NJHoudini's detached shop

Today, I have decided to embark on the start of my very own garage journal. Hoping to get some motivation, inspiration, and commiseration along with the support and guidance of the many talented and knowledgeable folks here, maybe I will find garage zen or at least some order.

Here is my one-car garage. I recently found out my house was built 100 years ago. It's mainly being uploaded here for posterity and perhaps as a reference once I've gotten some better organization.

20180511_212304
by njhoudini, on Flickr

Current big projects are restoring a 10" Craftsman table saw (model 113.27520), cleaning and setting up a new to me 6" Grizzly jointer (model G1182), and restoring a Walker Turner 12" bandsaw.

20180511_212316
by njhoudini, on Flickr

In the garbage can, I have my table saw table derusting via electrolysis, as well as the 2nd end cap of the Craftsman 3/4 HP 3450 RPM motor. This large tank ended up being big enough to hold the entire table and didn't require me to build a custom tank. I've been pretty impressed with electrolysis and getting used to removing the magnetite after the rust is converted. I wanted to start priming and painting this past weekend, but it was raining Saturday and I didn't want to risk having issues with the primer in high humidity. Sunday was spent with my wife, son, my parents, and the in-laws.

Behind my office building, after about a month of sitting on the nest, the goose finally brought her goslings out of the woods for a stroll.

20180514_135110
by njhoudini, on Flickr

There's a lot of clean up and organizing to be done. I'm also going to need to figure out how to prevent rust from affecting my tools. Eventually, I may add a dehumidifier or A/C if I can sufficiently seal the old windows and the front doors to minimize wasting /$$$. I am probably going to try to use plastic containers with desiccants until I can figure out something more permanent.

Wish me luck please. Hoping I'll eventually get to a more functional shop by mid-summer.

I wish you luck!

What does the structure look like? (exterior pics). Good roof? Good drainage around it? get all (ALLLL) the water away and it should stay decently dry in there, being in NJ.

Deezler said:

I wish you luck!

What does the structure look like? (exterior pics). Good roof? Good drainage around it? get all (ALLLL) the water away and it should stay decently dry in there, being in NJ.

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There is no gutter system on the garage, but the roof and vinyl siding are holding up very nicely. I don't have any issues with water in the garage (knocking on wood), but do have to worry about being in a 50-100 year flood zone. Since I've been in the house (2010), we've only had one issue with runoff in the area around the time of Hurricane Irene (Aug. 2011) when there was more water on the ground than the earth and sewers could handle in a short period of time. I have some seepage in a couple of spots in my unfinished basement due to some hairline cracks in my poured concrete foundation, but I'm afraid the best way for me to permanently fix that is to dig around the house and use some bentonite clay to seal the gaps. I have made efforts to gutter the rainwater away from the house, but since the area is somewhat low, I may need to get a lot of dirt delivered to encourage flow away from the house perimeter. I'm not that concerned yet since that runoff issue was the first of its kind in close to 100 years and I managed to repair anything that wasn't covered by my previous horrible insurance policy.

My front doors are two 4'x8' ply-wood sheets on hinges. I'm hoping when I replace my front porch steps, I'll have two new sheets of ply-wood delivered so I can replace the doors.

Here's a photo from Google Maps 3 years before I purchased the house. I have since removed the fence (people hit it and I got an insurance pay out) and the evergreens around the outside of the house to try to hinder pests from attacking my house.

NJHoudini garage from Google by njhoudini, on Flickr

Great house and garage!
I'll subscribe to your topic and keep an eye out for updates.

njhoudini thank you for sharing.

Looking forward to your updates.

Regards

Vieux said:

Great house and garage!
I'll subscribe to your topic and keep an eye out for updates.

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Thanks Vieux! Whenever I think about my garage doors, I always think about your fortress. I'm glad nobody has tried to get into mine yet.

1/2 Cup said:

njhoudini thank you for sharing.

Looking forward to your updates.

Regards

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Thanks 1/2 Cup! Will try to keep them coming.

Not a ton to report since my last post. My old Craftsman Edger decided after I was 50% through edging my sidewalks that it wanted to split. A little more frustrating since I had just purchased 3 new replacement blades for it.



20180519_135401 by njhoudini, on Flickr

I'm thinking I can probably fix it with a couple of strategically placed screws or maybe trying some epoxy to mend the busted plastic. Not sure CA glue will hold it well enough.

I was also cleaning up my basement and realized I have some old electronics that I will never use again so I decided to hunt for some capacitors.



20180516_195203 by njhoudini, on Flickr

I'm probably going to need to order new capacitors though since older capacitors seem to be bigger than new. Not a huge priority. Hoping to post some photos of my Craftsman 10" table saw restoration soon. It was raining pretty much every day since my last post and I didn't have any chances to start priming parts. Today is the first really nice day so I have to see if I can get outside for about an hour to get one or two coats on motor and the saw body.

The evening weather turned out nice and I was able to get outside for a bit to put some primer on some parts. Here is the table saw body before all stripped of as much rust as I could remove. As well as the end caps to the motor and four of the feet of the stand legs. One can of primer barely covered these parts.

Sorry about the quality of the photos. I am very anxious to get the table saw all painted and reassembled.

This weekend, i am also going to replace the steps on the front of my house as they are old and weren't installed to code. I will add some photos of the steps later.

Hope everyone is enjoying some nice weather and is looking forward to the long U.S. holiday weekend. My birthday is on traditional Memorial Day. Very honored many have served to provide the freedoms we enjoy today.



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Here is what my front steps looks like. Notice you have to step up to the porch which is not very safe and there should normally be a 3' landing in front of the door.

Front steps before
by njhoudini, on Flickr

I'm pretty excited to replace the steps and will hopefully be able to repurpose the recovered lumber possibly for steps on the side of my house. Maybe a garden bed too.

For the painting of my tools, should I worry about applying an enamel clear coat? Would it make that much of a difference? Assuming I get 3-4 good coats of the gloss enamel paint on the surfaces, I'm not sure if the clear would provide me much benefit.

So many projects, so little time.

NJ,

As long as you use an etching primer before you spray the color and you get good adhesion you don't need a clear coat if your tools are going to be inside the shop and not out in the elements. Also before the etching primer a good through wipe with wax and grease remover.

Just my .02 cents. Looking forward to your thread and seeing your new steps.

Bret

bj383ss said:

NJ,

As long as you use an etching primer before you spray the color and you get good adhesion you don't need a clear coat if your tools are going to be inside the shop and not out in the elements. Also before the etching primer a good through wipe with wax and grease remover.

Just my .02 cents. Looking forward to your thread and seeing your new steps.

Bret

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Thanks Bret. I really need to look for wax and grease remover. You're the third person to have referenced it and it sounds like a must have for metal paint prep. The parts I did paint were wiped with mineral spirits 3 days before the actual etching primer was applied. I looked at it today and everything appears to be ready for paint. I did buy some 600 grit wet/dry sand paper in case I find some rough spots, but most of these items won't be caressed much. I kind of like the color of the Rustoleum primer. Has an olive/army green feel.

In addition to the front steps, I am also hoping to be able to get the table saw table out of the electrolysis tank and cleaned back to iron. Then wax, then flipped over for priming the underside and eventually white paint. I have read several people recommending applying a light color inside to make it brighter under the tool. I may be hoping to get too much in this weekend. [emoji12]

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After a couple of months of planning and ordering the lumber and gathering all of the accessories, I was ready to replace my front steps this weekend. Advance apologies since I did not take step-by-step photos of the whole process as I am not yet accustomed to this practice.

Never realized how much of an eyesore these steps were.


Front steps before by njhoudini, on Flickr

Started with demo.


by njhoudini, on Flickr

Never realized how the previous owner had cut the stringers past the corners leaving as little as 3" to the edge on all stringers. Two of the step boards came off because the screws had completely disintegrated. It was pretty gross and I'm feeling lucky that the steps never failed when I had a fridge or piano moved into the house via these steps.


Top-two-steps removed by njhoudini, on Flickr

I mounted the ledger board to the existing porch with some Z flashing, as well as measuring and installing the joist supports. **I'm sporting slip on steel-toed boots that Bob Heine posted a link to that piqued my interest and ended up being an early birthday present to myself. They definitely saved my toes as I normally am like Grizz1963 with Crocks or Crock flip flops on.**


Ledger by njhoudini, on Flickr

It was very hot and humid Saturday and eventually a thunderstorm and continuing rains would stop my progress for most of the day. I was able to get the posts up and the main deck frame assembled.

Sunday, it was thankfully 10-15 degrees cooler. I measured and cut 4 new stringers for my 4-foot wide new steps. I used a piece of wood clamped to a carpenter's square to make drawing the angle easy and consistent. Cautiously cut most of the wood with a circular saw (new blades really cut like butter) and finished each cut with a jigsaw.


Cutting-the-first-stringer by njhoudini, on Flickr


Three-more-stringers by njhoudini, on Flickr

Mounted the stringers to the deck I had framed Saturday and started laying some 5/4 x 6 boards. I cut the bottom of the stringers shorter so that I could lay a sacrificial 2x12 board under them so that they could be easily replaced whenever that needs to happen.


by njhoudini, on Flickr

It really started to feel sturdy with the boards on top. The rest of the build on Monday went very quickly. She who must be obeyed called me in for dinner and that pretty much ended Sunday.

Monday, I built the rails, installed the balusters, and created the hand rails.


Almost-done by njhoudini, on Flickr

At this point, I made the decision to get rid of the evergreen bushes that were planted by the previous owner. They were very annoying and starting to interfere with the walkway.

finishing-up
by njhoudini, on Flickr

The only things I need to do now are purchase and install a handrail and new white pvc lattice for the open areas to match the existing lattice. This whole build only required one unplanned trip to the big box store to purchase 2 extra 4x4's which I needed because of a design change I made mid process. Originally, I was going to make the steps as wide as the deck, use one fewer step and mount the stringers below the deck, but I felt it would be better to go with the face-mounted stringers. Oh, I'm also probably going to need to treat/stain the thing, but I'm probably going to wait a month before I do that. My wife and in-laws helped tremendously with the build, weed removal, and watching my little son. We had time for a separate planned visit to the big box store to also purchase plants for the garden and around the house. More will come later. I'm planning on building steps with the leftovers on the side of my house, but this is more of a 2 step build so probably not much to post, maybe the finished product.



Perennials by njhoudini, on Flickr

Hope everyone had a great 3-day weekend! The pain from the marathon workout is starting to let up finally.


Memorial Day Weekend Deck Party by njhoudini, on Flickr

NJ the steps came out looking great. I was going to comment on the how cool the Evergreens where but then they went away. Glad see you rocking Bob's shoe recommendation. I have them bookmarked and plan to get a pair my self.

Bret

bj383ss said:

NJ the steps came out looking great. I was going to comment on the how cool the Evergreens where but then they went away. Glad see you rocking Bob's shoe recommendation. I have them bookmarked and plan to get a pair my self.

Bret

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Thanks!

Normally, I would avoid removing bushes/trees since they are really a great benefit to our environment, but in the 8 years I've been in the house, they've doubled in height and width and as soon as you start removing a couple of inches from the edges, you get bare spots as no needles grew inside. I will probably look for something to replace them, or maybe I'll make some planters out of the old steps to put next to the steps at ground level.

The ~$20 shoes are really great and who doesn't love slipons. The site recommends going a half size smaller than normal which I reluctantly did in addition to getting the wides. Ordered socks that were super comfy and cheap to make the free shipping. I am actually wondering if I should have went a full size lower but the benefit here is that I can wear them with extra thick socks when the weather turns cold again without being uncomfortable. I may even insert some gels since there's so much room. The first pair they shipped me was allegedly "delivered" but I never saw them and they were happy to ship a replacement and I got those two days later.

It's a shame the first pair never turned up. I'm also hoping that the new steps might help deter thieves from taking packages that were left by lazy delivery personnel on the steps. I should probably put up a small sign behind the window that instructs packages should be left in the porch. Probably should put a webcam on the porch as well.

My house had a brand new PT porch on the front and I wanted it to be white. My paint guy told me to wait a year before putting anything on it. When I did, I used white stain instead of paint. That way, when it needs touching up years later, I don't have to sand every little piece of wood.

I bought good stain and the whole job lasted over 15 years. Work smart.

njhoudini great work on your steps.

JC23 said:

My house had a brand new PT porch on the front and I wanted it to be white. My paint guy told me to wait a year before putting anything on it. When I did, I used white stain instead of paint. That way, when it needs touching up years later, I don't have to sand every little piece of wood.

I bought good stain and the whole job lasted over 15 years. Work smart.

Click to expand...

JC23, this is great advice. I'll gladly wait a year. I am not certain if I would go with a white stain, but stain does seem to be the best way to go. Paint would probably get damaged too easily when I have to shovel it.

1/2 Cup said:

njhoudini great work on your steps.

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Thanks 1/2 Cup! I had a neighbor walking by with his dog while I was mowing the lawn after dinner and he had the same sentiment. Feels good.

I realized after building these steps how much I really do love working with wood. It's gotta be that feeling of satisfaction of working on something and seeing that finished product. Now I probably have to accept the fact that it's going to be more convenient to get 2 sheets of the plastic lattice delivered by a big box store than trying to coordinate borrowing a vehicle or recruiting a friend to pick it up with me. Not everyone I know owns a van or truck.

Turns out the orange big box store will ship me my 4'x8' white lattice for free. The blue store would have charged me more for delivery than what I was paying for them at the orange store. I'm glad both are less than 5 miles from my house but hard to beat free shipping.

Welcome to your thread Houdini.

I am really impressed with your deck and steps.

My back deck needs replacing as well.

I think it has been here about 20years and when I moved in here at the end of 2010 the weed had never been treated or preserved. Now there is some rotting on ends etc.

I agree with these threads being a great record to keep of progress and change.

Plants sometimes need to be refreshed as they do take over.

Keep posting, we are watching.

Grizz1963 said:

Welcome to your thread Houdini.

I am really impressed with your deck and steps.

My back deck needs replacing as well.

I think it has been here about 20years and when I moved in here at the end of 2010 the weed had never been treated or preserved. Now there is some rotting on ends etc.

I agree with these threads being a great record to keep of progress and change.

Plants sometimes need to be refreshed as they do take over.

Keep posting, we are watching.

Click to expand...

Humbled and honored to have you! I'm very jealous that you have access to a skip and with people on the lookout knowing what you may like. It's funny how after reading through various threads, I'm often finding myself thinking, "What would Heine/Vlad/Rian do?"

I've driven past a vintage steel storage cabinet on my way to work everyday the past few days and grin knowing if it's still there after work, it's coming home with me today. Unfortunately, I don't have a Grizzmobile. Prozac is so practical!

We're expecting a wet weekend, but I'm going to make every effort to get something done when the babe sleeps and SWMBO is coloring.

Nice work!
You sound like a good candidate for a 5x8 utility trailer so you can drag the goodies home.

OccupantRJ said:

Nice work!
You sound like a good candidate for a 5x8 utility trailer so you can drag the goodies home.

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I think this could only happen IF I successfully cleaned and organized my garage, bought my wife a new car and then mounted trailer hitch. She finally realized I am able to build things without hurting myself so hopefully this season, I can build that confidence. [emoji12]

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My wife came home one day, looked in the back yard at the forklift I had brought home that day and asked "what are you going to do with THAT?" My reply......"pick **** UP with it!"

OccupantRJ said:

My wife came home one day, looked in the back yard at the forklift I had brought home that day and asked "what are you going to do with THAT?" My reply......"pick **** UP with it!"

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Heh heh. Not sure if you're the one who posted Clark Griswold's forklift, but that is certainly chuckle inducing. You could always sell it unless there's a lot of ****.

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Lot of **** to pick up. I restore old school shop machinery up to the 3,000 lb limit of the lift for a hobby, so would not be able to function without it. Got 4 Bridgeports and a lathe in various stages right now.

Great job on the steps!!

Glad you're restoring the old tools. That craftsman saw is a classic.

Most any wife appreciates a man who can build stuff for her. Stuff for him, not so much.

I don't like slip-ons. You were taking a poll, weren't you?

NJHoudini has a thread!

Your garage is about the same size as the one in our first house. I tried keeping our car in it but it was so small I had to park a little to one side. Otherwise I couldn't open the driver's door enough to get out.

Really nice job on the new front steps. Getting it all done in a weekend is impressive. Too bad you had to take out the shrubs but it's a very common problem. I replaced a similar pair of shrubs at our first house and my wife wanted the new shrubs closer to the house. I put them four feet from the foundation and the same amount away from the walkway. In a couple of years they filled in without blocking the walk.

Glad to see you in those shoes. I set a worse example that Rian (Grizz1963), going barefoot in the shop and yard. My wife tells me I have to wear shoes so I don't get hoof and mouth disease. No matter how small the chances are, I'm pretty sure she's going to be thrilled if I do.

I'm trying to set a better example now that I'm a great-grandfather. It was amazing when we made children, even more amazing when our children made children but now their children are making children. I'm starting to lose it but it's great to be here to witness!

I'm looking forward to your adventures and it's great your wife appreciates your ability to do these projects with all your body parts intact.

EDIT

oldironfarmer said:

I don't like slip-ons. You were taking a poll, weren't you?

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My brother and I rarely agree.
/EDIT

But when we do agree, it is on a totally unnecessary subject...

Now your thread will be trashed, since Bob found it.

Very nice comments, Bob. You are doing better.

OccupantRJ said:

Lot of **** to pick up. I restore old school shop machinery up to the 3,000 lb limit of the lift for a hobby, so would not be able to function without it. Got 4 Bridgeports and a lathe in various stages right now.

Click to expand...

Sounds like you get to work on a lot of machines I would be interested in. Guessing one of the Bridgeports would likely consume half of my shop.

oldironfarmer said:

Great job on the steps!!

Glad you're restoring the old tools. That craftsman saw is a classic.

Most any wife appreciates a man who can build stuff for her. Stuff for him, not so much.

I don't like slip-ons. You were taking a poll, weren't you?

Click to expand...

Thank you for the kind words. I'm really hoping to get the table saw reassembled this month. Hoping that I remember how to reassemble the old motor.

My wife asked me if I could help her make a laptop stand for her desk so she could have a shelf and still have room underneath it for her coloring. Took two old Ikea shelf boards, and a whole bunch of half inch black iron pipes and fittings and she started to sense how my mind builds things. I'd say this warmed her up to the idea of me doing the steps. She was shocked at how well the steps turned out that she's getting to be less afraid of me hurting myself with the bigger tools.

As for the slip-ons, since I'm not running in the shoes or stepping in anything soft, I don't have many things that should cause them to fall off. If I were working on a farm or needed to protect my ankles, I'd definitely get boots with laces.

Bob Heine said:

NJHoudini has a thread!

Your garage is about the same size as the one in our first house. I tried keeping our car in it but it was so small I had to park a little to one side. Otherwise I couldn't open the driver's door enough to get out.

Really nice job on the new front steps. Getting it all done in a weekend is impressive. Too bad you had to take out the shrubs but it's a very common problem. I replaced a similar pair of shrubs at our first house and my wife wanted the new shrubs closer to the house. I put them four feet from the foundation and the same amount away from the walkway. In a couple of years they filled in without blocking the walk.

Glad to see you in those shoes. I set a worse example that Rian (Grizz1963), going barefoot in the shop and yard. My wife tells me I have to wear shoes so I don't get hoof and mouth disease. No matter how small the chances are, I'm pretty sure she's going to be thrilled if I do.

I'm trying to set a better example now that I'm a great-grandfather. It was amazing when we made children, even more amazing when our children made children but now their children are making children. I'm starting to lose it but it's great to be here to witness!

I'm looking forward to your adventures and it's great your wife appreciates your ability to do these projects with all your body parts intact.

EDIT

My brother and I rarely agree.
/EDIT

Click to expand...

Body parts intact... good one, Bob. I read your adventures and constantly try to picture you maneuvering all of the tools and parts with one hand and an elbow. I wonder if maybe you've got an army of Oompa Loompas hiding out in your back shed considering how much you are able to accomplish. I'm still wondering if you're ever going to get us back to your family trip in Mexico...

My father really didn't do much in terms of teaching me how to fix things as he was often busy playing golf with most of his free time. My uncle, on the other hand, did teach me from a young age that when something is broken, there's not much harm in trying to fix it and often times, being a little creative can produce results. He was an engineer by education, but became a mechanic when he moved to the USA and ever since I had my first car, he showed me how to do a lot of the maintenance. The skills and mentality that he shared with me are invaluable.

oldironfarmer said:

But when we do agree, it is on a totally unnecessary subject...

Now your thread will be trashed, since Bob found it.

Very nice comments, Bob. You are doing better.

Click to expand...

Getting advice, comments and feedback are all great in my book. I'm looking forward to getting continued motivation knowing I am going to struggle to keep up with many of you. Really wish I had 6 Saturdays a week but I guess until that happens, I'll try to make the most of the grind.

Only got to spend a few hours outside this weekend. Saturday, I had my timing belt and related maintenance items replaced on my '04 Lexus ES330 as it was overdue and my water pump was protesting for a few seconds every time I started the car. The shop then indicated that my battery was not good and that my rear brakes looked like they were nearing replacement. Just before leaving the shop, they filled all of my tires with air as they all apparently have a slow leak. I recently plugged one of the tires as I ran over a shelf peg.

I declined their offer of a new battery and Sunday morning, went to Pep Boys to pick up a new Bosch battery (turned out to be the exact same battery I already had in my car) as well as new shoes and rotors for the rear brakes.

I replaced the battery and noticed the Bosch battery has a 36 month free replacement sticker. I replaced my rear brakes without any incident and brought the bad battery back to the store and they refunded me the cost of the new battery saving me $155 (with the tax). Score! SWMBO immediately indicated that the savings would go nicely towards a new set of coloring pencils she has not yet acquired... Yay?

Then just as I was about to get new tires installed, I checked the receipt of when I had replaced the tires as they all have almost a 1/4" tread left and were all wearing normally. I returned to the shop where I had them installed and they indicated that the issue could be that the alloy rims are leaking air, an issue they see all the time. Mind blown. I agreed to have all four tires treated for their flat service at around $30/tire and that would include permanently fixing the plug. I have never heard of alloy tires leaking, but Google would suggest this is a very common issue with aluminum and may or may not cause air to leak from the bead seal, but also from the rims themselves.

The common check recommended is to overinflate the tire to 40-50 psi and submerge or coat with a soapy liquid and observe the tire for bubbles.

I'm guessing that the local Goodyear where I bought them may not go this far, but the repair manager did mention that they do coat the rims after cleaning them up which does sound like the recommended protocol.

Hoping that the rim treatment does help, but I'm skeptical that it will really work long term. NJ has all four seasons and some winters are a lot worse than others with both temps and precipitation. Wish I could manually remove the tires from the rims without special equipment so I can treat each rim. Sad that my uncle doesn't have a shop anymore since he moved on to supervise a hospital maintenance shop but I'm happy for him because his quality of life improved dramatically. Still miss having access to his lifts and valuable tools.

I also "processed" the old pressure-treated wood I recovered from the front steps. I cut the stringers down to boards, removed as many screws and nails as I could from all of the lumber, and used the balusters to stack them with air flow. I may now be in the market for a cheap pressure washer (recommendations welcomed) which has never really been something I've ever needed, but I suppose the cars and windows could benefit in addition to being able to clean the crud off the old lumber before I turn them into planters or a storage structure for outdoor equipment. I did briefly look at attachments for use with my air compressor but most reviews said not to bother unless you have a 100 gal. tank, still tempting. My Craftsman vertical is probably only 25-33 gal. On a tangent, has anyone replaced their air compressor oil with synthetic? I should probably just run through my existing oil bottle before I think about getting synthetic. Curious if it does run 40* cooler as I've seen some people claim.

No photos from this weekend. I should just dedicate one of my cameras for GJ pictures.

What's your budget for the pressure washer?

NJHoudini, I moved my reply from BJ's thread, where you asked the question, to here. I also realized I was suggesting you buy a big machine that takes up valuable space in your garage.

njhoudini said:

I may now be in the market for a cheap pressure washer (recommendations welcomed) which has never really been something I've ever needed, but I suppose the cars and windows could benefit in addition to being able to clean the crud off the old lumber before I turn them into planters or a storage structure for outdoor equipment. I did briefly look at attachments for use with my air compressor but most reviews said not to bother unless you have a 100 gal. tank, still tempting.

Click to expand...

If you just want to clean your cars and windows and get the dirt off some wood, an electric pressure washer might be just what you need. I had a couple of Karcher machines that worked OK but I didn't use pump saver after running them so they eventually seized up. I did buy a cheap electric Sun Joe pressure washer to foam the cars and it works fine for that purpose.


My only mistake was buying their cheapest model ($75). It uses a non-standard pressure hose connection and the wand can't be removed from the hose. If you only need one pressure washer, buy one that uses industry standard connections. I'm not recommending Sun Joe but Amazon's Choice is their SPX3000.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CPGMUXW/?tag=atomicindus08-20

If you decided you want a foam cannon for your car or house projects, the cannon can connect directly to a standard hose. I have this one:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01B41OZHW/?tag=atomicindus08-20

I chose the short pistol style cannon because shooting foam with a rifle length gun made no sense for me. You might prefer the longer cannon (the bottle connects to the quick-connect at the end of the wand).i

njhoudini said:

I wish there was an attachment to make my Craftsman air compressor be a power washer. Most of the results I've seen would require a 100 gallon tank in order to keep up with the air demand. I'm thinking I could just pressure wash the old wood from my steps to clean them up. Maybe I need to find one for father's day...

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NJHoudini, years ago I bought a "pressure cleaner" attachment from Sears that adds compressed air to your garden hose. It worked great as long as I had no idea how well even the cheapest pressure washer worked.

I took this picture the day I threw it out (note how little mildew is removed from the cement).


Not long ago decent pressure washers were expensive. Twenty years ago I bought a Craftsman 2150 PSI 1.9 GPM 4 HP machine for about $300. In 2016 I bought a Subaru 3100 PSI 2.4 GPM 5.5 HP electric start machine for the same price ($299.99). Costco now sells the same machine with a Yamaha engine for that price..



It would make a nice Father's Day present....

Bob Heine said:

NJHoudini
My only mistake was buying their cheapest model ($75). It uses a non-standard pressure hose connection and the wand can't be removed from the hose. If you only need one pressure washer, buy one that uses industry standard connections. I'm not recommending Sun Joe but Amazon's Choice is their SPX3000.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CPGMUXW/?tag=atomicindus08-20

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Bob, thanks for sharing the experience with the pressure washer attachment. As far as you're aware, do the more expensive Sun Joe pressure washers use standard connections?

I like how you didn't endorse the product. I work in IT and whenever someone asks me what computer should I buy, I usually preface any recommendations with my not endorsing a product, but rather paying attention to the specs. I may try some experiments with OxiClean or hydrogen peroxide before pulling the pressure washer trigger. I've used pressure washers before (cleaning pool decks when I was a lifeguard, or cleaning decks), but like you said, space is premium.

I'm going to do a little more research on washer options.

sweet victory said:

What's your budget for the pressure washer?

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I'd probably try to keep it under $200. Amazon shows much better specs than Home Depot for their offerings. Lowes appears to have some similar offerings to Amazon. Decisions, decisions.

I bought a hardware store brand pressure cleaner for around $100 about 7 years ago.

Has given great service.

NJ,

Here is what I bought and I have been extremely happy with it.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CPGMUXW/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Bret

bj383ss said:

NJ,

Here is what I bought and I have been extremely happy with it.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CPGMUXW/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Bret

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Thanks Bret. It's in my cart. I'm on the fence between this one and the $24 cheaper one which has a low pressure setting and a single detergent tank. Downside to the cheaper model is bigger foot print, but I can probably hang the tank somewhere in the garage.

I am having a garage sale this Saturday (trying to get motivated to organize my junk has been difficult). Hoping to be able to get rid of stuff that has been sitting there for over a year.

Subscribed!

Finallygotit said:

Subscribed! [emoji106]


[emoji481]

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Finallygotit, thanks for joining me on my crusades!

If at first you don't succeed, keep trying.

https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=391230

Sent from my LG-H918 using The Garage Journal mobile app

Grizz1963 said:

I bought a hardware store brand pressure cleaner for around $100 about 7 years ago.

Has given great service.

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I have a feeling if I take care of it, I might be as lucky!