a AR Blue 'scorpion' from work - has a full metal pump, brass fittings and has full auto stop as standard! Has waned everything from bikes, cars, kayak, house, dog, letterbox and even managed to squirt the neighbor...

Awesome machine for the price!!!

We had one of those scorpion washers a fair while ago. Did brilliantly for a cheapie. It was awesome for smaller jobs on the farm when you couldn't be stuffed using the big washer. I reckon the pump on it was made in Italy too. Only killed it because it was too good to use, and we started using it for big jobs instead of just utes n cars.

Originally Posted by rooboy

I reckon the pump on it was made in Italy too.

Yeh Scorpion say that the pump is I-tal-ian made... Should see the cooling fan (metal construction) in the AR motors too - huge and efficient!

Should have seen the Karcher rep drop his proverbial nuts in store when AR Blue came in and shook his crazy tree...

Pics below pretty explanatory and why the Karcher fella went "La La"...

[CLAY]

the other reason i went the petrol honda one was the 20mtr hose, those that have a cheap electric one will no why this was a selling point for me, the other selling point was that the 2 previous electric ones only seemed to last 2yrs or so with use and little use, i no not all are like this but maybe my usage was a bit too harsh for them in the long term

[rooboy]

That's an interesting comparison there Slamzo. I hadn't realised the better brands had dropped off in quality. Should've guessed it though. We were looking at washing machines, and were surprised to find some of the more popular Bosch models are not made in Germany. The wife bought a Siemens, which I liked coz the name was funny!!!

Originally Posted by rooboy

That's an interesting comparison there Slazmo. I hadn't realised the better brands had dropped off in quality. Should've guessed it though.

Thats how they keep profitable - keep in mind they all make parts in china and may possibly have their product partially made there and then a tiny % final completion and boxing in the parent country Eg: Germany to be called "Made In Germany". Its a weird concept however it works well to keep prices high - I see it every day...

Leatherman had a lot of issues with their 'Made in USA' slogan with foreign parts in their tools.