I cleaned a driveway today and used my surface cleaner. The customer called me today and said that there were swirl marks. What could have caused this, do i nedd to change the tips? And what can i do to get rid of them, if anything? Thanks
you could have used to much pressure,the jets too close to the surface.
what kind of machine do you have? what psi were you using? what is your GPM?
Its 4.6 gpm and is 3500 psi. Is that too much pressure, should I change the tips? I am using the tips that came with the surface cleaner. Hope that helps.
i have no idea.
you might want to go to a pressue wshing forum, i think one of them is called thegrimescene.
Your tips are probably not matched to your pressure washer seeing that they are stock. There should be a nozzle size printed on the side of the tip… can you make it out? Sometimes after use they are hard to read. Anyhow, you need to replace those with a 2515 or 2525 tip (right Thad? I get those confused) I’m pretty sure that’s correct though.
The 25 in 2515 means 2.5 gallons per minute - half of your running GPM, since there’s two tips. The 15 is the spray pattern - 15 degrees. I know you stated your GPM is 4.6, but I’d round up to 5 for this purpose, unless the pressure washer is putting out 4GPM in reality…
I’m a little rusty on that nozzle size thing, so double check it… but I’d almost guarantee that your tips need to be changed.
It’s good to take those tips out and clean them often, or just replace them. It’s easy for debris to clog them. When one isn’t working to it’s full potential it can leave marks. Walking too fast can leave swirl marks as well.
OK thanks guys. Ill check the tips
Pictures would help.
Are the swirl marks etched into the concrete or are they dirty swirls where you walked too fast with the surface cleaner.
I’ll bet it’s the latter, which is not a big deal and easily fixable. I doubt you damaged the concrete with a 4 gpm machine, unless your surface cleaner came stock with 0 degree tips (it didn’t).
In the future, soap down concrete with your housewash mix. It will come a lot cleaner a lot faster.
my pressure washer comes with 4 tips…o degree, 15, 35 and 60. i always use the yellow one…15 degree…works for me. The colors i see really often are red, yellow, green, and black,
Call Bob or Andy at PressureTek.com. I’ve yet to throw something their way that they didn’t handle with ease and get me straightened out (which I need very often).
I am still fairly new at the surface cleaning thing too, but my gut tells me that Thad is spot on. I have had jobs where I went entirely too fast and had swirl marks. They were the remainder of the dirt and grime that didn’t get blasted off the concrete. I also agree that your 4.6 gpm machine with only 3500psi didn’t marr the concrete. Generally, you only see that with machines that are in the neighborhood of 4500-5000 psi. Surface cleaners do not come with 0 degree tips. That would be self-eliminating for the manufacturers of those devices.
A tip I learned the hard-way a long time ago, was to always go back over your work with your cleaner, surface or wand, and see if you’ve gotten all of the nastiness. Being a little more thorough on things will save you time and money in the long run.
Backwards.
First two digits it the spray pattern, next two is the GPM.
To the OP- if you want replacement nozzles go to [URL=“http://www.pressuretek.com/spsyno.html”]Pressure
Tek and order two 2502s -part #1768.
You probably don’t need them. Next time pre-soap the driveway, go slower, and rinse well. Sometimes you need to clean old concrete twice- go over it a second time in a perpendicular pattern. Sometimes you have to bleach it after. Experience will get you up to speed pretty quickly.
I’m going to ask here rather than on PW forums.
When you refer to “bleach after” I understand that is to light/bright up the concrete right? How do you spray it ? Just SH on a pump ? Downstream it ? No rinse after that right?
Thanks
Are the swirl marks etched into the concrete or are they dirty swirls where you walked too fast with the surface cleaner.
my question as well.
