The
following cleaning guide will provide some useful tips to
make your cleaning jobs easier. For more in-depth information
about cleaning specific types of soil, graffiti, delicate
surfaces or other issues, call or email us and we’ll
be delighted to work with you to find the proper solution
for your needs.
Use
your “tools”
Power
washing is the fastest, most efficient method of cleaning
in existence. There are however, different cleaning techniques
for different situations. The “tools” at your
disposal are; water pressure (PSI), flow (GPM), cleaning
agents (soap) and heat.
Keep
in mind though, not all of these “tools” are
necessary for every job. The trick to cleaning quickly and
cost efficiently is using the proper combination of cleaning
“tools” in the right amounts.
» Crank up the pressure and let it flow!
Generally,
the higher the pressure, the faster the dirt will be removed.
But not always. Some types of dirt, graffiti, oil and
grease will actually bond to the surface so completely
that no amount of pressure will remove it.
If
more pressure doesn’t have the desired effect, let
the “tools” do the work for you. In these
cases we can add heat, soap or both to the cleaning equation
to speed the process.
Flow
is an equally important factor when power washing. Machines
producing a greater flow of water are more useful when
there is a large amount of debris that needs to be rinsed
away from the work area. Flooding
debris away is easier than forcing it away with a machine
that is cycling less water.
Also,
the increased flow produced by larger pumps will also
provide greater impact at the point of cleaning. If you
have two pressure washers with equal pressure ratings,
the unit operating with a higher GPM (flow) will also
provide greater CU (cleaning units) at the nozzle.
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» Turbo Nozzle? What's a turbo nozzle?
If your machine is limited in either pressure or flow,
consider using a turbo or, rotary nozzle to increase the
effectiveness of your system. The rotary nozzle shoots
a zero degree or, straight stream of water but the stream
passes through a rotating turbine turning thousands of
times per minute. The effect is to dramatically increase
the cleaning power of a power washer and to maximize the
effectiveness of the flow and pressure.
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» CU (cleaning units) explained.
CU or, cleaning units are a convenient way to compare
the power of one power washer relative to another, with
the following caveat: When two power washers have the
same CU but their pressure and flow are different, the
unit with the higher pressure will generally work better
for removing dirt and while the higher flow (GPM) unit
will rinse better.
Use
the following guide to figure how much PSI and GPM you’ll
need. Keep in mind the minimum specifications are required
to get the job done. Having greater than minimum specs
will get the job done that much faster. The column marked
CU shows the cleaning power that is required to get a
particular job done quickly.
Incidentally,
CU = PSI (pressure) x GPM (gallons per minute).
| Task:
Wash a... |
Minimum
PSI |
Minimum
GPM |
Preferred
CU |
| Car |
1000 |
1.5 |
5000 |
| Deck |
1500 |
1.5 |
7000 |
| House |
1000 |
1.5 |
7000 |
| Boat |
2000 |
1.5 |
7000 |
| Surface
Clean |
1500 |
3.5 |
15,000 |
| Brick |
3000 |
2.5 |
8000 |
| Heavy
Equipment |
1500 |
2.5 |
8000 |
| Drives
& Sidewalks |
1500 |
1.5 |
12,000 |
| Paint
Preparation |
2000 |
1.5 |
7500 |
| Fleet
Wash |
1500 |
3.0 |
8000 |
| Graffiti
Removal |
3000 |
3.0 |
12,000 |
| Parking
Lots |
2500 |
3.5 |
12,000 |
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»
Raise the temperature
When
removing grease, oil and other petrochemicals, hot water
is usually the best method. Heat is very effective in
breaking the chemical bonds that join grease and oil to
any surfaces.
Without
using any chemical cleaning agents at all, heated water
can increase cleaning efficiency by 40 to 60%. Hot water
power washers first pressurize the water then send it
through a heating coil which can raise temperatures above
boiling (212 degrees) and create steam.
We
don’t, however, recommend cleaning with steam as
it has very little cleaning impact and is difficult to
see through when working. Ideal working temperatures when
hot water power washing are generally between 150°
and 180°.
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»
Soap it up
Dirt
that has chemically bonded to a surface is often very
difficult to clean, even with hot water and may require
cleaning agents to speed the process.
Soaps
and cleaning chemicals have detergents, surfactants, alkaline
and acidic compounds which break the adhesion bonding
chemical based soils and dirt.
Detergents
break down the dirt into smaller compounds while the surfactants
penetrate under the dirt and reduce the force of attraction.
Acids, on the other hand, attack mineral deposits such
as metallic stains on concrete and make them much easier
to clean up.
Regardless
of the cleaning agent used, the result is more effective
cleaning, better end result and, much reduced time required
to get the job done.
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» “Dwell
time” – let the chemicals do the work!
Chemical
injectors on power washing systems apply soap while the
system is in operation. This is an effective method for
cleaning “routine” dirt but when oil, grease
or other petrochemical stains are present it may be more
effective to apply cleaning agents topically and let them
sit or, “dwell” on the stain.
After
cleaning agents have had time to break down chemical bonds
the stains may have formed to the surface, stains are
usually much easier to rinse away with standard power
washing methods.
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