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My Bosch aquatak 100 plus is giving me issues every 6 months. After buying it in June 2012 it gave up by January 2013. The motor sounds very loud with vibrations and there is very low pressure. It works fine for first 5 minutes and then things start to change. Fortunately it was repaired under warranty at that time but it again started giving the same issues in July 2013. Repaired it for 1500 Rs and they say that some sort of a ring is wearing out and that is the reason. Now from last month its again showing the same symptoms. From the second time onwards I used to keep a piece of cloth covering the water inlet to act as a filter. It hasn't made any difference. Can anyone shed light about what could be the real issue? Is this a manufacturing defect? The water that we have isn't contaminated as we have a well. So water cant be the cause.

I have had mine for several years, and even when it stands unused for months, it always works, except for the fact that the trigger jams open, and I have to use the on/off switch for control.

Noise and lack of pressure could, maybe, be due to air getting into the system? I usually run water through mine, and then through the outlet hose, before turning on.

Also, the outlet jet can become blocked. The variable-pressure head is the one to use on your car, with a fan-shaped stream, and have had this happen a couple of times. It dribbles instead of sprays. Unscrew the head from the lance and make sure you can clearly see light through it. If not, draw some fine wire through it to clear the blockage.

Bosch make an inlet filter, and I don't understand why it is not sold here. It would be an easy add-on sale to the many of us that do not have a particularly clean water supply. I got one in UK.

No its not air getting into the system. But at first it sounds similar to that. For example if I use it now, for the first 2-3 minutes it works fine. Then just like air getting into the system pressure starts dropping and sound increases. From this point the more I use it pressure drops proportionately while the sound and vibrations increase. By the time I have washed half of my car the motor almost screams at a very high RPM with very low pressure. Switching off and reconnecting all the pipes doesn't make any difference. And yes I have checked the nozzles and they are not blocked. I tried changing the nozzles but all perform the same. How many years have you been using yours? Spending 1500Rs every 6 months doesn't make any sense.

Taking a guess from this statement. I guess you pump to an overhead tank and use the water from there. How high is this tank ?

Aquatak specifications require the inlet pressure to be in the range 1.5-6bar. The minimum 1.5bar equates to 15m high water column, ie approximately about 5 stories high. If your overhead tank is lower than this you will have symptoms similar to air getting inside.

I noticed this requirement while setting up a slave pump to pick up water from bucket. When I first tried a pump that had sufficient flow rate but not enough head, I had similar symptoms. I was quick to turn off the aquatak to avoid damage. When I switched over to a pump with 18m head, it worked fine.

Our overhead tank is probably less than 20 feet above the ground. We actually do have a pressure pump, but (in the name of not wasting water) does not feed all outlets. The garden tap I use for the aquatak is not pressurised ...but it works fine.

In a recent post I saw a Karcher (pic) working from water in a bucket. I know this is an option with some washers, and it also means that they can be used to simply pump water. This seems like the best way to go, to eliminate all such possible problems with the bonus of added functionality.

I have a long-standing brand loyalty for Bosch, and, when I bought my washer, Karcher was not easily available, but, if I were buying again, I think I might well favour the bright yellow over the sombre green :)

I don't think the height of the tank has anything to do with this. I have seen aqauataks working on water from buckets during exhibitions where they just recycle the water they have through the aquatak for display purposes. Also there is sufficient pressure on the tap I use. Will be giving it for repairs soon and this time will ask them to check thoroughly for any other defects.

:eek:

I never thought of that. Yes, I've seen too, in fact that is how I bought mine.

Next time, I'll take a closer look.

SUPERSPORT,

Are you sure it was the same model you saw working from a bucket ? It sure doesn't work for me. There are other models from Bosch that has suction capability.

Thad E Ginathom,

I think the broken trigger works in your favor. It will help keep the aquatak primed between uses. If it is primed I found it will work for some time with a lower pressure inlet. If you are using it in bursts this will work for you. Eventually it does run out on longer use. The priming however doesn't happen when you have a working trigger valve.

In the end all I can say is that the specifications in the manual and my experience matches.

No, because it was not always broken, and even now intermittently works.

Going through all the posts in this forum, it's evident how much we love our vehicles. We go to the extent of importing products to keep our cars and bikes clean. We all are enthusiasts and I fall into this category as well.

I've been searching for a product to keep my car and motorcycle clean for a long time now. Few years back, I was even going to import some good portable washers from China too! But they wouldn't send just one but a whole container filled with them.

2 weeks back, I was at it again. I wanted a portable washer at any cost. But there were some constraints. I had running water but connected to the water pump near the sump. I was about to buy the Bosch or Black Decker or Skil brand but all of them needed a running water supply. During my search on google, I found 'ResQtech' (http://resqtech.in/). They had exactly what I wanted and options incuded:
1. Manual portable washer
2. 12v DC pressure washer

I went ahead and bought the 12v DC pressure washer instantly (image courtesy resqtech.in)



I was a little skeptical on the pressure of the product, whether it be enough to clean the dust off the vehicle and it was! Although, resQtech have a lot of videos on their site, I wanted to see a video from an individual user. I uploaded my own video and review of the product here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5OF...V8JkrKmwZJzMiQ

I have been using this for almost two weeks now and it works like a charm always.

What I like about this product:
1. It's portable. I keep it in the trunk always.
2. Water pressure is really good.
3. The bucket houses the power unit so it is all in one.
4. The flexible hose pipe is long enough to go all around the car.
5. Spray gun and the brush are top quality. Brush is made of fine bristles and does not leave scratch marks on the body.
6. The motor runs only when water is used and it is very silent.
7. One full bucket is enough to wash 2 hatch backs.

The spray gun and the brush are really good quality and exceeded my expectations.

I'll be happy to answer any queries you may have.

Thanks for the detailed review! Seriously debating between Karcher 3.550 and this portable washer as both do not need running water. My questions:

1- How do you leave it connected to the lighter charger without closing the door or is there a gap somewhere that the connecting cable can run through?
2- When you say the pressure is good, can one clean the tyres and wheel arches off the usual Indian road slush/mud? I know it is hard to do that in monsoon and probably I will take it post monsoon to regular 3m car care. But my question is the usual stagnant roadside water slush through which you have to drive, will this pressure take care of such things?
3. Effect on car battery?
4. Tried it with a mix of car shampoo/foam?

Again thanks for the review! Cheers

Hi. Please see my answers below:

1- How do you leave it connected to the lighter charger without closing the door or is there a gap somewhere that the connecting cable can run through?

<Khaja> I close the door and it does not affect the wire of the adapter. You can close the door one notch and not close it completely if scared of cutting the wire.

2- When you say the pressure is good, can one clean the tyres and wheel arches off the usual Indian road slush/mud? I know it is hard to do that in monsoon and probably I will take it post monsoon to regular 3m car care. But my question is the usual stagnant roadside water slush through which you have to drive, will this pressure take care of such things?

<Khaja> Yes, the pressure is good enough to remove heavy dirt. To give you an idea, I clean bird droppings every day with the pressure and no need to scrub it off. For the dust that is persistent, the brush that comes with this unit helps in removing that. Also, the pressure goes to 35 feet which is almost 3 floors high. I use the spray to remove the sticky bird droppings and the loose dirt and then use the fine bristle brush to remove the sticky dirt.

Also, yes, the pressure does clean the mud from mudguards with no issues.

3. Effect on car battery?

<Khaja> So far, no affect on battery. If you are worried about battery, keep the car running when washing it. I finish my cleaning job in 10 minutes. Once the unit is used you can turn it off and clean with the cloth.

4. Tried it with a mix of car shampoo/foam?

<Khaja> I have not yet tried with a shampoo yet. I use a car sponge and shampoo with hand then use the unit to spray and brush it all off.

Hope this helps!

My Karcher 3.550 has been leaking water internally recently. I also notice a slight drop in pressure when using it. I wonder if it is due to the increased pressure in my water pipes, as we changed the pipes from the over head tank into my house. The pressure is really good now in the pipes and taps. However not sure if this has affected my pressure washer and I have an issue now with the inlet of my Whirlpool top loading washing machine. The inlet does not open anymore to allow water in.
Coming back to my pressure washer, decided to open up the machine and here are the videos.
1.) When water is connected to inlet and no pressure gun attached to the outlet hose. The water comes in and flows out at normal speed, but you can notice water leaking, I guess near where the joints are. Water Leak - K 3.550

2.) This is one more video with bit more detail. Again no Gun connected to prevent flow of water from outlet pipe.
Water Leak - Motor On

3.) When the gun is connected and the machine switched on, it goes into a pulsating mode and leaks lot more. See here.
Water leak more when gun is connected

I think there might be a solution in this video by someone else. Will try this in a bit. Has anyone faced such an issue? Did you manage to get the rubber washers or seals locally to replace where the leak is. Apparently this seems to be something common...
Fix a Karcher

RLG: Good to see you fixed your pressure washer on your OWN.

However the pic you posted on previous page, shows the Pressure Switch Has 2 things,
one the Nozzle like thing coming from water tank and its nose pushes a micro switch.
I don't own such a machine but seeing your posts makes me tell you its kinda same setup as in RO Water purifiers, where a Actuator based on pressure pushes a micro switch so if you happen to replace that part, Do give a look to similar switches available on ebay India where most sellers have the pressure switch for under Rs.200/- as I am sure Bosch would charge hell lot of money for such a repair.

Recently Bought This kinda micro switch locally @ Rs.30/each

The switch was fine. The pin that pushes the switch was the one getting jammed.