Buy from one of the big box retailers or a dedicated dealer? Buy spares or as needed (wondering about buying later with the planned obselescence making parts possibly harder to come by in the yrs. ahead) Any caveats- looking for a "do all", something that will do the house owners typical needs- perhaps the max being cleaning blasting paint/stripping. Any tips regarding brands or pump types? TIA Pat
I would suggest doing some research first. There are many different models and some work better at some uses than others.
For example. I have a small electric model. It works fine for me. I don't need to worry about gas, what to do during the winter (I just put mine in the basement.) and it does all I ask of it. However it would not be my choice for heavy duty work.
Watch out for the specs. Consumer models, especially those sold at big box stores tend to list high pressure specs, but they don't list the gallons per minute. I like to clean my drive and walks and get rid of the dirt and moss. My electric is powerful enough, but it does not supply much volume. A heavy duty model with a higher gallons per minute would greatly decrease the time it takes. I have chosen the convenience of electric over the speed of other models. You may chose otherwise.
As for paint stripping, I suggest you do some research on that one. Depending on the job, I would not recommend a power washer. On wood power washers are questionable as they tend to damage the wood if powerful enough to remove paint, even loose paint and they wet the wood enough that it can be damaged or take days to dry. If you have a really large job, you may want to consider renting a commercial model and keep a small electric for day to day stuff.
if your going to use it a couple times a year,,an elcheapo should be fine... we use washers with red honda motor and cat pump for day in day out use..lucas
I just bought a heavy duty electric (2700 PSI @ 2.5 GPM) and it outperforms any of my neighbor's gas machines. This does use 240v/30a so it isn't really that portable. I put a "dryer" plug on it so it was more useable. The garden variety Karchers are OK for occasional homeowner use but you better plan on blowing a big part of a day cleaning your driveway.
That sounds interesting. Any more information? Brand model cost .. ?
Northern Tools about $800
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