How to Choose an Electric Pressure Washer
Because of variations in size and power, pressure washers have a wide range of home and commercial applications. Small electric pressure washers that clean with cold water are ideal for the average home user. Use it to wash the car or clean vinyl siding; some are even handy enough to clean a dirty shower stall. Cold-water units lack the grease-cutting power of hot-water units, but are meant to be used with a degreaser or other cleaning solution. When choosing an electric pressure washer, consider quality before power. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
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Decide where the pressure washer will be used. Will the unit be used around the home or for commercial/industrial purposes? For use that will amount to a few hours a week, choose a less expensive model. A commercial/industrial-grade washer will run at peak performance for 100 to 2,000 hours per year. Inexpensive small electric units have aluminum pump heads and plastic valves, while commercial/industrial units have brass pump heads and stainless-steel valves.
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Select a hot- or cold-water unit. Cold water is ideal for the homeowner where grease and oil are not regular problems. Choose hot-water applications for jobs where grease and oil are regularly tackled. Hot-water units use diesel or kerosene to heat the water and electricity to run the burner system. Consequently, they are much heavier than cold-water units.
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Select a unit with the right PSI (pounds per square inch). Choose 1,500 to 2,000 PSI for around-the-house cleaning and 3,000 PSI for commercial use and residential concrete and boat hull cleaning. If you need to move a lot of dirt---when cleaning animal enclosures, for example--consider a high-flow unit.
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Choose a brand name, high-quality axial cam pump. A high-quality pump will create the right amount of pressure and will cause fewer problems with the overall operation of the machine.
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