Many households that have a pressure washer do not know how much power they consume. The amount of power used by a pressure washer is a function of its size, cleaning power, and the amount of time it is used. If you are looking to buy a pressure washer or want to know your current server model's power consumption, this article will give you all the information you need.
Why does it matter?
Knowing an electrical pressure washer's power consumption can help in many ways. It can help you determine which one is the most efficient if you're in the market for one. It can also help to calculate your energy costs if you use it often, so that your monthly energy bills are not too high. This can also help with purchasing a generator for outdoor use.
Pressure washers are a great tool to have in your arsenal. They're useful for cleaning large areas that would be a pain to clean by hand. But, with any electric appliance, you'll need to worry about the power it uses. So, just how much power does an electrical pressure washer use?
The average electrical pressure washer uses between 1,500 and 4,000 watts. This is usually dependent on the model of the pressure washer as well as its PSI rating.
What determines electrical consumption of a pressure washer?
The first thing to understand about electricity is that you can't measure it directly. The only way to measure electricity is by measuring how much power it produces. This is why the professionals often talk about how much horsepower a pressure washer has. The horsepower rating indicates how much force the pressure washer can apply. But this doesn't tell you how efficient it is at using electricity. In other words, just because two washers have the same horsepower rating doesn't mean they consume the same amount of electricity.
The most important factor for efficiency is whether the motor on your pressure washer is a universal motor or induction motor. Induction motors are very efficient (90% or more) while universal motors are considerably less efficient (60% to 70%). On average, induction motors will use 30% less electricity than universal motors with the same horsepower rating.
Another factor influencing consumption is whether your power source is 120 volts AC or 240 volts AC. You may have noticed that most electric units are available in both 120V and 240V models. While both sizes provide the same amount of horsepower, they don't consume electricity at the same rate.
The main things that determine electrical consumption are:
- The number of nozzles on the machine
- The type of nozzle being used
- The PSI and GPM levels of the machine, etc.
If you plan on using a pressure washer frequently, it’s also worth looking at machines that have features like auto-shutdown and self-priming pumps, which can help save energy by reducing the amount of time you leave the motor running. Get some of these power saving machines at the Giraffetools collections. Just for clarifications, its not always that power saving pressure washers will mean lower efficiencies.