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

[rj242 16]

Hey Dave,

I did a lot of research on choosing a surface clearer for my machine (4000psi/3.5gpm), and ended up getting the Whisper Wash Ultra Clean with wheels. It is a 19" unit. The Ultra clean without wheels is a 16" model. I choose this particluar one, because of quality and correct size for my machine. The ultra clean models are for 3-6 gpm machines. Most surface cleaners over 16" are for machines with 4-8gpm. It is an economy model for WW, but looks pretty nice, and the swivel bar underneath the cover is very heavy duty.

On the internet, Pressure Tek had the best price that I could find for the 19" model. I believe Bob quoted me a price of $529.95 ($13.00 S/H). As it turned out, I ended up meeting a local PW(probably the biggest in my area), and was asking him questions about surface cleaners. He was extremely nice, and quoted me a price of $519.00.

I just picked it up yesterday and haven't had a chance to see how it works with my machine.

[dave tausch 14]

Good to hear from you RJ.

I'll be eager to hear what you think of your new SC. Is mildew the problem most of your customers have? If not, what. Iron stains from ground water irrigation is another problem we have. I have a chem that will remove those "rust" stains but it will also kill grass/vegetation. The main thing here, though is mildew and if the SC works like I hope it will I could pretty much specialize in doing that alone. I have a "broom" but what I've found with that is with 3 nozzles, the psi coming from each (say 1300 psi) is not enough to clean. That's my concern, isn't that what will happen with an SC? And if so, is the answer getting the right chems for the job? I've been experimenting with with different ratios of sod. hydrox., chlorine and water and it seems like I need a pretty strong mixture to soften the mildew to the point that something less than 4000 psi will get it clean. As you are just starting out, I'd love to hear from some of you veterans on this.

[rj242 16]

Dave,

I tried the new surface cleaner out today on my own driveway. It was mostly dirty, but did have a little algae in on area. The SC worked a lot better than the water broom (I love the WW ultra clean SC). I used a turbo nozzle to get in tight spots, and close to the house. I also tried a little OX acid on some rust stains. The OX acid removed some of the lighter rust stains but I still have about three rust stains that the OX acid doesn't seem to work on. I mixed the OX at 8oz per gallon. The OX spots are also lighter than the rest of the concrete.

I still have a lot to learn about cleaning concrete.

[Mike Williamson 198]

Good to hear from you RJ.

I'll be eager to hear what you think of your new SC. Is mildew the problem most of your customers have? If not, what. Iron stains from ground water irrigation is another problem we have. I have a chem that will remove those "rust" stains but it will also kill grass/vegetation. The main thing here, though is mildew and if the SC works like I hope it will I could pretty much specialize in doing that alone. I have a "broom" but what I've found with that is with 3 nozzles, the psi coming from each (say 1300 psi) is not enough to clean. That's my concern, isn't that what will happen with an SC? And if so, is the answer getting the right chems for the job? I've been experimenting with with different ratios of sod. hydrox., chlorine and water and it seems like I need a pretty strong mixture to soften the mildew to the point that something less than 4000 psi will get it clean. As you are just starting out, I'd love to hear from some of you veterans on this.

You have the wrong sized tips in your broom...You take whatever size tip you need for full pressure, divide that number by the number of tips in your surfacer/broom, and that's the size tips you need to use to get full pressure.

[dave tausch 14]

No kidding?! Thanks for that, Mike. Would that apply to the SC that I end up going with?

I've gotta say TGS is just an awesome resource and thanks to you, Mike and all the other pros out there willing to give of their time and know how!

[Mike Williamson 198]

No kidding?! Thanks for that, Mike. Would that apply to the SC that I end up going with?

I've gotta say TGS is just an awesome resource and thanks to you, Mike and all the other pros out there willing to give of their time and know how!

Yep, that applies to a surface cleaner too, or anything else you are using with multiple nozzles.

If I need a size 6 tip to get 3000psi, and I need to use 3 tips, I use a size 2. 2+2+2=6!

[rj242 16]

I usually have a lot of streaks when I use the water broom.

[Ron Musgraves 240]

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.

Second that post

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Edited May 25, 2008 by Ron Musgraves

[MMI Enterprises 289]

Can someone let me know what angle tip and their distance to the ground the Hydrotek's are working best?

I bought the gut parts (bar and swivel) to stick in my DIY surfacer and apparently they too close to ground. Is striping and runnin pretty rough as if the spin is cuttin through water. The bar was bending more than my hand made pipe bar I been using and was hitting the shroud. Had to stick swivel up from underneith....Looks like I got to go shop for larger castors and or do some shimming. Would help if I had some stock measurements to go off. If someone could run a straightedge across their castors and then measure up to tip that should suffice..thanx!

Edited May 24, 2008 by MMI Enterprises

[Rick2 42]

Look at this month's Cleaner Times. They reviewed some of the top brands.

[Ron Musgraves 240]

Look at this month's Cleaner Times. They reviewed some of the top brands.

Did they review the water Jet, I would love to see what they said.

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[PWkid 79]

I would hope the water jet,has improved the equipment they sell since 2002 that was 5 years ago. A lot has changed in the industry since then. I am a firm believer in sticking with what works best, but a lot can change in 5 YEARS.

[Ron Musgraves 240]

I would hope the water jet,has improved the equipment they sell since 2002 that was 5 years ago. A lot has changed in the industry since then. I am a firm believer in sticking with what works best, but a lot can change in 5 YEARS.

Mel, they have. the engineering was ahead of its time.