Need a replacement water blaster

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FineWine

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#2102649 6-Oct-2018 19:52

jonathan18:

FineWine:

I agree that yes the Karcher seems to have the better motor but today I bought the above Ryobi RPW150G from Bunnings. Why, well on inspection I liked the overall metal vs nylon/plastic couplings of the Karcher. Karcher will not let you use any detergent products other than their own and you will void your warranty otherwise. The Ryobi handle assemble felt stronger and more robust. Their spares are not so pricey.

Interesting to read this assessment, given the substantively different ratings from Consumer - 89 vs 67% as mentioned by another poster earlier in this thread. The specific comments on the Ryobi were "This model has OK cleaning performance. But it has a couple of ease-of-use bugbears: it's the loudest unit on test, and it's fairly heavy for a domestic waterblaster." I agree the hose winder looks a great idea, as I too have found Karchers always coil up.

The only other model recommended by Consumer is a Nilfisk - has anyone had experience with their units?

Yes I also read the Consumer assessment and other world wide assessments so was a bit reluctant to not buy the Karcher but as I posted above my initial assessment was in store with each blaster. Strangely enough yesterday at Bunnings Mt Maunganui the mature staff member was pushing the Ryobi and there were three of us listening to his patter. Two walked away with one each and I left undecided. When I got home I did a quick assessment and breakdown chart on paper listing spec's and pro's & con's of 4 models (K2 vs K3 vs Ryobi RPW140SC vs Ryobi RPW150G vs my existing Top Craft). We were still not decided till we went back to Bunnings and very closely inspected the various models. This time we had the assistance of a younger sales member and he was pushing the Karcher models.

As stated we went for the Ryobi but the RPW150G $249.00 mainly because of the higher PSI (2200), it had an inbuilt hose reel, longer hose of 8m and the bigger detergent tank.

Did a quick test on arrival home of each lance and the surface cleaner. What can I say, all three items did what I want them to do and did it well. Was impressed with the surface cleaner which was very efficient and quicker and less damaging, if any, to the concrete driveway than the lances.

So, so far I am a happy customer. But time will tell.

Whilst the difficult we can do immediately, the impossible takes a bit longer. However, miracles you will have to wait for.

jonathan18

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#2107273 13-Oct-2018 15:33

@FineWine - anything more to report on how you're finding the Ryobi?

I'm still totally unsure as to what to go with - I'm after a model that ideally comes with a patio/deck cleaner, but I found that the Karcher range only provides a relatively basic deck cleaner with the cheaper models.

My in-laws have this specific deck cleaner, which I find works really well, especially with the ability to get closer into corners. Then I read on their website that apparently this model is compatible with the K4 and upwards, which is frustrating - the cheapest K4 is $584, so that's over $700 including this fitting... Karcher's pricing model is clearly designed in such a way to create these dilemas!

In the end, the Ryobi is $249 - is it worth paying nearly three times the amount?!

FineWine

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#2107319 13-Oct-2018 16:06

jonathan18:

@FineWine - anything more to report on how you're finding the Ryobi?

In the end, the Ryobi is $249 - is it worth paying nearly three times the amount?!

Used my new Ryobi (RPW150G $249.00) two days ago on a 2mtr high by 35mtr long 18 year old wooden fence using the dirt blaster attachment to clean off black mold, lichen & old loose paint. I never ran it for longer than 30 min's and then had a cool down for 15 min's. After the cleaning I sprayed the entire fence with an anti mold detergent from the on board dispenser. Research had informed me that people had had problems with this but what you need to do is use the "Spray Nozzle Wand". On this wand there are two adjustments the first is right at the end of the wand and that alters the spray width. The second is just behind this and that adjusts the pressure. You must turn this to minus (-) for low pressure and through comes the detergent. I then just let the detergent soak in and dry on the fence.

The surface cleaner comes standard and the small limited test I did it worked great. What I found is you must just let it float over the surface whilst about 20 degrees from the vertical position. Any further out from the body and it will get away from you, hard to control and be ineffective. Just play around with it till you find the right angle for your height and just let it float about an inch above the surface. When I do do my 35 mtr long x 4 mtr wide concrete driveway I will post an update.

The inbuilt hose winder is ok but the hose does coil annoying easily. I found it is best to keep the hose at its full length whilst in use.

Was it money well spent ? Yes

Whilst the difficult we can do immediately, the impossible takes a bit longer. However, miracles you will have to wait for.

Jase2985

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#2857889 28-Jan-2022 16:59

@FineWine how are you finding the Ryobi?

@jonathan18 did you end up buying one?

Any more up to date suggestions?

jonathan18

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#2857906 28-Jan-2022 17:41

Nah; ended up getting a Karcher K4 Premium from M10 and bought with Airpoints - managed to get them to beat Bunning's price by 15%, as it was a model they sold in both shops (seem to avoid this these days?). It and the flasher patio cleaner have been fantastic and would totally recommend it.

Jase2985

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#2857964 28-Jan-2022 20:49

ok thanks for that @jonathan18, I really like the look of the K5 Premium Plus Full Control Water Blaster Home and Car Kit but i dont know if i can justify the money even with a price match at Mitre10 which would take it down to 736.

I dont know why they dont sell a Premium Plus Full Control Water Blaster Home and Car Kit for the K4 range.

FineWine

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#2858104 29-Jan-2022 09:56

Jase2985:

@FineWine how are you finding the Ryobi?

@jonathan18 did you end up buying one?

Any more up to date suggestions?

Sorry I should of updated this post ages ago. I did have one major problem with this Water Blaster.

The hose for the one I bought was EXTREMELY stiff and kept wanting to recoil on itself and therefore you never got the full length. When it came to rewinding the hose back onto the inbuilt reel it was a nightmare. When I first used it I thought this would soften up a bit but it did not.

Post my above review I used it several more times with no resolution to the recoiling of the hose. Now as the hose was effectively in a spring like state (coiling), everytime I triggered the pressure was released and the hose jumped. On one such occasion it jumped and tipped over the machine snapping the hose winding handle at the joint, now making it very difficult to rewind the hose back on.

I spoke to Bunnings, the NZ agent, who advised to take photo's and send an explanation email to Ryobi Australia (customerservice@ttibrands.com.au).

They, Ryobi, immediately got back to me saying there was a manufacturing fault in the handle, no mention of the original cause and to take the entire machine and all components back to Bunnings for full warranty replacement.

At Bunnings, the Team Leader for this area stated yes there had been a batch that had very stiff hoses. On examining the latest batch of hoses, they are lot softer and far more flexible. Anyway my machine was totally replaced and yes the hose on the new machine is way more flexible and I am enjoying this machine.

Whilst the difficult we can do immediately, the impossible takes a bit longer. However, miracles you will have to wait for.

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