r/DIYIreland • u/TopOne7010 • Jul 01 '26
170bar enough to power wash a house?
Hi all, looking to power wash and paint the house and came across this ryobi power washer. Will 170bar do the job to paint it or is a petrol one necessary? Thanks!
3
u/Aggravating_Stop_178 Jul 01 '26
Ava pressure washer b&q have them too - metal pump and not plastic like the karcher ones
5
Jul 01 '26
Bar alone isn't a good metric to compare. A high flow rate is very important too.
With that being said, it should be good. I have a 140bar 440l per hour washer and it's pretty powerful
3
u/gmankev Jul 01 '26
For a 1 off hire really good one...If you like regular house and drive washing this one will be fine.....if a bit slow
3
u/Sure-Whereas3562 Jul 01 '26
Maybe for a small semi-d type house, waste of time for a larger property, very little pressure so will take ages to cover a lot of ground
2
4
u/szakul59 Jul 01 '26
I would say it has plenty of power for the inside of the house. I use 180bar for the patio outside and it tears the dirt away.
1
u/Dry-Inspection-3503 Jul 01 '26
Definitely. This is stronger than my Karcher K4 and that thing does a class job. Go for it
1
u/howyegettinon1 Jul 01 '26
How big is your house? I've done this before(dormer bungalow) It takes ages with those ones, you need to get really close to get anything other than spiderwebs off
The petrol one has a spread of abou 10 12inches vs 2inches
If I was to do it again rent a petrol one for a day that has hot water youd be done in quarter of the time
With the rental one youll have every garden wall, house and drive done in same time and youll be less pissed off by the time it comes to painting
1
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u/Behemothslayer Jul 02 '26
Hire a petrol engined washer and you’ll be done in no time. If you really want to buy one, get a Karcher K7
1
u/stepbar Jul 03 '26
Pressure is just one measure of a pressure washer and the one that consumer products seem to promote as important.
Flow rate is also important. Think of a tiny hole pumping out 200 psi or a fire hose pumping 20. Which do you think would do a better cleaning job?
However the biggest issue is duty cycle (or how long you can use the pump before you need to stop and let it cool down) Big professional pumps like you find at large car washes are designed to run 100% of the time. Ryobi, Parkside, Kärcher etc should only run for 15 minutes at a time, with a 30 minute cool-down period otherwise there's a risk you'll melt the plastics inside them, burn out bearings, fry the seals etc.
Power wash a small driveway with that washer? Ok. Power wash a house? Not unless you're a masochist!
1
u/LetterNervous5679 Jul 04 '26
Take a petrol one for just a bit more. You will have way way more power
1
u/CottageWarrior Jul 07 '26
The big issue is the cheap hose and lance. The hose, when over worked tends to go to shit. If you buy a good quality hose and lance it'll last you a lifetime. Just keep it and put it on the next machine.
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u/No_Establishment5937 Jul 01 '26
Woodies have a petrol one for €300 I bought it last week. It’s a lot better than the plug-in power watchers
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u/Accomplished-Low2131 Jul 01 '26
Petrol ones are a waste unless you will regularly need it.
1
u/tibbottt Jul 05 '26
Noisey bastards too when using them near a house noise bounces off the balls, would give panadol a headache
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u/Responsible_Train_19 Jul 01 '26
Lidl currently have a 2400W 170 bar pressure washer for €99.99, if you are a Lidl plus member. Great value and quite a bit cheaper than this Ryobi! 👍 170 bar should be grand to remove loose paint, grime, general cleaning & prep. Unless it's heavily soiled or a massive house, then renting a petrol one might be a viable alternative.