COOPER

The only problem I see with a truck mounted set up is if the truck is down the whole thing is down. If it is on a trailer then you can always hook it up to another truck. But if you mount it on a good dependable truck the convienence of not having a trailer may be better. Also if you don't work on your own equipment and the maching needed to be work on at your dealer, you may have to leave the truck with them.

That is true Russ. He ended up coming up to our shop and looking over what we had in the showroom and decided on a lot bigger gas machine on wheels so he could use it on some of his jobsites easier. He repairs forklifts at local factories. He bought the bigger machine and now offers cleaning of the forklifts. I never would badmouth Northern, they have a lot of very good products and I have bought several things from them over the years, but they also have a lot of junk like this machine too. So you have to watch what you buy. 4running, Research what you buy and if you don't have a local dealer (that you feel you can trust) buy from someone on this board, I don't think anyone on here will steer you wrong.

I too am authorized to repair Northern equipment. I have a customer that bought that same machine, had a problem with it the very first day. They told him to send it back and they sent him a new one, it would not work straight out of the box. He ended up buying a machine from me instead.

Yes they do make a 350psi switch (may not be exactly 350psi as I don't have any catalogs here at the house but I know they have one close to that) You may be able to go to a industrial supply house and see if they have any springs of a similar size that would be a little stiffer. If it is too long you can cut it down. There are higher psi rated switches though. You probably need one rated at about 500- 600 psi.

It just about has to be the pressure switch. Maybe try a higher psi switch. One thing I have done to make it through the day when a pressure switch has gone bad is to let off the trigger for 3 or 4 seconds (let the burner stay running) then pull the trigger till the thermostat cuts the burner off and then let off the trigger again.

I think General is the best all around choice. Parts are affordable and the pumps are very reliable. I have gotten very good service out of Cat pumps also, but not any better than General, and the General is easier and a lot cheaper to rebuild.

Don't seem like they are looking for Bin Laden too hard.

I have never had a problem in 7 years in business. If it is cold enough outside for it to crack the glass then it is well below freezing and it is also too cold to wash.

Me too for that price. There is another company call The Wash Guys (Truck Wash Guys, Car Wash Guys, etc.) They are about the same way. Not sure on their prices, but unless they come with quite a few profitable customers; I don't think a franchise would be the way to go with a pressure cleaning business.

I have had this happen one time in 7 years of running General Pumps, but it was my fault. I over tightened the sight glass on the back of the pump and it fell out while we were doing some fleet washing. When most of the oil ran out it threw the rod too. Rookie mistake, I did this in my first year (7 years ago). I sell all brands of pw pumps, but General is my favorite. They are affordable to rebuild and parts are easy to find and I have always gotten good service out of them. They are also (imo) the easiest to rebuild or repair.

Glad I could help Tom, I didn't think about a tar remover for the adhesive. Sounds like it worked better than the rubbing alcohol would have.

I think around 200 deg. I would prob. heat them up pretty good before you start trying to knock them off. I used about 2500 psi and would get at an angle so as to get the pressure behind the sticker. I sold one of my vans this summer and this is how I got them off. They had been on there for about 5 years. After I got them all off, I soaked them down (one word at a time) with rubbing alcohol. I let them soak for a few minutes (while one word was soaking i wet another) then would soak my rag down and scrub the first set until glue was gone. After done I washed the van. Some of these other ways may be better ( I have only done this on the van I sold), but this worked pretty good.

I always use my hot water from my pw and then use rubbing alcohol to get the adhesive residue.

Pulley size will depend on the rpm his present pump is turning. My Hydrotek had a 1210 rpm cat on it and i replaced it with a 1750 rpm General TSF 2021, so I had to change the pulley size for the extra speed the pump needed to get the full flow. Just make sure you call Tuff (if you don't have this info in the manual that came with it) and find out what the factory pulley sizes are and what rpm the engine is turning; then calculate the pulley ratio and adjust if needed with a different size pulley. You don't want to turn the pump more rpms than it is rated for.Also, my Honda 24 hp on my Hydrotek came from the factory set at 2800 rpm, so I wasn't getting a full 24hp out of it. I reset the rpm to 3400 to get more power to run the bigger pump and had to get a different pump pulley to get 8gpm out of the pump ( it is rated at 8.5 gpm and 3600 psi) Not trying to complicate the matter, but these are things you need to check on before changing to a different pump.

You will only be able to get approx. 2500psi with the 20hp motor and 8 gpm. I would order a little larger pulley, if you need the 3500psi you will only be able to get 6.5 gpm, if you need 3000psi you will be able to get 7.5 gpm. 2500psi is enough for most jobs (especially residential) but if you use a surface cleaner a lot, you will like having the 3500psi better. Also if you go the 2500psi route make sure to order the right tips.

Check the belt good before trying to rewire the burner cord to be plugged in. The belt could be in bad shape and just slipping. Also I had the generator on my Hydrotek go out after about 1500 hrs. I did not repair it though because I went to a General TSF 2021 pump at the same time and the engine wasn't big enough (Honda 24 hp) to run the bigger pump and the generator. I rewired it with a plug and run it off of a 2500 watt gas generator.

We have been a Pressure Pro dealer since July of this year and have had 0 problems on the machines we have ordered and sold. I am glad they got everything straightened out for you Jeff. It is good to know they will step up like that (the new unit) when needed.

The air cleaner and oil are the most important things to keep changed. Some dirt gets past even the best air cleaners. The longer it is in there the more wear it causes. I use Mobil 1 synthetic and change it and the air filter every 100 hrs. I only change the oil filter every other oil change though. Seems to work, I have been told that most small engines usually only last approx. 3000 hrs. and I have a little over 6000 on my 14hp Kohler. I have also had very good luck with Hondas.

I have a 14 hp Kohler with about 6000 hrs. on it. Still runs great.

Very good choice, I know you will be happy with the Hydrotek.

The tote should have a ball valve on it already. Just go to a hardware store and get a gator lock and adapt it to a hose. With a tote on the ground you should be able to tranfer to another tote or drums without a pump.

That is a little high for that size pw, but they are prob. a little flexible in that price. I sell my machines with free labor for the life of the machine as long as they are a soap customer they only pay for parts after the warranty is gone. Now someone may be able to get a little (I am not much higher than what can be ordered from out of state) better price ordering from someone off somewhere else, but I am going to charge $55/ hour labor to fix it when it tears up. I can sell cheaper if I sell it somewhere 2 or 3 states away because I will not be repairing it more than likely, and I can have it drop shipped and never touch it. Sometimes, especially when you are new; it is good to get a good relationship with you local dealer (unless he is just outrageous on price--some are). He can help you out in a pinch. You do have to watch some dealers, some are like used car salesmen they just want the sell and will tell you anything. I built my pw business on doing a good job, have a resonable price, and being honest. I have a very good rep. around my area with Cooper Pressure Wash and I am trying to build Big Orange Supply on the same principles ( We just bought the bus. from the previous owner in March '06). Give me a call Tom, if you don't have a trailer already Hydrotek has a sale on their trailer rigs right now. Check out the "just add water" special on their website -- http://www.hydroteksystems.com/natlspecial/justaddwater.htm I can also quote you a price on a Pressure Pro unit or Karcher unit. p.s. you dealer prob. had to pay shipping on the unit which you will have to figure in the price if you find one somewhere else. I am not at the office but I think the Hydrotek sale is free shipping also, but don't hold me to that. The sale price is good until Nov. 30, 2006

With a flow unloader you can put a small nozzle (say #5 if it calls for a #6) in it and set your pressure. It will bypass extra water back to the tank (if plumbed that way), then when you put your regular tip back in you will still have the same pressure but will have full flow out of the gun. That is how Hydrotek sets their machines up for steam, the steam nozzle is usually one full size smaller than what the machine calls for so there is less flow through the burner and the water gets hotter. If your flow unloader is adjusted right it calls for approximately 5% of the flow to be in bypass anyway. If you adjust the knob on a pressure unloader you are turning down the flow out of the gun and the pressure, but if you put a smaller tip in the pressure will go right back up and some of the flow will still be bypassing. If you have a flow unloader and you set the pressure at 2000 psi (with a smaller tip) then whatever tip you put in it, it will not go above 2000 psi

Well I am a dealer and have had a pressure cleaning bus. for over 6 years and the more GPM the better. You just need to have a flow unloader on it so you can set the pressure at say 3500 (example) and the rest of the water will bypass back into the tank in case you have water supply problems (customers water won't keep up). I am building a 11 gpm unit for my rig (if I ever get time to work on it anyway).

Hydrotek or Pressure Pro gets my vote. I sell both and one of my wash rigs has a Hydrotek Ultimate Line - 24 hp Honda, generator, and cat pump. I would go with at least a 5.5 gal./min. and you should be able to get one for that price WITH the adjustable thermostat.