I hear people ask the question “Do I need a pressure washer that can handle hot water?” all of the time. The simple answer to this question is probably not. Unless you are running a commercial cleaning business you are probably not going to need to purchase a hot water pressure washer. Just think of it this way. Whatever a standard power washer can clean with cold water, a hot water pressure washer can clean it faster and a lot better.
When you wash your dishes at home do you use soap and cold water to clean? My guess is no. You must use hot water to break up the oil, grease, soap and other items. Cold water will just push those oils and grime around. Do you also notice that if you wash a plastic container with just semi warm water and soap and then you can taste the soap still a day after. This is because the soap was not completely washed off. Using very warm water will wipe away the soap that cold water just pushes around.
So, back to our original question. Do you really need a hot water pressure washer? If you are cleaning basic things outside of your home like a driveway, fence, deck, patio, or your house the answer is NO. if you are going to be cleaning automotive items like an engine or other greasy parts, the answer will be YES. Basically anything that has to do with grease will require the use of a hot water pressure washer.
When it comes to costs, you will find that a hot water pressure washer is going to cost a lot more than your standard power washer. This is due to the extra feature inside the machine that takes water from your hose and heats it up. When you attach your garden hose up to the pump, water is pushed through it and then makes its way through a heating coil that wraps around the unit quickly boiling the water depending on the type.
There are a few different types of heated pressure washers. They include:
All of these pressure washers are going to give you a very similar experience. It comes down to how much you are willing to pay and how you want to heat the water. Maybe you have FREE natural gas provided by you association. Maybe Diesel gasoline is cheaper and easier to come by. You need to outweigh the options to be able to determine the correct model for you or your business.
Lets take a look at the NorthStar Gas Powered Wet Steam & Hot Water Pressure Washer – 3,000 PSI, 4.0 GPM, Honda Engine.
You can see that the unit has a large tank that hold and heats the water. It also has 2 gas tanks. One to put gasoline only in and one that is used to heat the water. You can put in Diesel, Kerosene, or Fuel Oil. Now lets take a look at the price compared to a cold water pressure washer with the same specs. A hot water pressure washer with 3000 PSI and 4.0 GPM will run you around $3500, while a standard cold water pressure washer with 3100 PSI and 2.5 GPM will run you under $400. As you can see there is a big difference. Overtime however you will save that money by being able to cleaning more items in a faster amount of time.
If you have any more questions for me about hot water pressure washers be sure to leave a comment below.
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