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914World.com _ 914World Garage _ WOT - I finally bought a power washer

Posted by: MW 914 Jul 12 2005, 01:21 PM

Why did I wait so long to get one???

All of the decking around the pool...looks like the day it was put in. Patio furniture...looks brand new. Kid's swing set and play house...looks like I assembled them yesterday. The front walk way...not a drop of bird sh!t to be found.

Bring your cars over and I'll give em a good rinse.(not responsible for lost paint!)

Man, after all that work I think it is time.

Posted by: URY914 Jul 12 2005, 01:23 PM

Gas or electric?

Posted by: Mueller Jul 12 2005, 01:30 PM

QUOTE (URY914 @ Jul 12 2005, 12:23 PM)
Gas or electric?

we got an electric unit, wish we had sprung for a gas unit now

Posted by: MW 914 Jul 12 2005, 01:30 PM

It is electric. The last thing I need is another engine to maintain. By power washer standards it is really, really small. Only 1400CFM. It is small enough to carry around and for my needs, it is more than enough pressure. I really just got it to keep the pool area clean. It was $100 at Lowes.

I had borrowed a neighbors big gas-washer-on-a-cart rig. Of course it worked great but it was way too big(and friggin loud) to be practical for my needs. The one I bought is super quiet.

Posted by: URY914 Jul 12 2005, 01:43 PM

QUOTE (MW 914 @ Jul 12 2005, 11:30 AM)
It is electric. The last thing I need is another engine to maintain. By power washer standards it is really, really small. Only 1400CFM. It is small enough to carry around and for my needs, it is more than enough pressure. I really just got it to keep the pool area clean. It was $100 at Lowes.

I had borrowed a neighbors big gas-washer-on-a-cart rig. Of course it worked great but it was way too big(and friggin loud) to be practical for my needs. The one I bought is super quiet.

I agree. Gas/oil/won't start/smells/loud, hey I got one of those!

Paul

Posted by: TROJANMAN Jul 12 2005, 02:07 PM

alright, i'm buying one on my way home. it's been on my list for awhile, and was kind of holdin out until i could get a gas unit, but heck, if i am going to run a 100' hose on it, what difference does a 100' extension cord make?

Posted by: PatW Jul 12 2005, 02:11 PM

QUOTE (MW 914 @ Jul 12 2005, 11:21 AM)

All of the decking around the pool...looks like the day it was put in. Patio furniture...looks brand new. Kid's swing set and play house...looks like I assembled them yesterday. The front walk way...not a drop of bird sh!t to be found.

Once I hooked one to the water heater to detail the engine on my chevy.. It worked great.

Posted by: Mueller Jul 12 2005, 02:14 PM

QUOTE (TROJANMAN @ Jul 12 2005, 01:07 PM)
alright, i'm buying one on my way home. it's been on my list for awhile, and was kind of holdin out until i could get a gas unit, but heck, if i am going to run a 100' hose on it, what difference does a 100' extension cord make?

mine does not like extension cords....you'll have to find the heaviest wire cord for it to work properly......

Posted by: MW 914 Jul 12 2005, 02:17 PM

QUOTE (TROJANMAN @ Jul 12 2005, 12:07 PM)
alright, i'm buying one on my way home. it's been on my list for awhile, and was kind of holdin out until i could get a gas unit, but heck, if i am going to run a 100' hose on it, what difference does a 100' extension cord make?

Before you do, keep this in mind...my washer won't work with a longer extention cord added to it. It comes with a 30' cord and a 20'hose(50' total reach). I tried a heavy duty extension cord but it still lost too much juice along the way. I am lucky that I have outlets everywhere. You may not have that luxury. The bigger electric ones might have a longer cord or allow you to use a longer cord, however.

Providing you have outlets, the unit I got works awesome.

Posted by: RustyWa Jul 12 2005, 06:01 PM

QUOTE (MW 914 @ Jul 12 2005, 01:17 PM)

QUOTE (TROJANMAN @ Jul 12 2005, 12:07 PM)
alright, i'm buying one on my way home. it's been on my list for awhile, and was kind of holdin out until i could get a gas unit, but heck, if i am going to run a 100' hose on it, what difference does a 100' extension cord make?

Before you do, keep this in mind...my washer won't work with a longer extention cord added to it. It comes with a 30' cord and a 20'hose(50' total reach). I tried a heavy duty extension cord but it still lost too much juice along the way. I am lucky that I have outlets everywhere. You may not have that luxury. The bigger electric ones might have a longer cord or allow you to use a longer cord, however.

Providing you have outlets, the unit I got works awesome.

Help me with this one... What's the difference if you have a 50' 12ga extension cord or you run an extra 50' of 12ga solid core wire and terminate at an outlet?

I'm curious on this one as I purchased a 25' 12ga cord a while back.

Posted by: DonTraver Jul 12 2005, 06:10 PM

Most extention cords ready made that you buy are 14 or 16 gage wire. For heavy loads, you want 10 to 12 gage. Go to Lowe's or Home Depot. Buy 10 gage multi strand 3 conductor wire, put the male/female plugs on it, and you're done.

Don't go cheap on this, you'll burn up the motor, plus you'll have a cord that will power just about anything.

The reason they tell you not to use extention cords is because most come with wire too small to handle the load, the wire will get hot, could start a fire, too much of a voltage drop (low voltage will fry a motor real quick.

Good luck,Don

Posted by: morphenspectra Jul 12 2005, 06:14 PM

James bought a gas one at sears for around $300, we've had it for a few years, and it has been really nice to have.

HIEDI

Posted by: Red-Beard Jul 12 2005, 06:38 PM

I had an electric one and the GFI circuit died. I think for use around a car, the electric one (less powerful) is better. I have a 3500 psi 6.5 HP Sears unit and it will strip paint if you're not careful.

It does an amazing job on the sidewalk. And I like the fact that I am limited only by hose length. 50ft Supply and 50 ft pressure hose.

Posted by: spare time toys Jul 12 2005, 07:57 PM

QUOTE (PatW @ Jul 12 2005, 03:11 PM)
Once I hooked one to the water heater to detail the engine on my chevy.. It worked great.

I had one it worked great untill I ran it off the water heater. screwed it up . Read the directions and there it was "Do NOT use with hot water" Read the book before doing this. The big ones at work presurize the water then run it through a coil in the burner.