Lewisville, NC · Member since 2018 · 40 posts · 3 votes
Anyone have experience with power washers for use in sprucing up rehab properties? I am buying my first and looking to do some of my own general cleanup to make it look nice. I'm not sure which type to buy and probably will use this a couple times a year at most. Thanks for the input!
@Jonathan Jaffe Gas for sure. I’d rent it from Sherwin Williams store. Their’s is a good professional size without being to big for one person to move. Since you will only use it a couple times a year it doesn’t make since to buy and you won’t have to worry about maintaining it.
Having one with the ability to use hot water will also make a difference but it's more of an investment. I guess it depends on how often you'll use it.
I bought an electric one a few years ago with the thought it would make car washing easier and I could clean spray paint graffiti off my block wall. Turns out I would need another sand blasting attachment to clean graffiti, and the car is just as easy to clean with bucket and hose. The city cleans graffiti for free. It is for sale on Craiglist now.
So, my point is, think about what you will do with it and if you really need it.
@Jonathan Jaffe I have both, Honda does make a great small engine. I always thought electric anything was trash but was kind of surprised about the electric pressure washer I acquired. Great for cars/ siding etc. It definitely move less water then gas. If your looking for a deep clean/ paint prep use gas is the only way.
@Jonathan Jaffe I bought an electric one (more powerful model of the electrics) just to do the backyard concrete pads on my small Philly row homes which are 14x10 usually. Easy portability and hookup for my homes. If you are using it do to larger projects like sidewalks, driveways etc then YES a gas power washer is the better investment
Thank you all for your wisdom! I certainly appreciate your perspective. It sounds like either renting or buying a gas version is the way to go. Many thanks to the BP crew!
Hi @Jonathan Jaffe there is just one more thing I'd like to add about buying vs renting. I bought one serveral years ago, it worked great on my first job. Then I didn't have a use for it until the next year. When I tried to start it up, it wouldn't. The shop informed me the gas that is sold these days has ethanol in it and that eats away at the cheap carburetors that is used in small engines, when that gas sits in the line for long storage periods. So I had to replace the carburetor. The lesson learned from this is; to find a gas station that sells non-ethanol gas. I have found some Wal-Marts will have a special pump for this, and to run all the gas out of the line after each use (some will have a fuel cut off switch if not then run all the gas out of the tank before storage). The other thing that you need to do with small engines is to start them up once a month, it just helps to keep all the internal parts working smoothly so every start up is a 1 or 2 pull start. Also, remember to change the oil on regular intervals (owner's manual). The act of changing the oil is not really time consuming but going to the store to buy 1 quart of oil then bringing the 1 quart of used oil to the recycling center can be. So after I did all my maintenance like I was supposed to guess what happened at the end of that year.... the water pump went out and it was cheaper to replace the power washer than to buy a new part. So when you consider all the maintenance aggravation and also you can deduct renting from you taxes per job, I think renting is the way to go. Unless you have a power washing business where you would use them everyday and have a contract with a small engine repair shop.