- Joined
- Apr 14, 2014
- Messages
- 3,132
The project started out fairly small and was only supposed to take less than a day to complete. Like most however it soon got out of control and now threatens to be one of those I may wish I'd never started.
It all began when I got a couple stains on the deck from the grill. I thought I'd just scrub them off and all would be well. A little scrubbing revealed how filthy the deck really was. With 2 bright shiny spots in a sea of green I decided I should probably just pressure wash the entire thing. I recently bought a pressure washer primarily to be used at the family cottage. I wanted an electric one since I was trying to minimize maintenance. It was a relatively inexpensive one from Northern Tool that was supposed to be capable of 4 different pressure ratings. Unlike the standard commercial ones with a triplex pump this one had an electronic control board to change motor speed rather than a valve on the pump to regulate pressure.
I hooked up the machine and started what I thought would be an afternoon's work. When I first pushed the start button NADA, NOTHING, No sounds of life. Apparently the ground fault circuit on the machine didn't like being plugged into a ground fault outlet. I finally found an outlet it would work on and all went well for nearly 5 minutes. Then the motor started to randomly change speeds, raising and lowering the water pressure. I thought maybe I didn't understand how the system was supposed to work, so I went back in the house, read through the manual for a second time, and did a search on the internet to see if anyone else was having similar experiences. Not having found anything of consequence I went back to work.
I spent the next 2 hours attempting to use the machine while trying to diagnose and repair the problem. I was able to cover a few feet of decking, but the constant speed change was getting irritating to say the least. After a frustrating afternoon I called the store to see if I could return it for something better. They agreed so I loaded it in the truck and headed over there. At first they wanted to exchange it for one of the same type. I wasn't keen on that and finally convinced them I should upgrade to a lower end commercial model. I ended up with a gasoline powered model with a triplex pump, and a Honda engine.
I spent the next morning assembling the new machine and testing it. So far it's been a great machine, but it did put a severe dent in the pocket book. Now that I have a more powerful, more portable machine the scope of the project has expanded. It started with removing a few spots, but now includes the entire deck, the benches, the lawn furniture, the sidewalks, the driveway, and the entire 2 story house with attached garage. At the current speed the project is moving it should be finished around the second week of September. That is of course making the assumption that I'll be able to work on it 12 hours a day, 7 days a week, AND it won't expand any further.
So much for a quick afternoon's work.
It all began when I got a couple stains on the deck from the grill. I thought I'd just scrub them off and all would be well. A little scrubbing revealed how filthy the deck really was. With 2 bright shiny spots in a sea of green I decided I should probably just pressure wash the entire thing. I recently bought a pressure washer primarily to be used at the family cottage. I wanted an electric one since I was trying to minimize maintenance. It was a relatively inexpensive one from Northern Tool that was supposed to be capable of 4 different pressure ratings. Unlike the standard commercial ones with a triplex pump this one had an electronic control board to change motor speed rather than a valve on the pump to regulate pressure.
I hooked up the machine and started what I thought would be an afternoon's work. When I first pushed the start button NADA, NOTHING, No sounds of life. Apparently the ground fault circuit on the machine didn't like being plugged into a ground fault outlet. I finally found an outlet it would work on and all went well for nearly 5 minutes. Then the motor started to randomly change speeds, raising and lowering the water pressure. I thought maybe I didn't understand how the system was supposed to work, so I went back in the house, read through the manual for a second time, and did a search on the internet to see if anyone else was having similar experiences. Not having found anything of consequence I went back to work.
I spent the next 2 hours attempting to use the machine while trying to diagnose and repair the problem. I was able to cover a few feet of decking, but the constant speed change was getting irritating to say the least. After a frustrating afternoon I called the store to see if I could return it for something better. They agreed so I loaded it in the truck and headed over there. At first they wanted to exchange it for one of the same type. I wasn't keen on that and finally convinced them I should upgrade to a lower end commercial model. I ended up with a gasoline powered model with a triplex pump, and a Honda engine.
I spent the next morning assembling the new machine and testing it. So far it's been a great machine, but it did put a severe dent in the pocket book. Now that I have a more powerful, more portable machine the scope of the project has expanded. It started with removing a few spots, but now includes the entire deck, the benches, the lawn furniture, the sidewalks, the driveway, and the entire 2 story house with attached garage. At the current speed the project is moving it should be finished around the second week of September. That is of course making the assumption that I'll be able to work on it 12 hours a day, 7 days a week, AND it won't expand any further.
So much for a quick afternoon's work.
