Pressure Washers

[audi321]

Hi all, I'm on the lookout for a half decent pw.

Contrary to what I thought, there doesn't seem to be a correlation between flow and pressure. For example this one, has a flow of 12l a min but only pressure of 100 bar. Whereas this one, only has a flow of 8.5l a min, but has a pressure of 180 bar.

Should I be looking at pressure or litres/min? I see from other threads that Nilfisk are recommended, but are there other brands I should consider?

Thanks in advance all.

[audi321]

Found my own answer.........one is max pressure and the other is working pressure, so I guess litres/min is the best gauge then.

[Glassman]

Nilfisk.

[cayman-black]

I have just bought another Karcher K5 Classic on offer at toolstation for £179 they are good for the money and have 145 bar pressure.

[svracers]

I have a cheap nilfisk which has been ok but im saving up for a kranzle next. They are the best in the world

[FMOB]

The 100bar or 180bar is basically how powerful the water jet is, bigger number means the water hits whatever you are washing harder for the same distance.

If washing a car I would go for the 100bar one as less likey to damage or strip the paint, for patios go with the higher pressure one as the material is tougher.

High pressure one on a car, stand further back when using it to reduce chance of damaging the paint, etc.

Have you measured the L/min at the end of your hose as this might make the decision easy. I would go for more L/min over pressure given the choice.

[Escort3500]

Kranzle if you can afford it; Nilfisk if your budget is tighter. Avoid Karcher - I had two that died just a week or two out of warranty. Karcher weren’t interested when I (politely) expressed disappointment, and were actually dismissive and bloody arrogant.

[Baldchap]

Can't tell you anything about the science, but what I will say is the Bosch one I link to below is light years better than our Karcher that was twice the price. It's also so small and light it makes things like doing patios and paths much easier than the Karcher (we've got quite a bit of both, so it makes a big difference).

My neighbour has a similar but older Bosch pressure washer that is also brilliant.

I certainly won't ever touch my Karcher again, other than to lend when people ask.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bosch-Pressure-EasyAquata...

[LunarOne]

On the other hand, my Karcher 530M has been going well for more than 20 years. It does have a sticky pressure switch which requires me to trigger it with the nozzle off the first time use after a winter of inaction, but otherwise it's good. Obviously being old means it might not be representative of modern machines.

[Joe M]

I'm thinking about one from here if my nilfisk ever dies:

https://www.directhoses.net/collections/all-black-...

[smifffymoto]

Kranzle but they carry a premium.

[Mark V GTD]

Just got a new Karcher K2 for £69 so thinking as long as water comes out of the end of the thing for the next couple of years I can’t go too far wrong.

[OldPal]

Joe M said:

I'm thinking about one from here if my nilfisk ever dies:

https://www.directhoses.net/collections/all-black-...

I have one, good once it’s setup but direct hoses are a nightmare to deal with if you have any problems, also didn’t send out items that were advertised when I bought mine

[Joe M]

OldPal said:

I have one, good once it’s setup but direct hoses are a nightmare to deal with if you have any problems, also didn’t send out items that were advertised when I bought mine

Good to hear your feedback, thanks. That's a shame, I like there site.

[Purosangue]

a good second hand Honda GX 390 everytime which replaced my Karcher







with a rotary lance attachment and foam lance , will tackle everything , i picked one up for £300 had it serviced for £80 ,

13Hp knocks electric washers into a cocked hat

[LunarOne]

Purosangue said:

a good second hand Honda GX 390 everytime which replaced my Karcher







with a rotary lance attachment and foam lance , will tackle everything , i picked one up for £300 had it serviced for £80 ,

13Hp knocks electric washers into a cocked hat

Correct. A slight oversimplification ignoring soft start devices and motor types, but the most powerful motor you can realistically run from a domestic 13A 240V supply is 3HP and even that is pushing it - although 3HP equates to only 2.2kW, electric motors, especially electric motors under load tend to have a huge inrush current when starting up - especially if starting under load. While a 3kW electric heater will work just fine on a domestic supply, if you tried to use a 3kW (4HP) motor you would likely find yourself tripping circuit breakers left right and centre every time the motor started up. And the thing about electric pressure washers is that they start the motor every time you squeeze the trigger. So a 13HP petrol pressure washer is about 4x more powerful than the most powerful electric washer that can be used on a domestic 13A supply.

[FMOB]

Purosangue said:

a good second hand Honda GX 390 everytime which replaced my Karcher







with a rotary lance attachment and foam lance , will tackle everything , i picked one up for £300 had it serviced for £80 ,

13Hp knocks electric washers into a cocked hat

If you are washing driveways all day everyday then absolutely but if directing that towards a car you should pre-book the bodyshop to repair the damage.

[OldPal]

FMOB said:

If you are washing driveways all day everyday then absolutely but if directing that towards a car you should pre-book the bodyshop to repair the damage.

Looks like it’s got adjustable pressure , the little black handle with the blue lid on the left side of it controls it. Same as my electric one

[fasimew]

Disregard pressure. Anything that kicks out 10lpm or above is a winner.

[Fallingup]

Henry