Pressure washer advice - do I need onboard detergent?
Discussion
Just about to buy a Nilfisk and can see some more pricey ones come with onboard detergent. Is this of any real use?
It's for a bit of car washing, patio and brickwork and comes with a foam bottle attachment etc. so what would I use the onboard for? A detergent to help with the paving, or whack some autowash in there rather than filling up 2 buckets?
And really is it worth getting the p series over the e? The new P180 looks terrific but doesn't seem too suited to car washing as the click and connect stuff isn't compatible and I wanted to give that a bash. Is that range overkill for my needs (once a month 2 car wash and occasional patio work).
Cheers,
D.
It's for a bit of car washing, patio and brickwork and comes with a foam bottle attachment etc. so what would I use the onboard for? A detergent to help with the paving, or whack some autowash in there rather than filling up 2 buckets?
And really is it worth getting the p series over the e? The new P180 looks terrific but doesn't seem too suited to car washing as the click and connect stuff isn't compatible and I wanted to give that a bash. Is that range overkill for my needs (once a month 2 car wash and occasional patio work).
Cheers,
D.
Edited by Dr Nookie on Thursday 16th April 17:11
Edited by Dr Nookie on Thursday 16th April 17:13
I've had various pressure washers over the years and I've never used the detergent bottle on any that had one..
I'm not familiar with the newest Nilfisk models but if one looks more suitable to car washing then buy that. Pretty much any PW from £75> are adept at patio cleaning.
Try a citrus based cleaner/degreaser from the supermarket as a pre-spray on the patio before using the PW...has worked worked well for me on numerous occasions over the years.
Happy cleaning!
Cheers,
Chris
I'm not familiar with the newest Nilfisk models but if one looks more suitable to car washing then buy that. Pretty much any PW from £75> are adept at patio cleaning.
Try a citrus based cleaner/degreaser from the supermarket as a pre-spray on the patio before using the PW...has worked worked well for me on numerous occasions over the years.
Happy cleaning!
Cheers,
Chris
Summit_Detailing said:
I've had various pressure washers over the years and I've never used the detergent bottle on any that had one..
I'm not familiar with the newest Nilfisk models but if one looks more suitable to car washing then buy that. Pretty much any PW from £75> are adept at patio cleaning.
Try a citrus based cleaner/degreaser from the supermarket as a pre-spray on the patio before using the PW...has worked worked well for me on numerous occasions over the years.
Happy cleaning!
Cheers,
Chris
Cheers, that's about what I thought.I'm not familiar with the newest Nilfisk models but if one looks more suitable to car washing then buy that. Pretty much any PW from £75> are adept at patio cleaning.
Try a citrus based cleaner/degreaser from the supermarket as a pre-spray on the patio before using the PW...has worked worked well for me on numerous occasions over the years.
Happy cleaning!
Cheers,
Chris
It's bloody infuriating that on paper the Karcher's have everything I want (variable pressure, onboard detergent) but I can't justify based on the poor reviews (and my mate got one that lasted 2 months and 2 washes).
Does anyone ever use variable pressure or do you just stand further back :-)?
Does anyone ever use variable pressure or do you just stand further back :-)?
Dr Nookie said:
It's bloody infuriating that on paper the Karcher's have everything I want (variable pressure, onboard detergent) but I can't justify based on the poor reviews (and my mate got one that lasted 2 months and 2 washes).
Does anyone ever use variable pressure or do you just stand further back :-)?
A good friend has a K7 full control - I asked him if he's ever changed the setting on the lance - Nope just left on max!Does anyone ever use variable pressure or do you just stand further back :-)?
Sniffs of marketing team getting involved with product design IMO.
Cheers,
Chris
Summit_Detailing said:
A good friend has a K7 full control - I asked him if he's ever changed the setting on the lance - Nope just left on max!
Sniffs of marketing team getting involved with product design IMO.
Cheers,
Chris
Agreed. Well the Nilfisk is on it's way now so don't need to think about that any more...Sniffs of marketing team getting involved with product design IMO.
Cheers,
Chris
Cheers,
David.
Bought a k4 full control at the weekend.
Made cleaning the block work much easier than my puny k2!
Set in max for the floor, but I'd change for the car. Or stand back some....
£175 from Wickes, and 15pc off with a code. Seemed reasonable.
Motor is water cooled so hopefully better than the air cooled ones. Time will tell...
Made cleaning the block work much easier than my puny k2!
Set in max for the floor, but I'd change for the car. Or stand back some....
£175 from Wickes, and 15pc off with a code. Seemed reasonable.
Motor is water cooled so hopefully better than the air cooled ones. Time will tell...
I do use the variable pressure on the lance on my Nilfisk.
Two reasons to lower the pressure. 1), soft tops / canvas covers on boats. 2), rinsing off TW ceramic wash - I want to leave the ceramic behind and not blast it away while it is wet on the car. There could be a third I guess if I had a car with dodgy rusty areas of paint, I wouldn’t want to hit it with maximum pressure.
Other than that, it is always at the max, and I always wish for more on green walls and patios
Two reasons to lower the pressure. 1), soft tops / canvas covers on boats. 2), rinsing off TW ceramic wash - I want to leave the ceramic behind and not blast it away while it is wet on the car. There could be a third I guess if I had a car with dodgy rusty areas of paint, I wouldn’t want to hit it with maximum pressure.
Other than that, it is always at the max, and I always wish for more on green walls and patios
SeeFive said:
I do use the variable pressure on the lance on my Nilfisk.
Two reasons to lower the pressure. 1), soft tops / canvas covers on boats. 2), rinsing off TW ceramic wash - I want to leave the ceramic behind and not blast it away while it is wet on the car. There could be a third I guess if I had a car with dodgy rusty areas of paint, I wouldn’t want to hit it with maximum pressure.
Other than that, it is always at the max, and I always wish for more on green walls and patios
When you say you lower the pressure, do you mean by twisting the nozzle rather then using an onboard control to reduce the pressure the machine is running at?Two reasons to lower the pressure. 1), soft tops / canvas covers on boats. 2), rinsing off TW ceramic wash - I want to leave the ceramic behind and not blast it away while it is wet on the car. There could be a third I guess if I had a car with dodgy rusty areas of paint, I wouldn’t want to hit it with maximum pressure.
Other than that, it is always at the max, and I always wish for more on green walls and patios
Dr Nookie said:
SeeFive said:
I do use the variable pressure on the lance on my Nilfisk.
Two reasons to lower the pressure. 1), soft tops / canvas covers on boats. 2), rinsing off TW ceramic wash - I want to leave the ceramic behind and not blast it away while it is wet on the car. There could be a third I guess if I had a car with dodgy rusty areas of paint, I wouldn’t want to hit it with maximum pressure.
Other than that, it is always at the max, and I always wish for more on green walls and patios
When you say you lower the pressure, do you mean by twisting the nozzle rather then using an onboard control to reduce the pressure the machine is running at?Two reasons to lower the pressure. 1), soft tops / canvas covers on boats. 2), rinsing off TW ceramic wash - I want to leave the ceramic behind and not blast it away while it is wet on the car. There could be a third I guess if I had a car with dodgy rusty areas of paint, I wouldn’t want to hit it with maximum pressure.
Other than that, it is always at the max, and I always wish for more on green walls and patios
Chris32345 said:
SeeFive said:
Yes indeed, on the lance itself. I have no option on the machine.
You just have a dodgy Lance mines very noticeable between Min and max on the vario lance Sorry to hijack your thread but as it's a similar topic i thought use this instead of start a new one...
I've just bought my first pressure washer, some Nilfisk E150.2 number, but the online shop I bought it off was out of the detergent ("nilfisk car combi cleaner") that goes with it.
I think I read somewhere online something about 'be carefull not to use any detergent in your pressure washer as it might damage it', so just wondering what everyone else does.
Can you just buy car wash detergent/foam from any car shop/halfords and use that in your pressure washer ? Anything to look out for or avoid ?
Recently started using the polar range from autoglym all applied via power washer via a snowgun.
Have been very impressed, snowfoam, followed by shampoo followed by a polish that's also sprayed on via power washer.
Dry by hand and all done. The beading on the polish is insanely good. Been very impressed.
Have been very impressed, snowfoam, followed by shampoo followed by a polish that's also sprayed on via power washer.
Dry by hand and all done. The beading on the polish is insanely good. Been very impressed.
Dan_1981 said:
Recently started using the polar range from autoglym all applied via power washer via a snowgun.
Have been very impressed, snowfoam, followed by shampoo followed by a polish that's also sprayed on via power washer.
Dry by hand and all done. The beading on the polish is insanely good. Been very impressed.
Is there a specific type of cloth you'd recommend to dry it off afterwards ?Have been very impressed, snowfoam, followed by shampoo followed by a polish that's also sprayed on via power washer.
Dry by hand and all done. The beading on the polish is insanely good. Been very impressed.
I've got my new pressure washer, but i need to go buy some other items, like snowfoam, shampoo's and all that stuff, together with drying and cleaning cloths, but there are so many different types of everything I have no idea what to get...
I might have to google 'car washing for dummies' online and see what it comes up with...
Medic-one said:
Is there a specific type of cloth you'd recommend to dry it off afterwards ?
I've got my new pressure washer, but i need to go buy some other items, like snowfoam, shampoo's and all that stuff, together with drying and cleaning cloths, but there are so many different types of everything I have no idea what to get...
I might have to google 'car washing for dummies' online and see what it comes up with...
https://www.exceldetailingsupplies.co.uk/product-page/klin-korea-medium-evoI've got my new pressure washer, but i need to go buy some other items, like snowfoam, shampoo's and all that stuff, together with drying and cleaning cloths, but there are so many different types of everything I have no idea what to get...
I might have to google 'car washing for dummies' online and see what it comes up with...
Cheers,
Chris
Have to say it's a great bit of kit.
I ended up with patio cleaner set and the high and variable pressure nozzles.
Seems v well made, the onboard hose is good quality and should last ages and it's powerful enough to blow your trousers off (if that's on your requirements list).
Don't want to tempt fate but I'm confident it'll keep going to some time so highly recommended.
I went for the E160 in the end I think - so the one without onboard detergent.
I ended up with patio cleaner set and the high and variable pressure nozzles.
Seems v well made, the onboard hose is good quality and should last ages and it's powerful enough to blow your trousers off (if that's on your requirements list).
Don't want to tempt fate but I'm confident it'll keep going to some time so highly recommended.
I went for the E160 in the end I think - so the one without onboard detergent.
Edited by Dr Nookie on Wednesday 20th January 12:31
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