Last updated on October 23rd, 2023 at 08:52 pm
If you want to clean a surface quickly, you can’t go wrong with a high-pressure cleaner. Under high pressure, this cleans the terrace, driveway or all other surfaces very effectively. So even the oldest furniture or equipment can be cleaned with the pressure washer and look like new.
But a pressure washer does not have to work only with the power of water. There are also more and more hot water pressure washers that are beneficial for some applications.
What the hot water pressure washers are suitable for and how they work is explained in the following article.
Contents
How is the hot water generated in a hot water pressure washer?
First, of course, is the question of how the hot water is generated. After all, the water is chased through the pressure washer at high speeds. How can this originally cold water then also be heated?
How the hot water is generated depends on the manufacturer. There are different models, but not all have the same efficiency or are designed for continuous operation.
One way the water can be heated is with the help of a combustion chamber. This can be conveniently controlled by a thermostat, if the previously determined parameters have been entered. The temperature can be set and maintained down to the single degree Celsius. This type of hot water generation is designed for continuous operation.
That hot water high pressure cleaners are therefore only something for a short cleaning is disproved.
However, if a classic combustion chamber with a combustion engine cannot be used, e.g. in hospitals or public houses, hot water high pressure cleaners with electric heating can also be used.
These may not have the same power as the combustion engines, but they are sufficient for private use and also in most industrial cases. The advantage here, of course, is that no oil is burned and no exhaust fumes are produced.
In addition, if no electricity is available, there are some variants that can work quite independently with an internal combustion engine. If the above-mentioned variant with a combustion chamber still requires an electrical connection, these mobile hot water pressure washers can be used completely independently of any power connections.
Where can the hot water pressure washer be used?
Cold water pressure washers develop their cleaning power mainly from the pressure that is created when the water hits the surface to be cleaned at high speeds. The dirt and the loose layer of grime can thus be easily removed.
However, if heavily soiled surfaces are to be cleaned, the power of water alone is usually no longer sufficient. This is where hot water high-pressure cleaners come into play, which not only shoot the water onto the surface at high pressure, but also at temperatures of up to 150°C. In this way, even heavily soiled surfaces can be cleaned.
In this way, even heavily soiled surfaces can be cleaned relatively quickly.
Another advantage is the germ-inhibiting effect produced by the hot water. This is particularly important in areas where high hygiene standards are required. These include above all the food industry and the hospital sector.
Due to the high cleaning performance, the hot water high pressure cleaners are mainly used in the construction industry and in transport companies. Here, the vehicles or the equipment can be cleaned efficiently with the high power of the hot water pressure washers. However, in the private sector, this type of pressure washer will rarely bring a real advantage.
The initial cost is far higher than that of conventional pressure washers, and there will rarely be any use cases where the additional heat energy will bring a real advantage.
Therefore, the hot water pressure washer for private use is only recommended if vehicles for outdoor use are used frequently. If, for example, a hobby is pursued in which vehicles are heavily soiled, such as motocross, then the hot water pressure washer can offer an advantage. Whether this advantage can stand up to the higher costs, however, depends on preference and budget.
Furthermore, hot water pressure washers are also used in agriculture. Here you can quickly clean dirty surfaces and agricultural equipment also benefit from this treatment.
It should be noted here that the cleaning has not only a cosmetic background. Heavy soiling has a negative impact on the service life of machinery and equipment, so the investment in a hot water pressure washer may well pay off again by extending the service life.
Heat accelerates cleaning
The key advantage of hot water pressure washers is definitely that they speed up cleaning. Where the normal high-pressure cleaner with cold water must hit the surface to be cleaned for a certain period of time, the cleaning time is greatly shortened by the warm water. Of course, however, this shortening depends on whether the other parameters are also constant.
Often, however, the hot water pressure washer is used with significantly different parameters. For example, the cleaning pressure can be reduced or less cleaning agent can be used.
Especially in the food industry, where greasy surfaces often need to be cleaned, conventional high-pressure cleaners do not have an easy time with the dirty surfaces. Often, the hot water high pressure cleaner is the only alternative here to remove the fats and oils from the affected surfaces using the hot temperatures.
High environmental friendliness of hot water pressure washers
Although it may seem contradictory at first, as hot water pressure washers require more energy overall, they still excel in being more environmentally friendly overall.
Due to the reduced use of cleaning agents and the overall shortened cleaning time, the environment is less polluted.
This is, of course, even more the case when relying on electric hot water pressure washers, which are not powered by fossil energy, but by renewable energy.
Often, even the use of cleaning agents is no longer necessary and the power of the hot water is already sufficient. However, if cleaning agents are still used, it is imperative to ensure that they are designed for the high temperatures. Therefore, special cleaning agents must be used, which may not be suitable for ordinary high-pressure cleaners.
The cost comparison
Especially in industrial applications, of course, the economic efficiency must be given. Whereas in the private sector, depending on the budget, the costs do not necessarily enter into the decision-making process, companies are always looking to take the most profitable routes.
At first glance, the hot water pressure washer seems to be very costly. The initial costs and also the maintenance are much higher than for the cold water versions.
Nevertheless, in practice, the costs hardly show a noticeable difference depending on the area of application. So where is the contradiction here?
Even if the costs initially appear to be higher, this can be offset by dispensing with cleaning agents completely. This is especially the case in industries where greasy surfaces do not have to be cleaned, but “only” heavily soiled surfaces are involved.
Here, a high cost factor can be decisively reduced by omitting the cleaning agent.
Another important cost advantage is the reduction in cleaning time. With a saving of up to 35%, the machines or equipment can be used earlier. The downtimes are therefore reduced enormously and it is positive to note that the reduction in cleaning time not only reduces energy costs, but also means that the equipment can be used again more quickly.
The different variants of hot water pressure washers
Hot water high-pressure cleaners are offered by the leading manufacturers in a wide variety of designs. These range from true power machines, which can cope with even the heaviest pollution, to smaller variants, which convince primarily through efficiency.
In this way, the right hot water pressure washer can be found in each case and the investment can be used efficiently.
Summary of the hot water high pressure cleaner
The high-pressure cleaner is not only available in the “cold” variants. Even if it is hard to imagine at first, there are also high-pressure cleaners that work with hot water up to temperatures of 155°C.
These devices not only use the water pressure as a cleaning effect, but also utilize the heat. This is particularly efficient for dirty surfaces covered with oils or greases. With conventional high-pressure cleaners, cleaning would take too long or even not be possible at all.
With the hot water high pressure cleaner, on the other hand, the cleaning time can be reduced by up to 35%. The higher initial cost is therefore compensated by faster cleaning time.
In addition, hot water high pressure cleaners are the more environmentally friendly option, as they require less cleaning agent.
In the private sector, this type of pressure washer will rarely find an application, but in industrial areas such as the food industry, or agriculture, the hot water pressure washer offers decisive advantages.
Therefore, companies interested in a pressure washer should intensively consider the purchase of a hot water pressure washer. Often this is the better choice and outperforms its cold water competitors.