[DDD31]

Originally Posted by Drop the hammer

Kranzle washer. Rebuildable, lifelong purchase. I’m putting one into my new garage if it ever gets finished.

Finally bit the bullet and got a Kranzle pressure washer this past spring. Even though they're definitely not cheap, the Kranzle is well worth the price. Thing is built like a Panzer tank, all the important pump parts and fittings are all metal. I went through 3 of the $150 range pressure washers over the years and they all leaked, had flimsy hoses that kink all the time, or just plain broke.

Got mine from Obsessed Garage that was a package deal that came with quick disconnect fittings and makes using it a breeze.

If you're serious about car washing, get the Kranzle, you will definitely not be disappointed.

[Finn Germai-Yaz]

I use a Sun Joe from Amazon and a foam canon. The pressure washer was around $150 and the foam cannon was around $25. I don't care about people on my block seeing soapy water running down the street.

I know you can hand wash your car and get almost the same results but the pressure washer can get tough stains out so youre not over working yourself. It's also a lot faster rinsing your car with the pressure washer vs a water hose and you will use less water.

[tranquility]

OT, do ppl really go crazy if they see you wash your car, soap water, etc? I have no idea what that's all about, how else are you supposed to wash your car?

[Buug959]

When i lived in Calgary (early 2000s) there was a by-law against washing your car at home. The only way to legally wash your car was at a commercial car wash.From what I could find out it was to prevent soapy water front getting in to watercourses and ultimately the water table.

[tranquility]

Originally Posted by LemansE90335xi

When i lived in Calgary (early 2000s) there was a by-law against washing your car at home. The only way to legally wash your car was at a commercial car wash.From what I could find out it was to prevent soapy water front getting in to watercourses and ultimately the water table.

Wow, I mean I may have heard of something similar but I never regarded it when I was washing in my driveway or in my condo and nobody ever confronted me about it. It's a silly law or whatever imho....where do they expect us to wash our cars and soapy water getting into the drains, how about taking showers then, I'm confused.

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by LemansE90335xi

When i lived in Calgary (early 2000s) there was a by-law against washing your car at home. The only way to legally wash your car was at a commercial car wash.From what I could find out it was to prevent soapy water front getting in to watercourses and ultimately the water table.

But wouldn't that make for "clean" drinking water

[Buug959]

Originally Posted by tranquility

Wow, I mean I may have heard of something similar but I never regarded it when I was washing in my driveway or in my condo and nobody ever confronted me about it. It's a silly law or whatever imho....where do they expect us to wash our cars and soapy water getting into the drains, how about taking showers then, I'm confused.

The difference between washing your car in the driveway and taking a shower is the shower water goes to a water treatment facility to be cleaned up before being released whereas the wash water from your car goes into the storm drains and never gets treated to clean it before it is dumped back into the environment.

[Buug959]

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

But wouldn't that make for "clean" drinking water

If soapy equates to clean then yeah, I guess you're right.

[Techno 9000]

Originally Posted by PYE46M3

You don't need a pressure washer to wash your own car. You just need a garden hose and a water wand. All a pressure washer is good for is a foam cannon that does absolutely nothing to clean your car, and it takes a good pressure washer with high GPM flow to create a thick useless foam... which is not something 80% of the washers on the market provide anyway.

Spend that money on a two gallon bucket system and quality cleaning products.

I have to disagree, the pressure washer is just right when the weather is at its worst and the car is really dirty. Using a pressure washer to remove the worst of the dirt, along with any grit from the surface, means when you go in with a sponge or wash mitt to do the contact wash you are not scrubbing grit particles over the surface of your vehicle.

[tranquility]

Originally Posted by LemansE90335xi

The difference between washing your car in the driveway and taking a shower is the shower water goes to a water treatment facility to be cleaned up before being released whereas the wash water from your car goes into the storm drains and never gets treated to clean it before it is dumped back into the environment.

Ah, ic, tx. Still, how do they expect us to wash our cars then? Forced to go to some commercial place: are they mandated to treat their waste water?

[br2wdc]

I have the same setup and it does a tremendous job of cleaning my car, specifically with the wheels and wheel dust when I initially wet down the car.

Originally Posted by nawfoo

I use a Sun Joe from Amazon and a foam canon. The pressure washer was around $150 and the foam cannon was around $25. I don't care about people on my block seeing soapy water running down the street.

I know you can hand wash your car and get almost the same results but the pressure washer can get tough stains out so youre not over working yourself. It's also a lot faster rinsing your car with the pressure washer vs a water hose and you will use less water.

[br2wdc]

"Need" of course is a strong word, and I concur you don't "need" a pressure washer, but it makes many things MUCH easier, including cleaning brake dust off wheels.

Also, the information you received on Foam Cannon makes no sense because the whole point of washing the car yourself is to avoid swirls and scratches from an automatic car washes. The Foam Cannon provides that extra layer of protection to prevent that issue.

Originally Posted by PYE46M3

You don't need a pressure washer to wash your own car. You just need a garden hose and a water wand. All a pressure washer is good for is a foam cannon that does absolutely nothing to clean your car, and it takes a good pressure washer with high GPM flow to create a thick useless foam... which is not something 80% of the washers on the market provide anyway.

Spend that money on a two gallon bucket system and quality cleaning products.

[vreihen16]

Originally Posted by tranquility

Ah, ic, tx. Still, how do they expect us to wash our cars then? Forced to go to some commercial place: are they mandated to treat their waste water?

Car washes use recycled water systems, at least every self-service one that I've seen. The drains lead right back to the storage/settling tank, where the water is used again. Wash, rinse, repeat.....

[Buug959]

Originally Posted by tranquility

Ah, ic, tx. Still, how do they expect us to wash our cars then? Forced to go to some commercial place: are they mandated to treat their waste water?

Yes they have filter systems to get the heavy contaminants out of the water and then they send the water to the treatment facility for further processing. I believe (and I may be wrong on this point) the car washes are also required to use "environmentally friendly" detergents.

[PYE46M3]

Originally Posted by SickGTR

It's just another way to help not scratch your car. 2 bucket is obviously they key. Definitely doesn't hurt to soak it down with the cannon first to remove any loose debris before you put the sponge to it. I also use it for the lubricator for when I clay bar. Works perfectly!!!

Originally Posted by Techno 9000

I have to disagree, the pressure washer is just right when the weather is at its worst and the car is really dirty. Using a pressure washer to remove the worst of the dirt, along with any grit from the surface, means when you go in with a sponge or wash mitt to do the contact wash you are not scrubbing grit particles over the surface of your vehicle.

Originally Posted by br2wdc

Also, the information you received on Foam Cannon makes no sense because the whole point of washing the car yourself is to avoid swirls and scratches from an automatic car washes. The Foam Cannon provides that extra layer of protection to prevent that issue.

I have to disagree. Unless you are going off-roading and need to blast huge chunks of mud off your surface then I don't see how a pressure washer comes in handy for a street driven cars that are washed 2x a month and maintained with wax. In my experience, foam cannons hardly add any benefit over a pre-rinse with plain water. They certainly do not loosen up tree sap, bird poop or dirty water spots splashed onto the surfaces by the wheels. At the end of the day, a sponge is needed to mechanically wipe these types of contaminants off and this is where your existing layer of wax and quality soap will provide most of the protection. Also a nice layer of wax on the wheels allows most of the loosely attached brake dust to wash right off with a pre-rinse. Stubborn brake dust will still require a wash mitt. If you really insist on having a foam cannon, there are good ones out there that attach to a garden hose and provide a decent layer of foam, provided you have high enough flow to begin with.

[DenverSteve]

Originally Posted by Chrisk-K

All the replies have come from Canadians. Is this a coincidence?

Nope. I've used power sprayers on everything from my race cars to my expensive cars and Jeeps for decades and never an issue. The soap won't bother your lawn. If anything, a power sprayer will be more efficient than a hose and squeeze nozzle. Be a little careful if you've got PPF and keep the nozzle where you normally would and you should have no issues.

[iminhell1]

Originally Posted by nawfoo

I use a Sun Joe from Amazon and a foam canon. The pressure washer was around $150 and the foam cannon was around $25. I don't care about people on my block seeing soapy water running down the street.

I know you can hand wash your car and get almost the same results but the pressure washer can get tough stains out so youre not over working yourself. It's also a lot faster rinsing your car with the pressure washer vs a water hose and you will use less water.

I also have the sun joe (can be bought off the shelf at walmart).

The 'mod",

[2000cs]

I wouldn’t use a pressure washer on my cars because years ago the BMW dealer used one and peeled the paint off my wheels (on two cars!). So I’m wary. But the foam cannon and such is common among detailers, so perhaps I should reconsider.

On cars I care about, I use ONR, a spray bottle, and two buckets. On other cars, occasional hose off or car wash. I bought a gallon of ONR over a decade ago and its still going strong. One capful in the wash bucket is enough. I started doing this when living in a condo with very limited water access and driving a Porsche that I didn’t want car wash scratches on. A good wash consumes 3 gallons of water plus whatever to wash my towels and sponge in the laundry.

ONR Video:

I use two gallons in the wash bucket and a second bucket with one gallon of water only to rinse the sponge. That keeps the wash water cleaner.

[SickGTR]

Originally Posted by PYE46M3

I have to disagree. Unless you are going off-roading and need to blast huge chunks of mud off your surface then I don't see how a pressure washer comes in handy for a street driven cars that are washed 2x a month and maintained with wax. In my experience, foam cannons hardly add any benefit over a pre-rinse with plain water. They certainly do not loosen up tree sap, bird poop or dirty water spots splashed onto the surfaces by the wheels. At the end of the day, a sponge is needed to mechanically wipe these types of contaminants off and this is where your existing layer of wax and quality soap will provide most of the protection. Also a nice layer of wax on the wheels allows most of the loosely attached brake dust to wash right off with a pre-rinse. Stubborn brake dust will still require a wash mitt. If you really insist on having a foam cannon, there are good ones out there that attach to a garden hose and provide a decent layer of foam, provided you have high enough flow to begin with.

Negative. No garden hose will foam like a gas/electric power washer!!! Many top end places use them as a pre-rinse. My cars are all wrapped. I foam cannon shammy and done. If you don't want to use one fine. Doesn't mean they are worthless. Wax? Who the hell uses wax anymore? Lol

[TiMSport]

I'm not sure why some people around here assume the foam cannon is used right away without doing a rinse over first. At least that's what I do when washing my car. Garden hose with a wand? GTFO. Lol.

[tranquility]

Ya, lots of weird comments. Ofc ppl can do the old-fashioned way but it's a better tool so why not? Doesn't mean ppl w pressure washers don't use elbow grease in addition.

[NorCalAthlete]

Originally Posted by TiMSport

I'm not sure why some people around here assume the foam cannon is used right away without doing a rinse over first. At least that's what I do when washing my car. Garden hose with a wand? GTFO. Lol.

I'm still figuring out what works best with mine, but so far what I've been doing is:

1. Hose rinse
2. Foam cannon
3. Pressure washer rinse
4. Leaf blower dry
5. Microfiber dry
6. Hit up windows inside and out
7. Have a beer

Takes maybe 15-20 min all total.

Admittedly there are some water spots that are being stubborn that won't come out with just pressure washing, and I could do a better / more thorough job on the windows (a fact that comes to light when they start to fog up when it gets cold, and your shitty work comes back to haunt you)(even if they look perfect in the sun normally).

So I'm going to try a good wash mitt job after step 3 next time.