LaserBlueSilverado

One bit of information for you.
 
I am a small engine mechanic for a living, and a certified pressure pump technician (sounds fancy..NOT!)
 
Anyways, do not run water that is too hot through that unit of yours. Pressure washer pumps that are to be used with hot water are designed specifically for that. There are completely different sets of o-rings, packings and seals for cold water units, and hot water units. Your unit is designed for cold water, not hot. Warm water or barely hot water will probably be ok, but don't get too carried away with it.
 
On a side note, very nice truck. I am not a Ford man, but I have always liked the Raptor truck look and the interiors are really nice as well.

Adam, you and your company have my full support and respect as a person and a consumer.
 
I think a lot of people under-estimate the costs involved with running a company, and especially a small company. People need to realize that you do not have the purchasing power of companies like Mothers and Meguiars, who order 200,000 pads at a time for worldwide sales.
 
There are very few companies out there who would be willing to divulge their costs to their consumers. That alone earns a great deal of respect from all of us I am sure.
 
At the end of day, Adams products are more expensive then the competition. However, besides the fact that they ALL work, and work incredibly well, I feel good knowing that the kind of people you employ, are the kind of people I would never hesitate to help in life. I know my money is going to good hard working honest individuals who are trying to live their own lives, raise and take care of their families. It is nice to know my money is not feeding a greedy corporation with a swelled upper management team that is drastically overpaid.
 
Even as a Canadian I support Americans because to me, Americans are like brothers and sisters to me as a Canadian. We need each other, and our successes feed off of each other, and we push forward for the same rights and ways of life.
 
Just my $0.02

One bit of information for you.
 
I am a small engine mechanic for a living, and a certified pressure pump technician (sounds fancy..NOT!)
 
Anyways, do not run water that is too hot through that unit of yours. Pressure washer pumps that are to be used with hot water are designed specifically for that. There are completely different sets of o-rings, packings and seals for cold water units, and hot water units. Your unit is designed for cold water, not hot. Warm water or barely hot water will probably be ok, but don't get too carried away with it.
 
On a side note, very nice truck. I am not a Ford man, but I have always liked the Raptor truck look and the interiors are really nice as well.

Thank you to all of you at Adams!
 
First class product, people, business practices, and customer service.

I was shocked to see I received some free Americana with my last order.
 
Either it is because I have spent a lot of money this year and they are saying thank you, or they made a mistake. I ordered one Americana on my last order, when I opened the box I discovered two!! That is one heck of a freebie, and I am sorry but no, I won't be giving it back!

Adam, you and your company have my full support and respect as a person and a consumer.
 
I think a lot of people under-estimate the costs involved with running a company, and especially a small company. People need to realize that you do not have the purchasing power of companies like Mothers and Meguiars, who order 200,000 pads at a time for worldwide sales.
 
There are very few companies out there who would be willing to divulge their costs to their consumers. That alone earns a great deal of respect from all of us I am sure.
 
At the end of day, Adams products are more expensive then the competition. However, besides the fact that they ALL work, and work incredibly well, I feel good knowing that the kind of people you employ, are the kind of people I would never hesitate to help in life. I know my money is going to good hard working honest individuals who are trying to live their own lives, raise and take care of their families. It is nice to know my money is not feeding a greedy corporation with a swelled upper management team that is drastically overpaid.
 
Even as a Canadian I support Americans because to me, Americans are like brothers and sisters to me as a Canadian. We need each other, and our successes feed off of each other, and we push forward for the same rights and ways of life.
 
Just my $0.02

Adam, you and your company have my full support and respect as a person and a consumer.
 
I think a lot of people under-estimate the costs involved with running a company, and especially a small company. People need to realize that you do not have the purchasing power of companies like Mothers and Meguiars, who order 200,000 pads at a time for worldwide sales.
 
There are very few companies out there who would be willing to divulge their costs to their consumers. That alone earns a great deal of respect from all of us I am sure.
 
At the end of day, Adams products are more expensive then the competition. However, besides the fact that they ALL work, and work incredibly well, I feel good knowing that the kind of people you employ, are the kind of people I would never hesitate to help in life. I know my money is going to good hard working honest individuals who are trying to live their own lives, raise and take care of their families. It is nice to know my money is not feeding a greedy corporation with a swelled upper management team that is drastically overpaid.
 
Even as a Canadian I support Americans because to me, Americans are like brothers and sisters to me as a Canadian. We need each other, and our successes feed off of each other, and we push forward for the same rights and ways of life.
 
Just my $0.02

Well, after a long dirty winter of playing in the mud on the West coast of Canada, I finally gave my John Deere some love yesterday.
 
I washed, clayed, went over all the paint with Revive, then hit it with Brilliant Glaze, and finally Buttery Wax. I forgot to take before pictures, but the after is what we are really after anyway. I think I did a pretty good job considering I hammered the entire thing out in 1 hour.

Well, after a long dirty winter of playing in the mud on the West coast of Canada, I finally gave my John Deere some love yesterday.
 
I washed, clayed, went over all the paint with Revive, then hit it with Brilliant Glaze, and finally Buttery Wax. I forgot to take before pictures, but the after is what we are really after anyway. I think I did a pretty good job considering I hammered the entire thing out in 1 hour.

I am a small engine mechanic/power tool repair technician/certified pressure washer technician, certified by BE Pressure in Abbotsford, Canada. So, I may be able to help you out.
 
Unfortunatly, there are virtually no Made In USA pressure washers left on the market. Almost every pump on the market is made in Italy. If it isn't made in Italy, it was made in China.
 
There are two styles of pressure washer pumps, Axial, and Triplex. Axial is much like it sounds. You have 3 pistons in a circulator pattern, that are driven by an offset wobble plate. This style of pump is the cheapest of the cheap, and designed specifically for low manufacturing cost, and high profit for the big box store selling it. The life expectancy of this style pump, regardless of brand, is around 300 - 400 hours. This style of pump is also seen on vertical shaft pressure washers. Always avoid vertical shaft pressure washers. These are the type of machines with a lawn mower type engine on them, and the pump mounted underneath the cart itself. These pumps, literally, are designed to last 20 hours. Yes, JUST 20 hours. The pumps themselves cost $22 to produce in China.
 
Triplex pumps are the real deal, heavy duty. They are designed like an internal combustion engine. There is a crankshaft with large bearings at both ends, connecting rods, and pistons. These pumps are a lot more money, but the life expectancy of a quality Triplex pump is 3,000 hours. 10 times that of an axial.
 
You have belt drive, and direct drive. Direct drive is like it sounds. The pump is bolted directly to the rear of the engine. This cheaper to produce, much easier to maintain. The downside is pump life. Because the pump is bolted solid to the engine, it is now absorbing vibration and heat from your engine. It decreases the life of your pump. Remember how I said Triplex pumps are rated for 3,000 hours? Yes, on a direct drive. On a belt drive, that same pump would last 4,500 - 5,000 hours.
 
What is the downside to a belt drive than? Cost, maintenance, weight, and size. Belt drive pressure washers are a LOT more money. For example, a 13HP GX390 with a General EZ4040 pump, 4,000 PSI @ 4GPM, will cost you about $1,100. Take that same unit as a belt drive, $1,600. Because the entire belt drive system needs a lot more room, the cart is usually a fair amount larger. This adds weights and increases the unit size. Even with 2 big guys, it is difficult and very hard on the back to lift a belt drive into and out of a truck. The maintenance aspect is also an issue. You need to keep a constant eye on the belt tension and condition. The belts stretch and loosen frequently. Once the belt starts slipping, it will chew through rubber in no time. It can be a PIA to tighten these belts, especially on a regular basis. For a time sensitive commercial operation, it is a time waster. The advantage is, like I said, you get an average of 1,500 hours extra life out of your pump. This is because the pump is not mounted to the engine, so it does not absorb engine vibrations or heat. The pulley on the belt drive pump also has cooling fins built into it, so it blows cool air over the pump as it is running. Belt drive pumps run 25% cooler than a direct drive on average.
 
As far as engines go, nothing can beat a GX Honda engine. All pressure washers with a 7HP or smaller engine, will have a 3/4'' key shaft. All engines larger than 7 HP will have a 1'' key shaft. The two best engines on the market is the 6.5HP Honda GX 200, and the 13HP Honda GX 390. When a 15 year old Honda GX engine comes into my shop and the pump is shot, we test the compression, find it is 85% of a new engine, slap a new pump on and you go another 15 years. STAY AWAY from Honda gc series engines. Honda gc engines have plastic internal gears, GX engines have steel gears. I throw at least 4 or 5 GC160/GC190 engines in the scrap bin per month, because of broken internal gears.
 
The 3 most popular brands of pumps is Comet, General, and Cat. Cat pumps have the reputation of being the best out there, but I disagree. From my experience as a Technician, General has the best system, here is why. General pumps generally have half as many parts as a Comet or Cat, and last longer. Parts are cheaper, and easy to find. Cat parts are VERY expensive, and can be hard to locate. Cat pumps have a 1 piece cast body, which is good to prevent oil leaks. However, it makes the pump more time consuming to rebuild when you do, simply because lack of space. Comet makes a good pump, it is a good balance between being cheap and still having some quality to it.
 
Unloaders, internal or external. Cheaper pumps come with an internal or "Built-In" unloader. This is NOT the way to go if you want a machine to last you for 20 years. They are more difficult to repair as they are located inside of the pump manifold. When your pressure washer is running, and you are NOT pulling the trigger, water is recycling, looping, inside of your manifold. Let's say you stop for a minute to move your ladder, but do not shut off your unit. Water is looping inside the manifold, obsorbing heat from your pumps metal components. In just 90 seconds, you will melt down your seals, and there is a good chance your pump will need a rebuild after that. Pumps these days come with a Thermal valve on them. Once the water reaches the temperature of 172 degrees F, it will trigger this valve and start spewing water. This is NOT a system designed to save your butt. Like a low oil pressure light, once this valve triggers, it is almost always too late. These valves can not be reset. Once it goes, it must be replaced. Normal cost is about $15. The reason they cannot be reset is because of warranty. Manufactuers started doing this because people would claim warranty on a burnt out pump, and they had no way to prove it was the customer abusing the product. This way, as soon as your unit goes in for warranty, and they hook it up and see your thermal valve leaking, it is an instant decline, you idled too long.
 
External unloaders are just like they sound, mounted on the outside of the pump manifold. They usually come with a 2 foot piece of rubber hose on the unloader, that is hooked back into the low pressure feed where the garden hose is connected. This will still loop water in your manifold, but gives you a larger window of time to idle, because the water has 2 feet of hose to go through. This gives it some time to cool down. Still, this is not ideal. You extend your time from 90 seconds to maybe 3 minutes at best. The best way to configure an unloader is to discharge water to the ground. What I mean by this is when you let go of your trigger, water will run out of the unloader hose, onto the ground. This happens at garden hose pressure, not 4,000 PSI. This means your pump is always getting cold water. With an external unloader setup configured to discharge to the ground, you could literally leave your machine running for hours without pulling the trigger, and it will not hurt a single thing.
 
A lot of people think the unloader with the big knob on it, also controls the pressure. You turn this knob and you increase or decrease pressure, wrong. The unloader knob controls volume, which in turn controls pressure. If you decrease your volume, you have less overall water to make pressure with. So while you may think you are decreasing your pressure, you are also decreasing your volume as well. Volume, or Gallons Per Minute, is what really has the cleaning power. GPM is more important than PSI.
 
Last but not least, do not leave old fuel in your machine over the winter. Fuel these days is loaded with ethanol, which breaks down very fast. After just two months, regular gasoline will start to form a hard varnish in your carburator, and the jet inside of it. The holes on the jet will plug solid, and the unit won't run. 7 out of 10 pressure washers that come to me because of no-start are because the machine was left with old fuel in it, or someone put old fuel into it, thinking it was still ok.
 
Do not confuse the degree pattern of your tips for the orifice size. I see people everyday who are looking for new tips, and they just purchase tips by the color. "Oh I need a yellow tip" I say, ok but what orifice size. Than I get the look like im speaking another language. The degree of your spray pattern, is only how wide it is. The orifice size of the tip, is how large the hole is in the tip. THIS MATTERS. You need to know your PSI, and GPM, to determine the correct orifice size tips for your pressure washer. Also, replace your tips every 500 hours or so of use. Water may look crystal clear but it isn't. Water out of your hose has a lot of minerals, and abrasives in it that the human eye cannot see. These are being forced out of your tip at high pressure. They will wear out your tips and enlarge the hole, slowly but surely. If you increase your orifice size, you will gain volume, but lose pressure. If you decrease your orifice size, you will lose volume, but gain pressure. Some people think they can just buy a tip too small to get an increase in pressure. No, you can't. If your tips cannot flow the GPM of the pump, water will be recycling inside of your manifold, even while the trigger is pulled. If your tips only allow a maximum of 3GPM to get through, and your pump is a 4GPM pump, you are recycling 1GPM of water without knowing it. Your pump will slowly start to overheat. One thing you can never, ever change, is the volume of your pump. You can never change the GPM of your pump.
 
Some people decrease the throttle on the engine to lower pressure, if they need a lower pressure for a specific task. Never attain lower pressure this way. The cooling fan for a small engine is bolted directly to the flywheel. The engine is designed to operate at full throttle, and to maintain proper temperature with the flywheel at max RPM. When your throttle your engine down, it is lugging, working hard to turn your pump. It is actually creating more heat at 50% throttle than 100%. Now you have twice as much heat, and only half as much cooling as the engine needs. Always run at full RPM.
 
Try to get as much water as possible out of your pump before winter comes. Blow through it with an air compressor. Any large water deposits left will freeze, and crack your manifold wide open. Your pump is now garbage.
 
My advice, always remember that you get what you pay for. I have people who walk into my shop and they are actually mad that their $300 pressure washer is junk. They just bought it a year ago. What did you expect? You purchased a $300 machine in a category where quality does not start until $700. Do not buy garbage. Buy quality products and they will take care of you. Spend the money once, maintain your things, and forget about it for years and years.
 
I hope this helps all those who want to know more about pressure washers!

I am a small engine mechanic/power tool repair technician/certified pressure washer technician, certified by BE Pressure in Abbotsford, Canada. So, I may be able to help you out.
 
Unfortunatly, there are virtually no Made In USA pressure washers left on the market. Almost every pump on the market is made in Italy. If it isn't made in Italy, it was made in China.
 
There are two styles of pressure washer pumps, Axial, and Triplex. Axial is much like it sounds. You have 3 pistons in a circulator pattern, that are driven by an offset wobble plate. This style of pump is the cheapest of the cheap, and designed specifically for low manufacturing cost, and high profit for the big box store selling it. The life expectancy of this style pump, regardless of brand, is around 300 - 400 hours. This style of pump is also seen on vertical shaft pressure washers. Always avoid vertical shaft pressure washers. These are the type of machines with a lawn mower type engine on them, and the pump mounted underneath the cart itself. These pumps, literally, are designed to last 20 hours. Yes, JUST 20 hours. The pumps themselves cost $22 to produce in China.
 
Triplex pumps are the real deal, heavy duty. They are designed like an internal combustion engine. There is a crankshaft with large bearings at both ends, connecting rods, and pistons. These pumps are a lot more money, but the life expectancy of a quality Triplex pump is 3,000 hours. 10 times that of an axial.
 
You have belt drive, and direct drive. Direct drive is like it sounds. The pump is bolted directly to the rear of the engine. This cheaper to produce, much easier to maintain. The downside is pump life. Because the pump is bolted solid to the engine, it is now absorbing vibration and heat from your engine. It decreases the life of your pump. Remember how I said Triplex pumps are rated for 3,000 hours? Yes, on a direct drive. On a belt drive, that same pump would last 4,500 - 5,000 hours.
 
What is the downside to a belt drive than? Cost, maintenance, weight, and size. Belt drive pressure washers are a LOT more money. For example, a 13HP GX390 with a General EZ4040 pump, 4,000 PSI @ 4GPM, will cost you about $1,100. Take that same unit as a belt drive, $1,600. Because the entire belt drive system needs a lot more room, the cart is usually a fair amount larger. This adds weights and increases the unit size. Even with 2 big guys, it is difficult and very hard on the back to lift a belt drive into and out of a truck. The maintenance aspect is also an issue. You need to keep a constant eye on the belt tension and condition. The belts stretch and loosen frequently. Once the belt starts slipping, it will chew through rubber in no time. It can be a PIA to tighten these belts, especially on a regular basis. For a time sensitive commercial operation, it is a time waster. The advantage is, like I said, you get an average of 1,500 hours extra life out of your pump. This is because the pump is not mounted to the engine, so it does not absorb engine vibrations or heat. The pulley on the belt drive pump also has cooling fins built into it, so it blows cool air over the pump as it is running. Belt drive pumps run 25% cooler than a direct drive on average.
 
As far as engines go, nothing can beat a GX Honda engine. All pressure washers with a 7HP or smaller engine, will have a 3/4'' key shaft. All engines larger than 7 HP will have a 1'' key shaft. The two best engines on the market is the 6.5HP Honda GX 200, and the 13HP Honda GX 390. When a 15 year old Honda GX engine comes into my shop and the pump is shot, we test the compression, find it is 85% of a new engine, slap a new pump on and you go another 15 years. STAY AWAY from Honda gc series engines. Honda gc engines have plastic internal gears, GX engines have steel gears. I throw at least 4 or 5 GC160/GC190 engines in the scrap bin per month, because of broken internal gears.
 
The 3 most popular brands of pumps is Comet, General, and Cat. Cat pumps have the reputation of being the best out there, but I disagree. From my experience as a Technician, General has the best system, here is why. General pumps generally have half as many parts as a Comet or Cat, and last longer. Parts are cheaper, and easy to find. Cat parts are VERY expensive, and can be hard to locate. Cat pumps have a 1 piece cast body, which is good to prevent oil leaks. However, it makes the pump more time consuming to rebuild when you do, simply because lack of space. Comet makes a good pump, it is a good balance between being cheap and still having some quality to it.
 
Unloaders, internal or external. Cheaper pumps come with an internal or "Built-In" unloader. This is NOT the way to go if you want a machine to last you for 20 years. They are more difficult to repair as they are located inside of the pump manifold. When your pressure washer is running, and you are NOT pulling the trigger, water is recycling, looping, inside of your manifold. Let's say you stop for a minute to move your ladder, but do not shut off your unit. Water is looping inside the manifold, obsorbing heat from your pumps metal components. In just 90 seconds, you will melt down your seals, and there is a good chance your pump will need a rebuild after that. Pumps these days come with a Thermal valve on them. Once the water reaches the temperature of 172 degrees F, it will trigger this valve and start spewing water. This is NOT a system designed to save your butt. Like a low oil pressure light, once this valve triggers, it is almost always too late. These valves can not be reset. Once it goes, it must be replaced. Normal cost is about $15. The reason they cannot be reset is because of warranty. Manufactuers started doing this because people would claim warranty on a burnt out pump, and they had no way to prove it was the customer abusing the product. This way, as soon as your unit goes in for warranty, and they hook it up and see your thermal valve leaking, it is an instant decline, you idled too long.
 
External unloaders are just like they sound, mounted on the outside of the pump manifold. They usually come with a 2 foot piece of rubber hose on the unloader, that is hooked back into the low pressure feed where the garden hose is connected. This will still loop water in your manifold, but gives you a larger window of time to idle, because the water has 2 feet of hose to go through. This gives it some time to cool down. Still, this is not ideal. You extend your time from 90 seconds to maybe 3 minutes at best. The best way to configure an unloader is to discharge water to the ground. What I mean by this is when you let go of your trigger, water will run out of the unloader hose, onto the ground. This happens at garden hose pressure, not 4,000 PSI. This means your pump is always getting cold water. With an external unloader setup configured to discharge to the ground, you could literally leave your machine running for hours without pulling the trigger, and it will not hurt a single thing.
 
A lot of people think the unloader with the big knob on it, also controls the pressure. You turn this knob and you increase or decrease pressure, wrong. The unloader knob controls volume, which in turn controls pressure. If you decrease your volume, you have less overall water to make pressure with. So while you may think you are decreasing your pressure, you are also decreasing your volume as well. Volume, or Gallons Per Minute, is what really has the cleaning power. GPM is more important than PSI.
 
Last but not least, do not leave old fuel in your machine over the winter. Fuel these days is loaded with ethanol, which breaks down very fast. After just two months, regular gasoline will start to form a hard varnish in your carburator, and the jet inside of it. The holes on the jet will plug solid, and the unit won't run. 7 out of 10 pressure washers that come to me because of no-start are because the machine was left with old fuel in it, or someone put old fuel into it, thinking it was still ok.
 
Do not confuse the degree pattern of your tips for the orifice size. I see people everyday who are looking for new tips, and they just purchase tips by the color. "Oh I need a yellow tip" I say, ok but what orifice size. Than I get the look like im speaking another language. The degree of your spray pattern, is only how wide it is. The orifice size of the tip, is how large the hole is in the tip. THIS MATTERS. You need to know your PSI, and GPM, to determine the correct orifice size tips for your pressure washer. Also, replace your tips every 500 hours or so of use. Water may look crystal clear but it isn't. Water out of your hose has a lot of minerals, and abrasives in it that the human eye cannot see. These are being forced out of your tip at high pressure. They will wear out your tips and enlarge the hole, slowly but surely. If you increase your orifice size, you will gain volume, but lose pressure. If you decrease your orifice size, you will lose volume, but gain pressure. Some people think they can just buy a tip too small to get an increase in pressure. No, you can't. If your tips cannot flow the GPM of the pump, water will be recycling inside of your manifold, even while the trigger is pulled. If your tips only allow a maximum of 3GPM to get through, and your pump is a 4GPM pump, you are recycling 1GPM of water without knowing it. Your pump will slowly start to overheat. One thing you can never, ever change, is the volume of your pump. You can never change the GPM of your pump.
 
Some people decrease the throttle on the engine to lower pressure, if they need a lower pressure for a specific task. Never attain lower pressure this way. The cooling fan for a small engine is bolted directly to the flywheel. The engine is designed to operate at full throttle, and to maintain proper temperature with the flywheel at max RPM. When your throttle your engine down, it is lugging, working hard to turn your pump. It is actually creating more heat at 50% throttle than 100%. Now you have twice as much heat, and only half as much cooling as the engine needs. Always run at full RPM.
 
Try to get as much water as possible out of your pump before winter comes. Blow through it with an air compressor. Any large water deposits left will freeze, and crack your manifold wide open. Your pump is now garbage.
 
My advice, always remember that you get what you pay for. I have people who walk into my shop and they are actually mad that their $300 pressure washer is junk. They just bought it a year ago. What did you expect? You purchased a $300 machine in a category where quality does not start until $700. Do not buy garbage. Buy quality products and they will take care of you. Spend the money once, maintain your things, and forget about it for years and years.
 
I hope this helps all those who want to know more about pressure washers!

Thanks for posting that, I was meaning to come back today and post a link to that thread.
 
I intend to start posting pictures in the next few months of the kind of pressure washer setups that would be good investments for people here. That way when spring comes, you guys can spend your money right, the first time.

I am a small engine mechanic/power tool repair technician/certified pressure washer technician, certified by BE Pressure in Abbotsford, Canada. So, I may be able to help you out.
 
Unfortunatly, there are virtually no Made In USA pressure washers left on the market. Almost every pump on the market is made in Italy. If it isn't made in Italy, it was made in China.
 
There are two styles of pressure washer pumps, Axial, and Triplex. Axial is much like it sounds. You have 3 pistons in a circulator pattern, that are driven by an offset wobble plate. This style of pump is the cheapest of the cheap, and designed specifically for low manufacturing cost, and high profit for the big box store selling it. The life expectancy of this style pump, regardless of brand, is around 300 - 400 hours. This style of pump is also seen on vertical shaft pressure washers. Always avoid vertical shaft pressure washers. These are the type of machines with a lawn mower type engine on them, and the pump mounted underneath the cart itself. These pumps, literally, are designed to last 20 hours. Yes, JUST 20 hours. The pumps themselves cost $22 to produce in China.
 
Triplex pumps are the real deal, heavy duty. They are designed like an internal combustion engine. There is a crankshaft with large bearings at both ends, connecting rods, and pistons. These pumps are a lot more money, but the life expectancy of a quality Triplex pump is 3,000 hours. 10 times that of an axial.
 
You have belt drive, and direct drive. Direct drive is like it sounds. The pump is bolted directly to the rear of the engine. This cheaper to produce, much easier to maintain. The downside is pump life. Because the pump is bolted solid to the engine, it is now absorbing vibration and heat from your engine. It decreases the life of your pump. Remember how I said Triplex pumps are rated for 3,000 hours? Yes, on a direct drive. On a belt drive, that same pump would last 4,500 - 5,000 hours.
 
What is the downside to a belt drive than? Cost, maintenance, weight, and size. Belt drive pressure washers are a LOT more money. For example, a 13HP GX390 with a General EZ4040 pump, 4,000 PSI @ 4GPM, will cost you about $1,100. Take that same unit as a belt drive, $1,600. Because the entire belt drive system needs a lot more room, the cart is usually a fair amount larger. This adds weights and increases the unit size. Even with 2 big guys, it is difficult and very hard on the back to lift a belt drive into and out of a truck. The maintenance aspect is also an issue. You need to keep a constant eye on the belt tension and condition. The belts stretch and loosen frequently. Once the belt starts slipping, it will chew through rubber in no time. It can be a PIA to tighten these belts, especially on a regular basis. For a time sensitive commercial operation, it is a time waster. The advantage is, like I said, you get an average of 1,500 hours extra life out of your pump. This is because the pump is not mounted to the engine, so it does not absorb engine vibrations or heat. The pulley on the belt drive pump also has cooling fins built into it, so it blows cool air over the pump as it is running. Belt drive pumps run 25% cooler than a direct drive on average.
 
As far as engines go, nothing can beat a GX Honda engine. All pressure washers with a 7HP or smaller engine, will have a 3/4'' key shaft. All engines larger than 7 HP will have a 1'' key shaft. The two best engines on the market is the 6.5HP Honda GX 200, and the 13HP Honda GX 390. When a 15 year old Honda GX engine comes into my shop and the pump is shot, we test the compression, find it is 85% of a new engine, slap a new pump on and you go another 15 years. STAY AWAY from Honda gc series engines. Honda gc engines have plastic internal gears, GX engines have steel gears. I throw at least 4 or 5 GC160/GC190 engines in the scrap bin per month, because of broken internal gears.
 
The 3 most popular brands of pumps is Comet, General, and Cat. Cat pumps have the reputation of being the best out there, but I disagree. From my experience as a Technician, General has the best system, here is why. General pumps generally have half as many parts as a Comet or Cat, and last longer. Parts are cheaper, and easy to find. Cat parts are VERY expensive, and can be hard to locate. Cat pumps have a 1 piece cast body, which is good to prevent oil leaks. However, it makes the pump more time consuming to rebuild when you do, simply because lack of space. Comet makes a good pump, it is a good balance between being cheap and still having some quality to it.
 
Unloaders, internal or external. Cheaper pumps come with an internal or "Built-In" unloader. This is NOT the way to go if you want a machine to last you for 20 years. They are more difficult to repair as they are located inside of the pump manifold. When your pressure washer is running, and you are NOT pulling the trigger, water is recycling, looping, inside of your manifold. Let's say you stop for a minute to move your ladder, but do not shut off your unit. Water is looping inside the manifold, obsorbing heat from your pumps metal components. In just 90 seconds, you will melt down your seals, and there is a good chance your pump will need a rebuild after that. Pumps these days come with a Thermal valve on them. Once the water reaches the temperature of 172 degrees F, it will trigger this valve and start spewing water. This is NOT a system designed to save your butt. Like a low oil pressure light, once this valve triggers, it is almost always too late. These valves can not be reset. Once it goes, it must be replaced. Normal cost is about $15. The reason they cannot be reset is because of warranty. Manufactuers started doing this because people would claim warranty on a burnt out pump, and they had no way to prove it was the customer abusing the product. This way, as soon as your unit goes in for warranty, and they hook it up and see your thermal valve leaking, it is an instant decline, you idled too long.
 
External unloaders are just like they sound, mounted on the outside of the pump manifold. They usually come with a 2 foot piece of rubber hose on the unloader, that is hooked back into the low pressure feed where the garden hose is connected. This will still loop water in your manifold, but gives you a larger window of time to idle, because the water has 2 feet of hose to go through. This gives it some time to cool down. Still, this is not ideal. You extend your time from 90 seconds to maybe 3 minutes at best. The best way to configure an unloader is to discharge water to the ground. What I mean by this is when you let go of your trigger, water will run out of the unloader hose, onto the ground. This happens at garden hose pressure, not 4,000 PSI. This means your pump is always getting cold water. With an external unloader setup configured to discharge to the ground, you could literally leave your machine running for hours without pulling the trigger, and it will not hurt a single thing.
 
A lot of people think the unloader with the big knob on it, also controls the pressure. You turn this knob and you increase or decrease pressure, wrong. The unloader knob controls volume, which in turn controls pressure. If you decrease your volume, you have less overall water to make pressure with. So while you may think you are decreasing your pressure, you are also decreasing your volume as well. Volume, or Gallons Per Minute, is what really has the cleaning power. GPM is more important than PSI.
 
Last but not least, do not leave old fuel in your machine over the winter. Fuel these days is loaded with ethanol, which breaks down very fast. After just two months, regular gasoline will start to form a hard varnish in your carburator, and the jet inside of it. The holes on the jet will plug solid, and the unit won't run. 7 out of 10 pressure washers that come to me because of no-start are because the machine was left with old fuel in it, or someone put old fuel into it, thinking it was still ok.
 
Do not confuse the degree pattern of your tips for the orifice size. I see people everyday who are looking for new tips, and they just purchase tips by the color. "Oh I need a yellow tip" I say, ok but what orifice size. Than I get the look like im speaking another language. The degree of your spray pattern, is only how wide it is. The orifice size of the tip, is how large the hole is in the tip. THIS MATTERS. You need to know your PSI, and GPM, to determine the correct orifice size tips for your pressure washer. Also, replace your tips every 500 hours or so of use. Water may look crystal clear but it isn't. Water out of your hose has a lot of minerals, and abrasives in it that the human eye cannot see. These are being forced out of your tip at high pressure. They will wear out your tips and enlarge the hole, slowly but surely. If you increase your orifice size, you will gain volume, but lose pressure. If you decrease your orifice size, you will lose volume, but gain pressure. Some people think they can just buy a tip too small to get an increase in pressure. No, you can't. If your tips cannot flow the GPM of the pump, water will be recycling inside of your manifold, even while the trigger is pulled. If your tips only allow a maximum of 3GPM to get through, and your pump is a 4GPM pump, you are recycling 1GPM of water without knowing it. Your pump will slowly start to overheat. One thing you can never, ever change, is the volume of your pump. You can never change the GPM of your pump.
 
Some people decrease the throttle on the engine to lower pressure, if they need a lower pressure for a specific task. Never attain lower pressure this way. The cooling fan for a small engine is bolted directly to the flywheel. The engine is designed to operate at full throttle, and to maintain proper temperature with the flywheel at max RPM. When your throttle your engine down, it is lugging, working hard to turn your pump. It is actually creating more heat at 50% throttle than 100%. Now you have twice as much heat, and only half as much cooling as the engine needs. Always run at full RPM.
 
Try to get as much water as possible out of your pump before winter comes. Blow through it with an air compressor. Any large water deposits left will freeze, and crack your manifold wide open. Your pump is now garbage.
 
My advice, always remember that you get what you pay for. I have people who walk into my shop and they are actually mad that their $300 pressure washer is junk. They just bought it a year ago. What did you expect? You purchased a $300 machine in a category where quality does not start until $700. Do not buy garbage. Buy quality products and they will take care of you. Spend the money once, maintain your things, and forget about it for years and years.
 
I hope this helps all those who want to know more about pressure washers!

I am a small engine mechanic/power tool repair technician/certified pressure washer technician, certified by BE Pressure in Abbotsford, Canada. So, I may be able to help you out.
 
Unfortunatly, there are virtually no Made In USA pressure washers left on the market. Almost every pump on the market is made in Italy. If it isn't made in Italy, it was made in China.
 
There are two styles of pressure washer pumps, Axial, and Triplex. Axial is much like it sounds. You have 3 pistons in a circulator pattern, that are driven by an offset wobble plate. This style of pump is the cheapest of the cheap, and designed specifically for low manufacturing cost, and high profit for the big box store selling it. The life expectancy of this style pump, regardless of brand, is around 300 - 400 hours. This style of pump is also seen on vertical shaft pressure washers. Always avoid vertical shaft pressure washers. These are the type of machines with a lawn mower type engine on them, and the pump mounted underneath the cart itself. These pumps, literally, are designed to last 20 hours. Yes, JUST 20 hours. The pumps themselves cost $22 to produce in China.
 
Triplex pumps are the real deal, heavy duty. They are designed like an internal combustion engine. There is a crankshaft with large bearings at both ends, connecting rods, and pistons. These pumps are a lot more money, but the life expectancy of a quality Triplex pump is 3,000 hours. 10 times that of an axial.
 
You have belt drive, and direct drive. Direct drive is like it sounds. The pump is bolted directly to the rear of the engine. This cheaper to produce, much easier to maintain. The downside is pump life. Because the pump is bolted solid to the engine, it is now absorbing vibration and heat from your engine. It decreases the life of your pump. Remember how I said Triplex pumps are rated for 3,000 hours? Yes, on a direct drive. On a belt drive, that same pump would last 4,500 - 5,000 hours.
 
What is the downside to a belt drive than? Cost, maintenance, weight, and size. Belt drive pressure washers are a LOT more money. For example, a 13HP GX390 with a General EZ4040 pump, 4,000 PSI @ 4GPM, will cost you about $1,100. Take that same unit as a belt drive, $1,600. Because the entire belt drive system needs a lot more room, the cart is usually a fair amount larger. This adds weights and increases the unit size. Even with 2 big guys, it is difficult and very hard on the back to lift a belt drive into and out of a truck. The maintenance aspect is also an issue. You need to keep a constant eye on the belt tension and condition. The belts stretch and loosen frequently. Once the belt starts slipping, it will chew through rubber in no time. It can be a PIA to tighten these belts, especially on a regular basis. For a time sensitive commercial operation, it is a time waster. The advantage is, like I said, you get an average of 1,500 hours extra life out of your pump. This is because the pump is not mounted to the engine, so it does not absorb engine vibrations or heat. The pulley on the belt drive pump also has cooling fins built into it, so it blows cool air over the pump as it is running. Belt drive pumps run 25% cooler than a direct drive on average.
 
As far as engines go, nothing can beat a GX Honda engine. All pressure washers with a 7HP or smaller engine, will have a 3/4'' key shaft. All engines larger than 7 HP will have a 1'' key shaft. The two best engines on the market is the 6.5HP Honda GX 200, and the 13HP Honda GX 390. When a 15 year old Honda GX engine comes into my shop and the pump is shot, we test the compression, find it is 85% of a new engine, slap a new pump on and you go another 15 years. STAY AWAY from Honda gc series engines. Honda gc engines have plastic internal gears, GX engines have steel gears. I throw at least 4 or 5 GC160/GC190 engines in the scrap bin per month, because of broken internal gears.
 
The 3 most popular brands of pumps is Comet, General, and Cat. Cat pumps have the reputation of being the best out there, but I disagree. From my experience as a Technician, General has the best system, here is why. General pumps generally have half as many parts as a Comet or Cat, and last longer. Parts are cheaper, and easy to find. Cat parts are VERY expensive, and can be hard to locate. Cat pumps have a 1 piece cast body, which is good to prevent oil leaks. However, it makes the pump more time consuming to rebuild when you do, simply because lack of space. Comet makes a good pump, it is a good balance between being cheap and still having some quality to it.
 
Unloaders, internal or external. Cheaper pumps come with an internal or "Built-In" unloader. This is NOT the way to go if you want a machine to last you for 20 years. They are more difficult to repair as they are located inside of the pump manifold. When your pressure washer is running, and you are NOT pulling the trigger, water is recycling, looping, inside of your manifold. Let's say you stop for a minute to move your ladder, but do not shut off your unit. Water is looping inside the manifold, obsorbing heat from your pumps metal components. In just 90 seconds, you will melt down your seals, and there is a good chance your pump will need a rebuild after that. Pumps these days come with a Thermal valve on them. Once the water reaches the temperature of 172 degrees F, it will trigger this valve and start spewing water. This is NOT a system designed to save your butt. Like a low oil pressure light, once this valve triggers, it is almost always too late. These valves can not be reset. Once it goes, it must be replaced. Normal cost is about $15. The reason they cannot be reset is because of warranty. Manufactuers started doing this because people would claim warranty on a burnt out pump, and they had no way to prove it was the customer abusing the product. This way, as soon as your unit goes in for warranty, and they hook it up and see your thermal valve leaking, it is an instant decline, you idled too long.
 
External unloaders are just like they sound, mounted on the outside of the pump manifold. They usually come with a 2 foot piece of rubber hose on the unloader, that is hooked back into the low pressure feed where the garden hose is connected. This will still loop water in your manifold, but gives you a larger window of time to idle, because the water has 2 feet of hose to go through. This gives it some time to cool down. Still, this is not ideal. You extend your time from 90 seconds to maybe 3 minutes at best. The best way to configure an unloader is to discharge water to the ground. What I mean by this is when you let go of your trigger, water will run out of the unloader hose, onto the ground. This happens at garden hose pressure, not 4,000 PSI. This means your pump is always getting cold water. With an external unloader setup configured to discharge to the ground, you could literally leave your machine running for hours without pulling the trigger, and it will not hurt a single thing.
 
A lot of people think the unloader with the big knob on it, also controls the pressure. You turn this knob and you increase or decrease pressure, wrong. The unloader knob controls volume, which in turn controls pressure. If you decrease your volume, you have less overall water to make pressure with. So while you may think you are decreasing your pressure, you are also decreasing your volume as well. Volume, or Gallons Per Minute, is what really has the cleaning power. GPM is more important than PSI.
 
Last but not least, do not leave old fuel in your machine over the winter. Fuel these days is loaded with ethanol, which breaks down very fast. After just two months, regular gasoline will start to form a hard varnish in your carburator, and the jet inside of it. The holes on the jet will plug solid, and the unit won't run. 7 out of 10 pressure washers that come to me because of no-start are because the machine was left with old fuel in it, or someone put old fuel into it, thinking it was still ok.
 
Do not confuse the degree pattern of your tips for the orifice size. I see people everyday who are looking for new tips, and they just purchase tips by the color. "Oh I need a yellow tip" I say, ok but what orifice size. Than I get the look like im speaking another language. The degree of your spray pattern, is only how wide it is. The orifice size of the tip, is how large the hole is in the tip. THIS MATTERS. You need to know your PSI, and GPM, to determine the correct orifice size tips for your pressure washer. Also, replace your tips every 500 hours or so of use. Water may look crystal clear but it isn't. Water out of your hose has a lot of minerals, and abrasives in it that the human eye cannot see. These are being forced out of your tip at high pressure. They will wear out your tips and enlarge the hole, slowly but surely. If you increase your orifice size, you will gain volume, but lose pressure. If you decrease your orifice size, you will lose volume, but gain pressure. Some people think they can just buy a tip too small to get an increase in pressure. No, you can't. If your tips cannot flow the GPM of the pump, water will be recycling inside of your manifold, even while the trigger is pulled. If your tips only allow a maximum of 3GPM to get through, and your pump is a 4GPM pump, you are recycling 1GPM of water without knowing it. Your pump will slowly start to overheat. One thing you can never, ever change, is the volume of your pump. You can never change the GPM of your pump.
 
Some people decrease the throttle on the engine to lower pressure, if they need a lower pressure for a specific task. Never attain lower pressure this way. The cooling fan for a small engine is bolted directly to the flywheel. The engine is designed to operate at full throttle, and to maintain proper temperature with the flywheel at max RPM. When your throttle your engine down, it is lugging, working hard to turn your pump. It is actually creating more heat at 50% throttle than 100%. Now you have twice as much heat, and only half as much cooling as the engine needs. Always run at full RPM.
 
Try to get as much water as possible out of your pump before winter comes. Blow through it with an air compressor. Any large water deposits left will freeze, and crack your manifold wide open. Your pump is now garbage.
 
My advice, always remember that you get what you pay for. I have people who walk into my shop and they are actually mad that their $300 pressure washer is junk. They just bought it a year ago. What did you expect? You purchased a $300 machine in a category where quality does not start until $700. Do not buy garbage. Buy quality products and they will take care of you. Spend the money once, maintain your things, and forget about it for years and years.
 
I hope this helps all those who want to know more about pressure washers!

I am a small engine mechanic/power tool repair technician/certified pressure washer technician, certified by BE Pressure in Abbotsford, Canada. So, I may be able to help you out.
 
Unfortunatly, there are virtually no Made In USA pressure washers left on the market. Almost every pump on the market is made in Italy. If it isn't made in Italy, it was made in China.
 
There are two styles of pressure washer pumps, Axial, and Triplex. Axial is much like it sounds. You have 3 pistons in a circulator pattern, that are driven by an offset wobble plate. This style of pump is the cheapest of the cheap, and designed specifically for low manufacturing cost, and high profit for the big box store selling it. The life expectancy of this style pump, regardless of brand, is around 300 - 400 hours. This style of pump is also seen on vertical shaft pressure washers. Always avoid vertical shaft pressure washers. These are the type of machines with a lawn mower type engine on them, and the pump mounted underneath the cart itself. These pumps, literally, are designed to last 20 hours. Yes, JUST 20 hours. The pumps themselves cost $22 to produce in China.
 
Triplex pumps are the real deal, heavy duty. They are designed like an internal combustion engine. There is a crankshaft with large bearings at both ends, connecting rods, and pistons. These pumps are a lot more money, but the life expectancy of a quality Triplex pump is 3,000 hours. 10 times that of an axial.
 
You have belt drive, and direct drive. Direct drive is like it sounds. The pump is bolted directly to the rear of the engine. This cheaper to produce, much easier to maintain. The downside is pump life. Because the pump is bolted solid to the engine, it is now absorbing vibration and heat from your engine. It decreases the life of your pump. Remember how I said Triplex pumps are rated for 3,000 hours? Yes, on a direct drive. On a belt drive, that same pump would last 4,500 - 5,000 hours.
 
What is the downside to a belt drive than? Cost, maintenance, weight, and size. Belt drive pressure washers are a LOT more money. For example, a 13HP GX390 with a General EZ4040 pump, 4,000 PSI @ 4GPM, will cost you about $1,100. Take that same unit as a belt drive, $1,600. Because the entire belt drive system needs a lot more room, the cart is usually a fair amount larger. This adds weights and increases the unit size. Even with 2 big guys, it is difficult and very hard on the back to lift a belt drive into and out of a truck. The maintenance aspect is also an issue. You need to keep a constant eye on the belt tension and condition. The belts stretch and loosen frequently. Once the belt starts slipping, it will chew through rubber in no time. It can be a PIA to tighten these belts, especially on a regular basis. For a time sensitive commercial operation, it is a time waster. The advantage is, like I said, you get an average of 1,500 hours extra life out of your pump. This is because the pump is not mounted to the engine, so it does not absorb engine vibrations or heat. The pulley on the belt drive pump also has cooling fins built into it, so it blows cool air over the pump as it is running. Belt drive pumps run 25% cooler than a direct drive on average.
 
As far as engines go, nothing can beat a GX Honda engine. All pressure washers with a 7HP or smaller engine, will have a 3/4'' key shaft. All engines larger than 7 HP will have a 1'' key shaft. The two best engines on the market is the 6.5HP Honda GX 200, and the 13HP Honda GX 390. When a 15 year old Honda GX engine comes into my shop and the pump is shot, we test the compression, find it is 85% of a new engine, slap a new pump on and you go another 15 years. STAY AWAY from Honda gc series engines. Honda gc engines have plastic internal gears, GX engines have steel gears. I throw at least 4 or 5 GC160/GC190 engines in the scrap bin per month, because of broken internal gears.
 
The 3 most popular brands of pumps is Comet, General, and Cat. Cat pumps have the reputation of being the best out there, but I disagree. From my experience as a Technician, General has the best system, here is why. General pumps generally have half as many parts as a Comet or Cat, and last longer. Parts are cheaper, and easy to find. Cat parts are VERY expensive, and can be hard to locate. Cat pumps have a 1 piece cast body, which is good to prevent oil leaks. However, it makes the pump more time consuming to rebuild when you do, simply because lack of space. Comet makes a good pump, it is a good balance between being cheap and still having some quality to it.
 
Unloaders, internal or external. Cheaper pumps come with an internal or "Built-In" unloader. This is NOT the way to go if you want a machine to last you for 20 years. They are more difficult to repair as they are located inside of the pump manifold. When your pressure washer is running, and you are NOT pulling the trigger, water is recycling, looping, inside of your manifold. Let's say you stop for a minute to move your ladder, but do not shut off your unit. Water is looping inside the manifold, obsorbing heat from your pumps metal components. In just 90 seconds, you will melt down your seals, and there is a good chance your pump will need a rebuild after that. Pumps these days come with a Thermal valve on them. Once the water reaches the temperature of 172 degrees F, it will trigger this valve and start spewing water. This is NOT a system designed to save your butt. Like a low oil pressure light, once this valve triggers, it is almost always too late. These valves can not be reset. Once it goes, it must be replaced. Normal cost is about $15. The reason they cannot be reset is because of warranty. Manufactuers started doing this because people would claim warranty on a burnt out pump, and they had no way to prove it was the customer abusing the product. This way, as soon as your unit goes in for warranty, and they hook it up and see your thermal valve leaking, it is an instant decline, you idled too long.
 
External unloaders are just like they sound, mounted on the outside of the pump manifold. They usually come with a 2 foot piece of rubber hose on the unloader, that is hooked back into the low pressure feed where the garden hose is connected. This will still loop water in your manifold, but gives you a larger window of time to idle, because the water has 2 feet of hose to go through. This gives it some time to cool down. Still, this is not ideal. You extend your time from 90 seconds to maybe 3 minutes at best. The best way to configure an unloader is to discharge water to the ground. What I mean by this is when you let go of your trigger, water will run out of the unloader hose, onto the ground. This happens at garden hose pressure, not 4,000 PSI. This means your pump is always getting cold water. With an external unloader setup configured to discharge to the ground, you could literally leave your machine running for hours without pulling the trigger, and it will not hurt a single thing.
 
A lot of people think the unloader with the big knob on it, also controls the pressure. You turn this knob and you increase or decrease pressure, wrong. The unloader knob controls volume, which in turn controls pressure. If you decrease your volume, you have less overall water to make pressure with. So while you may think you are decreasing your pressure, you are also decreasing your volume as well. Volume, or Gallons Per Minute, is what really has the cleaning power. GPM is more important than PSI.
 
Last but not least, do not leave old fuel in your machine over the winter. Fuel these days is loaded with ethanol, which breaks down very fast. After just two months, regular gasoline will start to form a hard varnish in your carburator, and the jet inside of it. The holes on the jet will plug solid, and the unit won't run. 7 out of 10 pressure washers that come to me because of no-start are because the machine was left with old fuel in it, or someone put old fuel into it, thinking it was still ok.
 
Do not confuse the degree pattern of your tips for the orifice size. I see people everyday who are looking for new tips, and they just purchase tips by the color. "Oh I need a yellow tip" I say, ok but what orifice size. Than I get the look like im speaking another language. The degree of your spray pattern, is only how wide it is. The orifice size of the tip, is how large the hole is in the tip. THIS MATTERS. You need to know your PSI, and GPM, to determine the correct orifice size tips for your pressure washer. Also, replace your tips every 500 hours or so of use. Water may look crystal clear but it isn't. Water out of your hose has a lot of minerals, and abrasives in it that the human eye cannot see. These are being forced out of your tip at high pressure. They will wear out your tips and enlarge the hole, slowly but surely. If you increase your orifice size, you will gain volume, but lose pressure. If you decrease your orifice size, you will lose volume, but gain pressure. Some people think they can just buy a tip too small to get an increase in pressure. No, you can't. If your tips cannot flow the GPM of the pump, water will be recycling inside of your manifold, even while the trigger is pulled. If your tips only allow a maximum of 3GPM to get through, and your pump is a 4GPM pump, you are recycling 1GPM of water without knowing it. Your pump will slowly start to overheat. One thing you can never, ever change, is the volume of your pump. You can never change the GPM of your pump.
 
Some people decrease the throttle on the engine to lower pressure, if they need a lower pressure for a specific task. Never attain lower pressure this way. The cooling fan for a small engine is bolted directly to the flywheel. The engine is designed to operate at full throttle, and to maintain proper temperature with the flywheel at max RPM. When your throttle your engine down, it is lugging, working hard to turn your pump. It is actually creating more heat at 50% throttle than 100%. Now you have twice as much heat, and only half as much cooling as the engine needs. Always run at full RPM.
 
Try to get as much water as possible out of your pump before winter comes. Blow through it with an air compressor. Any large water deposits left will freeze, and crack your manifold wide open. Your pump is now garbage.
 
My advice, always remember that you get what you pay for. I have people who walk into my shop and they are actually mad that their $300 pressure washer is junk. They just bought it a year ago. What did you expect? You purchased a $300 machine in a category where quality does not start until $700. Do not buy garbage. Buy quality products and they will take care of you. Spend the money once, maintain your things, and forget about it for years and years.
 
I hope this helps all those who want to know more about pressure washers!

I am a small engine mechanic/power tool repair technician/certified pressure washer technician, certified by BE Pressure in Abbotsford, Canada. So, I may be able to help you out.
 
Unfortunatly, there are virtually no Made In USA pressure washers left on the market. Almost every pump on the market is made in Italy. If it isn't made in Italy, it was made in China.
 
There are two styles of pressure washer pumps, Axial, and Triplex. Axial is much like it sounds. You have 3 pistons in a circulator pattern, that are driven by an offset wobble plate. This style of pump is the cheapest of the cheap, and designed specifically for low manufacturing cost, and high profit for the big box store selling it. The life expectancy of this style pump, regardless of brand, is around 300 - 400 hours. This style of pump is also seen on vertical shaft pressure washers. Always avoid vertical shaft pressure washers. These are the type of machines with a lawn mower type engine on them, and the pump mounted underneath the cart itself. These pumps, literally, are designed to last 20 hours. Yes, JUST 20 hours. The pumps themselves cost $22 to produce in China.
 
Triplex pumps are the real deal, heavy duty. They are designed like an internal combustion engine. There is a crankshaft with large bearings at both ends, connecting rods, and pistons. These pumps are a lot more money, but the life expectancy of a quality Triplex pump is 3,000 hours. 10 times that of an axial.
 
You have belt drive, and direct drive. Direct drive is like it sounds. The pump is bolted directly to the rear of the engine. This cheaper to produce, much easier to maintain. The downside is pump life. Because the pump is bolted solid to the engine, it is now absorbing vibration and heat from your engine. It decreases the life of your pump. Remember how I said Triplex pumps are rated for 3,000 hours? Yes, on a direct drive. On a belt drive, that same pump would last 4,500 - 5,000 hours.
 
What is the downside to a belt drive than? Cost, maintenance, weight, and size. Belt drive pressure washers are a LOT more money. For example, a 13HP GX390 with a General EZ4040 pump, 4,000 PSI @ 4GPM, will cost you about $1,100. Take that same unit as a belt drive, $1,600. Because the entire belt drive system needs a lot more room, the cart is usually a fair amount larger. This adds weights and increases the unit size. Even with 2 big guys, it is difficult and very hard on the back to lift a belt drive into and out of a truck. The maintenance aspect is also an issue. You need to keep a constant eye on the belt tension and condition. The belts stretch and loosen frequently. Once the belt starts slipping, it will chew through rubber in no time. It can be a PIA to tighten these belts, especially on a regular basis. For a time sensitive commercial operation, it is a time waster. The advantage is, like I said, you get an average of 1,500 hours extra life out of your pump. This is because the pump is not mounted to the engine, so it does not absorb engine vibrations or heat. The pulley on the belt drive pump also has cooling fins built into it, so it blows cool air over the pump as it is running. Belt drive pumps run 25% cooler than a direct drive on average.
 
As far as engines go, nothing can beat a GX Honda engine. All pressure washers with a 7HP or smaller engine, will have a 3/4'' key shaft. All engines larger than 7 HP will have a 1'' key shaft. The two best engines on the market is the 6.5HP Honda GX 200, and the 13HP Honda GX 390. When a 15 year old Honda GX engine comes into my shop and the pump is shot, we test the compression, find it is 85% of a new engine, slap a new pump on and you go another 15 years. STAY AWAY from Honda gc series engines. Honda gc engines have plastic internal gears, GX engines have steel gears. I throw at least 4 or 5 GC160/GC190 engines in the scrap bin per month, because of broken internal gears.
 
The 3 most popular brands of pumps is Comet, General, and Cat. Cat pumps have the reputation of being the best out there, but I disagree. From my experience as a Technician, General has the best system, here is why. General pumps generally have half as many parts as a Comet or Cat, and last longer. Parts are cheaper, and easy to find. Cat parts are VERY expensive, and can be hard to locate. Cat pumps have a 1 piece cast body, which is good to prevent oil leaks. However, it makes the pump more time consuming to rebuild when you do, simply because lack of space. Comet makes a good pump, it is a good balance between being cheap and still having some quality to it.
 
Unloaders, internal or external. Cheaper pumps come with an internal or "Built-In" unloader. This is NOT the way to go if you want a machine to last you for 20 years. They are more difficult to repair as they are located inside of the pump manifold. When your pressure washer is running, and you are NOT pulling the trigger, water is recycling, looping, inside of your manifold. Let's say you stop for a minute to move your ladder, but do not shut off your unit. Water is looping inside the manifold, obsorbing heat from your pumps metal components. In just 90 seconds, you will melt down your seals, and there is a good chance your pump will need a rebuild after that. Pumps these days come with a Thermal valve on them. Once the water reaches the temperature of 172 degrees F, it will trigger this valve and start spewing water. This is NOT a system designed to save your butt. Like a low oil pressure light, once this valve triggers, it is almost always too late. These valves can not be reset. Once it goes, it must be replaced. Normal cost is about $15. The reason they cannot be reset is because of warranty. Manufactuers started doing this because people would claim warranty on a burnt out pump, and they had no way to prove it was the customer abusing the product. This way, as soon as your unit goes in for warranty, and they hook it up and see your thermal valve leaking, it is an instant decline, you idled too long.
 
External unloaders are just like they sound, mounted on the outside of the pump manifold. They usually come with a 2 foot piece of rubber hose on the unloader, that is hooked back into the low pressure feed where the garden hose is connected. This will still loop water in your manifold, but gives you a larger window of time to idle, because the water has 2 feet of hose to go through. This gives it some time to cool down. Still, this is not ideal. You extend your time from 90 seconds to maybe 3 minutes at best. The best way to configure an unloader is to discharge water to the ground. What I mean by this is when you let go of your trigger, water will run out of the unloader hose, onto the ground. This happens at garden hose pressure, not 4,000 PSI. This means your pump is always getting cold water. With an external unloader setup configured to discharge to the ground, you could literally leave your machine running for hours without pulling the trigger, and it will not hurt a single thing.
 
A lot of people think the unloader with the big knob on it, also controls the pressure. You turn this knob and you increase or decrease pressure, wrong. The unloader knob controls volume, which in turn controls pressure. If you decrease your volume, you have less overall water to make pressure with. So while you may think you are decreasing your pressure, you are also decreasing your volume as well. Volume, or Gallons Per Minute, is what really has the cleaning power. GPM is more important than PSI.
 
Last but not least, do not leave old fuel in your machine over the winter. Fuel these days is loaded with ethanol, which breaks down very fast. After just two months, regular gasoline will start to form a hard varnish in your carburator, and the jet inside of it. The holes on the jet will plug solid, and the unit won't run. 7 out of 10 pressure washers that come to me because of no-start are because the machine was left with old fuel in it, or someone put old fuel into it, thinking it was still ok.
 
Do not confuse the degree pattern of your tips for the orifice size. I see people everyday who are looking for new tips, and they just purchase tips by the color. "Oh I need a yellow tip" I say, ok but what orifice size. Than I get the look like im speaking another language. The degree of your spray pattern, is only how wide it is. The orifice size of the tip, is how large the hole is in the tip. THIS MATTERS. You need to know your PSI, and GPM, to determine the correct orifice size tips for your pressure washer. Also, replace your tips every 500 hours or so of use. Water may look crystal clear but it isn't. Water out of your hose has a lot of minerals, and abrasives in it that the human eye cannot see. These are being forced out of your tip at high pressure. They will wear out your tips and enlarge the hole, slowly but surely. If you increase your orifice size, you will gain volume, but lose pressure. If you decrease your orifice size, you will lose volume, but gain pressure. Some people think they can just buy a tip too small to get an increase in pressure. No, you can't. If your tips cannot flow the GPM of the pump, water will be recycling inside of your manifold, even while the trigger is pulled. If your tips only allow a maximum of 3GPM to get through, and your pump is a 4GPM pump, you are recycling 1GPM of water without knowing it. Your pump will slowly start to overheat. One thing you can never, ever change, is the volume of your pump. You can never change the GPM of your pump.
 
Some people decrease the throttle on the engine to lower pressure, if they need a lower pressure for a specific task. Never attain lower pressure this way. The cooling fan for a small engine is bolted directly to the flywheel. The engine is designed to operate at full throttle, and to maintain proper temperature with the flywheel at max RPM. When your throttle your engine down, it is lugging, working hard to turn your pump. It is actually creating more heat at 50% throttle than 100%. Now you have twice as much heat, and only half as much cooling as the engine needs. Always run at full RPM.
 
Try to get as much water as possible out of your pump before winter comes. Blow through it with an air compressor. Any large water deposits left will freeze, and crack your manifold wide open. Your pump is now garbage.
 
My advice, always remember that you get what you pay for. I have people who walk into my shop and they are actually mad that their $300 pressure washer is junk. They just bought it a year ago. What did you expect? You purchased a $300 machine in a category where quality does not start until $700. Do not buy garbage. Buy quality products and they will take care of you. Spend the money once, maintain your things, and forget about it for years and years.
 
I hope this helps all those who want to know more about pressure washers!

Don't be fooled by HP numbers.
 
Products such as the Air Force Master Baster for example, claim to have two, 4HP motors. That is impossible on 110 volt line, even almost impossible on 220.
 
Any household outlet can not run anything larger than a 2HP electric device. At 2HP, the motor will draw 15 amps, even at constant operation. On start-up, it will draw close to, or sometimes even over, 20 amps. Older houses have 15 amp breakers, newer houses have 20, but not everywhere, sometimes only in the kitchen.
 
So, you are not getting the HP you think you are. It's like when people buy a compressor from Home Depot and it says 5 HP, yet plugs into a 110 outlet. It is impossible to produce anything more than 2HP MAX with a 110 outlet.
 
220 is limited to about 5 HP. Big compressors for example, 7.5HP and over, require over 400 volts, wiring only found in industrial shops in industrial areas.

I am a small engine mechanic/power tool repair technician/certified pressure washer technician, certified by BE Pressure in Abbotsford, Canada. So, I may be able to help you out.
 
Unfortunatly, there are virtually no Made In USA pressure washers left on the market. Almost every pump on the market is made in Italy. If it isn't made in Italy, it was made in China.
 
There are two styles of pressure washer pumps, Axial, and Triplex. Axial is much like it sounds. You have 3 pistons in a circulator pattern, that are driven by an offset wobble plate. This style of pump is the cheapest of the cheap, and designed specifically for low manufacturing cost, and high profit for the big box store selling it. The life expectancy of this style pump, regardless of brand, is around 300 - 400 hours. This style of pump is also seen on vertical shaft pressure washers. Always avoid vertical shaft pressure washers. These are the type of machines with a lawn mower type engine on them, and the pump mounted underneath the cart itself. These pumps, literally, are designed to last 20 hours. Yes, JUST 20 hours. The pumps themselves cost $22 to produce in China.
 
Triplex pumps are the real deal, heavy duty. They are designed like an internal combustion engine. There is a crankshaft with large bearings at both ends, connecting rods, and pistons. These pumps are a lot more money, but the life expectancy of a quality Triplex pump is 3,000 hours. 10 times that of an axial.
 
You have belt drive, and direct drive. Direct drive is like it sounds. The pump is bolted directly to the rear of the engine. This cheaper to produce, much easier to maintain. The downside is pump life. Because the pump is bolted solid to the engine, it is now absorbing vibration and heat from your engine. It decreases the life of your pump. Remember how I said Triplex pumps are rated for 3,000 hours? Yes, on a direct drive. On a belt drive, that same pump would last 4,500 - 5,000 hours.
 
What is the downside to a belt drive than? Cost, maintenance, weight, and size. Belt drive pressure washers are a LOT more money. For example, a 13HP GX390 with a General EZ4040 pump, 4,000 PSI @ 4GPM, will cost you about $1,100. Take that same unit as a belt drive, $1,600. Because the entire belt drive system needs a lot more room, the cart is usually a fair amount larger. This adds weights and increases the unit size. Even with 2 big guys, it is difficult and very hard on the back to lift a belt drive into and out of a truck. The maintenance aspect is also an issue. You need to keep a constant eye on the belt tension and condition. The belts stretch and loosen frequently. Once the belt starts slipping, it will chew through rubber in no time. It can be a PIA to tighten these belts, especially on a regular basis. For a time sensitive commercial operation, it is a time waster. The advantage is, like I said, you get an average of 1,500 hours extra life out of your pump. This is because the pump is not mounted to the engine, so it does not absorb engine vibrations or heat. The pulley on the belt drive pump also has cooling fins built into it, so it blows cool air over the pump as it is running. Belt drive pumps run 25% cooler than a direct drive on average.
 
As far as engines go, nothing can beat a GX Honda engine. All pressure washers with a 7HP or smaller engine, will have a 3/4'' key shaft. All engines larger than 7 HP will have a 1'' key shaft. The two best engines on the market is the 6.5HP Honda GX 200, and the 13HP Honda GX 390. When a 15 year old Honda GX engine comes into my shop and the pump is shot, we test the compression, find it is 85% of a new engine, slap a new pump on and you go another 15 years. STAY AWAY from Honda gc series engines. Honda gc engines have plastic internal gears, GX engines have steel gears. I throw at least 4 or 5 GC160/GC190 engines in the scrap bin per month, because of broken internal gears.
 
The 3 most popular brands of pumps is Comet, General, and Cat. Cat pumps have the reputation of being the best out there, but I disagree. From my experience as a Technician, General has the best system, here is why. General pumps generally have half as many parts as a Comet or Cat, and last longer. Parts are cheaper, and easy to find. Cat parts are VERY expensive, and can be hard to locate. Cat pumps have a 1 piece cast body, which is good to prevent oil leaks. However, it makes the pump more time consuming to rebuild when you do, simply because lack of space. Comet makes a good pump, it is a good balance between being cheap and still having some quality to it.
 
Unloaders, internal or external. Cheaper pumps come with an internal or "Built-In" unloader. This is NOT the way to go if you want a machine to last you for 20 years. They are more difficult to repair as they are located inside of the pump manifold. When your pressure washer is running, and you are NOT pulling the trigger, water is recycling, looping, inside of your manifold. Let's say you stop for a minute to move your ladder, but do not shut off your unit. Water is looping inside the manifold, obsorbing heat from your pumps metal components. In just 90 seconds, you will melt down your seals, and there is a good chance your pump will need a rebuild after that. Pumps these days come with a Thermal valve on them. Once the water reaches the temperature of 172 degrees F, it will trigger this valve and start spewing water. This is NOT a system designed to save your butt. Like a low oil pressure light, once this valve triggers, it is almost always too late. These valves can not be reset. Once it goes, it must be replaced. Normal cost is about $15. The reason they cannot be reset is because of warranty. Manufactuers started doing this because people would claim warranty on a burnt out pump, and they had no way to prove it was the customer abusing the product. This way, as soon as your unit goes in for warranty, and they hook it up and see your thermal valve leaking, it is an instant decline, you idled too long.
 
External unloaders are just like they sound, mounted on the outside of the pump manifold. They usually come with a 2 foot piece of rubber hose on the unloader, that is hooked back into the low pressure feed where the garden hose is connected. This will still loop water in your manifold, but gives you a larger window of time to idle, because the water has 2 feet of hose to go through. This gives it some time to cool down. Still, this is not ideal. You extend your time from 90 seconds to maybe 3 minutes at best. The best way to configure an unloader is to discharge water to the ground. What I mean by this is when you let go of your trigger, water will run out of the unloader hose, onto the ground. This happens at garden hose pressure, not 4,000 PSI. This means your pump is always getting cold water. With an external unloader setup configured to discharge to the ground, you could literally leave your machine running for hours without pulling the trigger, and it will not hurt a single thing.
 
A lot of people think the unloader with the big knob on it, also controls the pressure. You turn this knob and you increase or decrease pressure, wrong. The unloader knob controls volume, which in turn controls pressure. If you decrease your volume, you have less overall water to make pressure with. So while you may think you are decreasing your pressure, you are also decreasing your volume as well. Volume, or Gallons Per Minute, is what really has the cleaning power. GPM is more important than PSI.
 
Last but not least, do not leave old fuel in your machine over the winter. Fuel these days is loaded with ethanol, which breaks down very fast. After just two months, regular gasoline will start to form a hard varnish in your carburator, and the jet inside of it. The holes on the jet will plug solid, and the unit won't run. 7 out of 10 pressure washers that come to me because of no-start are because the machine was left with old fuel in it, or someone put old fuel into it, thinking it was still ok.
 
Do not confuse the degree pattern of your tips for the orifice size. I see people everyday who are looking for new tips, and they just purchase tips by the color. "Oh I need a yellow tip" I say, ok but what orifice size. Than I get the look like im speaking another language. The degree of your spray pattern, is only how wide it is. The orifice size of the tip, is how large the hole is in the tip. THIS MATTERS. You need to know your PSI, and GPM, to determine the correct orifice size tips for your pressure washer. Also, replace your tips every 500 hours or so of use. Water may look crystal clear but it isn't. Water out of your hose has a lot of minerals, and abrasives in it that the human eye cannot see. These are being forced out of your tip at high pressure. They will wear out your tips and enlarge the hole, slowly but surely. If you increase your orifice size, you will gain volume, but lose pressure. If you decrease your orifice size, you will lose volume, but gain pressure. Some people think they can just buy a tip too small to get an increase in pressure. No, you can't. If your tips cannot flow the GPM of the pump, water will be recycling inside of your manifold, even while the trigger is pulled. If your tips only allow a maximum of 3GPM to get through, and your pump is a 4GPM pump, you are recycling 1GPM of water without knowing it. Your pump will slowly start to overheat. One thing you can never, ever change, is the volume of your pump. You can never change the GPM of your pump.
 
Some people decrease the throttle on the engine to lower pressure, if they need a lower pressure for a specific task. Never attain lower pressure this way. The cooling fan for a small engine is bolted directly to the flywheel. The engine is designed to operate at full throttle, and to maintain proper temperature with the flywheel at max RPM. When your throttle your engine down, it is lugging, working hard to turn your pump. It is actually creating more heat at 50% throttle than 100%. Now you have twice as much heat, and only half as much cooling as the engine needs. Always run at full RPM.
 
Try to get as much water as possible out of your pump before winter comes. Blow through it with an air compressor. Any large water deposits left will freeze, and crack your manifold wide open. Your pump is now garbage.
 
My advice, always remember that you get what you pay for. I have people who walk into my shop and they are actually mad that their $300 pressure washer is junk. They just bought it a year ago. What did you expect? You purchased a $300 machine in a category where quality does not start until $700. Do not buy garbage. Buy quality products and they will take care of you. Spend the money once, maintain your things, and forget about it for years and years.
 
I hope this helps all those who want to know more about pressure washers!

I am a small engine mechanic/power tool repair technician/certified pressure washer technician, certified by BE Pressure in Abbotsford, Canada. So, I may be able to help you out.
 
Unfortunatly, there are virtually no Made In USA pressure washers left on the market. Almost every pump on the market is made in Italy. If it isn't made in Italy, it was made in China.
 
There are two styles of pressure washer pumps, Axial, and Triplex. Axial is much like it sounds. You have 3 pistons in a circulator pattern, that are driven by an offset wobble plate. This style of pump is the cheapest of the cheap, and designed specifically for low manufacturing cost, and high profit for the big box store selling it. The life expectancy of this style pump, regardless of brand, is around 300 - 400 hours. This style of pump is also seen on vertical shaft pressure washers. Always avoid vertical shaft pressure washers. These are the type of machines with a lawn mower type engine on them, and the pump mounted underneath the cart itself. These pumps, literally, are designed to last 20 hours. Yes, JUST 20 hours. The pumps themselves cost $22 to produce in China.
 
Triplex pumps are the real deal, heavy duty. They are designed like an internal combustion engine. There is a crankshaft with large bearings at both ends, connecting rods, and pistons. These pumps are a lot more money, but the life expectancy of a quality Triplex pump is 3,000 hours. 10 times that of an axial.
 
You have belt drive, and direct drive. Direct drive is like it sounds. The pump is bolted directly to the rear of the engine. This cheaper to produce, much easier to maintain. The downside is pump life. Because the pump is bolted solid to the engine, it is now absorbing vibration and heat from your engine. It decreases the life of your pump. Remember how I said Triplex pumps are rated for 3,000 hours? Yes, on a direct drive. On a belt drive, that same pump would last 4,500 - 5,000 hours.
 
What is the downside to a belt drive than? Cost, maintenance, weight, and size. Belt drive pressure washers are a LOT more money. For example, a 13HP GX390 with a General EZ4040 pump, 4,000 PSI @ 4GPM, will cost you about $1,100. Take that same unit as a belt drive, $1,600. Because the entire belt drive system needs a lot more room, the cart is usually a fair amount larger. This adds weights and increases the unit size. Even with 2 big guys, it is difficult and very hard on the back to lift a belt drive into and out of a truck. The maintenance aspect is also an issue. You need to keep a constant eye on the belt tension and condition. The belts stretch and loosen frequently. Once the belt starts slipping, it will chew through rubber in no time. It can be a PIA to tighten these belts, especially on a regular basis. For a time sensitive commercial operation, it is a time waster. The advantage is, like I said, you get an average of 1,500 hours extra life out of your pump. This is because the pump is not mounted to the engine, so it does not absorb engine vibrations or heat. The pulley on the belt drive pump also has cooling fins built into it, so it blows cool air over the pump as it is running. Belt drive pumps run 25% cooler than a direct drive on average.
 
As far as engines go, nothing can beat a GX Honda engine. All pressure washers with a 7HP or smaller engine, will have a 3/4'' key shaft. All engines larger than 7 HP will have a 1'' key shaft. The two best engines on the market is the 6.5HP Honda GX 200, and the 13HP Honda GX 390. When a 15 year old Honda GX engine comes into my shop and the pump is shot, we test the compression, find it is 85% of a new engine, slap a new pump on and you go another 15 years. STAY AWAY from Honda gc series engines. Honda gc engines have plastic internal gears, GX engines have steel gears. I throw at least 4 or 5 GC160/GC190 engines in the scrap bin per month, because of broken internal gears.
 
The 3 most popular brands of pumps is Comet, General, and Cat. Cat pumps have the reputation of being the best out there, but I disagree. From my experience as a Technician, General has the best system, here is why. General pumps generally have half as many parts as a Comet or Cat, and last longer. Parts are cheaper, and easy to find. Cat parts are VERY expensive, and can be hard to locate. Cat pumps have a 1 piece cast body, which is good to prevent oil leaks. However, it makes the pump more time consuming to rebuild when you do, simply because lack of space. Comet makes a good pump, it is a good balance between being cheap and still having some quality to it.
 
Unloaders, internal or external. Cheaper pumps come with an internal or "Built-In" unloader. This is NOT the way to go if you want a machine to last you for 20 years. They are more difficult to repair as they are located inside of the pump manifold. When your pressure washer is running, and you are NOT pulling the trigger, water is recycling, looping, inside of your manifold. Let's say you stop for a minute to move your ladder, but do not shut off your unit. Water is looping inside the manifold, obsorbing heat from your pumps metal components. In just 90 seconds, you will melt down your seals, and there is a good chance your pump will need a rebuild after that. Pumps these days come with a Thermal valve on them. Once the water reaches the temperature of 172 degrees F, it will trigger this valve and start spewing water. This is NOT a system designed to save your butt. Like a low oil pressure light, once this valve triggers, it is almost always too late. These valves can not be reset. Once it goes, it must be replaced. Normal cost is about $15. The reason they cannot be reset is because of warranty. Manufactuers started doing this because people would claim warranty on a burnt out pump, and they had no way to prove it was the customer abusing the product. This way, as soon as your unit goes in for warranty, and they hook it up and see your thermal valve leaking, it is an instant decline, you idled too long.
 
External unloaders are just like they sound, mounted on the outside of the pump manifold. They usually come with a 2 foot piece of rubber hose on the unloader, that is hooked back into the low pressure feed where the garden hose is connected. This will still loop water in your manifold, but gives you a larger window of time to idle, because the water has 2 feet of hose to go through. This gives it some time to cool down. Still, this is not ideal. You extend your time from 90 seconds to maybe 3 minutes at best. The best way to configure an unloader is to discharge water to the ground. What I mean by this is when you let go of your trigger, water will run out of the unloader hose, onto the ground. This happens at garden hose pressure, not 4,000 PSI. This means your pump is always getting cold water. With an external unloader setup configured to discharge to the ground, you could literally leave your machine running for hours without pulling the trigger, and it will not hurt a single thing.
 
A lot of people think the unloader with the big knob on it, also controls the pressure. You turn this knob and you increase or decrease pressure, wrong. The unloader knob controls volume, which in turn controls pressure. If you decrease your volume, you have less overall water to make pressure with. So while you may think you are decreasing your pressure, you are also decreasing your volume as well. Volume, or Gallons Per Minute, is what really has the cleaning power. GPM is more important than PSI.
 
Last but not least, do not leave old fuel in your machine over the winter. Fuel these days is loaded with ethanol, which breaks down very fast. After just two months, regular gasoline will start to form a hard varnish in your carburator, and the jet inside of it. The holes on the jet will plug solid, and the unit won't run. 7 out of 10 pressure washers that come to me because of no-start are because the machine was left with old fuel in it, or someone put old fuel into it, thinking it was still ok.
 
Do not confuse the degree pattern of your tips for the orifice size. I see people everyday who are looking for new tips, and they just purchase tips by the color. "Oh I need a yellow tip" I say, ok but what orifice size. Than I get the look like im speaking another language. The degree of your spray pattern, is only how wide it is. The orifice size of the tip, is how large the hole is in the tip. THIS MATTERS. You need to know your PSI, and GPM, to determine the correct orifice size tips for your pressure washer. Also, replace your tips every 500 hours or so of use. Water may look crystal clear but it isn't. Water out of your hose has a lot of minerals, and abrasives in it that the human eye cannot see. These are being forced out of your tip at high pressure. They will wear out your tips and enlarge the hole, slowly but surely. If you increase your orifice size, you will gain volume, but lose pressure. If you decrease your orifice size, you will lose volume, but gain pressure. Some people think they can just buy a tip too small to get an increase in pressure. No, you can't. If your tips cannot flow the GPM of the pump, water will be recycling inside of your manifold, even while the trigger is pulled. If your tips only allow a maximum of 3GPM to get through, and your pump is a 4GPM pump, you are recycling 1GPM of water without knowing it. Your pump will slowly start to overheat. One thing you can never, ever change, is the volume of your pump. You can never change the GPM of your pump.
 
Some people decrease the throttle on the engine to lower pressure, if they need a lower pressure for a specific task. Never attain lower pressure this way. The cooling fan for a small engine is bolted directly to the flywheel. The engine is designed to operate at full throttle, and to maintain proper temperature with the flywheel at max RPM. When your throttle your engine down, it is lugging, working hard to turn your pump. It is actually creating more heat at 50% throttle than 100%. Now you have twice as much heat, and only half as much cooling as the engine needs. Always run at full RPM.
 
Try to get as much water as possible out of your pump before winter comes. Blow through it with an air compressor. Any large water deposits left will freeze, and crack your manifold wide open. Your pump is now garbage.
 
My advice, always remember that you get what you pay for. I have people who walk into my shop and they are actually mad that their $300 pressure washer is junk. They just bought it a year ago. What did you expect? You purchased a $300 machine in a category where quality does not start until $700. Do not buy garbage. Buy quality products and they will take care of you. Spend the money once, maintain your things, and forget about it for years and years.
 
I hope this helps all those who want to know more about pressure washers!

I am a small engine mechanic/power tool repair technician/certified pressure washer technician, certified by BE Pressure in Abbotsford, Canada. So, I may be able to help you out.
 
Unfortunatly, there are virtually no Made In USA pressure washers left on the market. Almost every pump on the market is made in Italy. If it isn't made in Italy, it was made in China.
 
There are two styles of pressure washer pumps, Axial, and Triplex. Axial is much like it sounds. You have 3 pistons in a circulator pattern, that are driven by an offset wobble plate. This style of pump is the cheapest of the cheap, and designed specifically for low manufacturing cost, and high profit for the big box store selling it. The life expectancy of this style pump, regardless of brand, is around 300 - 400 hours. This style of pump is also seen on vertical shaft pressure washers. Always avoid vertical shaft pressure washers. These are the type of machines with a lawn mower type engine on them, and the pump mounted underneath the cart itself. These pumps, literally, are designed to last 20 hours. Yes, JUST 20 hours. The pumps themselves cost $22 to produce in China.
 
Triplex pumps are the real deal, heavy duty. They are designed like an internal combustion engine. There is a crankshaft with large bearings at both ends, connecting rods, and pistons. These pumps are a lot more money, but the life expectancy of a quality Triplex pump is 3,000 hours. 10 times that of an axial.
 
You have belt drive, and direct drive. Direct drive is like it sounds. The pump is bolted directly to the rear of the engine. This cheaper to produce, much easier to maintain. The downside is pump life. Because the pump is bolted solid to the engine, it is now absorbing vibration and heat from your engine. It decreases the life of your pump. Remember how I said Triplex pumps are rated for 3,000 hours? Yes, on a direct drive. On a belt drive, that same pump would last 4,500 - 5,000 hours.
 
What is the downside to a belt drive than? Cost, maintenance, weight, and size. Belt drive pressure washers are a LOT more money. For example, a 13HP GX390 with a General EZ4040 pump, 4,000 PSI @ 4GPM, will cost you about $1,100. Take that same unit as a belt drive, $1,600. Because the entire belt drive system needs a lot more room, the cart is usually a fair amount larger. This adds weights and increases the unit size. Even with 2 big guys, it is difficult and very hard on the back to lift a belt drive into and out of a truck. The maintenance aspect is also an issue. You need to keep a constant eye on the belt tension and condition. The belts stretch and loosen frequently. Once the belt starts slipping, it will chew through rubber in no time. It can be a PIA to tighten these belts, especially on a regular basis. For a time sensitive commercial operation, it is a time waster. The advantage is, like I said, you get an average of 1,500 hours extra life out of your pump. This is because the pump is not mounted to the engine, so it does not absorb engine vibrations or heat. The pulley on the belt drive pump also has cooling fins built into it, so it blows cool air over the pump as it is running. Belt drive pumps run 25% cooler than a direct drive on average.
 
As far as engines go, nothing can beat a GX Honda engine. All pressure washers with a 7HP or smaller engine, will have a 3/4'' key shaft. All engines larger than 7 HP will have a 1'' key shaft. The two best engines on the market is the 6.5HP Honda GX 200, and the 13HP Honda GX 390. When a 15 year old Honda GX engine comes into my shop and the pump is shot, we test the compression, find it is 85% of a new engine, slap a new pump on and you go another 15 years. STAY AWAY from Honda gc series engines. Honda gc engines have plastic internal gears, GX engines have steel gears. I throw at least 4 or 5 GC160/GC190 engines in the scrap bin per month, because of broken internal gears.
 
The 3 most popular brands of pumps is Comet, General, and Cat. Cat pumps have the reputation of being the best out there, but I disagree. From my experience as a Technician, General has the best system, here is why. General pumps generally have half as many parts as a Comet or Cat, and last longer. Parts are cheaper, and easy to find. Cat parts are VERY expensive, and can be hard to locate. Cat pumps have a 1 piece cast body, which is good to prevent oil leaks. However, it makes the pump more time consuming to rebuild when you do, simply because lack of space. Comet makes a good pump, it is a good balance between being cheap and still having some quality to it.
 
Unloaders, internal or external. Cheaper pumps come with an internal or "Built-In" unloader. This is NOT the way to go if you want a machine to last you for 20 years. They are more difficult to repair as they are located inside of the pump manifold. When your pressure washer is running, and you are NOT pulling the trigger, water is recycling, looping, inside of your manifold. Let's say you stop for a minute to move your ladder, but do not shut off your unit. Water is looping inside the manifold, obsorbing heat from your pumps metal components. In just 90 seconds, you will melt down your seals, and there is a good chance your pump will need a rebuild after that. Pumps these days come with a Thermal valve on them. Once the water reaches the temperature of 172 degrees F, it will trigger this valve and start spewing water. This is NOT a system designed to save your butt. Like a low oil pressure light, once this valve triggers, it is almost always too late. These valves can not be reset. Once it goes, it must be replaced. Normal cost is about $15. The reason they cannot be reset is because of warranty. Manufactuers started doing this because people would claim warranty on a burnt out pump, and they had no way to prove it was the customer abusing the product. This way, as soon as your unit goes in for warranty, and they hook it up and see your thermal valve leaking, it is an instant decline, you idled too long.
 
External unloaders are just like they sound, mounted on the outside of the pump manifold. They usually come with a 2 foot piece of rubber hose on the unloader, that is hooked back into the low pressure feed where the garden hose is connected. This will still loop water in your manifold, but gives you a larger window of time to idle, because the water has 2 feet of hose to go through. This gives it some time to cool down. Still, this is not ideal. You extend your time from 90 seconds to maybe 3 minutes at best. The best way to configure an unloader is to discharge water to the ground. What I mean by this is when you let go of your trigger, water will run out of the unloader hose, onto the ground. This happens at garden hose pressure, not 4,000 PSI. This means your pump is always getting cold water. With an external unloader setup configured to discharge to the ground, you could literally leave your machine running for hours without pulling the trigger, and it will not hurt a single thing.
 
A lot of people think the unloader with the big knob on it, also controls the pressure. You turn this knob and you increase or decrease pressure, wrong. The unloader knob controls volume, which in turn controls pressure. If you decrease your volume, you have less overall water to make pressure with. So while you may think you are decreasing your pressure, you are also decreasing your volume as well. Volume, or Gallons Per Minute, is what really has the cleaning power. GPM is more important than PSI.
 
Last but not least, do not leave old fuel in your machine over the winter. Fuel these days is loaded with ethanol, which breaks down very fast. After just two months, regular gasoline will start to form a hard varnish in your carburator, and the jet inside of it. The holes on the jet will plug solid, and the unit won't run. 7 out of 10 pressure washers that come to me because of no-start are because the machine was left with old fuel in it, or someone put old fuel into it, thinking it was still ok.
 
Do not confuse the degree pattern of your tips for the orifice size. I see people everyday who are looking for new tips, and they just purchase tips by the color. "Oh I need a yellow tip" I say, ok but what orifice size. Than I get the look like im speaking another language. The degree of your spray pattern, is only how wide it is. The orifice size of the tip, is how large the hole is in the tip. THIS MATTERS. You need to know your PSI, and GPM, to determine the correct orifice size tips for your pressure washer. Also, replace your tips every 500 hours or so of use. Water may look crystal clear but it isn't. Water out of your hose has a lot of minerals, and abrasives in it that the human eye cannot see. These are being forced out of your tip at high pressure. They will wear out your tips and enlarge the hole, slowly but surely. If you increase your orifice size, you will gain volume, but lose pressure. If you decrease your orifice size, you will lose volume, but gain pressure. Some people think they can just buy a tip too small to get an increase in pressure. No, you can't. If your tips cannot flow the GPM of the pump, water will be recycling inside of your manifold, even while the trigger is pulled. If your tips only allow a maximum of 3GPM to get through, and your pump is a 4GPM pump, you are recycling 1GPM of water without knowing it. Your pump will slowly start to overheat. One thing you can never, ever change, is the volume of your pump. You can never change the GPM of your pump.
 
Some people decrease the throttle on the engine to lower pressure, if they need a lower pressure for a specific task. Never attain lower pressure this way. The cooling fan for a small engine is bolted directly to the flywheel. The engine is designed to operate at full throttle, and to maintain proper temperature with the flywheel at max RPM. When your throttle your engine down, it is lugging, working hard to turn your pump. It is actually creating more heat at 50% throttle than 100%. Now you have twice as much heat, and only half as much cooling as the engine needs. Always run at full RPM.
 
Try to get as much water as possible out of your pump before winter comes. Blow through it with an air compressor. Any large water deposits left will freeze, and crack your manifold wide open. Your pump is now garbage.
 
My advice, always remember that you get what you pay for. I have people who walk into my shop and they are actually mad that their $300 pressure washer is junk. They just bought it a year ago. What did you expect? You purchased a $300 machine in a category where quality does not start until $700. Do not buy garbage. Buy quality products and they will take care of you. Spend the money once, maintain your things, and forget about it for years and years.
 
I hope this helps all those who want to know more about pressure washers!

I am a small engine mechanic/power tool repair technician/certified pressure washer technician, certified by BE Pressure in Abbotsford, Canada. So, I may be able to help you out.
 
Unfortunatly, there are virtually no Made In USA pressure washers left on the market. Almost every pump on the market is made in Italy. If it isn't made in Italy, it was made in China.
 
There are two styles of pressure washer pumps, Axial, and Triplex. Axial is much like it sounds. You have 3 pistons in a circulator pattern, that are driven by an offset wobble plate. This style of pump is the cheapest of the cheap, and designed specifically for low manufacturing cost, and high profit for the big box store selling it. The life expectancy of this style pump, regardless of brand, is around 300 - 400 hours. This style of pump is also seen on vertical shaft pressure washers. Always avoid vertical shaft pressure washers. These are the type of machines with a lawn mower type engine on them, and the pump mounted underneath the cart itself. These pumps, literally, are designed to last 20 hours. Yes, JUST 20 hours. The pumps themselves cost $22 to produce in China.
 
Triplex pumps are the real deal, heavy duty. They are designed like an internal combustion engine. There is a crankshaft with large bearings at both ends, connecting rods, and pistons. These pumps are a lot more money, but the life expectancy of a quality Triplex pump is 3,000 hours. 10 times that of an axial.
 
You have belt drive, and direct drive. Direct drive is like it sounds. The pump is bolted directly to the rear of the engine. This cheaper to produce, much easier to maintain. The downside is pump life. Because the pump is bolted solid to the engine, it is now absorbing vibration and heat from your engine. It decreases the life of your pump. Remember how I said Triplex pumps are rated for 3,000 hours? Yes, on a direct drive. On a belt drive, that same pump would last 4,500 - 5,000 hours.
 
What is the downside to a belt drive than? Cost, maintenance, weight, and size. Belt drive pressure washers are a LOT more money. For example, a 13HP GX390 with a General EZ4040 pump, 4,000 PSI @ 4GPM, will cost you about $1,100. Take that same unit as a belt drive, $1,600. Because the entire belt drive system needs a lot more room, the cart is usually a fair amount larger. This adds weights and increases the unit size. Even with 2 big guys, it is difficult and very hard on the back to lift a belt drive into and out of a truck. The maintenance aspect is also an issue. You need to keep a constant eye on the belt tension and condition. The belts stretch and loosen frequently. Once the belt starts slipping, it will chew through rubber in no time. It can be a PIA to tighten these belts, especially on a regular basis. For a time sensitive commercial operation, it is a time waster. The advantage is, like I said, you get an average of 1,500 hours extra life out of your pump. This is because the pump is not mounted to the engine, so it does not absorb engine vibrations or heat. The pulley on the belt drive pump also has cooling fins built into it, so it blows cool air over the pump as it is running. Belt drive pumps run 25% cooler than a direct drive on average.
 
As far as engines go, nothing can beat a GX Honda engine. All pressure washers with a 7HP or smaller engine, will have a 3/4'' key shaft. All engines larger than 7 HP will have a 1'' key shaft. The two best engines on the market is the 6.5HP Honda GX 200, and the 13HP Honda GX 390. When a 15 year old Honda GX engine comes into my shop and the pump is shot, we test the compression, find it is 85% of a new engine, slap a new pump on and you go another 15 years. STAY AWAY from Honda gc series engines. Honda gc engines have plastic internal gears, GX engines have steel gears. I throw at least 4 or 5 GC160/GC190 engines in the scrap bin per month, because of broken internal gears.
 
The 3 most popular brands of pumps is Comet, General, and Cat. Cat pumps have the reputation of being the best out there, but I disagree. From my experience as a Technician, General has the best system, here is why. General pumps generally have half as many parts as a Comet or Cat, and last longer. Parts are cheaper, and easy to find. Cat parts are VERY expensive, and can be hard to locate. Cat pumps have a 1 piece cast body, which is good to prevent oil leaks. However, it makes the pump more time consuming to rebuild when you do, simply because lack of space. Comet makes a good pump, it is a good balance between being cheap and still having some quality to it.
 
Unloaders, internal or external. Cheaper pumps come with an internal or "Built-In" unloader. This is NOT the way to go if you want a machine to last you for 20 years. They are more difficult to repair as they are located inside of the pump manifold. When your pressure washer is running, and you are NOT pulling the trigger, water is recycling, looping, inside of your manifold. Let's say you stop for a minute to move your ladder, but do not shut off your unit. Water is looping inside the manifold, obsorbing heat from your pumps metal components. In just 90 seconds, you will melt down your seals, and there is a good chance your pump will need a rebuild after that. Pumps these days come with a Thermal valve on them. Once the water reaches the temperature of 172 degrees F, it will trigger this valve and start spewing water. This is NOT a system designed to save your butt. Like a low oil pressure light, once this valve triggers, it is almost always too late. These valves can not be reset. Once it goes, it must be replaced. Normal cost is about $15. The reason they cannot be reset is because of warranty. Manufactuers started doing this because people would claim warranty on a burnt out pump, and they had no way to prove it was the customer abusing the product. This way, as soon as your unit goes in for warranty, and they hook it up and see your thermal valve leaking, it is an instant decline, you idled too long.
 
External unloaders are just like they sound, mounted on the outside of the pump manifold. They usually come with a 2 foot piece of rubber hose on the unloader, that is hooked back into the low pressure feed where the garden hose is connected. This will still loop water in your manifold, but gives you a larger window of time to idle, because the water has 2 feet of hose to go through. This gives it some time to cool down. Still, this is not ideal. You extend your time from 90 seconds to maybe 3 minutes at best. The best way to configure an unloader is to discharge water to the ground. What I mean by this is when you let go of your trigger, water will run out of the unloader hose, onto the ground. This happens at garden hose pressure, not 4,000 PSI. This means your pump is always getting cold water. With an external unloader setup configured to discharge to the ground, you could literally leave your machine running for hours without pulling the trigger, and it will not hurt a single thing.
 
A lot of people think the unloader with the big knob on it, also controls the pressure. You turn this knob and you increase or decrease pressure, wrong. The unloader knob controls volume, which in turn controls pressure. If you decrease your volume, you have less overall water to make pressure with. So while you may think you are decreasing your pressure, you are also decreasing your volume as well. Volume, or Gallons Per Minute, is what really has the cleaning power. GPM is more important than PSI.
 
Last but not least, do not leave old fuel in your machine over the winter. Fuel these days is loaded with ethanol, which breaks down very fast. After just two months, regular gasoline will start to form a hard varnish in your carburator, and the jet inside of it. The holes on the jet will plug solid, and the unit won't run. 7 out of 10 pressure washers that come to me because of no-start are because the machine was left with old fuel in it, or someone put old fuel into it, thinking it was still ok.
 
Do not confuse the degree pattern of your tips for the orifice size. I see people everyday who are looking for new tips, and they just purchase tips by the color. "Oh I need a yellow tip" I say, ok but what orifice size. Than I get the look like im speaking another language. The degree of your spray pattern, is only how wide it is. The orifice size of the tip, is how large the hole is in the tip. THIS MATTERS. You need to know your PSI, and GPM, to determine the correct orifice size tips for your pressure washer. Also, replace your tips every 500 hours or so of use. Water may look crystal clear but it isn't. Water out of your hose has a lot of minerals, and abrasives in it that the human eye cannot see. These are being forced out of your tip at high pressure. They will wear out your tips and enlarge the hole, slowly but surely. If you increase your orifice size, you will gain volume, but lose pressure. If you decrease your orifice size, you will lose volume, but gain pressure. Some people think they can just buy a tip too small to get an increase in pressure. No, you can't. If your tips cannot flow the GPM of the pump, water will be recycling inside of your manifold, even while the trigger is pulled. If your tips only allow a maximum of 3GPM to get through, and your pump is a 4GPM pump, you are recycling 1GPM of water without knowing it. Your pump will slowly start to overheat. One thing you can never, ever change, is the volume of your pump. You can never change the GPM of your pump.
 
Some people decrease the throttle on the engine to lower pressure, if they need a lower pressure for a specific task. Never attain lower pressure this way. The cooling fan for a small engine is bolted directly to the flywheel. The engine is designed to operate at full throttle, and to maintain proper temperature with the flywheel at max RPM. When your throttle your engine down, it is lugging, working hard to turn your pump. It is actually creating more heat at 50% throttle than 100%. Now you have twice as much heat, and only half as much cooling as the engine needs. Always run at full RPM.
 
Try to get as much water as possible out of your pump before winter comes. Blow through it with an air compressor. Any large water deposits left will freeze, and crack your manifold wide open. Your pump is now garbage.
 
My advice, always remember that you get what you pay for. I have people who walk into my shop and they are actually mad that their $300 pressure washer is junk. They just bought it a year ago. What did you expect? You purchased a $300 machine in a category where quality does not start until $700. Do not buy garbage. Buy quality products and they will take care of you. Spend the money once, maintain your things, and forget about it for years and years.
 
I hope this helps all those who want to know more about pressure washers!

I am a small engine mechanic/power tool repair technician/certified pressure washer technician, certified by BE Pressure in Abbotsford, Canada. So, I may be able to help you out.
 
Unfortunatly, there are virtually no Made In USA pressure washers left on the market. Almost every pump on the market is made in Italy. If it isn't made in Italy, it was made in China.
 
There are two styles of pressure washer pumps, Axial, and Triplex. Axial is much like it sounds. You have 3 pistons in a circulator pattern, that are driven by an offset wobble plate. This style of pump is the cheapest of the cheap, and designed specifically for low manufacturing cost, and high profit for the big box store selling it. The life expectancy of this style pump, regardless of brand, is around 300 - 400 hours. This style of pump is also seen on vertical shaft pressure washers. Always avoid vertical shaft pressure washers. These are the type of machines with a lawn mower type engine on them, and the pump mounted underneath the cart itself. These pumps, literally, are designed to last 20 hours. Yes, JUST 20 hours. The pumps themselves cost $22 to produce in China.
 
Triplex pumps are the real deal, heavy duty. They are designed like an internal combustion engine. There is a crankshaft with large bearings at both ends, connecting rods, and pistons. These pumps are a lot more money, but the life expectancy of a quality Triplex pump is 3,000 hours. 10 times that of an axial.
 
You have belt drive, and direct drive. Direct drive is like it sounds. The pump is bolted directly to the rear of the engine. This cheaper to produce, much easier to maintain. The downside is pump life. Because the pump is bolted solid to the engine, it is now absorbing vibration and heat from your engine. It decreases the life of your pump. Remember how I said Triplex pumps are rated for 3,000 hours? Yes, on a direct drive. On a belt drive, that same pump would last 4,500 - 5,000 hours.
 
What is the downside to a belt drive than? Cost, maintenance, weight, and size. Belt drive pressure washers are a LOT more money. For example, a 13HP GX390 with a General EZ4040 pump, 4,000 PSI @ 4GPM, will cost you about $1,100. Take that same unit as a belt drive, $1,600. Because the entire belt drive system needs a lot more room, the cart is usually a fair amount larger. This adds weights and increases the unit size. Even with 2 big guys, it is difficult and very hard on the back to lift a belt drive into and out of a truck. The maintenance aspect is also an issue. You need to keep a constant eye on the belt tension and condition. The belts stretch and loosen frequently. Once the belt starts slipping, it will chew through rubber in no time. It can be a PIA to tighten these belts, especially on a regular basis. For a time sensitive commercial operation, it is a time waster. The advantage is, like I said, you get an average of 1,500 hours extra life out of your pump. This is because the pump is not mounted to the engine, so it does not absorb engine vibrations or heat. The pulley on the belt drive pump also has cooling fins built into it, so it blows cool air over the pump as it is running. Belt drive pumps run 25% cooler than a direct drive on average.
 
As far as engines go, nothing can beat a GX Honda engine. All pressure washers with a 7HP or smaller engine, will have a 3/4'' key shaft. All engines larger than 7 HP will have a 1'' key shaft. The two best engines on the market is the 6.5HP Honda GX 200, and the 13HP Honda GX 390. When a 15 year old Honda GX engine comes into my shop and the pump is shot, we test the compression, find it is 85% of a new engine, slap a new pump on and you go another 15 years. STAY AWAY from Honda gc series engines. Honda gc engines have plastic internal gears, GX engines have steel gears. I throw at least 4 or 5 GC160/GC190 engines in the scrap bin per month, because of broken internal gears.
 
The 3 most popular brands of pumps is Comet, General, and Cat. Cat pumps have the reputation of being the best out there, but I disagree. From my experience as a Technician, General has the best system, here is why. General pumps generally have half as many parts as a Comet or Cat, and last longer. Parts are cheaper, and easy to find. Cat parts are VERY expensive, and can be hard to locate. Cat pumps have a 1 piece cast body, which is good to prevent oil leaks. However, it makes the pump more time consuming to rebuild when you do, simply because lack of space. Comet makes a good pump, it is a good balance between being cheap and still having some quality to it.
 
Unloaders, internal or external. Cheaper pumps come with an internal or "Built-In" unloader. This is NOT the way to go if you want a machine to last you for 20 years. They are more difficult to repair as they are located inside of the pump manifold. When your pressure washer is running, and you are NOT pulling the trigger, water is recycling, looping, inside of your manifold. Let's say you stop for a minute to move your ladder, but do not shut off your unit. Water is looping inside the manifold, obsorbing heat from your pumps metal components. In just 90 seconds, you will melt down your seals, and there is a good chance your pump will need a rebuild after that. Pumps these days come with a Thermal valve on them. Once the water reaches the temperature of 172 degrees F, it will trigger this valve and start spewing water. This is NOT a system designed to save your butt. Like a low oil pressure light, once this valve triggers, it is almost always too late. These valves can not be reset. Once it goes, it must be replaced. Normal cost is about $15. The reason they cannot be reset is because of warranty. Manufactuers started doing this because people would claim warranty on a burnt out pump, and they had no way to prove it was the customer abusing the product. This way, as soon as your unit goes in for warranty, and they hook it up and see your thermal valve leaking, it is an instant decline, you idled too long.
 
External unloaders are just like they sound, mounted on the outside of the pump manifold. They usually come with a 2 foot piece of rubber hose on the unloader, that is hooked back into the low pressure feed where the garden hose is connected. This will still loop water in your manifold, but gives you a larger window of time to idle, because the water has 2 feet of hose to go through. This gives it some time to cool down. Still, this is not ideal. You extend your time from 90 seconds to maybe 3 minutes at best. The best way to configure an unloader is to discharge water to the ground. What I mean by this is when you let go of your trigger, water will run out of the unloader hose, onto the ground. This happens at garden hose pressure, not 4,000 PSI. This means your pump is always getting cold water. With an external unloader setup configured to discharge to the ground, you could literally leave your machine running for hours without pulling the trigger, and it will not hurt a single thing.
 
A lot of people think the unloader with the big knob on it, also controls the pressure. You turn this knob and you increase or decrease pressure, wrong. The unloader knob controls volume, which in turn controls pressure. If you decrease your volume, you have less overall water to make pressure with. So while you may think you are decreasing your pressure, you are also decreasing your volume as well. Volume, or Gallons Per Minute, is what really has the cleaning power. GPM is more important than PSI.
 
Last but not least, do not leave old fuel in your machine over the winter. Fuel these days is loaded with ethanol, which breaks down very fast. After just two months, regular gasoline will start to form a hard varnish in your carburator, and the jet inside of it. The holes on the jet will plug solid, and the unit won't run. 7 out of 10 pressure washers that come to me because of no-start are because the machine was left with old fuel in it, or someone put old fuel into it, thinking it was still ok.
 
Do not confuse the degree pattern of your tips for the orifice size. I see people everyday who are looking for new tips, and they just purchase tips by the color. "Oh I need a yellow tip" I say, ok but what orifice size. Than I get the look like im speaking another language. The degree of your spray pattern, is only how wide it is. The orifice size of the tip, is how large the hole is in the tip. THIS MATTERS. You need to know your PSI, and GPM, to determine the correct orifice size tips for your pressure washer. Also, replace your tips every 500 hours or so of use. Water may look crystal clear but it isn't. Water out of your hose has a lot of minerals, and abrasives in it that the human eye cannot see. These are being forced out of your tip at high pressure. They will wear out your tips and enlarge the hole, slowly but surely. If you increase your orifice size, you will gain volume, but lose pressure. If you decrease your orifice size, you will lose volume, but gain pressure. Some people think they can just buy a tip too small to get an increase in pressure. No, you can't. If your tips cannot flow the GPM of the pump, water will be recycling inside of your manifold, even while the trigger is pulled. If your tips only allow a maximum of 3GPM to get through, and your pump is a 4GPM pump, you are recycling 1GPM of water without knowing it. Your pump will slowly start to overheat. One thing you can never, ever change, is the volume of your pump. You can never change the GPM of your pump.
 
Some people decrease the throttle on the engine to lower pressure, if they need a lower pressure for a specific task. Never attain lower pressure this way. The cooling fan for a small engine is bolted directly to the flywheel. The engine is designed to operate at full throttle, and to maintain proper temperature with the flywheel at max RPM. When your throttle your engine down, it is lugging, working hard to turn your pump. It is actually creating more heat at 50% throttle than 100%. Now you have twice as much heat, and only half as much cooling as the engine needs. Always run at full RPM.
 
Try to get as much water as possible out of your pump before winter comes. Blow through it with an air compressor. Any large water deposits left will freeze, and crack your manifold wide open. Your pump is now garbage.
 
My advice, always remember that you get what you pay for. I have people who walk into my shop and they are actually mad that their $300 pressure washer is junk. They just bought it a year ago. What did you expect? You purchased a $300 machine in a category where quality does not start until $700. Do not buy garbage. Buy quality products and they will take care of you. Spend the money once, maintain your things, and forget about it for years and years.
 
I hope this helps all those who want to know more about pressure washers!