New pressure washer purchase

[Trevolly]

Hi all
I’ve got an older style Karcher K5 Premium which is slowly falling apart and last week the pressure hose split. I might use this opportunity to replace the Karcher and was looking at the new K5 /K7 Premium models. The only thing that wound me up with my Karcher was the hose would coil back on itself and get tangled up. I have started looked at other options. I’m looking at £500 (max tbh) and the pressure washer would also need to be suitable for garden use as well. I started researching the BigBoi Washr Flo but can only find a few videos online. Id look at getting the hose / gun upgrade.

BigBoi pressure washer
Hose upgrade

Any advice or recommendations?
Many thanks.
Trevor.

 

[swisstony]

My advice as a long term uer of Karcher is...avoid them. I have lost count how many I have gone through and they just dont last. However if funds are tight then you can buy one of the Karchers and do a few upgrades which make them slightly better. Number one, swap out the **** standard hose for a softer more flexible non kink hose. Then swap out the standard gun and go for a better quick release gun which can work with various lances etc. All in a far better solution for your money.
If you can push the budget and go foe buy once method, then the Kranzle series ( 1050 etc ) are superb. I havent looked back since I bought one

 

[Charlie Farley]

I've been looking at Karcher as well, most seem to suggest they are poor quality and I have not made a decision yet on what to get based on reviews thus far.
I have a diesel pressure washer that's great but sometimes it is just a faff getting it set up etc and an electric maybe better for just light car wash duties.
I'm open to recommendations too.

 

[Neo17]

Karcher = krapcher.

Kranzle is the way forward if in budget, if not then maybe a Nilfisk.

 

[swisstony]

will price some suitable kits to suit all budgets

 

[Pinky1959]

I have a Karcher K7 with the hose reel on the machine and it is really good .
I have had it over12 years and it is starting to leak a bit at the machine where you plug the hose in.
It still does two cars regularly and concrete driveway and large decking at least twice a year .
Try Karcher outlet for a refurb-d one .

 

[swisstony]

Ok some options depending on budget

Low Budget
Karcher K5 , make sure the model has the integrated reel or else coiling up the cable will do your head in very quickly

Kärcher High Pressure Washer K 5 Premium Smart Control *GB

K 5 Premium Smart Control: pressure washer with Bluetooth, application consultant app, boost mode for extra power, G 180 Q Smart Control spray gun, 3-in-1 Multi Jet spray lance, hose reel.

www.kaercher.com

£379

Team this with a flexible replacement hose from direct hoses

Karcher style replacement Rubber Flexiwash Hose Quick Fit connections

Karcher Style 'K' Series Pressure Washer hose for the New Quick connect trigger. Hose rated 230 bar working pressure ,made from our own Flexiwash Black/Blue Pressure Washer hose 100% Rubber with wire reinforcement. So if you are fed up with wrestling the standard stiff plastic hose supplied with...

www.directhoses.net

£36

Short trigger gun from direct hoses

Karcher K series Quick fit Short Trigger with Quick fit Nozzles

Karcher Style K series Short Quick fit Gun & Quick fit nozzles , compatible with original hoses for the Yellow C clip or Yellow button hose end . Available in either swivel or fixed inlets. 4000 psi Industrial grade trigger gun with brass valve supplied with 1 x 15 degree Yellow Nozzle 1 x...

www.directhoses.net

£34

Mid Budget
Nilsfisk

Cleanstore :: Nilfisk Premium 200 Pressure Washer

CleanStore provides quality cleaning products for delivery across the UK.

www.cleanstore.co.uk

£537

You can also have a short trigger gun

Nilfisk 'C' 'D' & 'E' series Quick fit Short Trigger with Quick fit Nozzles

Nilfisk 'C' , 'D' & 'E' series Quick fit Gun & Quick fit nozzles. 4000 psi Industrial grade trigger gun with brass valve supplied with 1 x 15 degree Yellow Nozzle 1 x 25 degree Green Nozzle 1 x 40 degree White Nozzle Also in the kit a snow foam lance adapter to convert Brass body foam lance...

www.directhoses.net

£34

High End Budget
No comparision here , Kranzle wins hands down but pricey

Kranzle 1050 TST Home And Garden Use High Pressure Washer

High-Pressure 12m hose on a reel – Thermoplastic coated hose with M22 female ends M2000 Trigger gun with safety catch and quick release fitting Flat Jet stainless steel lance with brass quick quick release bayonet Fan jet lance stainless steel dirt killer lance New easy to view inlet water...

www.mycarcleaning.co.uk

£650

Hope that helps

 

[s5joe]

I have a Kranzle 1152tst and I got it about 10 years ago. I went from Karcher and never looked back. Just get it serviced every 2 years and that’s just an oil change.

 

[8YARWY]

Same here I went from a Karcher to a Kranzle brilliant machine.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[DW81]

This is the one I bought and have used for a few years.
No problems, got a 15m hose with quick disconnect connectors fitted, mtm gun and foam cannon. Works a treat.
Picture is of a standard washer prior to my meddling
And it's in budget, £470

Sent from my SM-G981B using Tapatalk

 

[swisstony]

This is the one I bought and have used for a few years.
No problems, got a 15m hose with quick disconnect connectors fitted, mtm gun and foam cannon. Works a treat.
Picture is of a standard washer prior to my meddling
And it's in budget, £470

Sent from my SM-G981B using Tapatalk

good choice there squire. I have a fair distance from the garage down the side of the house and then onto the driveway so the wheeled version suited me better but I do know of several people who have that similar model and mount it in the garage and then run a long hose.

Like you I have fettled with my kranzle the stock unit is perfect but I have also gone way overboard and fitted Mosmatic ( swiss made SS fittings ) adaptors on the hose so it can fit my MTM short trigger gun which in turn hooks onto the foam cannon and standard lance . So I can use the short trigger gun for getting into the nooks and under the wheel arches, add on the lance with rubber mosmatic tip for more distance work and finally have added an M22 screw fitting on the standard gun from Kranzle so I can use all the normal lances like underbody, dirt blaster etc for the driveway/patic/decking. A bit of maintence every few years on the Kranzle and it should last years and years.

 

[Charlie Farley]

This pressure washer thing can be very in-depth indeedy, never realised there were so many options and choices.
Allmost a hobby itself, I may need to look into it further.

 

[swisstony]

This pressure washer thing can be very in-depth indeedy, never realised there were so many options and choices.
Allmost a hobby itself, I may need to look into it further.

It can feel like the rabbit hole given the options, accessories etc. It need to think about where you will be using it , i.e how far from the water source and power.

But in reality you can just take one of these stock machines and have happy pressure washing for ages. The thing I like about the model Kranzle I have is a) it sits on its back in operation ( as opposed to so many that stand up ) so less chance as you pull on the hose of it tipping over and b) the standard hose on the model is non kink and flexible. Hence why so many people swap the hoses out on the Nilsfisk and Karcher as they are god awful , especially the Karcher. Horrible

Apart from that a nice upgrade ( but not necessary) is the short trigger gun. It is a personal preference but really handy when using a snowfoam as you have to remember the snow foam bottle when full is like a 1lb of weight hanging off the end of a long gun and after a while that gets tiring.

 

[Trevolly]

Thanks for all the info. So if I stretched to the Kranzle, would there be anything extra to add to it? I’ve watched a YouTube video showing an upgraded short trigger gun, is that a must?

Short gun

I’ve got a BigBoi foam canister and I’m sure I can change the connector from my Karcher fitting.

Would the Kranzle also be able to handle cleaning projects in the garden? Cleaning the patio etc…. The wife would shoot me if I bought this and said it couldn’t do the jobs around the house.

Thanks all.

 

[swisstony]

If you go for a short gun they tend to ask you what fittings you will be using it with I.e the connector to the hose side so you will just choose a kranzle quick connect fitting
Then you need to ensure that your foam bottle has the same

Apart from that you are good to go

And yes I use the dirt blaster lance for garden work like block driveway and decking
All good

 

[swisstony]

Little heads up for you if you go down the Kranzle route as they have changed their connectors a while back.
They use the M22 (which is a screw thread ) and then the quick connect but their quick connect is not the same as some 1/4 " conenctors so be careful.
So pic tured below is their quick connect which as you can see is fairly long

This would be if you are attaching it to the stock kranzle gun ( not the short versions )

Now if you then decide to go for the short trigger gun, you need to choose the relevant quick connect fitting. So that will be M22 swivel or quick connect which attaches to the end of the hose.

In my case I decided to ignore of their stock versions and went with an MTM Hydro SGS25 short trigger gun and then matched it with mosmatic 1/4" connectors so that was female on the end of the hose, male on the gun itself and then anything that connects to the end of the trigger gun is also quick connect but 1/4"
You can see how much shorter it is.

hose end

and lance

That all being said, if you stick with the standard setup initially it will be all good and you can add your bigboi foma cannon with the correct adaptor
https://www.theultimatefinish.co.uk/products/bigboi-foamr-cannon-5-way.aspx

 

[Kontraband]

Great thread. In bought yet another karcher with latest car. I swear I buy a new karcher one every 3 years. Imma look at these next time

 

[swisstony]

Great thread. In bought yet another karcher with latest car. I swear I buy a new karcher one every 3 years. Imma look at these next time

Let’s hope your karcher holds out for the next car then

 

[Matt275]

I got my Kranzle K10 122TS (10 litres a minute @ 122 bar) from Simpsons in Westbury back in April 2021. Gerry and Helen (father and daughter) both extremely helpful.
It was when raw materials like copper, steel and aluminium were in short supply and I was on their waiting list for machines to arrive from Germany for 3 months.

I did some nice upgrades from new.....15m hose, stainless lance, Suttner gun, and more quick release TEMA connections than you can shake a stick at.
My set up cost me around £850 in 2021....and I beat a few Kranzle price hikes which came soon after. More like £1,100 now for my set up I reckon.

I always spray the connections with silicone spray after each use. The machine is so well made, quiet, but is heavy and has no wheels so has to be carried....23kg's, but once in place my 15m hose means it doesn't need to be moved until I put the machine away. I can do a comfortable loop around the whole car without the hose snagging on tyres etc, the hose doesn't kink either.

AquaSpray on YouTube is a good channel for Kranzle, and Malcolm will always reply in the comments.

I change the oil once a year with the proper Kranzle gear oil, the first time after a year there was a little bit of running in sludge in the magnetic sump plug, but not now, now the oil a year later comes out like fresh golden honey. The machine takes 250ml of oil.

Reliable and powerful and I've had zero issues after 3 years. The variable pressure valve is useful and the TS (total stop) function is a must in my mind...let go of the trigger and the machine stops.

Yes pricey, but remember, anything sold in Halfords and Homebase (Karcher) is for the masses who are fooled by the name and are made so cheaply in China.

A lot of mobile detailers have the Kranzle K7 which is fine for water tank gravity feed....K10 can't really be gravity fed as that won't quench it's thirst. A good outdoor tap is fine for K10, my outdoor tap delivers around 20 litres a minute, so no issues.

10 litres a minute at 122 bar is perfect for car washing and I have 3 nozzles from Henri at Carscope....laser cut works of art, and fully rubber shrouded which is great, I have 15, 25 and 40 degree nozzles.

Buy Kranzle, buy once.