A pressure washer is a fantastic tool and it is exactly what I need to clean this dirty black brick patio. But pressure washers can harm the surface as you clean and even yourself if you are not very careful.

Hi, I am Tim Carter from askthebuilder.com and I would like to show you some of the basics about how a pressure washer works.

A pressure washer takes the low pressure water from a garden hose and boosts the pressure way up with a special pump. The pump is powered by either a gasoline engine or sometimes an electric motor. The business then of a pressure washer, it is the spray one. You attach special tips that concentrate or spread out the high pressure stream of water. Before you off the pressure washer, be sure to read the entire owners manual, it contains very important safety information. You can either hurt the pressure washer, yourself or things you are trying to clean.

This pressure washer can be equipped with five different spray one tips. The red one is zero degrees and produces the most concentrated stream of water. Be really, really careful when you use a zero degree tip.

The yellow tip produces a 15 degree wide spray pattern. I would like to use it for heavy duty cleaning. The green tip is a 25 degree tip. It is best for general cleaning. The white tip produces an even wider spray pattern about 40 degrees. Use it for light duty cleaning.

The black tip is the safest one to use. It produces a really wide spray pattern of 65 degrees. I like using this tip when applying the special cleaning detergents to surfaces just before I get ready to pressure wash.

You got to make sure that when you are using a pressure washer that you are wearing all kinds of protective gear. You need safety glasses or goggles. You need ear muffs and of course work gloves. You have got to protect your eyes, you haring and your hands from this machine and remember be careful.

I am Tim Carter for askthebuilder.com. I hope you enjoyed the pressure washer basics. If you want to discover more home improvement tips, go to askthebuilder.com.