Gas Pressure washer

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ford46guy

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I needed a pressure washer and had almost enough AMEX rewards to cover one. I ended up buying one with a Honda GCV160 engine from Home Depot. 3000PSI/2.4GPM, was $300 with tax, $50 after credits.

It is quite disturbing to read all the bad reviews that run across all brands. Seems you really have to get lucky. I will maintain it but it seems they are all China pot metal now.
 
Just make sure you do the following and you will be fine:

1. Purge the water hose of air before connecting to pump
2. Let water run through pump until no hiccups (you can combine this and step 1 together usually) (make sute there is no tip on the wand.. just a plain stream)
3. Only run engine when water is connected to pump
4. Don't let engine idle too long while system is pressurized
5. Allow water to drain out of unit when done using, maybe put some pump treatment fluid in there when in storage.

I also like to hang up my PW hose to drain it of water after each use. You can hang it from the garage door track mounts and it'll drain quickly.

Oh and change that oil after the first 5 hours of use!

I don't see any reason why a PW can't last as long as a lawn mower, but it does require more diligence and an understanding of what you shouldn't do to the pump.
 
Originally Posted By: ford46guy
I'm not worried about the Honda engine but the pump..I see they are under $100 though.


For just the pump? That's not too bad, I suppose.

I bought mine (2800 psi) with a Vertical Shaft Honda GCV-160 engine on clearance from walmart for just $129
 
I bought a hotsy 13hp 4300 psi bitsy pump. I change the pump oil within one hour of first use and change the engine oil about 3 to 5 hours in service. The engine oil was extremely dirty I was surprised. I fully expect 10 years of life out of this thing! Paid about $1300, this thing is a beast!!!!!
 
Originally Posted By: Reddy45
Just make sure you do the following and you will be fine:

1. Purge the water hose of air before connecting to pump
2. Let water run through pump until no hiccups (you can combine this and step 1 together usually) (make sute there is no tip on the wand.. just a plain stream)
3. Only run engine when water is connected to pump
4. Don't let engine idle too long while system is pressurized
5. Allow water to drain out of unit when done using, maybe put some pump treatment fluid in there when in storage.

I also like to hang up my PW hose to drain it of water after each use. You can hang it from the garage door track mounts and it'll drain quickly.

Oh and change that oil after the first 5 hours of use!

I don't see any reason why a PW can't last as long as a lawn mower, but it does require more diligence and an understanding of what you shouldn't do to the pump.



What about blowing the water out ? Maybe a shopvac or even compressed air?
 
Originally Posted By: Reddy45
Just make sure you do the following and you will be fine:

1. Purge the water hose of air before connecting to pump
2. Let water run through pump until no hiccups (you can combine this and step 1 together usually) (make sute there is no tip on the wand.. just a plain stream)
3. Only run engine when water is connected to pump
4. Don't let engine idle too long while system is pressurized
5. Allow water to drain out of unit when done using, maybe put some pump treatment fluid in there when in storage.

I also like to hang up my PW hose to drain it of water after each use. You can hang it from the garage door track mounts and it'll drain quickly.

Oh and change that oil after the first 5 hours of use!

I don't see any reason why a PW can't last as long as a lawn mower, but it does require more diligence and an understanding of what you shouldn't do to the pump.



^This

I also squirt Briggs and Stratton "pump saver" into the pump after each use. Make sure the pressure washer is stored inside during winter if you live in an area that gets down to freezing temps. Also, change the oil in the pump. They usually take 30 weight oil or 75w90 gear oil depending on the pump.

My parents bought an Excell pressure washer in 1998 with a Briggs Quantum 6hp engine and cheap pump. It got used every year to wash the siding on the house and for the cars. My dad did the maintenance outlined above on it, and I just replaced the original pump last year. The engine ran great so I just put a new pump on for 90 bucks off Amazon.
 
Originally Posted By: MrTruckDriver
mine is a craftsman and has the same engine.
its on its forth year and working great.
all i do is oil changes and use pump saver.


My Craftsman is 5 Years old and I change the oil(M1 10-30) about every 20 hrs. and I use pump lubricant after every use. So far so good.
 
I hate service contracts but the thought crossed my mind for this one. It was 50$. Problem is it seems quite worthless.

There is a 3 year mfr warranty, (2 on Honda Engine) and the coverage kicks in afterwards. I read that warranty coverage is often denied because there are so many loopholes.

They do seem to cover 30% of maintenance items...wow so 30% on a qt of oil and a spark plug.

http://www.protection-plans.com/content/thd/en/OutdoorPowerEquipment/Index#/product-overview

Being gas powered the credit card won't extend any warranties. The worst that could fail is the pump, and it is close to $50. I don't need labor anyway.
 
Originally Posted By: ford46guy
I hate service contracts but the thought crossed my mind for this one. It was 50$. Problem is it seems quite worthless.

There is a 3 year mfr warranty, (2 on Honda Engine) and the coverage kicks in afterwards. I read that warranty coverage is often denied because there are so many loopholes.

They do seem to cover 30% of maintenance items...wow so 30% on a qt of oil and a spark plug.

http://www.protection-plans.com/content/thd/en/OutdoorPowerEquipment/Index#/product-overview

Being gas powered the credit card won't extend any warranties. The worst that could fail is the pump, and it is close to $50. I don't need labor anyway.


Yeah I don't recommend those.

I had a few customers with failed pumps who tried using their "warranty" and they seem to always deny coverage and blame the customer for lack of maintenance. They said unless every pump + engine oil change was documented by a repair shop they wouldn't do anything. Typical. Just save the 50 bucks for if/when the pump dies.
 
Originally Posted By: dave123
Honda GX and a CAT pump that's what you shop for.

Yeah, I agree, but they are almost double the price, maybe if I was a pro.
Places want almost $300 to wash your house here.

I don't think the one I bought would hold up to daily use, maybe if I was able to get a premium pump.
 
I picked up a Ryobi PW with a Honda motor couple years ago from Home Depot. Works fine, but I HATE the idle-down "feature". Until it ran for a solid 5 minutes or so, it would simply bog down and not pressurize when squeezing the trigger. I've changed the springs around to keep it at a higher idle and (mostly) defeat the so-called feature. Works great now.
 
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