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That time my old pressure washer blew a hole through my driveway concrete
I was out in the back last month in Phoenix just trying to clean up some oil stains from my truck. Had this cheap electric pressure washer I bought at a garage sale for 40 bucks. I didn't realize I was holding the spray tip way too close to the ground and I accidentally blasted a literal divot out of the concrete. My neighbor Joe came over and laughed his head off saying I basically power washed away the top layer. Then I had to spend three hours patching it with some quick-set cement from Home Depot. Now every time I see that spot I just feel dumb. Has anyone else accidentally destroyed something with a tool they thought they knew how to use?
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tarabell7d ago
Used to think pressure washers were basically just glorified garden hoses. That was before I borrowed my brother's gas powered one last summer and tried to clean the moss off my front steps. Thought I was just being thorough and holding it steady. Ended up carving a groove right down the middle of the top step. Looked like a little riverbed. My wife still brings it up whenever I grab any tool from the garage. But your story about the driveway actually made me feel a little better. At least my screw up was just a step and you had to patch a whole hole in your concrete. That's a good reminder that water coming out that fast can be dangerous if you don't respect it.
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allen.kai5d ago
24 psi sounds low but at close range with a narrow tip it'll do damage too, @luna_wright's point about tip selection is spot on. Most people don't realize the nozzle size matters as much as the pressure rating because a zero degree tip at just 2000 psi can slice skin like butter. Your riverbed groove story proves that letting off the trigger and moving the wand can save a lot of headache and concrete.
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