The Power Washing Vs Pressure Washing Controversy

It might be nit-picky to argue the difference between the terms "power washing" and "pressure washing," but inquiring minds want to know and we've got the dirt on the controversy. "The power and the pressure" sounds like a Soap Opera title, but since the terms "power washing" and "pressure washing" are used pretty much interchangeably, the question needs to be addressed. The main difference with power washing vs. pressure washing is the heat. The jet wash in a power washing machine uses heated water, whereas the water in a pressure washer is not heated

The advantage of a power washer's heated water is most effective in cleaning surfaces with serious grime, especially mildew, salt, and grease. The heated water adds another factor to the pressurized water to clean hard surfaces that can take the heat. It is the preferred option for jobs where surfaces are heavily stained and soiled and is particularly recommended on surfaces, such as concrete or cement, which will not be damaged by the pressure or heat of power washing. PressurePro Power & Soft Wash employs eco-safe chemical soft washing along with pressure and power washing in our driveway cleaning, paver cleaning, and dumpster pad cleaning processes for residential and commercial customers.

Power Before Pressure

Technically, it was the effect of pressurized steam on oil stains that drove the inventor of the first pressure washing machine to develop his first design. So the pressure washing industry officially began with heated water power washing. While working for a company that made gas-fired water heaters and boilers, Frank W. Ofeldt II invented the first steam pressure washer in the United States in 1926.

He first had the idea for what would become the foundation of modern pressure washing while experimenting with his design for a homemade portable whiskey distiller in his Pennsylvania garage. He noticed that when his latest design's steam outlet was directed downward, wet steam would hit his dirty garage floor and the built-up grease there would shift and move. He knew that steam was a gasified liquid without mass or body, and therefore it could only move the grease and not remove it, so he set out to create a machine that could! It when then that pressure washing was born, but it was steam that provided the pressure and the heat.

Surface Cleaning Evolution

The first applications of Ofeldt's pressure washing machine, and the many more to follow, were for industrial and commercial exterior cleaning jobs in factories, plants, warehouses, and stadiums. But, as science progressed and the machinery and equipment became more compact and portable, the possibilities of residential application became more possible.

The heating element of the power washer was sacrificed for the sake of portability and because in nearly all residential applications, the unheated water of pressure washing was deemed to be more than enough. Taking a cue from carpet cleaners, exterior cleaners began pre-treating especially tough stains, and mold, algae, and mildew infestations with chemicals to kill and dissolve, and that eventually evolved into the eco-safe chemicals and solvents used today in soft washing, but the soft washing story is a story for another day.

There's no need to choose between power washing and pressure washing in North Jersey! PressurePro Power & Soft Wash uses heated water power washing, along with high psi pressure washing, to provide the most effective exterior cleaning solution for each and every unique surface.