Electric pressure washer decision

I

i6pwr

Joined
May 4, 2008
Messages
704
I'm debating the SunJoe SPX3000 or the Active 2.0.

I know the Active is much, much more capable than the SunJoe, but I'm only needing it for spraying off vehicles, undercarriage, muddy ATV, and maybe some dusty film from the siding around the porch, very light dirt and dust.

Won't be used for heavily caked side walks, concrete, only for detailing and using a foam cannon, road grime in hard to reach areas, and getting mud off the tractor and ATV.

I have a 4GPM 13HP for the big jobs.

I like the fact the SunJoe is on a "caddy" and has a small footprint.

If the 3000SPX needs the nozzle right at the material to be removed then I may skip it.

Being able to work a foot or 2 away is nice, that way I can control the force with distance.

Curious to users of the 3000SPX and if it's a little more than adequate.

The price difference isn't much, but I don't need to clean hard surfaces either.
 
I have a Sun Joe spx2688. Got it on Amazon for around 100.00 during one of their sales. The one thing I didn't like was the relatively short hose. I replaced it with a 50 foot flexible hose and the Dusichin short tip gun and foam canon. Quick connects and adapters came with both. This converts the Sun Joe from 15mm to more traditional 14 mm accessories. Works great for washing my cars. I also got one of those pulsating tips which did wonders cleaning my decks and some pavers.
 
You can get a refurbished SunJoe SPX4004 for $100 at:

Joes Factory Outlet

I bought the precursor SPX4000 model years ago and it has plenty of power for the chores you listed above. I also have a 13 hp Honda gas unit for the commercial grade cleaning tasks.
 
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I'd get a ryobi super compact, or greenworks
either a compact box or one with wheels like a gas model.
The tall ones with 2 wheels are very tippy and not a bonus.
 
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The active 2.0 is one of the best on the market at any price range.

It's the clear choice. It's been exhaustively tested (as well as all other pressure washers) by /r/autodetail and obsessed garage.

It's only con is that it will actually pull 15 amps of power. If you want it on a caddy, mount it to a cart or hand truck.
 
For the uses you describe, the sunjoe will do the job well. I bought a refurbished spx3000 a few years ago with no regrets. If you don't want to spend a lot on an electric, they're a nice option.
 
If it's like most electric pressure washers (except for the commercial grade models) it has plastic parts in critical areas that will break after only maybe a dozen uses. So buy based on price, since it's not going to last.
 
I have the SunJoe SPX3000 that's a few years old, only use it for cleaning my cars, works fine with a foam cannon but I hate the constant cycling of the motor, gonna sell it to my neighbor kid for his car.
 
Yes the sun joes have a lot of plastic but they're surprisingly sturdy. When I had the shorter hose I did pull it over several times on the driveway and nothing broke or cracked. I got the longer hose to prevent this from happening. One thing to watch for is the misleading PSI claims. Most companies quote the initial start-up pressure in their advertisements. This only lasts for a few seconds at best. The running/ continuous/ operating pressure is what you want to look for and use for comparisons. My machine had a lower initial pressure making it sound weaker than many Sun Joes but it had a higher operating pressure (by several hundred PSI in some cases) than many other Sun Joe models. There is a website that tests and compares pressure washers and lists the important specs (GPM and PSI). I'll try to find it and post it when if I can find it (its been a while).

Found one site I liked. https://pressurewasherdb.com/products/ The "cleaning units" spec helps compare machines.
 
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2010Civic said:
I got the Karcher K1700 about a year and a half ago. Very happy with it.
Click to expand...
Thanks, I did add that to my research list, looks like a nice unit.
Nukeman7 said:
You can get a refurbished SunJoe SPX4004 for $100 at
Click to expand...
Thanks, I did look at that....much appreciated.
DemoFly said:
The active 2.0 is one of the best on the market at any price range.

It's the clear choice. It's been exhaustively tested (as well as all other pressure washers) by /r/autodetail and obsessed garage.

It's only con is that it will actually pull 15 amps of power. If you want it on a caddy, mount it to a cart or hand truck.
Click to expand...
Yeah, that's my dilemma. I can buy something from $90 at HF on up-to the Active 2.0, including the Active VE-52/56 for $200.

The bad is they are all disposable, but for the 3 years, maybe more.....do you want adequate or more than adequate.

I wanted to stay cheap and stay under $200 since it's just mainly for detailing, but now I have to try to reap the benefits of the BITOG family trying to steer me in a direction that gives me 3 (or more) years of happiness....:cool:

So after debating the Karcher 1700, Sunjoe, Ryobi.....Active VE-52, I did pull the trigger on the Active 2.0.

I plan on using it at 900-1200 PSI, well below the rated capacity so should give me a good service life.

Thank you for all the input!
 
i6pwr said:
Thanks, I did add that to my research list, looks like a nice unit.

Thanks, I did look at that....much appreciated.

Yeah, that's my dilemma. I can buy something from $90 at HF on up-to the Active 2.0, including the Active VE-52/56 for $200.

The bad is they are all disposable, but for the 3 years, maybe more.....do you want adequate or more than adequate.

I wanted to stay cheap and stay under $200 since it's just mainly for detailing, but now I have to try to reap the benefits of the BITOG family trying to steer me in a direction that gives me 3 (or more) years of happiness....:cool:

So after debating the Karcher 1700, Sunjoe, Ryobi.....Active VE-52, I did pull the trigger on the Active 2.0.

I plan on using it at 900-1200 PSI, well below the rated capacity so should give me a good service life.

Thank you for all the input!
Click to expand...
warranty requires online register, fyi
 
DemoFly said:
The active 2.0 is one of the best on the market at any price range.

It's the clear choice. It's been exhaustively tested (as well as all other pressure washers) by /r/autodetail and obsessed garage.

It's only con is that it will actually pull 15 amps of power. If you want it on a caddy, mount it to a cart or hand truck.
Click to expand...
Thats a pretty nice model 1100psi@2gpm is not bad.
I'd hope so for $350

The ryobi I mentioned was 62.99 at direct tools
 
Rand said:
Thats a pretty nice model 1100psi@2gpm is not bad.
I'd hope so for $350

The ryobi I mentioned was 62.99 at direct tools
Click to expand...
Thx, and yeah, I was going to get the Ryobi over the Sunjoe or even the Portland from HF, for the price it makes sense, next in line was the Karcher 1700.

I opted for more flow for the undercarriage sprayer and it is roughly .5gal/min more flow.

The price difference gave me pause for sure with all of them being non- serviceable. I'm hoping that using the Active at a much lower pressure will extend the life far beyond what I need it for.
 
have a greenworks that works fine ,paid $99.99 for it to do my deck,though the first one moter burned up, (warrenty exchange),,guess you get what you pay for .
 
I bought a new looking Stanley that a guy sold me. That was 5 years ago and it works fine. I do have a gas pressure washer with a surface cleaner to clean concrete walkway.

And I built a soft wash system to clean stucco and siding. Will try in the spring.
 
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