I've been wondering about using a lower pressure electric power washer as either a quick pollen remover or as a pre wash before hand washing.
As long as I don't aim directly at door and window seals, or in the rear hatch of my old 911, does anyone see a problem with occasional use?
Chuck just used ours to knock the pollen and associated grits off of our fleet. He even used it on his 2019 Fiesta ST, which is his BABY. He only uses the softest towels on it lol.
Yeah, it worked great.
I use a low pressure washer all the time on our cars as well as a motorhome with automotive type paint. I keep the nozzle a foot or more away from the painted surfaces. I also use a foam cannon with the low pressure washer. It puts a very thick layer of soap foam on the vehicles and then wipe down with a microfiber mitt before rinsing. Pressure washer does a great job on tires. This is the foam cannon I use:
Pressure drops off pretty significantly with distance. If you are concerned just start two feet back.
I bought a honda 3200 gas pressure washer last month, due to the advice of Curtis and many others on this forum. BEST thing I have purchased in my life (aside from hookers and blow). That said, no issues washing my SUV mud etc from a little distance.
I just can't do it. I die a little when I see them pressure washing cars at a dealership.
A gas one can do some damage if you're not careful. So, just be careful.
Choose wisely, use common sense.
I had one of these for several years until my wife just recently cross threaded the hose connection beyond repair. It was great. Not really strong enough for large home tasks, but worked really well for cars and cleaning off the dirt scooters. I have limited storage so the small size is a plus.
Thanks for the feedback.
Newer cars would be almost completely oblivious to an electric pressure washer. Older ones often have fragile bits and you have to be careful. It's all very common sense once you've had a few minutes behind it. You spend a lot more time wishing an electric one was MORE powerful, not LESS powerful. Since you are waving a hard plastic (maybe even metal) wand suspended over paintwork on the end of a 2ft stick, you do have to be careful about letting it touch the car and damage the finish with the wand itself. The water spray is not usually an issue unless you're shooting it under some cracking paint. It CAN make rock chips bigger. But you learn how to be careful with it almost immediately.
If you go to one of those coin-op self service car washes, they pretty much operate on weak electric pressure washers. Imagine one of those with a bit more oomph, your car can handle it ok.
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