pressure washer should I use and if so how

mawallace · 15-07-2017, 01:20 PM

Currently I pre wash using a garden house , soap car and then wash off with hose.

What's the benefit of using a pressure washer and how would it change my washing cycle. I tend to have the garden hose on a jet setting and the water pressure is fairly high

If I get a pressure washer what settings should I use

neilmcl · 15-07-2017, 02:06 PM

You say pre-wash but I guess your mean pre-rinse with the hose. The usual reason many want a pw is so they can use a snow foam or other pre-wash product as well as having the power to clean wheels etc. I only use my pw to rinse off my pre-wash product of choice (BH Autofoam) and to rinse off shampoo from the wheels. Once I've done my full wash I use an open hose to rinse/sheet off the shampoo before drying.

OvEr_KiLL · 15-07-2017, 03:03 PM

as said above, if you want to use a snow foam or similiar then you will want a pressure washer and lance as the one you get with them are rubbish, it will have more pressure than using foam in a foam gun that connects to the hose pipe, also you have more pressure for rinsing wheels and wheel arches etc.
pressure washers dont really have a setting on them you just buy the one you want with the right bar pressure. ie. nilfisk c110 has 110bar and c130 has 130bar which is more powerful karcher k2 has 110bar

steelghost · 15-07-2017, 06:59 PM

The number of bar referred to in pressure washer specifications is the internal pressure in the pump head under normal operation (sometimes they use the peak figure to make it sound more powerful!)

The actual pressure felt by the item you're washing (be that a car bonnet, a paving slabs or anything else) is determined by the nozzle used. For example the difference between the spinning jet lance that focuses all the power of the machine in one spot, but then moves that spot in a circle, which will blast algae off concrete, versus a normal flat jet or variable lance which you might use for washing a car.

Some PWs do have variable pressure eg some Kränzle but mostly you just vary the nozzle or distance and the PW runs at full chat.

15-07-2017, 01:20 PM	#1
mawallace Washmitt Meister Join Date: Apr 2017 Location: Suffolk Posts: 243 Thanks: 3 Thanked 12 Times in 10 Posts	pressure washer should I use and if so how Currently I pre wash using a garden house , soap car and then wash off with hose. What's the benefit of using a pressure washer and how would it change my washing cycle. I tend to have the garden hose on a jet setting and the water pressure is fairly high If I get a pressure washer what settings should I use

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15-07-2017, 02:06 PM	#2
neilmcl OCD Sufferer (Obsessive Car Detailer) Join Date: Mar 2010 Posts: 1,099 Thanks: 219 Thanked 380 Times in 295 Posts	You say pre-wash but I guess your mean pre-rinse with the hose. The usual reason many want a pw is so they can use a snow foam or other pre-wash product as well as having the power to clean wheels etc. I only use my pw to rinse off my pre-wash product of choice (BH Autofoam) and to rinse off shampoo from the wheels. Once I've done my full wash I use an open hose to rinse/sheet off the shampoo before drying.

15-07-2017, 03:03 PM	#3
OvEr_KiLL OCD Sufferer (Obsessive Car Detailer) Join Date: Mar 2015 Posts: 4,061 Thanks: 1,933 Thanked 1,477 Times in 1,230 Posts	as said above, if you want to use a snow foam or similiar then you will want a pressure washer and lance as the one you get with them are rubbish, it will have more pressure than using foam in a foam gun that connects to the hose pipe, also you have more pressure for rinsing wheels and wheel arches etc. pressure washers dont really have a setting on them you just buy the one you want with the right bar pressure. ie. nilfisk c110 has 110bar and c130 has 130bar which is more powerful karcher k2 has 110bar

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