electric vs gas pressure washer

Jigaman · Aug 26, 2019

The thread about power washing the sidewalk got me thinking about pressure washers. I have a gas one that I got about 8 years ago, used once and then could never get the piece of shit started again. I suck with small gas engines and am considering an electric for the convenience. Any reviews or advice? Would be used for lite residential use only. Mostly washing the deck and maybe since I dont have a life and apparently hate my wife and kids (according to the other thread) I would wash the sidewalk...

wby257 · Aug 26, 2019

I have the Yamaha 3100 powerwasher and it will peel paint paint off a trailer. I always power washer trailer before painting. It will peel them clean.

I got it at Costco. It has electric start with fuel shut off . It starts very easy.

ndbwhunter · Aug 26, 2019

AR Blue Clean electric. Inexpensive and works well for little stuff around the house (driveways, siding, patio, etc.). The had the best reviews when I bought it last year.

MuskyManiac · Aug 26, 2019

Just like with weed trimmers....why in the hell would anyone want to screw with an extension cord?

Kentucky Windage · Aug 26, 2019

Jigaman said:
The thread about power washing the sidewalk got me thinking about pressure washers. I have a gas one that I got about 8 years ago, used once and then could never get the piece of shit started again. I suck with small gas engines and am considering an electric for the convenience. Any reviews or advice? Would be used for lite residential use only. Mostly washing the deck and maybe since I dont have a life and apparently hate my wife and kids (according to the other thread) I would wash the sidewalk...

I vote for option C: whichever one your buddy will borrow you.

Maddog · Aug 26, 2019

my vote is for gas

don't like dealing with electricity when I am using water

Skeeter · Aug 26, 2019

Gas!!! Never had good luck with electric ones.

Rut2much · Aug 26, 2019

Simpson powered with a honda.

Captain Ahab · Aug 26, 2019

I just picked up a Dewalt with Honda motor and CAT pump(3200 PSI with 2.8 GPM). I even pressure washed my driveway at the lake. It performed very well. Premium fuel with a splash of Sea Foam works wonders in improving the small engine experience.

1850reata · Aug 26, 2019

I have both and gas wins the toss every time. Electric has too much junk drag around.

Auggie · Aug 26, 2019

At the farm we have one a 220 volt with diesel for hot water. That is the cat's meow. It is bulky. If you only have 120 volt, gas engine is probably the way to go if you want serious PSI.

Trip McNeely · Aug 26, 2019

Jigaman, for your application needs an electric should work fine. We run washers alot and for commercial or industrial use gas is king by a long shot. For abrading or scarifying/etching you cant quite get the psi needed from an electric. Washing vehicles an electric will suffice although you may need a soft brush to scrub the hard gunk. In winter its hard to beat a hotsy to get all the frozen squirrel piss off thats lodged everywhere. Also, never use a whirlybird on a vehicle if you like the paint you have on it.....

JayKay · Aug 27, 2019

MuskyManiac said:
Just like with weed trimmers....why in the hell would anyone want to screw with an extension cord?

DeWalt makes a helluva cordless weed trimmer. Barely makes any noise, and I can trim my yard three times on a charge. Pop the battery in a blower, and I can quickly blow out the garage in a jiffy, without screwing with gas. Easy Peasy.

Bfishn · Aug 27, 2019

MuskyManiac said:
Just like with weed trimmers....why in the hell would anyone want to screw with an extension cord?

Its the 21st century and Al Gore invented the Lithium ION battery. Other than commercial use absolutely no need or want for gas power tools. Milwaukee Lith ion battery is now my ice auger, weed trimmer, leaf blower, branch trimmer etc. I also have a sun joe electric washer that does fine for my city needs. My only small gas engines left are lawnmower/snowblower. So much less time wasted maintaining stuff, and more time to fish hunt etc.

wslayer · Aug 27, 2019

Have that same Dewalt as Ahab. Nice unit, easy start. Don't think you can get enough pressure out of electric to make it worthy.

Ruddy Duck · Aug 27, 2019

Another vote for gas pressure washer. I prefer electric tools but haven't found an electric pressure washer that is comparable.

bigbrad123 · Aug 27, 2019

I've owned 2 electrics and 1 gas. Once you go gas, you never go back :;:sorry

SLE · Aug 27, 2019

I've ran both and personally, unless you're using them in a remote location in which you need a water tank, I don't have any time for a gas powered pressure washer. Reality is, if you have water access you usually have access to electricity also. As far as cumbersome, the water hose is far more cumbersome to work with than an extension cord and you don't have to worry about carburetors, fuel, oil changes, ect. The electric ones also have a pressure limit switch as if you let go of the handle, it pressures up and shuts off and fire's up as soon as you pull the trigger and start spraying again. This is really handy if you're stopping to scrubs stuff with a brush, or squeegee a section of a garage or shop floor, etc where you aren't continuously pressure washing and you have some stop and go. With the gas powered, you have to shut it off and restart every time you stop for more than a minute or two. They're also not nearly as noisy and you can use it in a confined space without having to worry about gassing your self with exhaust fumes. One other benefit of electric, there's not hot exhaust to melt your hose when you inadvertently drag it across and you don't have to let it cool down before you put it away or lean something else against it.

I know many have mentioned that you can't get the pressure a gas model puts out in electric which is entirely wrong, however you will have to pay for it and depending how much pressure and volume you want, you may need 230/240v which not everyone has available. That's really the only down side. A good commercial electric unit is gonna run you $700-$1,200 pending options, pressure, volume, ect. you can get really crazy and get into units in the $5k-$10k range but I don't thing that's what were talking about here. Dollar for dollar, the cheap gas one will outdo a cheap electric one. Get into the bigger more commercial type units and the sky is the limit for electric. The biggest downside I've found is there seems to be a serious price gap on the electric ones, you find the cheap homeowner models for $100-$300 and if those won't cut it, the next jump is up around $1k. Food for thought.

One other thing to keep in mind is the GPM rating. it;s not just psi that gives you cleaning power but also how much volume your spraying.

JayKay · Aug 27, 2019

Agreed SLE. I have an electric pressure washer that peeled the stain off of both of my decks, in one solid day of washing. Couple days of drying, and I was good to go to re-finish.

I'd hate to hit my bare foot with it. I'm sure there'd be blood.

Electric is more than enough, for cleaning garage floor, and as someone else said, the supply hose and the wand hose are more of an @ss-pain than the extension cord.

Captain Ahab · Aug 27, 2019

SLE said:
I've ran both and personally, unless you're using them in a remote location in which you need a water tank, I don't have any time for a gas powered pressure washer. Reality is, if you have water access you usually have access to electricity also. As far as cumbersome, the water hose is far more cumbersome to work with than an extension cord and you don't have to worry about carburetors, fuel, oil changes, ect. The electric ones also have a pressure limit switch as if you let go of the handle, it pressures up and shuts off and fire's up as soon as you pull the trigger and start spraying again. This is really handy if you're stopping to scrubs stuff with a brush, or squeegee a section of a garage or shop floor, etc where you aren't continuously pressure washing and you have some stop and go. With the gas powered, you have to shut it off and restart every time you stop for more than a minute or two. They're also not nearly as noisy and you can use it in a confined space without having to worry about gassing your self with exhaust fumes. One other benefit of electric, there's not hot exhaust to melt your hose when you inadvertently drag it across and you don't have to let it cool down before you put it away or lean something else against it.

I know many have mentioned that you can't get the pressure a gas model puts out in electric which is entirely wrong, however you will have to pay for it and depending how much pressure and volume you want, you may need 230/240v which not everyone has available. That's really the only down side. A good commercial electric unit is gonna run you $700-$1,200 pending options, pressure, volume, ect. you can get really crazy and get into units in the $5k-$10k range but I don't thing that's what were talking about here. Dollar for dollar, the cheap gas one will outdo a cheap electric one. Get into the bigger more commercial type units and the sky is the limit for electric. The biggest downside I've found is there seems to be a serious price gap on the electric ones, you find the cheap homeowner models for $100-$300 and if those won't cut it, the next jump is up around $1k. Food for thought.

One other thing to keep in mind is the GPM rating. it;s not just psi that gives you cleaning power but also how much volume your spraying.

I agree with this. I have been moving away from gas where I can. I no longer use a gas ice auger, weed eater, etc. I just couldn't find a good consumer electric that held much of a candle to a good consumer gas. You can get the job done with the smaller electric, but it just takes about twice as long. The 0 degree nozzle to blow out stuff or peel paint is downright scary on the new DeWalt. A guy could pretty much cut his foot in half with the stream on that thing.

electric vs gas pressure washer

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