Pressure Washers

[WylieCoyote]

Hi all. I've owned a few pw's in the past - only the cheap ones and they've always broken. I'm thinking about treating myself (and my car) to a nice pressure washer. Screwfix direct have one for £100 inc. vat that's £200 in argos. Are they worth the expense? The snow foam looks pretty good, worth having?

Appreciate any input.

K :)

[PJ S]

£100? Try a decent one nearer £250 and you'll have something that'll last you at least 5 years before showing signs of needing any attention.

Don't think you've any need to look towards a Kranzle unless you'll be using one solid each day for 5 hours+, but then when you're measuring life expectancy as 3000 hours versus 50 hours for the basic ones at £35-40, as well as greater flow rate - even they start looking value for money over the long term.

That said, I've been looking into pressure washers myself, and have found a range that are looking very promising.

If you're in no rush, I'll be able to provide further info soon, all being well, and may be able to sort out a bit of a deal - but I'm making no false promises.

[dgman]

ive had my karcher for more than four years without problems,i think the snow foam is overated and i will not be buying anymore

[aztecbandit1]

Same here had my Karcher for over 5 years now and its had some stick over those years with cleaning driveways, and even used it to clean a whole house exterior, before painting it in the past and it still works a treat :D

[TigerFish]

Yup, had my Karcher for years, I think about 7 or 8 and like Aztec, mine has been used for cars, driveways, patios and is still going strong. It was the cheapest one they did at the time too so only around 50 quid when I got it.

[Boxbrownie]

I beat that...my Karcher (which I have only just replaced) was bought in France on a business trip back in 1987......was running perfectly up until I replaced it with a "Aldi" version last year......

In 1987 it cost me just under £150......thats when they were (if you could find them!) around £250-300 here in the UK.

Quite frankly though, the Aldi "karcher" works extremely well and came with many tools.....and looks amazingly like the karchers, oh yes...the Karcher tools fit too with the supplied adapter....bit of a bargain actually!

Best regards David

[Tango]

ive had my karcher for more than four years without problems,i think the snow foam is overated and i will not be buying anymore

I think it's pretty good at soaking and lifting the grime after a quick jet wash to get rid of any heavy stuff. Just use a bucket of clean water and a MF mitt to remove the foam before using the Karcher on low pressure to rinse off. Blade off and MF towel dry...easy.

[dgman]

tango;i find that the snow foam works very well when used as a shampoo but i was expecting better from the soak and wait stage.the stuff i got was from jet wash direct costing about £11 for 5ltrs delivered.

[PJ S]

dgman, as you know, I'm a big advocator of Bilt Hamber - try their Autofoam before you decide foaming is a waste of time/effort.

There's a bit of maths you'll need to do, in order to get the 4-5% PIR (panel impact ratio), which is the correct concentration for not pulling off your LSP (up to 8% if using Autobalm incidentally).

It will loosen, remove, and soften the dirt on there, giving the regular wash stage less potential to create more/new scratches and swirls.

I've posted it on another forum, so I'll find it later and post it here for you to take onboard.

[WylieCoyote]

Can anyone suggest model numbers that are good - I'd prefer one of those that stands up and is on wheels. I am flexible with budget but ideally don't want to spend over £200.

[dgman]

i'd go with something near base model if you are only going to use it for cleaning the car and buy the snow foam lance if you want to go down that path.