Yes, great that you brought it up. When the taps are dry, I don't wash the car. If I was doing ONR, I would seriously consider 2 or 3 bucket method with grid guards. But like some old school people here, I am one of those that don't subscribe to the ONR idea. Anyway, that's another topic for discussion.

You should see how little the power washer uses water when it cleans so much more efficiently. The nett effect is I wash the car in a shorter time and hence use even lesser water. At times, I skip the soaping step and conserve water further actually because I don't have to rinse soap off the car.

You may think I use a lot of water by having to wash the cloths and mits everynow and then but have a go at washing your microfibre cloths / mits with a power washer and see how fast and how easy you get to wash them with so much less water used.

So you can be certain that all dirt suspended in the water will remain at the bottom only?

Yes, stacking a few grid guards is a great idea but as mentioned earlier, I don't like that same dirty water is still used for washing and rinsing the cloths and mits.

Hmmm, firstly even with soap, I don't wash like like a Bangla. For times when I wash without soap, I rely on the power washer to blast the panel surface thoroughly. I even minimise contact of the panel surface when drying up the car by blow drying. I subscribe to the idea that less contact with the cloth on the panel surface = less marring.

You really believe it does not get back to the mitts, do you? Some dirt you can see but most you cannot with the naked eye.

In order to achieve this optimally, you'd probably need to frequently change the water in the bucket.

The video test is a little flawed. It assumes all dirt are huge and heavy. The ones that causes swirls and marring are always the smaller lighter particles.

Anyway it's easy to just spew out Google searchers. The ironic thing is that in those searchers, there's pros but also cons about using grit guards. So there you go. It's not bullet proof solution. First hand experience and logic also tells that it's good to have if you choose to wash the way people usually wash their cars.

I rarely dilute soap in the bucket or have a bucket with fresh water. If I did, it would probably be for the wheels. Nowadays, I don't wash my wheels with soap unless it's oily or really necessary which they are not 90% of the time.

Good advise. But how do you rinse your mitts without any causing any motion to the water in the pail?

Yeah it's good when dirt particles are relatively huge and heavy which they will easily sink and settle down but you cannot say the same for those minute ones that causes swirls. You would need to wait for like 15 to 30 minutes for those minute dirt to settle down (maybe more?) and carefully wash and dip your mitt so as not to cause any disturbance to the water in the pail so that the dirt does not get agitated in the water. Don't think that's remotely possible.

Yup.

Agreed.

Yes. Wear and tear and not to mention electricity too. Oh well, we do anything to wash our car. When it comes to bathing, it's just with our plain hands like somebody mentioned.

I believe sifu Krismas confirmed this actually. I was initially not sure.

Yeah, I'm guilty for buying a lot of stuff too because it's cheap but at the end of the day I find some are really useful while others I can do without.

Hey, by your definition, I don't live in a perfect world either.

I don't have industrial grade power washer
I don't have buckets of filtered water
I don't have grid guards
I don't have high pressure blowers fitted in an entire room

Yup. I try and constantly keep the car clean. I wash them on a weekly basis. It helps that both cars are parked indoors at home and indoors at work too.

But then I notice that the wheels on the SUV are damn dirty and dusty always. Don't know why. Lucky no tar deposits but more so brake dust. Lots of it. I did put some old wax on the wheels before but I think no more liao.

My other car is much older and brake dust is very little. Wheel design also easier to clean unlike the SUV which take time to clean inside out.

If the tyre dressing is still ok, I will just briefly spray water on it If I see that there's no more tire dressing, I'll wash it with soap or or degrease it.

I used to use Meguiar's Super Degreaser D108 at 10:1 dilution on the wheels but I think it's a little bit too much for weekly wash. I tried out just with plain water and it cleans just as good. For times if I need something stronger, it'll just use car shampoo but that's it. I also blow dry the wheels when I'm done.

Yes, interesting that you brought up safety level. You need to take precaution on your eyes, hands and feet when using a power washer. I kena many times when the skin on my toes or hand would just be ripped off when I accidentally sprayed on them.

Agreed. Just sharing my method. That's all.

I'm actually more interested in the picture you posted.

You mention about applying an additional sealant on top of the glass coat?

I did not see or read anything about a sealant after applying the glass coat on Hikari website. They only talk about the conditioner which should be applied every 3 to 4 months to increased protection and water rejection.

Ok. I suspected as much.

Congrats. Definitely good buy with the promo and free stuff. The extra power and the 9m hose extension is the reason I got this model. No free gift for me that time when I got mine. I had to buy the accessories myself. Incidentally I used my CIMB points worth RM 1k to redeem something from Senq for the wifey.

Anyway, it does not end there. When I replaced the stock dirt blaster to the DB 160 because stuck, I bought a few accessories along the way like the rotating brush and the telescopic spray lance to help wash my windows.





Wah so many questions...

Well, it's a little tight and I think it's meant to be that way. How else can you ensure that the lance is secured properly in that position when you want to move the pressure washer around?

Yes, 1 or 2 second delay. The pump does not work the moment you press the trigger. Sort of turbo lag.

I need to look at it again. Never realised there were two tubes.

What you observed is the same as what I observed too. I rarely used the detergent mixer and only found it out when I was cleaning the windows with the telescopic mount. Soap comes out maximum at minimum setting on lance and max setting on the machine. And that too does not work properly because of the extra load due to the length of the telescopic mount. I had to prime the soap to come out and then put on the telescopic mount to get the soap up there in the windows.

I don't have this accessory but I have the rotating brush which has the same amount of water you observed. Very normal water flow.

No problem. You are actually the first other K5700 owner I came across actually.


Yes, thanks for confirming.

Took a few reads to really understand your last question. Yes, I notice the guy in the video did not install the plastic mount at the bottom of the pressure washer that is suppose to support the lance at the tip when you lock the lance in position. Sometimes this plastic piece comes out and I don't like it because the lance is not held properly in place especially when you use the wheels to move the pressure washer from one place to another.

Anyway, I just snap the lance into the holder and take it off from the side clamp. No issues.

Yes, many times the dirt blaster has rip off the skin from my hands and legs.

Still cannot see? Those are pics from Karcher's website. Here's some I took;



I also don't know why it could have happened. My mains are filtered and not possible with debris contamination. But apparently over time that's a common problem. Not so expensive to buy the dirt blaster. A little over RM 100 if I'm not wrong.

I take out the connection to the telescopic lance and just run the machine (at free flowing low pressure). Then the soap comes out. Once it comes out, I stop and plug it in back to the telescopic lance.

So I guess Karcher's reply does make sense that the soap works in low pressure mode.

LOL

I don't have Karcher's foam lance. I bought one from ebay. I like it a lot. Foam spray is nice but the spary distance is still limited but acceptable.



The max I've tried is 1 hour plus straight washing my pond. By that time, your hands will be sore from having to press on the trigger.

I use my power washer every week. In total, I accumulate roughly about 2 hours of usage every week.

Nice. Thanks for posting. I also did not know the answers to your questions. Good to know that Karcher does respond to questions.

One tip which I think is worth mentioning is to change the plastic nozzle on the power washer to a brass one.



Broke the plastic one when I was shifting the power washer when it knocked into something.

Needed them because I have to wash my house windows on the 2nd floor.

Yes. But I only use the soap dispenser when I wash the outside windows (not very often) with the telescopic lance.

Most of the time my solution is less than half the bottle. Around 1/3 of it only. The dial is to regulate how much air goes in (how much foam gets produced). You can also change the flow pattern and how much flow goes out by twisting the front nozzle.

Well, you don't have to change it ASAP. It's nice to have a brass replacement handy because if the plastic one breaks, you cannot do work and the power washer cannot function. Lucky I have a spare which I took from one of my garden taps.

OMG. Why did Karcher recommend such a huge machine? They could have recommended the HD 5/11 C, HD 5/12 C or HD 6/15 C. Less bulky and the design looks more like the K5.700.



Take a look at the HD 5/11 C, HD 5/12 C or HD 6/15 C. Note that they are for commercial use and therefore built better than the consumer ones and much heavier too.

Also, they operate using hydraulic oil which you have to check from time to time.

If you are really looking to get soft water cheap and easy , you can go to aquarium shop and get a water conditioner. Pour according to the label into a large bucket of water. Pour more also does not hurt.



RM 70++ if I'm not wrong for the big 2L bottle on the right. Expensive but very effective for my pond.

I use it to neutralise chlorine, chloramine and undesirable metals for the tap water before it goes into the pond. It creates very soft water. Can easily make bubbles without soap.

But no, I don't use it for car washing / detailing. Don't need to create suds because I rarely use soap to begin with.

Anyway, something from Japan came into my post box today. Hope can do something during the long weekend.

Well, tell it to koi keepers. We rely on this stuff like this from week to week and it's the only way to get the correct water quality.

Residue? No residue from what I use.

From time to time, I do still use soap. But when I can, I'll avoid. Go with the feel.