Backyard Tips and Tricks

What is the difference between a hot and cold water pressure washer and which one will do the job better for me? The simple fact is that hot water is just better at cleaning, period. For the same cleaning job, a hot soapy bucket of water and a sponge will do a much better job than a cold bucket of suds. The same applies to a pressure washer. Hot water will clean better and faster, all other things being equal. You might be wondering why anyone would choose a cold water unit at all? Well, consider the following application: a person cleaning the dirt off a wood fence. Now, for this application, your garden hose almost does the job, not without a little scrubbing, but almost. A power washer would make short work of this job. Using a cold water unit means you don’t have the added expense of getting a unit with a water heater on it. This also means no added cost to heat the water. Another benefit is you’ll be carrying around a much smaller water pressure water.

What kinds of jobs justify the added expense and weight of a hot water washer? Well, one application is the cleaning of greasy manufacturing equipment. As an example, consider a food processing plant that processes fatty foods. If you use a cold water unit for cleaning, the grease will harden into waxy clumps and will not easily be dislodged. This will make for a long and tedious cleaning process. By contrast, if you have a hot water pressure washer, then the grease and oils will melt away and the cleaning process will be quick and easy. Pretty much any job that involves grease or fat or oils will require a unit that can heat the water before spraying. You may also consider a unit that emits high pressure steam. High pressure steam can clean most anything, even in many cases without any help from any type of detergent or cleaning agent. There are many pressure washers out there that can output steam or hot water. Make sure you read the specifications of the unit and make the best choice for the job at hand.

If you want mobility and freedom from the electrical service, then gas powered pressure washers are for you. These units are great where you may not have access to an electrical outlet or if your electricity is not reliable. Some units have batteries, some don’t and the burners typically come in 12 volt or 120 volt units. Many manufacturers claim that the 120 volt burners are better and more reliable than their 12 volt counterparts. Some use generators that generate 120 volts to power the burners so that they can use a regular 120 VAC oil burner. If you are going to frequently start and stop your pressure washer, then look for a unit that does not have a battery for ignition. Frequent starts and stops can eventually wear the battery down so keep this in mind when selecting a unit.

There are two basic mounting styles that gas powered pressure washers come in. The first style is the portable style on wheels. This style has everything you need including a water tank. You can just roll the unit right up to the job and start working. It is very convenient for jobs where you can’t just drive a truck up to where you need the washer. The water tank, pump and other components are mounted on a powder coated frame and ride on little tires so you can easily roll the unit around. These are intended for outdoor use only.

Skid mounted pressure washers are mounted to either a truck or a skid. The water tank is mounted alongside the unit. Skid mounted gas powered pressure washers have larger tanks and can do larger jobs than their wheeled counterparts. The downside is that you must have room to bring the truck or skid to the place where you need the pressure washer. In industrial environments this is usually not an issue. These pressure washers are often mounted on a trailer so that they can be wheeled to the job and left there until they are needed elsewhere. They are powered by gasoline and the water is heated by diesel in their most common configuration.

A steam pressure washer uses steam from hot water to effectively clean surfaces. The hot steam causes an abrasive action when combined with the right detergents or solvents to loosen even the toughest, greasiest stains. There are many applications where a unit of this kind is mandatory. For example, a restaurant would be an ideal candidate. Cleaning a greasy kitchen would be a nightmare if a cold water unit was used. The cold water would cause the oils to clump into a waxy mess, impeding the cleaning process. A steam unit would effortlessly loosen and melt the oils away making short work of a messy cleaning job. Another facility that could make use of a steam unit would be a meat processing plant like a pork handling facility. There, tough greasy messes would routinely need to be dealt with. Steam units can deliver steam at over 300 degrees. This heat would make fatty deposit removal easier and faster.

A steam pressure washer can have boilers that use different types of fuels. Gas, diesel, electric and propane boilers are commonly used. It is important to note how powerful the boiler is. Units with a combination of higher pressures and flow rates will need to have substantial boilers to keep up with demanding cleaning jobs. The heater exchange coils are usually made of stainless steel and the better units are designed for continuous use and can be connected to a hose. Heating times from cold to hot in under 30 seconds are common in industrial units.

Steam has added benefits from regular water based units. You can clean virtually any surface with steam and the heat enables you to dissolve stains that other units may leave behind. A steam pressure washer can even clean fabrics. Unlike water units that would soak fabrics and carpets, a steam cleaner can remove stains without damage. A side benefit is that vapor cleans without having to resort to harsh chemical solvents or detergents which can leave a residue, especially in fabrics. As with all other units, the size of the boiler and necessary attachments will be determined by the application of the cleaner.

If you are entering the market for a pressure washer because you heard they can make certain cleaning tasks easier, you may be bewildered by the wide array of choices available. Is a hot water pressure washer the right type for your intended application? Well, there are many benefits to using hot water, especially for cleaning applications. If you have a cleaning application that requires the removal of tough grease stains, hot water is the way to go. When combined with the proper cleanser or de-greasing agent, cleaning with hot water is a breeze. Industry experts all agree that hot water pressure washers clean better and faster when compared to their cold water counterparts. Cleaning faster means you waste less water and in certain applications this becomes a critical issue.

The water inside the pressure washer is heated by a boiler. The boilers come in different capacities and are made of different metals. In some parts of the country, propane is available everywhere and is the preferred fuel. If propane is not available easily in your area, there are other boiler types to suit your needs. You can buy a unit with a gas or diesel or electric heater. The choice will depend on fuel availability and also the price of the fuel. A good quality unit will have a stainless steel boiler and heater coils. If you are going to do large cleaning jobs you want a unit capable of continuous cleaning. If the unit is capable of continuous cleaning, that means it has the capacity to heat the water on the fly so you don’t have to wait for the water to heat up and stop cleaning while the boiler does its job.

Another metric that a hot water pressure washer is measured by is the flow rate and pressure. The pressure, commonly measured in PSI or pressure per square inch can be over 2000 PSI which can damage certain surfaces and peel paint off painted surfaces. It can also cause gouges in wood flooring and siding, so extreme caution is in order. Don’t get an extremely high pressure unit for delicate flooring. The flow rate determines how much water can be delivered at the rated pressure. Industrial pressure washer units can have flow rates of several gallons per minute.

A pressure washer hose is just a rubber tube, right? No, these hoses come in a huge array of materials and sizes. There are many things to look out for depending on your application. The cheap hoses that come with an inexpensive power washer are lacking many features that are important to people who use the washers each and every day for hours at a time. The cheap hose usually found on consumer grade power washers is black. You will often notice that it leaves black scuff marks on the floor if you drag it. The hose also has cheap connectors which often snap off if pulled too hard. Does this sound familiar? If you use a power washer more than once a year to clean the deck and patio furniture, then listen up. Better hoses have sturdy connectors on each end with bend restrictors. A bend restrictor is a tough covering on the connectors which prevent the hose from bending too much at each end, saving the connectors from the stress of the hose being yanked around.

There are oil resistant synthetic pressure washer hoses designed for commercial applications. The often come in blue or black so that they don’t leave any marks on floors even if dragged around. These hoses are perfect for applications in garages, auto mechanic shops, dairies, meat processing plants, poultry processing plants, and other locations with oily, greasy cleanup jobs. Some hoses have a funny braided look on the exterior. This can be due to internal wires to strengthen the hose. This is also done so that the hose does not sit flush with the floor so water cannot pool around it.

If you are going to use the pressure washer hose for a hot water power washer, please make note of the temperature rating. Many pressure washers also output steam. If your hose is rated for the normal 180 degree water, the hot steam can cause the hose to fail. This could cause a serious condition and you could be burned so please make sure you only use hoses made especially for steam applications. Hoses designed for hot water applications will be safe to around 250 degrees. Steam application hoses will need to be safe to around 325 degrees or more. Always check with the manufacturer when using steam units.