Do you own an electric pressure washer?

[ka41]

I was looking at the Karcher brand. It will not be used for heavy duty use, I have a 13hp Honda for that. I may go and look at Lowes and Home Depot as well.

 

[murphy1244]

I was looking at the Karcher brand. It will not be used for heavy duty use, I have a 13hp Honda for that. I may go and look at Lowes and Home Depot as well.

For washing your car or tractor you don't want it to strong anywho.Karcher is fine, don't leave it in your garage over the winter.

 

[namesray]

Better not use it to much. Pressure washing is not always the best on equipment. Hard on rubbers seals, etc. Wash but wash with care. I undercoated and it seems to wash away the undercoat.

i agree, don't want too much pressure. hard on seals/bearings, forces water where you don't want it to get. i use a karcher electric pressure washer, model k 2.28, 1550 psi on all my stuff. (vehicles, equipment, house siding, etc..) bought it about 3 years ago and it is still going strong. i like it because it doesn't put too much pressure out that i feel would do more harm then good. it has an adjustable wand for light or high pressure. it has paid for itself more then once if you compare to taking stuff to the car wash. bought it at wal-mart for around $79. i do the vehicle frames with it and it works fine. maybe not as quick as a high powered one, but ok for me and i am kinda fussy about dirt/salt on vehicles and equipment. i also use it on the equipment and even the engines. i think it is best for what i need it to do.

 

[grsthegreat]

I had an electric one for one season..and it didnt even last 1 season. took it back to HD, and purchased a gas unit with Honda engine

Now that was 4 years ago, and its still works great. only issue is a 1-2 minute period where theres no pressure when first using it....even if i used it a few days earlier. Not sure what causes that.

always stored thru winter with winterizing fluid in it and in heated store room.

 

[samhudson3]

Bought one at Lowe's many moons ago, it was made in Italy. Paid like $99 for it and it's always worked great. :thumbsup:

 

[JOHNTHOMAS]

I had an electric that I had used for 15 to 20 years but didn't use it real often. Did some decks with it but was slow with the tip I had. It finally died and I bought another one last year from Sears. Got the 3 year Sears warranty which was fairly cheap figuring I'd take it back every week if it didn't work. I tried it at my home but I'm on top of the hill where I have very low water pressure so it wouldn't work consistently and then I read the instructions that it had to have good pressure to operate. I loaned it out once and haven't used it since. I prefer electric since I'll always have water available and where I have water I have electric but can't get the high pressure that gas ones get.

 

[Jay4200]

Electrics are great - they aren't nearly as powerful as a gas washer, but the last thing I need is another gas powered appliance, not to mention something way too heavy for my wife (or me) to lift.

I've been buying Karcher electric PWs for years at Sam's Club. They were yellow and about $150, and are absolute junk. They generally only last one or two years, then usually the plastic pump cracks. If you get it somewhere with a good return policy, and are organized enough to save receipts, you can just keep replacing them under warranty. I went through 5 or 6, bought 3.

The last one I got was a different brand - made (or branded) "Powerwasher". It's red, and seems to be holding up better than the Karcher washers were. It's also only $100.

POWERWASHER® 1700 PSI Electric Pressure Washer - Sam's Club

JayC

 

[2manyrocks]

Got a new karcher AS IS for the price of what a hose would cost and it turned out that the only problem was the capacitor had loosened on the electric motor. Pushed it back in and have been using it for a couple of years without a problem.

I had a gas karcher that I burned up the seals in and finding replacement seals took some effort.

I also had a red Coleman electric pressure washer that used to sell at K-mart if I remember right. Got it at a yard sale for $15 and used it for about 5 or 6 years before it died last year. They used a one piece hose going into the washer handle that started leaking before that which has not good. So I substituted another hose/wand for the one that came with it.

None of these smaller electrics compare to a good gas unit, but if you have reasonable expectations of them, they are pretty convenient and handy to have around. Just be careful not to overpay for what you're getting.

 

[Grateful11]

We bought a Karcher K 3.79 M 1700psi from WalMart. Has plenty of power for cleaning. It's best to get a pump up sprayer and put some diluted Power Purple in it and let the greasy spots let it soak for a few minutes. Just don't use the Turbo nozzle on painted surfaces.

Ours looks almost exactly like this:
K 3.69 M | K舐cher North America Home & Garden

I think it did an excellent job of cleaning this 20 year old tractor and no it's not been repainted:

 

[George the Beagle]

I'm with Toyboy. I bought my Karcher seven or eight years ago because I didn't want yet another gas engine to mess around with. It's light and easy to use, and I too use it maybe a couple of times a year. It just depends how much you want from a pressure washer.