HF 99741 pressure washer

On Fri, 17 Apr 2009 06:28:07 -0700, the infamous Pilgrim scrawled the following:
I researched pressure washers and the near unanimous feeling toward those little things (all brands of sub-2kpsi washers) is extreme prejudice. Most break after a use or two and you can't get parts for them. I recommend that you either rent or buy a real one. I found a 3.5kpsi Karcher at Costco, but they no longer sell pressure washers.

I had a similar cheap pressure washer and was very dissatisfied.
Right now I have a Ex-cell 2600 (IIRC) and it has a Honda engine and works great.The other weekend, I used it to wash three compressors, some of which had 1/8" thick layer of dried grime on them. (some were better). It works very effectively.
The trick to washing greasy stuff is to use hot water. I have a adapter that I screw on the utility sink faucet that makes it an adaptor for a garden hose. Then I can use hot water for pressure washing. Setting the water heater to the hottest setting also helps.
i

Larry Jaques suggested: I bought the great-grandfather of the 99741 a few years ago.
Good News It does what it's designed to do. Mine was very cheap to purchase. It's stood up to my (very occasional) use. It does an excellent job washing down the sidewalk after people's pets have visited, washing out trashcans or clearing the area of excess pebbles and stone dust after a masonry project.
Bad News It is LOUD! Particularly for an electric unit. It produces an unpleasant screaming sound. The bayonet connection on the wand comes apart only after significant stress and bother. The detergent bottle cannot be tightened at the neck threads. It falls off easily, however. The hose connection is a proprietary soft plastic quick- release doohickey. I'd have been much happier with a hose fitting or pipe threads to accommodate my brand of quick release fitting. When that plastic release breaks, it'll be all over.
It's a good value for the money and I would buy again, particularly if the 'Bad News' issues have been solved.
--Winston

Me too. JR Dweller in the cellar

Just blows the grease away...
i

On Fri, 17 Apr 2009 07:22:15 -0700, the infamous Winston scrawled the following:
You're the exception so far. Congrats!
I think it should be used WHILE the particular pet visits. _Perforate_ that little peckerhead, Win!
Bueno.
Nah, just superglue it back on and install a real QR connector inline somewhere else. Maybe do that now?
Most people apparently haven't gotten a second use out of these things.

Larry Jaques commented: (...)
Got a cherry from the bin of lemons, perhaps. I have no illusions about how long this tool will remain functional.
Hmm. Which end of the leash should I aim for? :)
(...)
Yup. It's really cheaply made. I probably won't make an effort to fix it when it does konk out, unless I'm *really* bored.
--Winston

Remember to turn it back down right away or you will have pressure venting and eventually damage your pressure relief valve from constant venting.

In my heater, the hottest setting is only a few degrees hotter, maybe something like 130F. Very uncomfortable, but does not instantly scald. Yes, I do turn it back down afterwards. I have 2 kids at home.
i

First, make sure the pressure washer pump is rated for hot water input - some are not, and you'll wreck the pump.
Second, put individual tempering valves under the bathroom sinks and retrofit the shower valves to an Anti-Scald design that does the same thing. Then you can leave the water heater cranked all the way up - you'll get more hot water capacity since you dilute the hot water, that's more BTU's per tank full.
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