Some home cleaning chores are simple and easy: the dirty laundry,
the kitchen counter-tops, the bathroom. But some cleaning chores are
just too hard for regular cleaning methods to work. And pressure
washers are perfect for the tough jobs.
What makes pressure
washers so wonderful and effective in cleaning is that they
literally 'blast' the dirt and sludge away by forcing water out at a
very high pressure. Whatever outdoor surface that needs to be
cleaned around the home can probably be cleaned with a pressure
washer - outdoor furniture, house windows, outdoor equipment like
the BBQ, the air conditioner, you name it. In the past you could
only find pressure washers in factories and other industrial
locations. Today there are many models built just for use around the
home.
When you purchase a pressure washer, what can you expect to get?
Typical pressure washer units will come equipped with a water pump
of some sort, a hose, and a trigger gun that will have one or more
spray nozzles. The consumer-based models are usually much lighter
and easier to move around than their heavy-duty cousins designed for
industrial cleaning jobs.
Pressure washers for home use typically shoot the water at high
pressure but do not heat it. As well, the consumer models typically
plug right into your household electrical outlet. In contrast, the
heavy-duty-cleaning professional models can heat the water to a high
temperature, to really knock out the heavy grease and oil sludge
that often needs cleaned off of industrial and factory equipment.
One thing that you must never do is to treat your pressure washer
as a toy - like a 'squirt gun'. You must never point it at any
person. It is very easy to injure yourself or others with a pressure
washer. If the water stream hits your skin, you can get bruised - or
the flesh can actually be detached from the bone! Of course, if the
water is squirted into the eyes, serious damage, including
blindness, can be the result.
Simple safety precautions include wearing protective goggles when
using any pressure washers, as well as exercising care when cleaning
surfaces with loose debris - as the water can propel stones and
other small items into the air at a very great speed. If you are
using a professional model that heats the water, you must be very
careful not to burn yourself or other people.
The uses for a pressure washer are almost endless: vehicle
cleaning (both topside and underneath), sidewalks and roadways,
cement basement floors, patios and decks, poolside, air
conditioners. And as you use your pressure washer more and more, you
will think of even more and more uses for it!
As a consumer, most of the pressure washer models you are likely
to use will be powered by electricity - you just plug it into your
household outlet and go! The electricity powers a pump that is
responsible for powering the high-pressure stream of water.
Industrial models can often heat the water to such a high
temperature that steam is produced, and this really helps in
cleaning industrial-sized messes. Short on funds? Well, try looking
into a refurbished unit - they are all fixed-up and work just as
great as their shiny, brand-new cousins.
