In Power Pressure Washers Buying Guide Series - Part 2, we share with you the key technicalities of PSI, GPM and CU, which are essential to guiding you towards the right pressure washers suited to your needs.
PSI, GPM and CU holds the key to which types of Power Pressure Washers will help your run your cleaning projects smoothly and your utilities consumption at the most optimal levels, thereby allowing you to keep overheads low. This is especially important when you are running a pressure washing business. That said, you could greatly cut your household power consumption when using the right equipment for the right home cleaning tasks as well.
All You Need To Know About PSI, GPM AND CU
PSI is technically known as pounds per square inch and most often used to refer to the amount of cleaning pressure the particular machine is capable of delivering. In layperson terms, this means pressure power and the higher the PSI, the greater the consumption of power, translating into relative utilities consumption. Most manufacturers mark their machine models with a tag of a certain amount of PSI to allow buyers to know the pressure power of the machines. This facilitates your search for the right pressure washer by easily referring to the PSI.
GPM on the other hand refers to the gallons per minute and literally means the actual flow of water or the rate at which the unit sprays water. The layperson would term this as water usage. The higher the GPM the greater and consumption of water required. GPM is sometimes included with the model number description together with the PSI.
CU essentially means cleaning units and is referred to the formula of PSI x GPM. This has become increasingly popular in recent years and gives a better perspective on the total pressure power and energy consumption as reference.
The critical aspect of all these acronyms is balance, as you need to strike a balance between PSI pressure power or GPM water usage. To this end, matching your cleaning tasks with the right machines would give you the optimal consumption. It is not always true that having a powerful pressure washer would clean well. You need to bear in mind that too strong a PSI and GPM would cause water damage to the surfaces being cleaned.
Getting The Right Power Pressure Washer To Fit Your Cleaning Needs
As a reference guide, below are a range of cleaning tasks suitable for the PSI rating of the relevant power pressure washers.
For Home Use
1200 PSI to 1350 PSI
- For light pressure washing, cleaning of grills, garden and lawn furniture, car washing, or the dog house.
1500 PSI to 2200 PSI
- For driveways, sidewalks
2200 PSI to 3,000 PSI
- For cleaning patios, balconies, decks, sidings, stubborn waxy grease, paint preparation
For Commercial Use
If you are starting a pressure washing business, you would go for power pressure washers rated at PSI 2200 to 3500 which are designed for professional use on heavy-duty projects such as cleaning heavy equipment, manufacturing sites, construction sites, for paint preparation etc.
For more details, visit our Power Pressure Washers Buying Guide Series here