Silverbrain

Im working for an appliance store currently, and was given the task of finding a pressure washer to clean air conditioners with. After checking Home Depot, Lowes it came to my attention I have no idea what im looking for! Looking for "Tilted Advice" I dont need the most powerfull thing on earth that can knock over a car from 100 feet...but something that will clean good....350bucks'ish

gas / electric
psi to shoot for?
does gallons per min 1.9 vs 2.1 really matter?

Any advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks !

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fhqwhgads

Electric pressure washers (in my experience) don't work worth crap.

I don't have any psi reccomendations. Shop around and get the highest psi you can get for your budget. Depending on where you are, check your local "super store" too...Price Club, Sam's Club, Costco, etc. Sometimes they have pretty good deals on washers...especially this time of year.

Good luck...

CBL65

I don't have any great advice, but I sure want one when I can afford it.

spectre

I agree, stick with a gas powered one. Don't have a psi recommendation, but definitely go with a gas powered one.

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Shadowman

Electric pressure washers are to an extent, good value for money...BUT your restricted by cords, and they are a lot less safe than gas ones. (Theres been 2 cases here in WA recently of people getting electrocuted from pressure washers). So I'd recommend gas, the pressure depends on what your cleaning. One model's pressure might take the paint off your car, another might barely take the crap off last nights dishes. I'd aim for at least 100 psi. The gallons per minute doesn't really matter, it just means it uses less water, and the lower water consumption ones are usually far superior (and more costly).

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zipper

Well, I don't have any advice on where to get one, but I do have to say something about using them safely. While living in Guam, we had to pressure wash all the concrete around our house. The humid climate and warm temps cause lots of mold growth. Well, because its quite a messy job, I decided to pressure wash in flip-flops and shorts. I ended up washing the majority of skin off one of my toes...hurt bad and took a LONG time to heal. So, if you like your skin...wear shoes! ;
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platypus

Gas, definitely. Don't waste your time with electric.
At least 1500 psi. You want to clean, not soak.
Honda engine. They always start.
Sturdy wheeled undercarriage. This is not something you want to carry around.

Mine is 3000 psi, and I use it for cleaning my deck, kid's play fort, lawn furniture, side of house, etc. I got it at Lowes for a few hundred bucks on sale.

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Stilts

Electric pressure washers will never hold up in a commercial environment. I doubt if you can find a pressure washer that only does 100 psi, that's absurdly low, you can do better than that with an air compressor or by squeezing your thumb over the end of an ordinary garden hose. The higher psi and the higher gpm usually indicates a better machine, not the opposite.


Costco and Sam's usually do have some of the best deals on pressure washers. Honda engines are famous for being reliable, the only problem is that you pay a premium for that reliability, which might be worth it for commercial uses, but if you're on a budget they might be too expensive.

I think that you'd probably want to be in the 2500 to 3500 psi range, that's going to be more important than the gpm, but maybe the 2 to 3 gpm range. Those sizes might be a little over your budget is the only problem, but I think that you'll see end up wanting one about that size in the long run, rather than a smaller one. They're still fairly small units, but they should be good for most things that you need them for. You will find other uses for one once you have it, so you really don't want it to be too small to handle a lot of the other things that you want done. Also look for one with a variety of tips included, which most will have. You don't want to be using a tip that bends the fins on the ac units.

Shadowman

Sorry, I meant 1000 psi :-)

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sky_driver

I would recommend a gas powered pressure washer. It is easily movable and you are not restricted by cords. And i never even thought about the possibility of being electrocuted, but now, I would never think of using an electric one just for that reason. Also, I think one with 2000 to 2500 psi would be more then enough. I just rented on with 2500 psi and it did the job perfect.