pressure washer vs steam cleaner
- Thread starter Cobra_Bob
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warmpancakes
Well-known member
pressure washer,
scott37300
Well-known member
Gas, I have never seen a decent electric power washer.
I have an electric one that runs at 212 Degrees. Will cut through anything.
Can be found here http://www.aaladin.com/site/
Can be found here http://www.aaladin.com/site/
Zebu Fellenz
Well-known member
I like electric, but like anything you need to pay to play, we have an electric Landa and it has never let us down, about $1,000 new IIRC.
If you'll be doing any amount of cleaning greasy equipment definitely consider a "hotsy" like 35mastr linked to. We borrowed one from a friend to clean engines and it absolutely blew away our cold water Landa in performance.
What is your budget?
Steam and pressure washers have "some" cross over use, but for the most part do very different types of cleaning.
Pressure washers blast away and are best suited for large jobs.
Steamers are basically wet heat and best suited for focusing on smaller areas at a time.
Most auto detailers will have both.
Pressure washers blast away and are best suited for large jobs.
Steamers are basically wet heat and best suited for focusing on smaller areas at a time.
Most auto detailers will have both.
Az Scooter
Well-known member
- Joined
- Dec 30, 2009
- Messages
- 1,500
Actually, there are three options. Cold pressure washer, hot pressure washer that gets to about 200 degrees, and steam cleaner. Steam cleaners are quickly becoming dinosaurs. I would lean towards a hot water pressure washer, because you can always turn off the heater and use it cold to move dirt. That is just me, though.
Frank The Plumber
Well-known member
Well.
This all depends upon what you are doing.
The actual difference between wreck or destroy and clean can be very close on these units.
If you are new to the cleaning of things and are cleaning house paint surfaces, decks, siding. A small pressure washer is good.
If you need to clean heavy equipment or heavy grease then a steam unit is good.
You can wreck a lot of stuff "cleaning" it.
Sometimes a lesser beast of a machine is better in the hands of the non professional.
Or the under insured.
This all depends upon what you are doing.
The actual difference between wreck or destroy and clean can be very close on these units.
If you are new to the cleaning of things and are cleaning house paint surfaces, decks, siding. A small pressure washer is good.
If you need to clean heavy equipment or heavy grease then a steam unit is good.
You can wreck a lot of stuff "cleaning" it.
Sometimes a lesser beast of a machine is better in the hands of the non professional.
Or the under insured.
theoldwizard1
Well-known member
They do exist, they just cost as much or more than a gas unit.
Underdog
Well-known member
Just sold my Steam Jenny steam cleaner. Haven't used it in years since buying a 3500psi 13hp MiTi M. pressure washer. Problem with steam cleaner is 1. Very dangerous, they can scald you if not careful. 2. The steam causes well, a steam cloud, very hard to see what your cleaning.The blow back is very hot water that hurts when it hits you. Now someone will say wear proper protection but when the air is 90deg. combine with the steam, well think steam bath.
honcho
Well-known member
What I always referred to as a "steam cleaner" is really a hot water pressure cleaner. The type I am familiar with have an electric pump and a kerosene or diesel fired water heater. Very nice for degreasing engines. My only experience with real steam cleaning was in Alaska, where we had a cleaning bay in our motor pool that was plumbed in to the central heating steam lines. It was great but the fog often made it difficult to see.
As far as electric pressure washers, the annovi reverberi AR630 is a high quality electric pressure washer that sells for about $750. Well worth every penny.
As far as electric pressure washers, the annovi reverberi AR630 is a high quality electric pressure washer that sells for about $750. Well worth every penny.
Steam cleaner I was referring to are the small units, a McCulloch MC1275, costs about $100 and has low pressure steam that comes out a hand held nozzle. More a tool for perfectionist cleaning, not bulk removal.
With pressure washers I think a distinction should be made between quality tools for commercial use, and something cheap that still works for typical, but not frequent homeowner tasks. A $99 electric pressure washer might not work "well" and very likely not quickly, but still might get the job done for a lot of users.
With pressure washers I think a distinction should be made between quality tools for commercial use, and something cheap that still works for typical, but not frequent homeowner tasks. A $99 electric pressure washer might not work "well" and very likely not quickly, but still might get the job done for a lot of users.
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Underdog
Well-known member
Steam Jenny's like mine are steam cleaners. Fueled by kerosene or #2 diesel. The pressure gauge goes to about 150-200psi max. You have to adjust the fuel control valve to adjust pressure. Most "steam cleaners" today are hot water pressure cleaners, operating in the range of 1500psi and up.
sberry
Banned
fatfillup
Well-known member
Been a while since I've been on here but 28 years of doing nothing but selling and servicing industrial pressure washers makes me an expert in this field (nothing else though lol)
As someone stated there are 3 categories.
Cold water. Great for residential cleaning, houses, decks, concrete, knocking off mud etc. Electric or gas, doesn't matter, its all about horsepower. The problem is, 110 volt current will only give you 1600 psi @ 2 gpm. Give me 220 volt current and I can duplicate anything you can do with a gas engine.
Hot water. If you have grease or oil, its the best way to go. Equipment, trucks and also commercial sidewalks for chewing gum, its your only choice. Again, gas or electric makes no difference. Note, hot water machines heat the water up to between 170f to 200F.
Steam, often used synonymously with hot water (but wrong) is 300f at up to 300psi. It is great at degreasing without soap but not used much as it is slow and you can't see what you are cleaning. Also, it is dangerous as you can get burnt easily with a hose failure.
To the OP's question. Most folks for home use are happy with a cold water washer. Note, heavy grease requires hot water, but light oil is cleaned fairly well with cold. Soap is an important and oft neglected part of the equation. You will never clean black streaks off gutters without it, whether using hot or cold. And decks should always be pretreated with a deck cleaner before blasting away,,,,,,,,,,,,,,unless you like raised grain and a splintered surface.
There are 4 components of cleaning and while the order may change for certain jobs, most will fall in this order. 1. Chemical 2. Heat 3. Volume of water (GPM) 4. PSI Unfortunately its much easier to sell PSI and that is what everyone looks for.
There is no reliable pressure washer new available for less then $700 or so. The cheaps $100 to $400 machines will not last and are nonrepairable.
As someone stated there are 3 categories.
Cold water. Great for residential cleaning, houses, decks, concrete, knocking off mud etc. Electric or gas, doesn't matter, its all about horsepower. The problem is, 110 volt current will only give you 1600 psi @ 2 gpm. Give me 220 volt current and I can duplicate anything you can do with a gas engine.
Hot water. If you have grease or oil, its the best way to go. Equipment, trucks and also commercial sidewalks for chewing gum, its your only choice. Again, gas or electric makes no difference. Note, hot water machines heat the water up to between 170f to 200F.
Steam, often used synonymously with hot water (but wrong) is 300f at up to 300psi. It is great at degreasing without soap but not used much as it is slow and you can't see what you are cleaning. Also, it is dangerous as you can get burnt easily with a hose failure.
To the OP's question. Most folks for home use are happy with a cold water washer. Note, heavy grease requires hot water, but light oil is cleaned fairly well with cold. Soap is an important and oft neglected part of the equation. You will never clean black streaks off gutters without it, whether using hot or cold. And decks should always be pretreated with a deck cleaner before blasting away,,,,,,,,,,,,,,unless you like raised grain and a splintered surface.
There are 4 components of cleaning and while the order may change for certain jobs, most will fall in this order. 1. Chemical 2. Heat 3. Volume of water (GPM) 4. PSI Unfortunately its much easier to sell PSI and that is what everyone looks for.
There is no reliable pressure washer new available for less then $700 or so. The cheaps $100 to $400 machines will not last and are nonrepairable.
Thanks for the replies.
Intent is to do occasional, mild cleaning…no grease.
Once a year cleaning exterior of the house – porch, deck, balcony, gutters, furniture, etc.
Then misc stuff as needed…Sea Doos, Sea Kayaks, vehicles, lawn mower, etc…
Try to keep my toys in “new condition”.
Need small – have a serious lack of space issue in my garage (will address that in another thread).
I’m thinking a basic, small pressure washer will work. Electric sounds simplest.
Prefer it keep it around $300?
Intent is to do occasional, mild cleaning…no grease.
Once a year cleaning exterior of the house – porch, deck, balcony, gutters, furniture, etc.
Then misc stuff as needed…Sea Doos, Sea Kayaks, vehicles, lawn mower, etc…
Try to keep my toys in “new condition”.
Need small – have a serious lack of space issue in my garage (will address that in another thread).
I’m thinking a basic, small pressure washer will work. Electric sounds simplest.
Prefer it keep it around $300?
Link is to a site that groups review information and generally not a bad place to start shopping for something. They list as category leaders, Campbell Hausfeld, Troybilt, and Rigid.
http://www.consumersearch.com/pressure-washers
http://www.consumersearch.com/pressure-washers
Last edited:
DudeCentric
Member
- Joined
- Mar 8, 2016
- Messages
- 5
Definitely a pressure washer. This Simpson brand power washer unit has enough cleaning power for all jobs around the house and is only $400 with a Honda engine. A steam cleaner is great but I think pressure washer is better for more jobs around the house.
Wes J
Well-known member
Just a word of caution, any pressure washer should be purged of water if it is allowed to freeze, but a hot water washer with a coil is much harder to fully drain. I've seen more hot water washers with burst coils than I can count. It's a very common problem.
kctyphoon
Banned
Craftsman makes an electric pressure washer that is also a steam cleaner.. I've had 2 electric pressure washers. They work great and are very convenient to use. Quiet, easy to store. It's a great option for some people despite what you'll get from this forum. The problem with them is they don't last forever.. Mine both lasted about 3 years (husky 1800 psi models), but they both did anything I needed from them.. Unless you need to remove paint from concrete, an electric model cleans great, but a decent gas unit is better and will last longer. I have a 3100 or 3300psi John Deere model now, and it's leaps and bounds better then my old electrics, ( $180 vs $900 ), but the electric will still do a great job as long as your ok with not owning them for 10 years under moderate seasonal use. These days you can get a decent gas unit for about half what mine cost.
Here's the craftsman -
If your just a guy that's gonna use it to wash the car and clean some small areas every year, I'm sure it'll last you a few years as long as you take care of it..
Here's the craftsman -
If your just a guy that's gonna use it to wash the car and clean some small areas every year, I'm sure it'll last you a few years as long as you take care of it..
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Leaflessshadetree
Well-known member
My choice would be cold water gas for portability and higher pressure. Still limited by the hose but at least not dragging an extension cord around. The higher pressure will be appreciated for many of these tasks.
Vehicles and anything with decals, trim, seals... the pressure of the gas units may be too high and require extra care. (you can get an assortment of nozzles and adjustable nozzles).
But electric will be better for these.
kctyphoon
Banned
This is the best place to do some learning. Pressurewashersdirect.com