surface cleaners / which one?

[rj242 16]

Hey Everyone,

I just joined this form. I am a member on other PW forms, but found this forum last night (very informative). I have been PW for about a year now and would like to purchase a surface machine for driveways and patios, but I don't know which one. I have a 4000psi/3.5gpm machine, and have been looking at a 20" cleaner in these brand names (wisper wash, whirl-a-way, and Northern tools models). I would appreciate any advise in this purchase.

Also any suggestions on a turbo nozzle, would be appreciated.

Thanks in Advance!

rj

[One Tough Pressure 580]

Steel Eagle, Inc. - Providing World Class Industrial & Commercial Cleaning & Storage Products the little floaters will work well with your machine. Call me if have questions, I use them myself.

[duner 14]

We have been using two surface cleaners. The one we use the most is the whisper wash. "The classic". We purchased this from Bob at Pressure Tek. His

pricing was reasonable, and he is very knowledgeable in pressure washing. Our experience with Bob was a great one. We are new in the industry also. We have been pressure washing for a year. This bb and the people on it have passed down their knowledge, and experience which has been greatly appreciated to a newby myself. Good luck the number for Bob is 1-866-700-0044, or Your one source for everything pressure cleaning washer. This might help you to compare. Hope this helps.

[JohnB 14]

Build your own.. I did and it works great ... even at 3500 psi and 205 degrees.. been running it 2 years on the same mosmatic swivel

[TNT Pressure Washing 14]

Whisper wash classic

[douseahouse 21]

with your gpm you may have to stay with a 12 to 18 incher...check with the experts on that one. i have a steel eagle floater and a whirlaway with wheels. i have to say that i prefer the wheels as it is alot easier to handle. the floater also has it's advantages as it can cover the edge of the driveway whereas the wheel model can fall off the side. to each his own but i hope this input may help.

good luck,

rando

[jetstream1 18]

Build your own.. I did and it works great ... even at 3500 psi and 205 degrees.. been running it 2 years on the same mosmatic swivel

Where did you find the parts to build one with out getting sold a name

and about how much did it cost to make

[jetstream1 18]

I have the gp hammer head 20 inch surface cleaner and the bar is hiting the abs cover so am sending back to co to get a new one sent.hope this one works well

[Mike W 14]

Go with the whisper wash. A far as the turbo... I bought one and now it takes up space in my toolbox.

John - I would like to know a little more about that home made machine you got. Part suppliers etc...

[Mike Williamson 198]

Go with the whisper wash. A far as the turbo... I bought one and now it takes up space in my toolbox.

John - I would like to know a little more about that home made machine you got. Part suppliers etc...

Amen on the WhisperWash...I have two Big Guys and I love them both...WW will be the only brand I ever use. I had a Steel Eagle, and in comparison, the SE sucks...too much potential for damage and maintenance.

A turbo has its place, if you do certain types of work. It sure comes in handy getting pine needles out of screen enclosures...you know, the ones that are hanging through the screen? Turbo twists them right off. Also good for removing paint or other hard to remove stuff from concrete/curbs etc...just have to be careful not to damage things.

[One Tough Pressure 580]

I had a Steel Eagle, and in comparison, the SE sucks...too much potential for damage and maintenance.

I ought to ban you for remarks like that. Steel eagle rocks hands down. Yes their bar is easier to bend than the whispers, but it is made to bend before the union gets damaged. I have hit a few things and only knocked it out of adjustment. Other than an occasional adjustment of the bars and a lube of the union, what other maintenance do you feel is needed?

[jetstream1 18]

Ouch!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Mike Williamson 198]

I ought to ban you for remarks like that. Steel eagle rocks hands down. Yes their bar is easier to bend than the whispers, but it is made to bend before the union gets damaged. I have hit a few things and only knocked it out of adjustment. Other than an occasional adjustment of the bars and a lube of the union, what other maintenance do you feel is needed?

I'm talking about having to adjust the spray arms for both balance and spray angle. It got a bit irritating to have to stop working, go get a couple crescent wrenches, and re-adjust the spray arms because I caught the corner of a curb or something. That, and the rotary unions are ridiculously expensive when they do go, which they will if you don't have the silly thing balanced just right.

The spray arm on the WW is light weight, and I've never damaged a swivel by hitting anything. I don't have to do a darn thing to it except replace the tips when they wear out. It's lighter than the SE, and performs just as well. Of course, if you need to reclaim and use the SE reclaim unit, that's a different story...but for those of us who aren't reclaiming, I feel the WW beats the SE hands down. Lighter, performs as well, similarly priced, and zero maintenance. Oh, and the spray on the WW is much cheaper than replacing the spray arms on the SE. I did have to replace that after 2 years of pretty steady use because it was close to wearing through the tube.

Oh, and did I say no water spraying under the housing? That's the other thing I hated about the SE.

As far as your comment that the "Steel Eagle rocks" all I can say is mine didn't like rocks...hit one big enough and you're replacing a spray arm at $30.00 or more each, or at least having to re-align the spray angle.

[Mike Williamson 198]

Ouch!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yeah, that's what I said when I found out how much those stupid, poorly designed spray arms cost!

[Lightning Gene 66]

Looking at a HYDRO_TEK contractor model Friday.It looks good on paper and I want to see how it performs against the Steel Eagle at an open house tomorrow......Will give a report on it Friday night....

[JohnB 14]

OK to build your own... got to jackssmallengines.com and get the mosmatic swivel either cobalt or ceramic.. I like the ceramic.. Then get a 55 gallon drum and cut the bottom out exactly 3" up.. Then drill a 1 1/4 inch hole in the center.. then 3 peices of angle iron , 3 casters, whip hose,pressure gun, and some lawnmower handles and build away .. Total cost

swivel 4000psi/300degree rated $135.00

Gun -24.00

handles and 55 gallon drum -FREE

caster -24.00

whip Hose $11.00

2-10" 1/4" pipe + 1/4" Tee+ Elbows and 2-15degree #4 stainless tips $24.00

This thing has run at 3500 psi @205 degrees for the past 2 years with no maintenance needed.....

My adjustable steel eagle breaks every month or so..

Steel Eagles are built really cheap.

Whisper Wash Are Good if you try to clean with cold water.. But most of them wont run at over 185 degrees..

And Landa ,, Well you know !!!! All I can say about Landa is ask Ron..

Good Luck

[squirtgun 122]

OK to build your own... got to jackssmallengines.com and get the mosmatic swivel either cobalt or ceramic.. I like the ceramic.. Then get a 55 gallon drum and cut the bottom out exactly 3" up.. Then drill a 1 1/4 inch hole in the center.. then 3 peices of angle iron , 3 casters, whip hose,pressure gun, and some lawnmower handles and build away .. Total cost

swivel 4000psi/300degree rated $135.00

Gun -24.00

handles and 55 gallon drum -FREE

caster -24.00

whip Hose $11.00

2-10" 1/4" pipe + 1/4" Tee+ Elbows and 2-15degree #4 stainless tips $24.00

This thing has run at 3500 psi @205 degrees for the past 2 years with no maintenance needed.....

My adjustable steel eagle breaks every month or so..

Steel Eagles are built really cheap.

Whisper Wash Are Good if you try to clean with cold water.. But most of them wont run at over 185 degrees..

And Landa ,, Well you know !!!! All I can say about Landa is ask Ron..

Good Luck

Whisper wash will work with 212 degree hot water.Whirl-a-way is 185.

last time I checked jacks they weren't carrying the swivels.Either try Dultmeier or Home

[Lightning Gene 66]

Well after trying the steel eagle and the Hydro-tek ant3 contractor model The Hydro-tek out performed the Eagle hands down.Dual controls,Water broom that actually works great,and a added bonus of a gum buster mounted on the side.You can actually clean with a side to side motion which cuts your work time ........

[Mike Williamson 198]

Well after trying the steel eagle and the Hydro-tek ant3 contractor model The Hydro-tek out performed the Eagle hands down.Dual controls,Water broom that actually works great,and a added bonus of a gum buster mounted on the side.You can actually clean with a side to side motion which cuts your work time ........

Is this the model you tested? How's that gum zapper work? And most importantly, what's the price range?

I really like the gum zapper idea...is that trigger controlled?

[Mike Williamson 198]

Well after trying the steel eagle and the Hydro-tek ant3 contractor model The Hydro-tek out performed the Eagle hands down.Dual controls,Water broom that actually works great,and a added bonus of a gum buster mounted on the side.You can actually clean with a side to side motion which cuts your work time ........

Is this the model you tested? How's that gum zapper work? And most importantly, what's the price range?

I really like the gum zapper idea...is that trigger controlled?

This gives me an idea to modify one of mine in a similar fashion...

[Lightning Gene 66]

Yes that is the one I tested and bought.The gum buster is mounted on the side of the front caster.It has about 6 orfices about 2 inches off the ground.One handle operates the broom, one operates the cleaner....quick disconnect one and hook up to the gumbuster to remove tar, gum ect...I was really impressed...PRICe?....retails for 1295.00 I bought mine 1100.00 out the door at the show...Broke my surface cleaner today on a job so I will be looking to try my new one monday or tuesday when I pick it up....

[One Tough Pressure 580]

My adjustable steel eagle breaks every month or so..

Steel Eagles are built really cheap.

What breaks so often? I have had mine for 5 years and it gets used on a very regular basis with no issues other than replacing tips and the swivel which is normal for usage. I just now need to replace the front castor and that is due to my lateral cleaning that I do with it.

[Mike Williamson 198]

Yes that is the one I tested and bought.The gum buster is mounted on the side of the front caster.It has about 6 orfices about 2 inches off the ground.One handle operates the broom, one operates the cleaner....quick disconnect one and hook up to the gumbuster to remove tar, gum ect...I was really impressed...PRICe?....retails for 1295.00 I bought mine 1100.00 out the door at the show...Broke my surface cleaner today on a job so I will be looking to try my new one monday or tuesday when I pick it up....

Wow...that's a bit steep!!! I don't know that the added features are worth $400.00 to me!

[Lightning Gene 66]

Wow...that's a bit steep!!! I don't know that the added features are worth $400.00 to me!

I look at the price this way.If it saves me 1 hr on a decent size job it will pay for itself fairly quickly.

[Craig 111]

Here's what I have

1 whisper wash

3 Landa Water Jets (20")

2 Hydrotek's (27")

2 Steel Eagle recovery (16")

1 Steel Eagle recovery (24")

The Landa's are my favorite for fast surface cleaning. Super fast and they hold up. I love the adjustable feature and think anyone who does cleaning without having a Landa in their arsenol is asking for trouble. These things rock.

The whisper wash has its place. I don't use it too much.

The new Hydrotek is much better than the old ones. The casters are placed better, much better handle and pretty well balanced. I use it mostly for slower cleaning after an acid wash. It's not adjustable so it's pretty easy to damage concrete, but if you ask them to plumb in a adjustable pressure valve and bleed it back into the surfacer they can. All of my equipment is fully adjustable.

As for the Steel Eagles, reference Alan's post. I agree. I love them too.

[dave tausch 14]

Hey RJ,

Thanks for that question. I'm new to the biz also and am considering which SC to buy. I also have a 4000 psi/3.6 gpm pw (cold water). We have alot of mildewed/algae covered sidewalks and drives here in the panhandle of FL and big homes with big drives. My question to all here is can I expect good results with say, the whisper wash classic using cold water? I have been doing OK with strictly the wand and a 40 degree tip on the smaller drives where I have the time to go slow enough to eliminate the zebra stripes but there's no way I can handle 300' driveways!

Also, what chem combo would be good to use with the SC without killing the grass?

Thanks to everyone here for all of the valuable advice. TGS Rocks!