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I’ve never been one to pressure wash a bike, however the marketing blurb says it’s not much more pressure than a hose and fully bearing friendly. I have an old Karcher that I use for patio etc and it looks like the different lance options for this new one could cover that too. Any experiences ?
I'm sure I've seen a review on a reliable website... somewhere... now where did I see that..? 🤔
Hmmm. If it's not much more pressure than a hose, and you need a hose connection to use it, why not cut out the middle man and just use the hose?
Seems aimed at those rampant consumers that'll buy anything they are told to by marketing blurb.
Benv has it . I’m sure it works great mind.
A pressure washer with no pressure? Hmm.
Buy a Karcher instead
Unless you absolutely have to snowfoam your bike a Mobi or other genuinely portable washer is a better bet.
It is an extremely well made, easy to use, and versatile cleaning machine
i would have thought a worx hydro shot would be better as a bike cleaner as not requiring a mains power supply means you can put in the car with a small water container and take it with you for post ride cleaning...........
basically alot more versatile
Needs hose and mains, buy a proper jet wash - you can turn them down too. Otherwise hose, brush, bucket and sponge.
Good feedback, thanks
buy a proper jet wash
And spend a fortune on bearings as you blast water past the seals
Ah, the old pressure wash your bearings...
Realistically, you have to be pretty careless to damage the bearings. Use a bit of common sense, be careful where you direct the jet, especially at close range and there shouldn't be an issue.
Sure, you can do a better job with less risk by getting busy with a bucket and toothbrush, but some of us just want to get the bike clean and get on with our lives!
GCN made a video that's worth a watch...
I jetwashed my bike for years. And my bearings last ages.
The Muc Off one is a standard low power cheap washer, of the kind I used for years. They're great, get one, it saves a load of time and doens't kill bearings.
Whats special about the Muc Off washer? It looks like a "low pressure" pressure washer with a foam lance, in pink?
^^^^ I don’t know, hence my post.. 🤔
No it looks the same as any cheap washer, but with a wand that reduces the output pressure to a level deemed safe. You could just as easily get a cheap one and not put the want so close to the bearings.
I used to simply jetwash the mud off from a distance, then spray cleaner on the drivetrain and use the hose close up to blast grit out of the chain. The best way to get all the grit out of the chain in about 30 seconds, and it doesn't quite strip all the oil off the surface of the chain either (depending on lube) so it doesn't go rusty.
Of course, you can do similar with a hose if you have good pressure, it's nearly as effective. And now I use Putoline I don't need to bother.
I just have one of these that I throw in the car when I head out somewhere with the bike.
I have used those plant sprayer things, they are a bit rubbish. I used them at races but not worth the trouble otherwise, just bring the bike home.
Plant sprayer type things are great in places where the muck/mud isn’t sticky and claggy. Anywhere that has sticky clay or chalk, they are (in my experience) not very effective.
Worx Hydroshot is a revelation. About the same pressure as my hose and adjustable nozzle trigger thingy at home but that’s perfect a dit’s enough to lift sticky South Downs chalk from the tyres and frame without going mental.
In STW fashion of recommending what you've got... Go for Nilfisk! never mind that old Karcher toot.
I've got an adapter for the lance that reduces the pressure for car washing speaking of which; the jury is out in the car detailing world on the benefits of snow foam. I tried it a couple of times and it made no discernible difference to the effort of washing the car but it did cover the drive in foam which needed to be washed away afterwards
Hose your bike down, a bit of turtle wax in warm water, dry, done.
Ah, the old pressure wash your bearings…
Realistically, you have to be pretty careless to damage the bearings. Use a bit of common sense, be careful where you direct the jet, especially at close range and there shouldn’t be an issue.
I'd say 80% of the bearing swaps we do are from over zealous cleaning either with a jet wash or use of powerful degreasers rather than from wear . Sadly common sense doesn't seem to come into it. See also spraying lube/WD40 over disc pads and rotors.
buy a mobi if you need a portable one or a hose if you dont.
The only advantage i can see is the foam wand?
I’d say 80% of the bearing swaps we do are from over zealous cleaning either with a jet wash or use of powerful degreasers rather than from wear
So you can ruin your bearings with either jetwash or non-jetwash if you do it wrong. Likewise, you can preserve them with sensible cleaning either with or without jetwash.
Out of interest, how do you know that powerful degreasers have damaged bearings? How does it get past the seal, if the seal isn't worn? Surely if de-greaser is getting in then so is water?
I have a very old mobi that is just about still working, loose connections aside. It leaks badly too. But it is invaluable for getting the mud off a bike at the trail. I think I will replace it with a worx hydroshot when it finally goes. But that's the point - the things need to be portable so you can clean at the trail/carpark/race.
If you clean at home then you might as well get a bucket, brush and hose out.
Out of interest, how do you know that powerful degreasers have damaged bearings? How does it get past the seal, if the seal isn’t worn? Surely if de-greaser is getting in then so is water?
I dunno, I rarely jetwash my bikes, I did kill a BB after a mid-wales trip. But hard to say if several miles of submerged riding on the strata florida did it, or the jetwash afterwards........
As you say, most bearings are behind shields of some sort anyway. And impossible to say whether a rusty bearing died due to jetwashing, or just being used in the conditions that require jetwashing afterwards!
After moving house and installing an outside tap that's actually situated between the car and the garage rather than at the opposite end of the garden or having to run hoses out the kitchen window (shoes off, connect hose, tap on, shoes back on etc), and a shelf with muck-off, water dispersant / spray lube, brushes, sponges, etc nest to it (and using putoline). Bike washing now takes minutes to get them acceptably clean. Without the need for a jetwash!
I do kinda need/want a snowfoam lance, the one that came with my lidl jetwash appears to just dump a whole canister of shampoo in minutes without actually doing anything.
Ohh, and is there a pump of choice for making a DIY 12V pressure washer? I've already got a 25l water can, and a 12V supply in the boot of my car, so just need the pump, hose and lance.
I was hoping someone here would have bought one.
As soon as a I saw it I thought it looked like a good way to use a lot of MucOff very quickly but I was interested to know if I'm wrong, but without the benefit of using one the pressure element seems pretty useless to me. You can jet wash mud if you really fancy and it will still leave some residual mud behind, equally you can cover your bike in MucOff leave and rinse it like your supposed to, but unless it's just a mild coat of dust it won't actually make it all clean.
a £8 Hozelock spray gun will give you the right sort of pressure to remove soap and bulky mud without sodomising your bearings a splash of cleaner in a bucket, a £5 alloy wheel brush and a little elbow grease will actually give you a clean bike.
well, I have now ordered one 🙂
Mark
Subscriber
That was it! Knew I'd seen it somewhere.
I've just picked up a Worx hydra shot to keep in my van with an old adblue 10 litre container filled with water and it works an absolute treat. Nicely made, really surprisingly powerful and in theory will do my bike 4-5 times per charge. Nice to be able to get home with the bike already clean and not having to open up gates, drag pressure washer round the back, power, hose etc very convenient
well, I have now ordered one
Course you did. Something new and shiny you don't need, and all it took was a wee prompt by an advert. A short lived dopomine hit, addictive though, got to keep consuming to keep up that buzz. After all what's the point of working and suffering all that comes along with it if we don't buy shite we don't need?
+1 for the worx hydroshot
Snow foam is bollix. You still have to wash the car with a sponge/mit. It can reduce water use, but a couple of buckets for a car. I have a soap function on my jet wash, which will soap up the bike/car on low pressure.
MTB's you are better off getting a plastic water can and a car 12v £25 washer pump system off ebay or get a Worx etc if you need to wash away from home.
benv
Member
well, I have now ordered oneCourse you did. Something new and shiny you don’t need, and all it took was a wee prompt by an advert. A short lived dopomine hit, addictive though, got to keep consuming to keep up that buzz. After all what’s the point of working and suffering all that comes along with it if we don’t buy shite we don’t need?
Bravo, you win the Internet Master of Judgement Award for the night.. 😔
Sweet! Do I get a certificate?
benv
Member
Sweet! Do I get a certificate?
Nope. We'd hate to give you a short-lived dopamine hit upon receiving it....
😉
Touché!
Out of interest, how do you know that powerful degreasers have damaged bearings? How does it get past the seal, if the seal isn’t worn? Surely if de-greaser is getting in then so is water?
When bearing is removed it is grease free and smells of degreaser or the owner freely admits their cleaning routine with jetwash/spray degreaser. Stuff such as the yellow Muc-Off stuff doesn't evaporate it just keeps working until all the grease is dissolved, water then gets in and rusts the bearings inside the race.
As for the seals I think you are mistaking the usual standard fitted OEM bearings for something with a bit of quality. Most are not as it's a hidden way to cost cut for product managers when speccing bikes
Daft-ish question, if we have all been convinced for years that muck off is just re packaged tfr. And car washing obsessives are always arguing which is best tfr or foam, then if muck off are using tfr as foam are they not the same thing?
I have this
https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F223612402919
Its ace even use it as shower when necessary....
As for the seals I think you are mistaking the usual standard fitted OEM bearings for something with a bit of quality. Most are not
Which manufacturers fit bearings without seals? I've never seen this.
As for jetwashing grease out of bearings - this must be some kind of 'special' maintenance routine by the mechanically clueless. I can attest that a bit of common sense and a jetwasher does NOT remove grease from bearings or cause their premature demise. Of course, no-one in a bike shop is ever going to be able to tell if a bike has been jetwashed with no ill effects, cos the bearings will look the same as normal non-jetwashed bearings...