When considering what type of pressure washer to buy, the question often comes up, “Is a hot water pressure washer worth it?” The answer is, it depends on what you’re cleaning. When cleaning caked-on mud, dirt, or soils unaffected by high pressure alone, you most likely need a hot water pressure washer to break through.
Cold vs. Hot, What’s the Difference?
Cold water pressure washers are great for removing everyday dirt and mud. It’s like washing your hands. If you apply soap and cold water and try to clean your hands, you still wind up with dirt and greases on your hands when it’s all said and done. It just moves the grime around on your hands and doesn’t get things clean. Now take your exact situation and wash your hands with soap and hot water; you’ll see an incredible difference in cleanliness’s quickness and quality.
A hot water pressure washer works much the same. Hot water pressure washers are designed to penetrate the oils, greases, and grime. If you are cleaning anything such as construction equipment, engines, or anything oily, you need a hot water pressure washer. The hot water pressure washer performs best at 200° F temperatures. You can see things melting off of what you are cleaning. This also applies to killing molds mildews and cleaning sticky surfaces. You can almost always see an instant result in this type of cleaning.
What Needs Cleaning?
Many sales appointments wind up at a place where an oily, dirty crime has been committed. Once you get there, it’s solving the person’s needs with the problems. You start with a hot machine to clean and determine what pressure, water volume, and temperature work best to clean and what works best for the customer’s needs. The next question is, does the situation warrant paying extra for a hot water pressure washer?
A hot water pressure washer will cost more upfront, but the benefits will outweigh the time it takes to solve a problem. A hot water pressure washer will sometimes cost two to three times more than a cold water pressure washer. You have to look at a few different things to determine the cleaning process. If the speed of the machine is quicker than the process of using just a cold water machine, what other costs are you risking? Costs of fuels and maintenance are the noticeable differences in how things were done previously. The other factor is it quicker, and does it save you labor? If the answer is still yes, you need a hot water pressure washer.
Just Add Heat.
Next on the list is, what is the best method to deliver the heat, or how do you add heat? When shopping for a hot water pressure washer, there are a few different ways to heat the water. The most common is a portable diesel-fired machine. They come in gas engine-driven packages or an electric unit with a diesel-fired burner. The downside is always adding fuel to keep the heat going. In addition, diesel fuel can be messy and may put too many fumes in a confined area.
The second would come in as natural gas or liquid propane. Natural gas or liquid propane pressure washers tends to be more of a stationary unit and is less likely to be set up in a wash bay situation.
Last but not least is the all-electric version. The all-electric machine tends to be a stationary unit and will draw higher amperage. An all-electric unit usually requires a 230 or 460 volts, 3 phase power source. The considerable benefit of an all-electric unit is that it puts off no fumes and requires no ventilation.
Get Down to Business.
Please contact a local dealer or the factory for further information when considering a new pressure washer. Buying a pressure washer can be tricky when making the proper decision on what to buy. We have plenty of support to help you get a suitable pressure washer to fit your needs the first time. “It’s not clean till it’s Alkota Clean!”
