Power washer uses and misuses?

[Davej]

Sorry to interrupt the (political) flow, but being the new owner of a fairly cheap pressure washer (Simpson 3300 2.4gpm, $300 on sale) I am curious about possible interesting uses that creative people may have come up with -- and also any warnings about what bad ideas are out there? I have one potentially bad idea -- I was thinking it might be good for cleaning A/C condenser units if careful to maintain distance? I have noticed that the stream really blows a tremendous amount of air, and if you remain more than a foot away (or more) from the target it seems to be just air and harmless mist. Also I was wondering how it might work as a trenching/honeysuckle removal tool (although mud goggles/swimsuit would be needed)? Also have tried it on vinyl siding (trying to aim somewhat downward) and have not created any holes yet.

[Ed Pawlowski]

Skip the AC coils. You can bend the fins and make a mess. Use a cleaner and hose.

Be very careful on wood, even painted wood. With the right nozzle you can make a groove.

The garden trenching could be good.

[Wade Garrett]

Stay away from your car!

Can remove trim pieces, molding, decals, insignia, wheel weights and especially don't go under the hood where it will tear the snot out of wires, junction boxes, connectors, fuse boxes, solid state devices and other sensitive stuff.

[gfretwell]

If you use the wide nozzle and don't get too close it does a good job on a pool filter cartridge. Get the fan vertical and flip through the pleats top to bottom continuing around until the water stops being muddy.

[invalid unparseable]

Blowing air sounds strange and I think you have to purge it of air before using.

I just had a cheapo electric now defunct. I did have to be careful on aluminum siding stripping it.

[gfretwell]

The air is just dragged along with the water.

[Jim Joyce]

If you do mess up the AC fins, they make combs that are supposed to straighten them out.

As a teenager, I remember removing a football-sized patch of paint from the hood of my friend's car, all in the blink of an eye. We were washing the car to prep it for rattle can stripes, so he didn't mind.

[Buck Fiden]

Microscopic silt in the water can kill a pressure washer pump. If you have sediment in your water, add a 4.5"x10" 1-micron inline filter to your garden hose.

[Tekkie©]

On Mon, 31 May 2021 17:45:07 -0400, Ed Pawlowski posted for all of us to digest...

thinking it might be good for cleaning A/C condenser units if careful to maintain distance? I have noticed that the stream really blows a tremendous amount of air, and if you remain more than a foot away (or more) from the target it seems to be just air and harmless mist. Also I was wondering how it might work as a trenching/honeysuckle removal tool (although mud goggles/swimsuit would be needed)? Also have tried it on vinyl siding (trying to aim somewhat downward) and have not created any holes yet.

+1 Also watch U Tube vids of those that have gone there before you.

[gfretwell]

A big pressure cleaner is handy if you are digging out a stump. You can wash all the dirt off of a big root and cut it with a chain saw doing minimal damage to the chain.

[trader_4]

If you use some common sense you should be able to clean off the outside of a central AC unit. The fins aren't exposed on the outside, the grill has slats that are directional. Directing the spray so it mostly stays outside and not going in, keeping far enough away to control the pressure and it should be OK. But if the coils are dirty, I woudn't turn the power washer loose on those.

[gfretwell]

A regular hose is plenty in addition to some coil cleaner and you really need to take the top off and shoot the water through the coils from the inside. (I know a lot of HVAC techs) Spray the coil cleaner on the coils, let it sit for a minute or two, then hose it off. Repeat if necessary. If you know how to check the refrigerant level, you can do the "$100 clean and check". If that is $29-$39 expect a hard sell for something else and if it is free, expect them to break something. ;-)

[Tekkie©]

On Wed, 02 Jun 2021 14:54:28 -0400, [e-mail] posted for all of us to digest...

+1 Especially the old ICP units that had the old playing card size grill on them.

Probably will.

If ya got the gauges use em, if you know how to interpret the readings.

Like a cap? Contactor? Refrigerant top off?

[gfretwell]

Worst case is he ice picks your system and tells you that you have a leak. On an old R-22 system that is the kiss of death. There was a company here, infamous for it. I think the owner finally got arrested but we never really heard much about what happened. He was caught by the TV station in a camera sting tho. He may have got away with a slap on the wrist. These weasels have a habit of just forming a new company in someone else's name after too many complaints.

Any "deal" on service is a sales call at best and could be a scam. Generally speaking it costs about $100 for them to get out of their truck for a service call. I am suspicious if the offer is much less than that. I am certainly not going in the house for anything while they are there. Fortunately I do know some guys so I don't have to deal with strangers. They still get $100 from me, usually cash. The rest is between them, their wife and the IRS. ;-)

[Ed Pawlowski]

I see TV ads for $39 service. I'd not touch any of them.

The outfit that installed the units in our subdivision does two inspections and cleanings for $144 up front. They seem to be legit and are not trying to sell anything. They can schedule a bunch in the area for the day making is good for everyone.

[Ralph Mowery]

I got ripped off by a company that adertises on the local TV station. Was told it was $ 95 for them to come out.. OK no problem. The man was there for about 1 minuite and said it was a bad capacitor. Cost about $ 300 to get it replaced that took about 5 minuits. System worked fine for several years and I had ordered the capacitor from Ebay for about $

15 to replace it the next time it went out.

[invalid unparseable]

Sounds like the guys in the Orange Trucks. Many of these outfits are urged to up sell.

[gfretwell]

I had a bad capacitor in my system and when I checked it, both sides were bad. I rooted around in my box of capacitors and came up with 4 that added up to something close in each side. It got me going until Amazon could get the right one to me.

[Tekkie©]

On Wed, 02 Jun 2021 19:13:14 -0400, [e-mail] posted for all of us to digest...

I forgot about the ice pick.

Yup, it's all true. Ya gotta know who yur dealing with...