Anyone debate buying vs renting a pressure washer?

[sixdogs]

Thank you. I'm debating buying it.

 

[lostcreekranch]

I bought the 4000 psi PW, with Honda engine and 50' hose reel, at Sam's back in 2012. I removed the wheels and installed on one of the HF 48" x 40" trailers. I can hook it up to my Polaris Ranger and use it all over the ranch.



Also bought the Sam's 2700 psi PW, for small jobs.

 

[5030]

I bought the 4000 psi PW, with Honda engine and 50' hose reel, at Sam's back in 2012. I removed the wheels and installed on one of the HF 48" x 40" trailers. I can hook it up to my Polaris Ranger and use it all over the ranch.

View attachment 466221

Also bought the Sam's 2700 psi PW, for small jobs.

View attachment 466222

Anywhere there is a pressurized water source, is what you should say..... pressure washer pumps, no matter what brand, have limited capability in drawing water, they all created some vacuum for feed, but not enough for volume operation. They all must have a pressurized head to develop the needed input volume.

In my case I have an auxillary 110 volt pump attached to the pressure washer chassis so I can draw from standing water sources... and an inline strainer on the intake side.... ceramic pistons and check valves don't like dirt in the intake water.....

 

[sixdogs]

I bought the 4000 psi PW, with Honda engine and 50' hose reel, at Sam's back in 2012. I removed the wheels and installed on one of the HF 48" x 40" trailers. I can hook it up to my Polaris Ranger and use it all over the ranch.

View attachment 466221

Also bought the Sam's 2700 psi PW, for small jobs.

View attachment 466222

So you like both of those items? Do they get used much? What's your impression of each one?

 

[lostcreekranch]

Anywhere there is a pressurized water source, is what you should say..... pressure washer pumps, no matter what brand, have limited capability in drawing water, they all created some vacuum for feed, but not enough for volume operation. They all must have a pressurized head to develop the needed input volume.

In my case I have an auxillary 110 volt pump attached to the pressure washer chassis so I can draw from standing water sources... and an inline strainer on the intake side.... ceramic pistons and check valves don't like dirt in the intake water.....

We have water lines all over the ranch.

 

[lostcreekranch]

So you like both of those items? Do they get used much? What's your impression of each one?

I probably use the small one more often but, both work well for my purposes. We have a lot of flat concrete patios around house, horse barn, workshop, pool area, etc. so, the blue floor washer (sitting on trailer) get used, with the 4000 psi PW quite a bit.

I do wish the big PW had electric start though.

These two replace a 1600 psi PW I bought at Sam's back in early 1990's.

 

[xring]

We bought a pressure washer and use it for all kinds of things not a commercial unit but had the power to blow the decals off my tractor before I learned better. We have a sort of co-op or club and purchase equipment that each of us use less than frequently as a group. Things like pressure washers, Paint sprayers, nail guns, Tile saws Chain saws. Works out well for us. If it runs on gasoline make sure you use a fuel additive and stabilizer.

Ray

 

[Code54]

Anywhere there is a pressurized water source, is what you should say..... pressure washer pumps, no matter what brand, have limited capability in drawing water, they all created some vacuum for feed, but not enough for volume operation. They all must have a pressurized head to develop the needed input volume.

In my case I have an auxillary 110 volt pump attached to the pressure washer chassis so I can draw from standing water sources... and an inline strainer on the intake side.... ceramic pistons and check valves don't like dirt in the intake water.....

Not really what the OP was talking about or looking for but figured it would be good to chime in.

If you have interest in not using a pump and using a non pressurized system there are units available. If you get a triplex pump and run it off a BELT driven unit then you don't need a source that provides pressure. I personally use a tank off a belt unit for remote washing where I don't have a "regular garden hose" available. I also always run a tank between my hose connection and the pressure washer with a float valve on the tank all the time. This way if someone flushes a commode or kicks on a washing machine my pump won't be starving for water flow (higher the GPM required the more a tank is needed) and the tank is always being refilled with a hose.
Anyway, just wanted to mention that you really don't need a pressurized flow with some of the commercial units that are available.

 

[5030]

Thats good information, I didn't know that.

 

[MossRoad]

Here are the stats. I can rent a commercial 3500 PSI pressure washer for 8 hours/one day for $65. To buy a commercial model 4000 PSI washer costs $800 plus tax at Sam's Club. I'm not real familiar with pressure washers and it's been 20 years since I owned one so has anyone debated the merits of renting vs buying?

I do know they always seem to quit when you need them and they don't seem to last very long before something breaks. You have to drag them in a warm spot for the winter so they don't freeze and they take up space in the summer. Finally, when you sell them you don't get what you think you should. That's the way it was when I last owned one 20 years ago.

My use is maybe four hours a year in the fall for equipment cleanup. Maybe I would pressure wash the concrete patio too but I've been meaning to do that for 15 years and haven't so far. Seems I ought to rent but I've never given it much thought. Any thoughts on buying vs renting?

Well, look at it this way.... if you only use it one day per year, you could rent one every year for 12.3 years for $800.00 and never have to maintain it ever, never.

With that said, its handy to have one around. Our family has had an electric one that we've shared for years. It finally died last year. It was O.K., but took a while on tough stains on concrete. A couple weeks ago we picked up a gas powered unit from Lowe's. It was on sale for $299. I've run 4 tanks of gas through it so far. Works well on concrete on just the general purpose nozzle. Also worked well on the vinyl siding on the house. Gotta be careful not to blast water up under the siding too much. Cleaned off all the bird poop and bugs and did the windows, too. Haven't tried the two higher pressure nozzles yet. Kinda scared to. :laughing: It also has a soap nozzle and tank. That worked very well for washing the car. Soaped it down and soaked the bugs a lot faster than washing by hand. Rinsed with the lowest pressure nozzle from a distance. Didn't remove the wax. Water still beads. Bugs were gone. Cleaned out the wheel wells quick. I'll be doing that every couple weeks now. Next project is the deck again, before we take the winter cover off the pool. Then a shed. Then the large garage. Then.... :thumbsup:

Shop Troy-Bilt 3-PSI 2.7 Gallons-GPM Cold Water Gas Pressure Washer Carb Compliant at Lowes.com