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Pressure Washer Pumps
by Ian Pearce

There are many types of pressure washer pumps out there.

The pump is the heart of any power washing system. There are three types of pumps, direct drive, belt driven, and gearbox driven. The gearbox version is simply a variant of the direct drive version with gears to adjust the ratios to fit existing motors, be it gas powered or electric units.

For this discussion, we'll stick to belt driven systems and direct drive systems. When choosing a pump, you should always keep in mind that there are two specifications you need to know.

The flow rate of the pump and the rated pressure.

The higher the flow, the higher the volume of water coming out of the nozzles. This is important depending on application as the more water that is available, the faster a cleaning job will be.

The other important specification is the output pressure. Again, the pressure required depends on the job to be done. Most consumer applications can be satisfied with 2,000 PSI or less. Industrial pumps can go past 10,000 PSI.

Always select the proper pump for your application.

Direct drive pressure washer pumps mount directly to the engine/motor. The drive shaft of the engine/motor is directly driving the pump. The advantage to having this arrangement is that there are fewer parts involved in the drive and a lower initial system cost.

The disadvantages include increased thermal wear due to heat from the engine/motor being transferred to the pump and increased vibration/noise.

Belt driven pressure washer pumps are more expensive.

There are more components in the drive assembly. You also have to replace the belts every so often.

The advantages are many. Having the engine separated by the belt means a lot less vibration transmitted to the pump. This contributes to longer pump life.

The separation also means that the pump is exposed to less heat. Less heat means longer pump life.

Last, but not least, the pump runs at half the speed or less than a direct drive unit. This also means longer life for your pump. Experts agree that although the belt driven system might cost more initially, the longer life of the pump means savings in the long term.

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