Let’s talk pressure washers in 2025

[Tinkerer2]

Just upgrade your pressure washer to a 4 gpm unit and it'll be fine.

 

[Hohn]

Really want to be careful washing vehicles with a pw. You can lift the paint.

Use lowest pressure setting if you must.

There's no "setting"-- the correct way to adjust pressure washer operating pressure is to change orifice size on the tips.

 

[Hohn]

I’m in the market for a gas pressure washer. It’ll be used primarily for pressuring washing the house, driveway, sidewalks and washing cars.

I keep coming back to this 3400 psi Westinghouse available at Home Depot. It has the attachments I want.

Before I pull the trigger, are there any other pressure washers to consider? Anything specific I need for my applications? Budget is around $400.

Thanks,

PWs are like air compressors: if the motor is good and the pump is good, you can't really screw up much from there. And like most consumer-grade products, they'll use a cheap motor with a REALLY cheap pump and price it like it something it isn't.


My advice? Ignore the branding on the framework and look only the engine and pump. Find a good quality commercial spec pump. CAT, General, etc. I'd recommend skipping AR and AAA which are so common on cheaper machines.

Honda is the gold standard of small engines. Stick with them.

You want as much pump (gpm) as you can afford. Ignore the pressure rating because you'll be running the unit at lower pressure anyway.

A 4000psi pump at 3gpm and a 4gpm pump at 3000psi might need similar amounts of engine power, but the higher flow/lower pressure option will run circles around the lower flow option in real world utility.

Flow does the work. Pressure is just a case if whether you have enough or not.

My Simpson-made DeWalt was a Honda/AR combination. The pump died and I replaced it with a CAT 66dx 4 gpm pump. This was an upgrade from 3.5 gpm to 4gpm.
Because my GX270 is not powerful enough to run a 4gpm pump at 3500+ psi, I run it at 2800 psi by using a larger orifices. It works GREAT.


An easy cheat code on orifices: each "orifice number" is essentially GPM at 4000psi. If if you have a 3.5gpm pump and try to use a "#3.5" orifice, the operating pressure will be 4000psi unless you aren't flowing the full 3.5gpm.

Unless you are washing off barnacles at the dock, you don't need or want 4000psi. So go one full number larger on the orifice size above the pump's rated flow. For my 4gpm pump, I'm using 5.0 and 5.5 orifices. The 5.0 gives me about 2800psi and the 5.5 gives me about 2400psi.

 

[mm08822]

There's no "setting"-- the correct way to adjust pressure washer operating pressure is to change orifice size on the tips.

Mine has a pressure regulator integral to the pump. I can dial in 500 - 3500psi.

 

[Hohn]

Mine has a pressure regulator integral to the pump. I can dial in 500 - 3500psi.

That's probably an unloader and not a regulator. It's there to protect the pump, not to set your pressure.

If you set it too low, your pump is constantly recirculating water internally and will get hot. This is why you should never let a PW run for any period of time over a minute or so without using the lance. This is also why professionals use "snubber tanks" plumbing on the bypass so they can recirculate the water *externally* and not burn up the pump when or of they need to let the engine run awhile without using the lance.

 

[mm08822]

That's probably an unloader and not a regulator. It's there to protect the pump, not to set your pressure.

If you set it too low, your pump is constantly recirculating water internally and will get hot. This is why you should never let a PW run for any period of time over a minute or so without using the lance. This is also why professionals use "snubber tanks" plumbing on the bypass so they can recirculate the water *externally* and not burn up the pump when or of they need to let the engine run awhile without using the lance.

Yeah, it is the unloader have but used to also lower delivered pressure at the nozzle.

I don't let my unit idle for any length of time, so it's limited in the amount of temp rise it sees.
I do also pull the trigger if any random idle time.

 

[Tinkerer2]

Well ****, now you tell me. I could not find one thing on the Amazon listing showing any lower limit for gpm. Nor any chart showing surface cleaner size vs recommended gpm.

It's already on the UPS truck. Guess we're gonna find out.

ETA: Just read the Owner's Manual again: Nothing about max size for a surface washer: https://manuals.harborfreight.com/manuals/71000-71999/71100-193175528889.pdf

Yep. They don't mention other tips and orifice sizes either. I think they don't want to imply the PW isn't really complete or discuss different psi for different items (cars, decks, fences, vinyl siding, wood siding, etc). They would probably be liable if they did.

The 4" to 5" per 1 gpm is something I found when I was researching surface cleaners.

 

[nit2wn]

If you can wait til the end of summer, you may find a better deal. I bought my Simpson from Sam's years ago. It started out around $750 or so. It being a 4000 psi with a Honda engine was exactly what I wanted, but my current one was still working until the fall. By that point Sam's was clearing them out for around $500, and I grabbed one. I will say it is overkill for vehicles by a long margin, but when doing concrete or vinyl siding, it will make fast work of it. I keep an electric one for the vehicles and small stuff.

 

[Hohn]

Yep. They don't mention other tips and orifice sizes either. I think they don't want to imply the PW isn't really complete or discuss different psi for different items (cars, decks, fences, vinyl siding, wood siding, etc). They would probably be liable if they did.

The 4" to 5" per 1 gpm is something I found when I was researching surface cleaners.

That's a common RoT that I've seen as well.
I can tell you there is a practical upper limit.

I have a small Karcher surface cleaner and because my PW is much much larger than this unit is intended for, I upgraded the nozzles inside the Karcher unit to ones that are higher flow to drop the pressure down to the <3200psi rating.

I successfully lowered the pressure to about 2500psi but also created a levitating hovercraft in the process. Keeping the unit on the ground is quite the chore. It cleans well enough I suppose.

The real hot setup IMO is something like this MOSMATIC water recovery unit. You connect a vacuum hose to it and it reclaims the water and discharges it out the vacuum hose. MUCH more effective surface cleaning.

 

[FTG-05]

That's not going to work well with a 2.8gpm washer... Too large

It worked fine.

- Did I have to go slow? Yep
- Did I have to sometimes go over some spots? Yep, mostly when going backwards; it was easier going slow forward rather backing up.
- Was it effortless? Yep, we're talking just a fingertip to move forwards or backwards.
- Did I constantly have to fight it going airborne? Nope, not one bit.
- Is it perfect? Nope, but at my age, I'll take not killing myself (I'm looking at you HF surface cleaner) over "perfection" any day of the week.

I got pics showing the difference, I'll post them tomorrow. I got about twice as much done vs the HF version in about the same time with far less effort. I can tell no difference in cleaning effect.

Here are some pics of what I need to surface clean:



Between my water hoses and 50' of high pressure hose, I hope to make it to the concrete spur leading to my pole barn (shown right of pic). You can just barely see the concrete spur just before the power pole, center of pic:



The concrete spur is more visible in the far right of this pic.


Thanks for the help!

 

[mike93lx]

It worked fine.

- Did I have to go slow? Yep
- Did I have to sometimes go over some spots? Yep, mostly when going backwards; it was easier going slow forward rather backing up.
- Was it effortless? Yep, we're talking just a fingertip to move forwards or backwards.
- Did I constantly have to fight it going airborne? Nope, not one bit.
- Is it perfect? Nope, but at my age, I'll take not killing myself (I'm looking at you HF surface cleaner) over "perfection" any day of the week.

I got pics showing the difference, I'll post them tomorrow. I got about twice as much done vs the HF version in about the same time with far less effort. I can tell no difference in cleaning effect.

Here are some pics of what I need to surface clean:



Between my water hoses and 50' of high pressure hose, I hope to make it to the concrete spur leading to my pole barn (shown right of pic). You can just barely see the concrete spur just before the power pole, center of pic:



The concrete spur is more visible in the far right of this pic.


Thanks for the help!

I'm really glad you got rhe result you wanted.

To be fair, I didn't say that it would not function, and most people would say that having to go slow and redo spots would be not working well. A smaller one would work better

 

[Tinkerer2]

Where are the after photos?

 

[FTG-05]

Where are the after photos?

HF 14" on the left, Effortless 20" on the right:



I missed some spots and some I need to go over. About the top third was done with the HF 14" SW; the rest with the 20". Either the same time or less (it felt less) but certainly a lot less effort. You can see some spots I missed and some I should go over; but overall I'm very, very pleased. I ordered another 50' of PW hose and along with the Predator 25' and 25' from an old PW, I'll have 100 feet of hose.

Unfortunately, GE says it's ~313 feet to the other side of the spur.


I'm thinking of adding a bypass unloader on the pump. Anyone here install on their Predator or other PW?

Thanks for the help!

 

[MileHighRover]

...Find a good quality commercial spec pump. CAT, General, etc...

...Honda is the gold standard of small engines. Stick with them...

List even one new PW with those for the $400 budget the OP posted. What you're recommending doesn't exist.

 

[PhantomEB]

I trying to remember but 3500psi 2.5gpm sounds about right for my pressure washer out there. Plans are to get a longer more flexible hose for it and one of those power scrubbers. So hate the cheap epoxy paint on the garage floor. Also the wife drives a leaky Honda.

 

[BombShelter]

I bought something nearly identical (B&S Engine) about seven years ago when they were around 200 bones on sale and it's worked flawlessly every year. I did upgrade the hose to Flexilla. While I wanted to clean concrete, the normal tips work ok, I ended up buying a DeWalt Turbo Nozzle Tip at HD that oscillates but haven't tried it out yet.

I'd also invest in a big ID garden hose, they run better with a solid water supply, 3/4" should be easy to find.

 

[Tinkerer2]

You’ll really love the turbo nozzle.

 

[FTG-05]

I'm really glad you got rhe result you wanted.

To be fair, I didn't say that it would not function, and most people would say that having to go slow and redo spots would be not working well. A smaller one would work better

No doubt. For the vast majority of what I need doing (simple concrete cleaning) it works just fine, if a little slow. Where the cleaning efficiency falls flat on its face is a small area of the driveway up front and the front walkway - areas under my Black Walnut trees. I would say about 80% clean; which means I'll have to follow up with the wand at close range. It's a small area so no biggie.

Where it lacks in cleaning efficiency, it more than makes up for it with effortless use. So, while I might no be able to do the "one and done" walk-thru like the pro PWer users on YT do with their surface cleaners and pro PWs - I'm not a pro; I'm just a guy who has several thousand sq ft of concrete to clean - and I don't want to kill myself while doing it.

I'll call the lack of cleaning efficiency the "lack of paying attention to detail and poor research" tax.

I just spent about 2 1/2 hours cleaning my driveway; no pics yet, I'm beat, it's hot out there!

 

[Tinkerer2]

Mix 50:50 bleach and water in a 1 gallon pump up sprayer and pretreat under those trees. Let set for 1/2 hour and then wash with your surface cleaner.

 

[FTG-05]

Mike93lx is correct about it being too large for your pressure washer. Once should figure 4-5" in diameter per 1 gpm. So a 2.8 gpm machine should power a surface cleaner with a diameter of 11 - 14 inches.

20" surface cleaners usually have two 25020 nozzles. The 25 is the degree angle and the 20 (actually 2.0) is the orifice size.


I agree with 5ubtle that you might get 800 psi from your PW. However, you won't ever be able to get 6.6 gpm from your hose spigot as it probably only produces around 4 gallons per minute. For machines that have a higher gpm than your spigot supplies, you'd need a supply tank that is constantly being filled. Pulling 8 with a supply of 4 to try to keep from running out. But as some point the tank will get empty.

As far as a wheeled surface cleaner, I'd get one with 4 casters so you could use it straight, angled or side to side easily. Also note that a 14" wheeled version is measured from outside wheel to outside wheel. A 17" wheeled model would get you close to an actual 12 inch surface cleaner.

So, could I fix part of the "too big SC" problem by changing out the nozzles to a different size orifice?

I watched this video here:

and at ~0:40 you see a GPM/PSI/Orifice size chart. Bunch of questions:

- Where can I find this chart in .pdf form? (Haven't searched yet, so bear with me)
- Where do you buy different size nozzles with different orifices?
- Are nozzles all the same thread and does anybody know if this SC has "standard" nozzles? Link to SC again for your convenience: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DSPMCXBD?tag=atomicindus08-20 This SC came with spare nozzles. Nothing on the Amazon SC page mentions nozzles.
- How do you measure orifice size to confirm what I have for this SC?

Thanks for the help!

 

[Tinkerer2]

Your nozzle spares are probably identical orifices as nozzles do wear out. Take a magnifying glass and look at the end or along the side and it may have size stamped on them.

You can get a chart in my post here: Chart Click on the image and when it opens, there will be a download option in the upper right of the screen. Mine has GPM within the body of the chart and the you tube one has it down the left column.

Let's state this first. You can not increase the psi beyond what the PW is rated for - in your case 3200 psi so smaller orifices won't help.
Based on the ratings of the SC in your link, I would imagine it came with 25020 nozzles. 25 degrees with orifice size of 2.0 (about 2mm hole). They don't have decimals printed on nozzles but for 5 digits there is an assumed decimal after the 4th digit. For reference, a 2502 nozzle is 25 degrees and orifice size of 20 (20 mm hole). I know that it seems counterintuitive but I didn't do the naming convention. And most SC at 20 inches diameter are rated at around 4 gpm - i.e. 2 gpm on each nozzle.

You will lose some pressure & flow with the resistance of the hose and it's length so for simplicity, lets say your machine is 3000 psi as that is listed as psi on both charts and will make it easier to explain. Also, your SC has 2 nozzles so any gpm on the charts will need to be divided by 2.

The chart in my link is easier to work with/understand. And the You tube chart does not go below 2 gpm. Your PW maxes out at 1.4 gpm per nozzle on the SC. Looking at my chart, 3000 psi with a 25020 nozzle will only output 1.73 gpm. But you have 2 nozzles, so machine rating of 2.8 divided by 2 is 1.4. Looking at the 1.4 (actually 1.41 on the chart) shows a psi of 2000 for a 2.0 orifice. So your setup with 2 nozzles can put out 2.8 gpm at 2000 psi with a 25020. That is the best you are going to get. You need all the flow you can get and the psi is just a bonus.

So if the SC has 25020 nozzles, you don't need to change them - unless you have brand new concrete (you can remove the creme) or very old crumbling concrete where you might want to reduce the pressure by going with a larger orifice. A 25025 would get you about 1200 psi and a 25030 would be about 900 psi (between 800 and 1000). So you can see how to use the chart.

If you want to change nozzles be sure the "line" in the nozzle is parallel to the SC rotating bar. You want the angle to be pointed toward the center of the rotating bar and exactly outside. If you had to initially install yours, check to see if you did that.

Where to buy: My last purchase was from Kleen-rite. For some reason, I can't get to their website using Safari but Chrome works. You are looking for 1/4 MNPT 25 degree imeg nozzles. Your SC probably came with meg and not imeg nozzles. Meg nozzles have a closed circle around the orifice. Imeg nozzles are split all the way across. Imeg seem to do better in the SC.

Here is an imeg (high impact) 25025 I didn't find a 25020 on their website that was an imeg. Here is a meg 25020 you can see the closed circle around it.

Hope this helps. Feel free to ask more questions.

 

[Hohn]

List even one new PW with those for the $400 budget the OP posted. What you're recommending doesn't exist.

I missed the $400 part....
I paid $450 for just my CAT pump.

 

[FTG-05]

Your nozzle spares are probably identical orifices as nozzles do wear out. Take a magnifying glass and look at the end or along the side and it may have size stamped on them.

[snip]

Hope this helps. Feel free to ask more questions.

Outstanding answer! Thank you very much.

First, the good news: I did more PWing yesterday and my wife is thrilled with the results. I have pics, but I left my phone in the shop, so I'll post them later.

The bad news: While the SC did come with 4 extra nozzles, none of the look like the ones on Amazon or your link - including, believe it or not - those nozzles from the same manufacturer as the SC, Ridge Washer. Again I have pics of the nozzles, so I'll post them later.

While all the replacement nozzles I've seen come with 1/4" (or 1/8") NPT threads; my SC nozzles - as seen via the extras, not the ones in the machine - have two o-rings, no threads whatsoever. So far, I have seen no pics on the interwebs that look like the (extra) nozzles I have.

The SC came with the nozzles installed, so I had nothing to do there. I have a pic showing their orientation on the bar.

My current setup to clean the driveway is ~200' of garden hose, plus 150' of high pressure hose - 2x3/8"x25', 1x3/8"x50' and 1x1/4'x50'. Thus far, I have seen no loss of performance with this configuration.

I did see a massive loss of performance with the installation of Annovi Reverberi VRT3-310 unloader that is quick attached to output of the pump. Turning up the bypass pressure on the VRT solved that problem.

 

[Jtels85]

** Update ** I greatly appreciate all of the responses to this thread. Lots of great information here. Ultimately, I did decided to go with the Westinghouse 3400 PSI from Home Depot online. I haven't taken it out of the box yet, but my plan is to use it this weekend on the porch and driveway. The price was right and I can order a lot of the accessories with ease. I will let you know how it goes.

 

[Tinkerer2]

@FTG-05

Looking forward to photos.

When you store the SC for more than a couple days, disconnect the hose at the top of the SC and drain the water out of it (click the handle on the gun). Then pour about 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil (corn oil, olive oil, etc) down that hole. Reach underneath and spin that bar a few times fast. This will lubricate the inside of that bar and help prevent corrosion. Do not use a petroleum oil as it will come out and stain concrete. You can then connect the hose back. If there is a grease fitting, put a pump or 2 into it and spin the bar again. Look underneath and clean any excess grease or vegetable oil that you see.

 

[FTG-05]

First, the good news:



The bad news: Uncommon PW SC nozzles.










Nozzle bar showing nozzle orientation:



Nozzle attachment to bar along with nozzle orifice cleaner showing orifice size:



Anyone know where I can get these type replacement nozzles?

Thanks for the help!

 

[danski0224]

Must be made by Apple...

 

[Tinkerer2]

Notice the line on the tip is parallel to the bar. That is the correct orientation.

I just looked at another Ridge Washer 20" SC and it has the same tips (shown in one of the ad photos). Appears to be proprietary as I've never seen anything like that before. A few google searches did not get any results. Even when you search Ridge Washer surface cleaner tips, they are screw in.

Is there contact info in the manual? Maybe contact and see about getting a couple more sets of tips. That said, if you are using this a couple times a year, you may never need anymore. I did notice that it appears to not have a greasable zerk. The bearing inside may go bad before you ever need to change the initial tips.

Should you ever decide to get a different one, I'd go down to around 16" actual cleaning area. I keep thinking for some reason that you are the OP with the 2.8 gpm machine.

 

[FTG-05]

Thanks again, Tinkerer2, I appreciate the effort and input.

I would say I have 95% of what I need to do with this SC after cleaning almost 15,000 sq ft of concrete the last couple of days. All of this was done with this SC; in fact, I haven't even used the wand/stinger at all yet.

This is as far as I could go using 200' of garden hose plus 150' of pressure washing hose. Note the tree leaves just above the windmill - clean on the right and - barely visible - dirty on the left:



Better view:



The boundary between clean and dirty; note that this concrete is all under mostly Black Walnut trees. This SC has trouble removing all of the BW tree stains.



Those 'dirt" dots? Black walnut remains.




ETA: Thanks again for all the help!

 

[FTG-05]

No trees above, this is what One Pass looks like using this HF3200 psi/2.8 gpm pressure washer with a 20" surface cleaner:



Obviously, I need to follow up with the wand/stinger.

 

[Tinkerer2]

Looks a lot better. I'd pre-treat that dirty area with 50/50 bleach and water and let sit 15 - 20 minutes before using the surface cleaner. Get liquid pool bleach is you have a pool supply close by. Don't get pool bleach at walmart, etc as it sits on their shelf for long periods of time and will self degrade. The spots may never come out with your wand or SC but I bet a turbo nozzle will do it. May make it cleaner than the surrounding area.

Oh, a turbo nozzle will sound like a jet taking off. My neighbors come out and look around when I'm using mine.

And be careful around the AC unit. You don't want to accidentally hit that with wand or turbo nozzle spray.

BTW, this is my surface cleaner Works great with my 3750psi 4gpm machine. And don't forget the vegetable oil. Does it have a hole where a zerk can be screwed into the hub at the base of the SC?

And scratch the 16" SC comment. I keep thinking that you were the OP with the 2.8 gpm machine.

 

[FTG-05]

Looks a lot better. I'd pre-treat that dirty area with 50/50 bleach and water and let sit 15 - 20 minutes before using the surface cleaner. Get liquid pool bleach is you have a pool supply close by. Don't get pool bleach at walmart, etc as it sits on their shelf for long periods of time and will self degrade. The spots may never come out with your wand or SC but I bet a turbo nozzle will do it. May make it cleaner than the surrounding area.

Oh, a turbo nozzle will sound like a jet taking off. My neighbors come out and look around when I'm using mine.

And be careful around the AC unit. You don't want to accidentally hit that with wand or turbo nozzle spray.

BTW, this is my surface cleaner Works great with my 3750psi 4gpm machine. And don't forget the vegetable oil. Does it have a hole where a zerk can be screwed into the hub at the base of the SC?

And scratch the 16" SC comment. I keep thinking that you were the OP with the 2.8 gpm machine.

My PW and SC are at my daughter's house at the moment (please pray they don't destroy the PW!!!). But here are some pics of my SC:

 

[Tinkerer2]

Hope you get it back.

 

[Tinkerer2]

Is there a hole anywhere on these vertical sides that might take a zerk?

 

[FTG-05]

Is there a hole anywhere on these vertical sides that might take a zerk?

Dunno; I've noticed one. You think that is AL or SS? If AL, I could easily drill and tap a hole for a zerk.

 

[Tinkerer2]

I wouldn't bother trying to drill a hole. May damage any bearing(s) inside with the drill bit or shavings. Not sure I'd advise taking it apart to make a clean hole either.

Did you say you installed an unloader? If so, you might want to check this out so you can get it adjusted properly. It should be adjusted so that max pressure is the rating on your pressure washer which I think was 3200 psi? This should be set once and forget. It is to prevent excess pressure in your pump by recirculating some of the water when the wand or SC valve is closed. By recirculation, pressure won't exceed your pump rating and help with pump longevity. Oh, if you try to use the unloader to decrease pressure (as some users erroneously do) you will reduce the flow rate of the machine because the water is being recirculated and not pressurized.

I have this gauge: RIDGE WASHER Pressure Washer Gauge I don't leave it connected - just when I want to check pressures. It can also be used at the wand to get pressure there once the unloader is set. Some pumps have an internal non-adjustable unloader. Not sure what your pump may be. But you can check the pressure at the pump and again at the wand to see what the pressure drop is due to your hose length. Doesn't really matter unless using over about 50 ft.

And look what I found: Nozzle/pressure calculator For your SC, you have 2 nozzles so multiply the nozzle orifice size by 2 and enter that # for orifice in the calculator. For 2 nozzles, divide the resulting pressure by 2. You can also use the calculator to determine nozzle size should you want to lower the PSI while keeping your flow rate. So in the first calculator, enter 2.8 gpm, and say 1000 psi and you'll get an orifice of 5.6 if 1 nozzle. However, you'll lose 100 - 150 psi per 50 ft of pressure hose so up the desired psi to 1150 and end up around 1000. This would be for pressure washing say a wood deck or fence where you don't want to damage the wood. I'm not saying 1000 psi would be correct for that but hopefully you get the idea. using the gauge mentioned above would five you exact psi but you need something to give you an idea of what orifice size nozzle to get should you ever what to start reducing pressure.

This is probably way more info than you want but hope it helps.

 

[All]

Are we still up for talking about pressure washers in 2025? Before it turns 2026?

@Hohn

@Tinkerer2

If so, then can we please talk about why my belt driven General Pump T 47 Series TS1021 4.8 GPM @ 3K PSI with a Suttner ST-261 Unloader does not appear to be moving any water period?

It is pre-fed by a float tank... I changed the water filter (new filter head, bigger screen, clear bowl, can see supply water flowing), I disassembled and cleaned the float valve, and I reverse flushed the supply line between the pump and the float tank... and was able to reverse fill the float tank via that supply line... so I KNOW that water is available to the pump, which is rated at 9 feet of suction head, and there is only 1 foot of rise between the bottom of the float tank and the entry to the pump.

Yet no water emerges at the port where the pressure hose would otherwise attach.

I removed the belt cover, and the belt is in tact, turns the pump sheave without slippage when driven by the 16 HP B&S Vanguard, which has only been run at idle for less than a minute at a time, since no water is emerging.

I'm not talking about pressurized water... I'm talking about ANY water flow period.

What I used to be able to do is run low pressure water through the pressure washer plumbing and boiler coil to clear out any little bits of mineral accumulation prior to connecting the pressure hose. It has been about 10 years since I last used this machine.

I disconnected the output line from the pump, that goes to a cross fitting that holds the unloader, and there was water in it... but I don't know if it was old water or new water.

I'm about to remove all 6 valve caps on this triplex pump to see if there is anything obviously evident. I am reticent to remove the head without a full set of new seals, and the special tools to remove and reseat them on hand.

I have a feeling that the issue is with the unloader, but I'm not sure how to isolate what the problem is. I don't want to disassemble things due to my ignorance of the simple things that could be the cause.

So let's talk. Tawk some sense to me. Tell me how to methodically tackle this problem, now that you know that I have already tackled the water supply.

Thanks!

 

[Tinkerer2]

I would connect a garden hose to the pump so it has pressurized water going to the pump and see if it flows through with the engine off. If it does then the path is open but you aren't getting suction from the pump. Start the engine and be sure you are getting pressurized water from the wand. If you aren't getting suction then I assume it would be the valves. There are you tube videos on how to check/replace the valves. Seems pretty simple (General Pump 47 Series Valve Assembly Repair)

Thankfully I haven't had to do anything with my pump other than change the pump oil and maintenance on the engine. 10 years is a long time to sit.

 

[mike93lx]

Are we still up for talking about pressure washers in 2025? Before it turns 2026?

@Hohn

@Tinkerer2

If so, then can we please talk about why my belt driven General Pump T 47 Series TS1021 4.8 GPM @ 3K PSI with a Suttner ST-261 Unloader does not appear to be moving any water period?

It is pre-fed by a float tank... I changed the water filter (new filter head, bigger screen, clear bowl, can see supply water flowing), I disassembled and cleaned the float valve, and I reverse flushed the supply line between the pump and the float tank... and was able to reverse fill the float tank via that supply line... so I KNOW that water is available to the pump, which is rated at 9 feet of suction head, and there is only 1 foot of rise between the bottom of the float tank and the entry to the pump.

Yet no water emerges at the port where the pressure hose would otherwise attach.

I removed the belt cover, and the belt is in tact, turns the pump sheave without slippage when driven by the 16 HP B&S Vanguard, which has only been run at idle for less than a minute at a time, since no water is emerging.

I'm not talking about pressurized water... I'm talking about ANY water flow period.

What I used to be able to do is run low pressure water through the pressure washer plumbing and boiler coil to clear out any little bits of mineral accumulation prior to connecting the pressure hose. It has been about 10 years since I last used this machine.

I disconnected the output line from the pump, that goes to a cross fitting that holds the unloader, and there was water in it... but I don't know if it was old water or new water.

I'm about to remove all 6 valve caps on this triplex pump to see if there is anything obviously evident. I am reticent to remove the head without a full set of new seals, and the special tools to remove and reseat them on hand.

I have a feeling that the issue is with the unloader, but I'm not sure how to isolate what the problem is. I don't want to disassemble things due to my ignorance of the simple things that could be the cause.

So let's talk. Tawk some sense to me. Tell me how to methodically tackle this problem, now that you know that I have already tackled the water supply.

Thanks!

Tagging @fatfillup in case he misses this

 

[fatfillup]

I did see this thread and read a few posts. Given the OP's budget, I have no knowledge of the consumer side of the market.
IMO, if you want a gas engine machine, I would recommend no less than a Honda GX as far as engine (buy the HP you can afford) and coupled to either a Cat direct drive pump or on a bigger engine, a General EZ4040 or a Cat. Look at the Northern Catalog and the Honda GX's normally have Cats on them. Decent enough machines and good pricing. I imagine there is little under a grand I would recommend and I understand folks have budgets to deal with. Have no direct recommendations.