Mike Wood
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| posted on 9/5/20 at 09:16 AM |
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Power washing obsession?
Hi
What is it with the explosion of domestic use of power washers for seemingly needless and endless outdoor tasks (or displacement activity from indoor
jobs?) that have been generated by the acquisition of such kit? Anyone else observed this phenomenon or can explain it?
My neighbours (7 houses) each have their own power washers to obsessively clean - on what seems to be a far too regular basis - their patios, paths
and decks in a cacophony of excess water and electricity and probably unsatisfactory results of a series of partially connected blasted spots and
freshly exposed new substrate for mould growth! I can see no evidence of urban butchery that would necessitate such wash down either.
What is wrong with the seldom or never deployment of a brush, bucket and sparing rinsing by hose pipe to rinse off? Like me, they are all men over 50
- is this something I will suddenly find my self doing? Or should I just drill and rivet the panels to my locost chassis project in the garden!
Cheers
Mike
[Edited on 9/5/20 by Mike Wood]
[Edited on 9/5/20 by Mike Wood]
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SteveWalker
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| posted on 9/5/20 at 09:51 AM |
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They remove ingrained dirt that brushing does not. When I moved into this house. It had a patio. Over the years it was washed and brushed. Only when I
borrowed a power-washer did I discover that it was made up of grey, yellow and red paving slabs and not a uniform grey!
I do brush and rinse the driveway every so often, but a couple of times a year, I give it a power-wash. It takes hours, but the entire drive comes up
like new and slippery surfaces (a big risk for my wife due to joint, mobility and balance problems) become grippy again.
I find that power washing thoroughly, once in a while, is less effort overall than scrubbing regularly by brush.
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nick205
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| posted on 9/5/20 at 12:47 PM |
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Well said Mike!
My SWMBO loves her power washer and creates unnecessary noise, mess and waste using it. As do most our neighbours.
Drives me bonkers 
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coyoteboy
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| posted on 9/5/20 at 03:55 PM |
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Love mine, works a treat to remove moss and algae buildup on the path, cleans engine blocks nicely, can create a nice snow foam for washing the
cars.
Uses less water than a normal hose for cleaning the drive. Bucket and brush isn't really an option for that anyway.
If you have one, why not use it for things?
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ReMan
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| posted on 9/5/20 at 04:45 PM |
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Yes love mine. If it’s standing still it gets blasted.
I’d quite like to expand it to media blasting too if I had room, I find it very satisfying 
www.plusnine.co.uk
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Andybarbet
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| posted on 9/5/20 at 08:00 PM |
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I must admit, I do the patio, driveway & small decking area in March/April ish & also in September/October ish. No more than a few hours twice
a year.
It brings them up like new, no slip hazard for my wife who has MS & also looks nice. I can't see a problem myself but hey, funny things
annoy neighbours I suppose.
I hear mine moan if I fire up our pizza oven, maybe 4 or 5 times a year but they use a patio firepit 2 or 3 times a week, sometimes as early as 3pm on
a sunny day !
Each to their own I guess :-)
[Edited on 9/5/20 by Andybarbet]
Give a man a fish & it will feed him for a day, give him a fishing rod & you've saved a fish.
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Abe
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| posted on 9/5/20 at 09:45 PM |
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Love mine, makes washing my van much faster.
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MikeR
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| posted on 10/5/20 at 06:47 AM |
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A couple of neighbours wash their cars with them every week.
I always wonder if it's pushing water where it shouldn't.
It's it really safe pushing 100psi at close range at your car?
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nick205
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| posted on 10/5/20 at 07:28 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by MikeR
A couple of neighbours wash their cars with them every week.
I always wonder if it's pushing water where it shouldn't.
It's it really safe pushing 100psi at close range at your car?
Ditto
I'm not at all convinced they're good for washing vehicles, bikes and such. Forcing water that hard at things IMHO has to force muck and
water where it doesn't need to be. For bicycles my real concern is simply forcing water past bearing seals and shortening the service life of
often fragile and over expensive components on the bicycle. Some cyclists take good care of their bikes, very many cyclists simply don't.
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James
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| posted on 10/5/20 at 07:30 PM |
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Its rife here too. I do mine, at most once a year, usually August BH before we have our annual big BBQ party.
Next door does theirs all the time- frequently at the moment at about 12:30 on a sunny day- just as we're having lunch outside with the boys.
Last week, we waited till theyd stopped before having lunch... And then next door but 1 started up with 2 stihl hedgetrimmers! 
Friends of mine have a neighbour who does it EVERY Saturday at 8am!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"The fight is won or lost far away from witnesses, behind the lines, in the gym and out there on the road, long before I dance under those lights."
- Muhammad Ali
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Irony
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| posted on 11/5/20 at 07:19 AM |
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Powerwashed my deck and patio at the weekend and proud!!! I did scrub with a brush first with cleaner.
They don't actually waste a lot of water, they can be connected to a water butt if your concerned.
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coyoteboy
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| posted on 11/5/20 at 07:55 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by nick205
I'm not at all convinced they're good for washing vehicles, bikes and such. Forcing water that hard at things IMHO has to force muck and
water where it doesn't need to be. For bicycles my real concern is simply forcing water past bearing seals and shortening the service life of
often fragile and over expensive components on the bicycle. Some cyclists take good care of their bikes, very many cyclists simply don't.
Like everything, it depends if you're stupid with it or not. If you're 2 inches away from bearing or painted surfaces, you're likely
to do damage. If you stand back and blast it from a distance it's perfectly safe (but also no better at cleaning than a normal hose). It
produces a nice snow foam for initial car soak. It does well to remove solid mud from tricky bits on a bike. I've cars with 25 year old paint
and carbon MTBs worth as much as my car and I've never damaged either, but I'm mechanicaly sympathetic really it's down to the user.
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steve m
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| posted on 11/5/20 at 08:10 AM |
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I use mine and on the second one in two years
Last Friday, I pressure cleaned all of the white plastic, windows soffits etc on both my house and next doors house,
I then did my car and next doors car,
and when next doors go to work tomorrow, will do both our driveways and paths
If the hoses were long enough, I would go round to the retard neighbour house and do all his cars on his front garden
it wouldn't make the eyesore any better, but at least the wrecks would be clean
Now im thinking about doing the back windows as well 
steve
Thats was probably spelt wrong, or had some grammer, that the "grammer police have to have a moan at
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coyoteboy
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| posted on 11/5/20 at 11:52 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by steve m
If the hoses were long enough, I would go round to the retard neighbour house and do all his cars on his front garden
it wouldn't make the eyesore any better, but at least the wrecks would be clean
he really has you riled, doesn't he! Doesn't it upset you that he has this much effect?
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nick205
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| posted on 11/5/20 at 04:28 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by coyoteboy
quote:
Originally posted by nick205
I'm not at all convinced they're good for washing vehicles, bikes and such. Forcing water that hard at things IMHO has to force muck and
water where it doesn't need to be. For bicycles my real concern is simply forcing water past bearing seals and shortening the service life of
often fragile and over expensive components on the bicycle. Some cyclists take good care of their bikes, very many cyclists simply don't.
Like everything, it depends if you're stupid with it or not. If you're 2 inches away from bearing or painted surfaces, you're likely
to do damage. If you stand back and blast it from a distance it's perfectly safe (but also no better at cleaning than a normal hose). It
produces a nice snow foam for initial car soak. It does well to remove solid mud from tricky bits on a bike. I've cars with 25 year old paint
and carbon MTBs worth as much as my car and I've never damaged either, but I'm mechanicaly sympathetic really it's down to the user.
"mechanicaly sympathetic"
That's the bit I Like to see. Sadly so many people aren't and you can usually hear them squeaking and rattling along the cycle trail as a
result.
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