Got rid of my Overpriced Karcher PW and bought a Cheap Ryobi & Upgraded it... way better setup!!

[fightnews]

There is no difference you can feel between 1500 and 2000 psi. As for water pressure, try this: Hook up everything on your pressure washer but don't turn the power on. Then remove the pressure nozzle and squeeze the trigger to let water flow out of the wand. You will see that there is very little water coming out. Think about it. When the power is on, the unit will use about 1.4 gallon per minute, that is not much water at all and doesn't require much pressure. In fact most unit run perfectly well with a water tank that is elevated and don"t need a pump to feed the water into the pressure washer.

There is a big difference between my karcher 2000 and the hf 1600 it's easily noticeable.

[richy]

I read this thread with quite a bit of interest as I just purchased a new Karcher electric power washer. My old one just started to run continuously even though it was plugged in (even with the switch off!). HOWEVER, the unit is 8 years old...it doesn't owe me a thing!!

There are about an equal # of bad reviews and good ones for the unit I bought on both the Crappy Tire website (any good Canadian knows Crappy Tire=Canadian Tire) and the reviews on Amazon. Here is the review I just posted on Crappy Tire's website:




"I have owned a Karcher K3.68M electric power washer for 7 or 8 years. It just broke. After 8 years, it didn't owe me anything! I checked online and found this K5.540 (last year's model) on for a significant savings ($380 down to $250). I literally read 100's of reviews on both here and Amazon about this unit. An equal # of bad reviews match the # of good ones. People's main beefs are: leaking water at the inlet and top heavy and failing to work.
I have used my new one a few times. I have a procedure that I follow to use mine and I suggest if you do the same, your power washer will last you a very long time too. Also, I employed a plastic quick connect on my old unit (it comes included on the new one). This is a very efficient way to connect it. The following is my start and finish procedure:
Start:
connect hose with the hose off (easier to do with no pressure)
turn hose on
squeeze trigger to let out any air and ensure a strong stream of water
Plug in unit and push top button
Turn on unit with switch (I leave mine on always after the first time) The pump will cycle for a second and then stop. It's primed now and ready to go. Do your job.
Finish:
Unplug machine
Disconnect hose
Squeeze trigger to release pressure and any remaining water in unit (VERY important step!)
Wind up hose, you're done.

As far as being top heavy, I suggest unrolling as much hose as you need first. So far, the reel is tight and I need to use the handle to unroll it; pulling on the hose won't do it. I use mine 99% of the time for washing cars and I use it several times a week. My old unit had no reel so I had to wind the hose around the machine, which was a PITA. I had to unwind the hose completely to use that one, so this is no different in terms of unrolling it. I always need the entire length anyway. A lot of other electric pw's have only a 20' hose. 2 Karchers ago, my little one only had a 20' hose...they're useless. I am would not have purchased this unit with only a 20' hose; that's a deal breaker for me.
I definitely notice a difference in power between this and my 1800 psi old one. I have an aftermarket foam gun and even it works better with the higher pressure. I kept my old wand for a spare and it works with the new unit as well. I had bought an extension wand for the old one too which also is compatible. I am happy staying in the Karcher family.

This unit is regularly priced at $380 and I bought it for $250. That's a steal for this unit. It was in an unopened box. I am delighted with my purchase for both price and performance. If you can still find one, snap it up quickly!!

[WRAPT C5Z06]

The Karcher X series has a high quality motor and pump for it's price. The downfall is the spray wand it comes with; even at the widest setting, it sprays at about 15 degrees which is way too narrow. Not for saftey, but coverage area. Takes forever to rinse. You cannot change to a different tip which sucks!

[zmcgovern45]

Your PW isn't pushing nearly enough PSI for the 3/8" hose. I think you're leaving performance on the table. Anyhow, if you're happy!

Based on the GPM listed for the Ryobi, and some assumptions on the properties of the hose, properties of water, etc... a .25" diameter 25 long hose will produce a significantly larger pressure drop than a .375" diameter 50 ft long hose when calculating the losses due to friction (both of which are small in the grand scheme of things).

I did some basic calculations to show this...

50 ft hose, 0.375 in diameter...


25 ft hose, 0.25 in diameter (using same assumptions as in the 50' .375" D calculations)...




The more critical part of the system downstream from the pump is the nozzle. The nozzle is what generates the output pressure by effectively reducing the area for the water to flow through. This is why I purchased a new set of nozzles that are appropriately sized for the flow rate of the pump and the desired output pressure using the chart found in the PDF I had provided a link to.

"The nozzle does not create the pressure in and of itself. The pressure washer pump creates a specific amount of flow. By damming the flow with nozzle, you create the pressure—much like when you put your thumb over the end of a garden hose to create a more powerful stream of water. The nozzle is part of a system and must be properly sized to be correctly paired with the flow of the pressure washer. Putting on too small a nozzle can over-pressurize the pump and cause problems. Putting on too large a nozzle lowers the pressure, meaning a loss of efficiency and cleaning power. "
Link for Reference

So, can you tell me how and where to shop for a replacement hose?

And where did you purchase yours? I would most likelly try to do it locally but just in case

If you read through my OP, you will see a link to a PDF which has photos, descriptions, and links to all of the parts that I purchased.

To replace your hose, you just need to find another hose with the same connection (assuming it isnt a proprietary connection like the Karcher), or use a converter to change from whatever size connection your PW output is to a more common hose size like I did (convert from M22 to 3/8").

I have the karcher k5 and it works great for me. The hose is long enough to go around the whole car and the units never fallen over. It has great power too. Its 100x better then the harbor freight unit i had. The foam i get with my hp gun is also perfect and the hose doesn't coil up. i dont know why you need a 50 foot hose unless you are washing a school bus? I have a small suv and the karcher hose goes around the whole car without moving the machine.

The only thing I don't like about the unit is the cheap plastic quick connect. Maybe you don't have enough water pressure at your house to take advantage of the power of the unit and the higher gpm?[/URL]

The flow rate and water pressure of most household water supplies is way more than is needed for a tiny pressure washer pump.

Having a 50' hose allows me to connect my PW to the water supply and maneuver myself around my entire driveway (and previously in my entire shop when I was a professional) without the need to move the pressure washer. A 25' hose means I would have had to have placed the PW fairly close to the vehicle, and then it would barely reach around both sides of a larger vehicle.

Like I said, the PW functioned just fine... it was the little things that really bugged me over the 4+ years I owned it. The hose, the spray wand, the parts falling off of the unit, etc.

That new setup he's using is not better then my k5 x series. The unit he originally had and got rid of. I'll have to disagree with his opinion here. The K5 is 2000 psi and has a 1.4 gpm flow. The unit he bought is 1500 psi and has a 1.2 gpm flow. Numbers don't lie.

I believe he thinks its better. Maybe he doesn'tt have enough water pressure at his house to fully take advantage of the more powerful unit? The k5 at my house is just about as powerful as a coin op

Again, as was said in my OP, the Karcher operated perfectly fine. No one is disputing that. As a whole package, it is my opinion that the K5 was lacking in terms of quality of sprayer, hose, gun holder, cord holder, etc. that did not justify the 3x price over the cheap unit I have purchased. Upgrading the cheap unit with high quality parts for a lesser price than the K5 has made, for me, an ideal car washing unit.

The Karcher X series has a high quality motor and pump for it's price. The downfall is the spray wand it comes with; even at the widest setting, it sprays at about 15 degrees which is way too narrow. Not for saftey, but coverage area. Takes forever to rinse. You cannot change to a different tip which sucks!

Agree... the internals of the unit are nothing to be upset at. They work as expected and were perfectly fine for me... it is the attachments (hose, sprayer, wand, hose holder, cord holder, etc) that were poor and should have been higher quality for the price tag IMO.

[JustJesus]

I hear you on the hose that just doesn't want to lay flat. Kind of annoying.

Great post, thanks for sharing.

[WRAPT C5Z06]

Based on the GPM listed for the Ryobi, and some assumptions on the properties of the hose, properties of water, etc... a .25" diameter 25 long hose will produce a significantly larger pressure drop than a .375" diameter 50 ft long hose when calculating the losses due to friction (both of which are small in the grand scheme of things).

I did some basic calculations to show this...

50 ft hose, 0.375 in diameter...


25 ft hose, 0.25 in diameter (using same assumptions as in the 50' .375" D calculations)...




The more critical part of the system downstream from the pump is the nozzle. The nozzle is what generates the output pressure by effectively reducing the area for the water to flow through. This is why I purchased a new set of nozzles that are appropriately sized for the flow rate of the pump and the desired output pressure using the chart found in the PDF I had provided a link to.

"The nozzle does not create the pressure in and of itself. The pressure washer pump creates a specific amount of flow. By damming the flow with nozzle, you create the pressure—much like when you put your thumb over the end of a garden hose to create a more powerful stream of water. The nozzle is part of a system and must be properly sized to be correctly paired with the flow of the pressure washer. Putting on too small a nozzle can over-pressurize the pump and cause problems. Putting on too large a nozzle lowers the pressure, meaning a loss of efficiency and cleaning power. "
Link for Reference




If you read through my OP, you will see a link to a PDF which has photos, descriptions, and links to all of the parts that I purchased.

To replace your hose, you just need to find another hose with the same connection (assuming it isnt a proprietary connection like the Karcher), or use a converter to change from whatever size connection your PW output is to a more common hose size like I did (convert from M22 to 3/8").


The flow rate and water pressure of most household water supplies is way more than is needed for a tiny pressure washer pump.

Having a 50' hose allows me to connect my PW to the water supply and maneuver myself around my entire driveway (and previously in my entire shop when I was a professional) without the need to move the pressure washer. A 25' hose means I would have had to have placed the PW fairly close to the vehicle, and then it would barely reach around both sides of a larger vehicle.

Like I said, the PW functioned just fine... it was the little things that really bugged me over the 4+ years I owned it. The hose, the spray wand, the parts falling off of the unit, etc.



Again, as was said in my OP, the Karcher operated perfectly fine. No one is disputing that. As a whole package, it is my opinion that the K5 was lacking in terms of quality of sprayer, hose, gun holder, cord holder, etc. that did not justify the 3x price over the cheap unit I have purchased. Upgrading the cheap unit with high quality parts for a lesser price than the K5 has made, for me, an ideal car washing unit.


Agree... the internals of the unit are nothing to be upset at. They work as expected and were perfectly fine for me... it is the attachments (hose, sprayer, wand, hose holder, cord holder, etc) that were poor and should have been higher quality for the price tag IMO.

You said basic calculations????

Those don't look anywhere near basic to me! I'm not very bright in math, however.


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[KMG]

He is an engineer, he don't have anything better to do with his time :P

[cleanmycorolla]

He is an engineer, he don't have anything better to do with his time :P

as someowho's wife is an engineer, i second this!

[Calendyr]

There is a big difference between my karcher 2000 and the hf 1600 it's easily noticeable.

Then maybe your HF has issues. I have worked with machines from 1500 to 2000 PSI and cannot feel a difference. I have worked with machines with 3000 PSI and then I can feel a huge difference.

Maybe it's just me, but when I was working with the lower powered unit, it worked just fine, no issues what so ever.

[zmcgovern45]

He is an engineer, he don't have anything better to do with his time :P

Well I happened to be at my desk checking AGO and was armed with my calculator and Mechanical Engineering Refernece Book... so yeah... you're right