Built the ultimate pressure washer

Toomanytoys84

Aaron
Member
Built this at work today.

480v 3 phase 40hp motor
80gpm pump

Had the pump and motor package laying around at the mine. I made the starter box out of spare parts I found in boxes of stuff that's laying around. First time I've ever built a panel like this from scratch.

Flow switch, on delay relay, over loads, breaker, e stop, and on/off. Operates in auto only. Open valve to start spray, flow switch closes, timer counts down 5 seconds then starts the pump. Delay is to give you time to get ahold of the hose and to stop people from rapid firing the hose off and bouncing the relay. Used a gai-toronics gm1000 tone monitor for monitoring the ground.

2" feed from fire hydrant, and output starts 1" then down to 1/2" to a 1/4" nozzle. Thing spits out water like you wouldnt believe! It's a beast. I dont know what it's doing for pressure but it will flat out destroy stuff. We were spraying out a miner with it and it was chewing through coal/mud/rock mixture that turns hard as concrete like it was butter!
 

Attachments

  • 20181004_142606.jpg
    20181004_142606.jpg
    214.4 KB · Views: 21
  • 20181004_135256.jpg
    20181004_135256.jpg
    245.3 KB · Views: 20
It would probably remove any pesky paint in way.....

Made the trainees using it wear a face shield, leather gloves(along with the mandatory metatarsal boots and safety glasses) and they were given a good safety talk that concluded with if you play around with it you'll be fired on the spot.

I believe if it graced your skin it would not be pretty.
 
Operates in auto only. Open valve to start spray, flow switch closes, timer counts down 5 seconds then starts the pump. Delay is to give you time to get ahold of the hose and to stop people from rapid firing the hose off and bouncing the relay.

What if you trip on a shoe lace and don't make it to the nozzle in time???

2" feed from fire hydrant, and output starts 1" then down to 1/2" to a 1/4" nozzle. Thing spits out water like you wouldnt believe! It's a beast. I dont know what it's doing for pressure but it will flat out destroy stuff. We were spraying out a miner with it and it was chewing through coal/mud/rock mixture that turns hard as concrete like it was butter!

This reminds me of the old time water monitors they used to mine gold in old time California gold fields. They would strip trees, brush, and soil from mountain sides.
 
Dang, 40hp pressure washer! That's quite a unit you've built there Aaron!
My former bro-in-law once worked for a sandblasting company that also did water cutting. The pump was powered by a big Detroit diesel. They would cut through solid concrete walls and such, but man did they have to be prepared for the pressure. One of his co-workers was holding the gun casually, and it whipped him so hard it broke his arm. If it wasn't for another worker quickly shitting it down, the hose whipping around might have killed the guy.
 
I also would want to know the pressure. The mobile pressure truck operators up here require a trade ticket as their units are capable of 10,000 PSI.
 
Back
Top