Gas Engine Pressure Washers

[Grizzly]

I had a C/H with a Honda engine that came from Tractor Supply. Went thru two of them while it was under warranty(pump failures). After the warranty was out, the pump failed again.

I now have a a "Black Max" from Sam's... . Has a Honda engine also... Its been great... One thing I was told by the repair shop that worked on the previous one was to look for one that has a pump housing made from a brass alloy. . not the all aluminum version. . My new washer has a pump made of brass.



Oh, and X2 on the NOT loaning out stuff... I don't loan out ANYTHING anymore...

The Honda 5 HP from Costco has a brass pump, but I don't know the brand of the pump.

 

[Skydiver]

It needs to look like this. I did a search "2750 PSI Pressure Washer w/ Honda GX & CAT Pump". They are running around $850-$1100.
MX5223 @ Pressure Washers Direct - Your Online MX5223 Superstore!
#ad

 

[rscurtis]

Now you're talking about something that has some life built into it. Another thing to keep in mind on the real cheap units is that they used a special splined crankshaft, so when the pump dies, your new-found engine is useless on anything else but another cheap pressure washer.

 

[Dieselnut59]

My 2 cents worth here:



I have a gas powered one that I bought about 5 or 6 years ago, I would never buy another gas powered one. If you use one at least once every couple weeks or every month at minimum you might be ok, mine gets used maybe 6 times a year and with todays gasoline, everytime I get it out to use it I have pull the carb off and clean it all up to get it to run, I even keep stabil in the gas and it doesn't seem to help. Unless you have the need to use it where there is no A/C power, I would buy a good electric powered one.



Tim

I solved that problem with our hot water washer at work by converting from Honda gas to Yanmar diesel. The 10 horse Yanmar does the work of the 13 horse Honda.

For my personal one, I used a 7 horse Yanmar and a 4000 psi pump from Northern Tool. I bought the engine from E-bay (Genuine Yanmar, not chinese knock off) and got the best pump offered by Northern Tool, made in Italy. It works GREAT. I also set one up identical to it, using a 6 horse Yanmar. It is slightly underpowered, so I detuned the pump a bit. It works very well also. One of our mechanics uses it at the customer's place to wash equipment. Diesel power is PERFECT for pressure washers. I have pictures up on here somewhere of the pressure washer, as well as my firewood splitter with the same engine.

Here is the hot water washer:

https://www.turbodieselregister.com/forums/cummins-diesel-conversions/207907-another-conversion.html

The pressure washer and wood splitter are here:

https://www.turbodieselregister.com/forums/cummins-diesel-conversions/207084-yanmar-conversions.html

 

[Grizzly]

I saw two Husky brand gas pressure washers at HomeDepot. One has a Honda engine and the other, which is larger, has a Kohler engine and a 3000 psi Axial Cam pump. Didn't give HP rating. Anyone have experience with them?

 

[rscurtis]

If that uses what Kohler calls their "Courage" engine, stay far away from it. It is the 6. 0 of small engines. It could also be one of Kohler's Chinese product line.

 

[Dieselnut59]

If that uses what Kohler calls their "Courage" engine, stay far away from it. It is the 6. 0 of small engines. It could also be one of Kohler's Chinese product line.

I about spewed all over my computer when I read this. LOL "The 6. 0 of small engines"
Kohler has a Chinese diesel engine. Probably also a POS, just a much more expensive one!

Here it is: Interestingly enough, it looks like a Lombardini clone
Kohler Engines: KD350: Kohler Diesel Air-Cooled: Product Detail: Engines

 

[Grizzly]

If that uses what Kohler calls their "Courage" engine, stay far away from it. It is the 6. 0 of small engines. It could also be one of Kohler's Chinese product line.

I don't know if it's a "Courage" engine, but it has a vertical shaft with the pump below it almost at ground level. I'll check it out closer next time I go to Home Depot

 

[rscurtis]

That's not a clone, it's the real deal. Kohler recently purchased Lombardini so they would have a small diesel engine line. A number of years ago, Yamaha was making some of their 8-13HP gas engines under the Kohler name. Not a bad engine, not real popular, and I don't know if this relationship still exists.

 

[Grizzly]

Thanks rscurtis, I appreciate all your knowledge about these engines. How good of a pump is an Axial Cam?



george

 

[rscurtis]

It's considered a low-end pump. Has to have a particular oil as they run very hot. A piston pump is much better, a belt drive machine is the best, but big $$. When I closed my rental business, I sold a 10 year old Simpson 4000 psi machine with a 16HP Briggs vanguard engine- for $1800. It was near four grand new.

 

[Dieselnut59]

That's not a clone, it's the real deal. Kohler recently purchased Lombardini so they would have a small diesel engine line. A number of years ago, Yamaha was making some of their 8-13HP gas engines under the Kohler name. Not a bad engine, not real popular, and I don't know if this relationship still exists.

Wow! Lombardin is a good engine. We have an air compressor in one of our service trucks with a Lombardini engine and My Arctic Cat ATV has a 2 cylinder inline 686 cc Lombardini engine. Given the choice, I still prefer Yanmar though.

 

[Shelby Griggs]

I am no expert, BUT I researched this quite a bit before I bought one a couple years back from here Pressure-Pro



In the end, I wanted something around 2700 PSI (or better), a CAT piston pump and a Honda GX engine (stay away from the lower end Honda's, the ones with the diagonal split case are pretty much junk throwaway engines), really with a PW you are mostly buying an engine and a pump, bolted to a couple of bucks of metal, granted some frames etc. are better than others, but the engine and pump are the important things. What I found is almost all brands are bolted together from 3rd party suppliers, the folks at the link above seem to be a cut above the big box store brands, so that is who I went with.



SHG

 

[Skydiver]

Grizzly, It's been a month. Did you decide?

 

[Grizzly]

Grizzly, It's been a month. Did you decide?

I've decided to get the largest capacity electric since I won't be using it all the time. An electric would be less maintenance overall. I haven't decided on which one yet.