Best home jet washer for doing the car?
Discussion
thinking of getting a home Jet washer for doing the cars basically.. but not getting my eyes taken out..
what's best one you have? most I have looked at are for doing patios etc.. sort of fancy one with attachments for applying foam etc
Karcher seems to be the main one out there, presume tools available
thanks,
what's best one you have? most I have looked at are for doing patios etc.. sort of fancy one with attachments for applying foam etc
Karcher seems to be the main one out there, presume tools available
thanks,
Nilfisk are good value - but to be honest most do a similar job if your requirements are to just snow foam and rinse, snow foaming I found relies more on the bottle quality than the jet washer itself.
Personally I got a Worx cordless, not as powerful (doesn't need to be) but super useful for not have a power cable trailing out the house and just needs a bucket of water to connect to.
Personally I got a Worx cordless, not as powerful (doesn't need to be) but super useful for not have a power cable trailing out the house and just needs a bucket of water to connect to.
I got a Bosch one in a sale at B&Q and am very happy with it. I basically had two requirements - that it came with adequate attachments (patio cleaner, soap dispenser bottle thing, and lance with the attachments I wanted) and that it had a metal (rather than plastic) pump impeller.
I've never actually used it for washing a car, mind so I've no idea how well it would do that.
I've never actually used it for washing a car, mind so I've no idea how well it would do that.
Corv99 said:
thanks for the input chaps :-)
never even knew the Worx cordless existed.. even though a bit more money looks about £140.. that might actually work better to be fair..
It is down on power vs something plugged in, but if you want something for the car rather than blasting paint off of a brick wall its a pretty good bit of kit. I got it out of necessity as have no drive and can't always park outside my house.never even knew the Worx cordless existed.. even though a bit more money looks about £140.. that might actually work better to be fair..
There is a cordless Sealey version too which is cheaper.
sc0tt said:
I have a Nilfisk jet wash and am happy with it unlike my garage full of broken karchers
Nilfisk aren't without their problems, particularly the cheap 'C' series. I've had a couple of C120 fail in the same way, the switch which stops the motor running when the trigger is released goes wrong.coldel said:
It is down on power vs something plugged in, but if you want something for the car rather than blasting paint off of a brick wall its a pretty good bit of kit. I got it out of necessity as have no drive and can't always park outside my house.
There is a cordless Sealey version too which is cheaper.
I have same issue, got a shared access road leading to a few houses.. there is a tap outside on my outhouse storage area.. but potentially neighbours cars driving over the pipe and leads.. its only for the cars to be fair, so that might be worth the bit extra.. the video of it looks OK .. Amazon are also selling some 2nd hand ones in 'very good' condition for £105..There is a cordless Sealey version too which is cheaper.
will check out the sealy one too
Corv99 said:
coldel said:
It is down on power vs something plugged in, but if you want something for the car rather than blasting paint off of a brick wall its a pretty good bit of kit. I got it out of necessity as have no drive and can't always park outside my house.
There is a cordless Sealey version too which is cheaper.
I have same issue, got a shared access road leading to a few houses.. there is a tap outside on my outhouse storage area.. but potentially neighbours cars driving over the pipe and leads.. its only for the cars to be fair, so that might be worth the bit extra.. the video of it looks OK .. Amazon are also selling some 2nd hand ones in 'very good' condition for £105..There is a cordless Sealey version too which is cheaper.
will check out the sealy one too
As has been said, Nilfisk represent pretty good value for money.
Get one with a metal pump, if possible.
The expired Karchers another poster, along with myself have suffered, are nearly always down to pumps that get cracked by remnant water freezing in them when not drained (almost impossibly) diligently...
For cleaning a car's panels you don't need much power to get the worst off. Flow rate is equally important.
To be honest the real cleaning is done with the sponge / washmit. Even powerful; machines don't get it all off.
In my opinion the biggest benefit of using a pressure washer to clean a car is when used on wheels - it's sooo satisfying to get wheels clean without having to touch them
If you can connect it to your hot water you'll see a MASSIVE improvement in the relative effectiveness of any machine vs a cold water supply.
couple this with a good alloy wheel cleaner applied via a pump-up spray bottle for economy, and you'll be winning.
So, Nilfisk is a good shout, but I would go for a Kranzle all day long. They're not cheap but (I think I'm right in saying) every machine in their range has a solid brass pump. This is what you pay for, but my god are they powerful, even the diddy ones !
They are fully serviceable and designed to last a long time.
By the time you binned your third £160 Karcher you'll wish you'd bought a decent one at the outset.
I have an 11hp petrol Kranzle which is devastatingly powerful - to be used on a car with extreme caution, but the combination of power and flow rate make it such a pleasure to use - 17 litres / minute at 240 Bar is awesome...
I also have a smaller 1150T electric model which is still a fantastic machine.
Snow Foam bottles are available to fit just about every type of machine, but be warned, the yellow one that comes with a Karcher and looks like a rubber ducky is s
te.
Get one from an online detailing store, but try not to pay the ridiculous £50 they seem to want for a plastic bottle and brass nozzle.
So in summary.
Hot water through a Kranzle and a decent foam gun if you must, but again, you'll still need to handwash it too.
Get one with a metal pump, if possible.
The expired Karchers another poster, along with myself have suffered, are nearly always down to pumps that get cracked by remnant water freezing in them when not drained (almost impossibly) diligently...
For cleaning a car's panels you don't need much power to get the worst off. Flow rate is equally important.
To be honest the real cleaning is done with the sponge / washmit. Even powerful; machines don't get it all off.
In my opinion the biggest benefit of using a pressure washer to clean a car is when used on wheels - it's sooo satisfying to get wheels clean without having to touch them
If you can connect it to your hot water you'll see a MASSIVE improvement in the relative effectiveness of any machine vs a cold water supply.
couple this with a good alloy wheel cleaner applied via a pump-up spray bottle for economy, and you'll be winning.
So, Nilfisk is a good shout, but I would go for a Kranzle all day long. They're not cheap but (I think I'm right in saying) every machine in their range has a solid brass pump. This is what you pay for, but my god are they powerful, even the diddy ones !
They are fully serviceable and designed to last a long time.
By the time you binned your third £160 Karcher you'll wish you'd bought a decent one at the outset.
I have an 11hp petrol Kranzle which is devastatingly powerful - to be used on a car with extreme caution, but the combination of power and flow rate make it such a pleasure to use - 17 litres / minute at 240 Bar is awesome...
I also have a smaller 1150T electric model which is still a fantastic machine.
Snow Foam bottles are available to fit just about every type of machine, but be warned, the yellow one that comes with a Karcher and looks like a rubber ducky is s
te.Get one from an online detailing store, but try not to pay the ridiculous £50 they seem to want for a plastic bottle and brass nozzle.
So in summary.
Hot water through a Kranzle and a decent foam gun if you must, but again, you'll still need to handwash it too.
My Nilfisk C110 died on Sunday. Started making a funny noise (motor) then smoke from back of unit. Bought in 2017 and not had a hard life so will be avoiding Nilfisk in future. I *think* Karcher are doing 2-5yr warranties on their machines. From experience - go for the make with the longest warranty.
Domestic quality pressure washers do not have a long life in my experience. Karcher ones, had 3, are all plastic rubbish and will fail just out of warranty. The lances are good though. I currently have 2 cheap ones. A Homebase special which must be 5 years old and has one of my old Karcher lances and hose on it. The most recent purchase was a VAX unit from their refurbished sale for £40 and it has been great. Cleans the cars no problem and has just been used for cleaning a large slabbed area which it did well with the turbo nozzle fitted.
My advice is to purchase the cheapest one you can find that meets your needs and be prepared to bin it in a few years.
My advice is to purchase the cheapest one you can find that meets your needs and be prepared to bin it in a few years.
Nilfisk C120 is where I put my money. I got one for ~£80, had it 2 years and it's been great. I'm under no illusions that it will last like one of the petrol monoliths or one of the professional grade jobbies bought S/H from eBay, but it also doesn't occupy my entire garage and is perfectly serviceable for a couple of uses a month.
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