# Generic Waterbutt to PW



## goldenpirate

Hey guys,

Well this is my first post, and I just had some questions in regard to connecting a water butt to a pressure washer. I know quite a few people do this setup, and many filter the water etc. to ensure no debris is coming out. Although, I won't have this problem as I will be filling up with tap water (I am not using a water butt for the rain water, I just simply don't have access to a tap outside to wash my car). 

So I did set it up with an old Karcher, and whilst some pressure does come it is very little, or it stops due to inconsistency. It is a generic 100L Water butt perhaps half a foot of the ground, I was just wondering what I can do to get more pressure and do people still use this setup? If so what am I doing wrong.

I am using two connectors on around a 7-8m hose and the hose is a value range item, not anti-kink or anything. Could this be a problem, or do I need a better PW which is meant to be suited to use with a water butt like a C110 Nilfisk. Also has anyone tried using a snow foam lance from a pw connected to a water butt?

Any help is appreciated.


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## steelghost

Are you using a "normal" 12mm OD garden hose? If so the flow will be woeful off a small water butt with that length of hose. You either need a larger diameter pipe to increase the flow, or failing that a small pump into the water butt to give you more pressure into the existing hose. Can you do a flow rate test? Most PWs need at least 5 litres a minute. If the hose, connected to the water source you're planning to use, won't give you at least that (and ideally more depending on the PW in question) then you'll have problems.

Have a read of my post (if you haven't already) on this, it talks about flow rates etc and the kind of fittings you'll need to do this successfully.

Can you raise the butt up higher? Although it would need to be quite a lot higher to give you enough pressure with a 100l butt and that amount of hose....


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## steelghost

By the way, rain water is much better at not leaving water spotting on your car, especially if you live in a hard water area.


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## goldenpirate

steelghost said:


> Are you using a "normal" 12mm OD garden hose? If so the flow will be woeful off a small water butt with that length of hose. You either need a larger diameter pipe to increase the flow, or failing that a small pump into the water butt to give you more pressure into the existing hose. Can you do a flow rate test? Most PWs need at least 5 litres a minute. If the hose, connected to the water source you're planning to use, won't give you at least that (and ideally more depending on the PW in question) then you'll have problems.
> 
> Have a read of my post (if you haven't already) on this, it talks about flow rates etc and the kind of fittings you'll need to do this successfully.
> 
> Can you raise the butt up higher? Although it would need to be quite a lot higher to give you enough pressure with a 100l butt and that amount of hose....


Yes it is a 12mm, value hose with honestly cheap connectors. It was previously a 15M hose, but I cut it to perhaps 8M, and I may even cut it down further to 3-4M would this improve flow, as I am able to move the water butt closer to my car as it is parked at the front of the house.

Yes I would be able to make it go around 3ft in the air possibly by placing it on a step ladder.

I have actually seen your post it was the first post I have seen, I like your setup and the filtering idea is great but as I said I would pretty much like to use tap water simply because I am trying to reduce costs (there is no hose pipe ban over here and I don't have access to an outdoor tap, pretty much the only reason why I am doing it)

In terms of the flow rate coming out of the waterbutt I would say its around 4/5L per minute give or take.

I've seen this video: 





and also this video:





Which one is using a wheelie bin with a tap adaptor of course on the floor and the other with a 25L tank with a hole for air. So would my problem simply be having a long hose (15M) and 12MM making it not pass enough water from the water butt. Would I be better of investing in a better hose pipe?


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## steelghost

Funnily enough I recognise both those clips from when I was researching my setup 

Your problem is a combination of factors:

- the butt is small, which means lower "head" (ie less water on top of the bit actually passing out of the tap pushing it downwards)
- it's not very high off the ground (same as above really)
- you've got a long and narrow hose (which adds flow resistance) - the "hoselock" fittings are pretty terrible for flow resistance and additionally need main pressure on them to make a proper seal, otherwise they can leak.

Suggestions:

Start with easy / free first:

- Raise the water butt as high as you can
- Try a shorter hose (eg 2m if you put the PW next to the stepladder)
- If neither of those (or both) helps enough, I'd suggest a 19mm ID setup along the lines of what I made up in my post - should give you enough flow

You really need a bit of safety margin here - running a PW on insufficient is really bad for the pump and will knacker it prematurely if you do it too much.

Incidentally I've discovered you don't really need to filter water from a rain butt, gravitational settling does the trick just fine.


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## goldenpirate

steelghost said:


> Funnily enough I recognise both those clips from when I was researching my setup
> 
> Your problem is a combination of factors:
> 
> - the butt is small, which means lower "head" (ie less water on top of the bit actually passing out of the tap pushing it downwards)
> - it's not very high off the ground (same as above really)
> - you've got a long and narrow hose (which adds flow resistance) - the "hoselock" fittings are pretty terrible for flow resistance and additionally need main pressure on them to make a proper seal, otherwise they can leak.
> 
> Suggestions:
> 
> Start with easy / free first:
> 
> - Raise the water butt as high as you can
> - Try a shorter hose (eg 2m if you put the PW next to the stepladder)
> - If neither of those (or both) helps enough, I'd suggest a 19mm ID setup along the lines of what I made up in my post - should give you enough flow
> 
> You really need a bit of safety margin here - running a PW on insufficient is really bad for the pump and will knacker it prematurely if you do it too much.
> 
> Incidentally I've discovered you don't really need to filter water from a rain butt, gravitational settling does the trick just fine.


Yes I believe that is where I saw them from haha, they were definitely good ideas with yours.

Ah, I see what you mean because the hose is defo larger then what I need, so I may just cut it down to 2M as you suggest. I do use the generic stop and lock fittings on both sids, although I do notice in your thread you have do use jubilee clips. Do you think I could/should just use a clip to the hose on to the water butt tap instead of using a connector.

Either way, I will probably be able to put it on the step ladder or a miniture table which is also around 3ft in the air, and defo try the shorter hose. Hopefully this should do the trick as I noticed on most PW videos the water butt is on some type of stand.

If not I will possibly buy the hose that you have and possibly a water pump? I was trying to keep this cost down to as low as possible but if this is the case then will do it. Would this be the right thing to do if the 'free' technique doesn't work.

The only reason why I was really against rain water is I wouldn't be able to carry it through the house, and if I leave it at the front someone might nick it (this is the type of area I live in) that being said if it is filled to the brim, a 100L water butt isn't easy to steal so may decide to simply catch the rain water within it.


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## steelghost

I think the combination of shortening the hose as much as you can (be careful not to kink it though!) and lifting it up as high as you can should help a lot. Try a flow test - bear in mind the flow will be higher when the butt is full so you want to be getting sufficient flow when it's half or a quarter full.

If it doesn't give you what you need, that's the time you want to think about a larger diameter pipe. I don't think you need to go to 25mm ID as I did, but 19mm ID would be a good step forward. That should roughly double the flow rate you can get, and I really can't see you needing a pump.

Collecting rain water is a great way to wash the car as it means you can rinse with minimal / no water spotting, and of course it's free which is good if you're on a meter (and to be honest, it's a good idea anyway there's no need to squirt perfectly good drinking water on a car *if *you have an alternative). The one thing I would say is if you set up a water butt to collect rain, bear in mind that you can easily get 500 litres off the roof of a house in eg a night of heavy-ish rain. So if your storage is 100 or 200 litres, there's a risk of overflow that can lead to water running into / onto places you don't want (and we had some wet cellar walls until I realised our butts were overflowing and fixed it). But if you can sort it so that's not a problem, it's well worth doing. As you point out, 100l of water weighs 100kg so it's not something you can run off with! I put a wire strap around the two 200 litre water butts I have, mostly to stop them tipping over if my boys decide to go climbing, but it would also be a reasonably effective anti-interference mechanism.

If you do decide to go with collecting water, if you have the room and can tolerate it, it would be worth settign up the 100l butt you already have to collect the water and feed it into a larger 200l storage butt from which you would then supply the PW. The idea here is that any sediment settles out in the first tank, leaving the second clear and clean for use.


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## goldenpirate

steelghost said:


> I think the combination of shortening the hose as much as you can (be careful not to kink it though!) and lifting it up as high as you can should help a lot. Try a flow test - bear in mind the flow will be higher when the butt is full so you want to be getting sufficient flow when it's half or a quarter full.
> 
> If it doesn't give you what you need, that's the time you want to think about a larger diameter pipe. I don't think you need to go to 25mm ID as I did, but 19mm ID would be a good step forward. That should roughly double the flow rate you can get, and I really can't see you needing a pump.
> 
> Collecting rain water is a great way to wash the car as it means you can rinse with minimal / no water spotting, and of course it's free which is good if you're on a meter (and to be honest, it's a good idea anyway there's no need to squirt perfectly good drinking water on a car *if *you have an alternative). The one thing I would say is if you set up a water butt to collect rain, bear in mind that you can easily get 500 litres off the roof of a house in eg a night of heavy-ish rain. So if your storage is 100 or 200 litres, there's a risk of overflow that can lead to water running into / onto places you don't want (and we had some wet cellar walls until I realised our butts were overflowing and fixed it). But if you can sort it so that's not a problem, it's well worth doing. As you point out, 100l of water weighs 100kg so it's not something you can run off with! I put a wire strap around the two 200 litre water butts I have, mostly to stop them tipping over if my boys decide to go climbing, but it would also be a reasonably effective anti-interference mechanism.
> 
> If you do decide to go with collecting water, if you have the room and can tolerate it, it would be worth settign up the 100l butt you already have to collect the water and feed it into a larger 200l storage butt from which you would then supply the PW. The idea here is that any sediment settles out in the first tank, leaving the second clear and clean for use.


I will definitely give the first two a go, I did have a 15M hose and shortened it to around 7-8M as I said but perhaps it is still too long, will give 2-3M a go. Otherwise I will buy a 19MM ID hose. If a pump is not needed that is great, can't really keep chucking money at this as I barely have any detailing products!

That's actually a pretty good idea, if I can get the pressure washer to work correctly I will consider this idea, will just have to see how much space I got and how will it work. Thanks for the advice!

I will update this thread soon, on the lookout for another PW and then will say if it works for anyone else who may be looking to do this.


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## goldenpirate

Update: I have ordered a Nilfisk C110, heres hoping everything will work fine with the water butt, will update on Tuesday or Wednesday when I get it


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## goldenpirate

Since I had a day off today, I tried it this morning.

Doensn't work at all, simply because all the water is coming out of the connectors and just spraying outside. So very little water actually goes down the connectors (they were generic £1 for 3 inside a packet) connectors and the hose I'm guessing doesn't fully fit inside them. 

Now what to do?
Buy a new hose with connectors?


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## steelghost

I'm afraid I'm not clear from your post which connectors are not working. If you can post a picture or video that would help a lot. FOr now, I've suggested ways to make a good connection at each end of the hosepipe below.

If it's the tap from the butt that's leaking, depending on the type they may not make a good seal with "Hozelock" connectors. If it's leaking there, you can usually take the Hozelock connector off, dip with end of the hose in boiling water to soften it and fit it over the end of the tap, then use a jubilee clip (or even a beefy cable tie, in a pinch) to secure it.

At the PW end, the "normal" way to connect a PW is with another Hozelock connector. As I mentioned earlier, these are not great if there isn't sufficient water pressure to generate a seal (which there probably won't be if . There are various things you can use as replacements, something like a "cap and liner" fitting would work well. You can get them online eg here, usually you want 3/4" BSP thread (since this is what most PWs have as their inlet, once you've unscrewed the Hozelock connector) and a 1/2" hose barb (again, you'll want a jubilee clip to secure it).

(I used the camlock fittings on my setup because they're easier to engage / disengage, especially in cold weather, but they're not necessary).

Hope this helps!


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## goldenpirate

Hi, yes I should have taken pictures I completely forgot at the time. 

It was actually the tap end leaking, there was really now water flow going through the hose (I even took of the fitting to see if water flows through the hose and it didn't, was just dribbling so I'm not surprised the PW didn't have any real water coming through)

I will have to give it a go with the clips and then see what happens.

Was hoping it would work straight away


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## AllenF

Your not using water stop fittings are you.
That's going to reduce your flow drastically


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## goldenpirate

Hi Allen,

I believe I am... 
Quick Fit 1/2" Female Water Stop Connector for garden hoses to be used to connect sprinkler or spray gun to hose: Amazon.co.uk: Garden & Outdoors
It's something like this (on both sides, one to the butt and one to the PW)


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## steelghost

AllenF said:


> Your not using water stop fittings are you.
> That's going to reduce your flow drastically


Absolutely. The way forward here is as I described ie eliminate Hozelock connectors - you're operating on far lower pressure than mains so you need to reduce flow restrictions as much as possible.


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## AllenF

K bin those connectors. If you MUST use the snapfits then use the straight throughs.
Better option is to use 3/4 pipe and fittings to give a greater flow rate.


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## goldenpirate

I am going to go get some jubilee clips to connect the hose to the water butt tap (after using steelghost method of boiling water to soften) but I'm not sure which one I should use for the hose to the pressure washer, I'm looking at what steelghost linked me too which is cap and liner fitting but I don't get the barb part.


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## AllenF

I got the pressure washer and.
On the pressure washer unscrew ( if you can ) the connector leaving you with just the inlet threaded pipe.
Now a trip to b&a and pick up a hose to tap connector like this
http://www.thehosemaster.co.uk/lugged-fitting-swivel-nut-washer-and-flat-tail
Job done


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## goldenpirate

Would I have to jubilee clip my hose to that flat tail you just linked me to?


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## AllenF

Possibly but if its a fairly tight fit ( ie you cant slide it on) too hose in boiling water to soften them work it on and dunk in cold water to set it.
It's not under Mains flow pressure so you shoul be ok


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## goldenpirate

Okay great will try this then and then update the thread, hopefully this will help any of those in future who may be having similar problems.


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## steelghost

For clarity, the part AllenF linked you to and the one I gave you a link to are essentially the same thing. Always best to seal a hose barb with a jubilee but in this application you'll probably get away without it.


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## AllenF

No worries let us know how it goes.
There's always a solution


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## goldenpirate

@ Steelghost - Is the hosebarb meant to go into the hose and then onto the tail fitting with a jubilee clip?

@ AllenF - Defo will be getting the stuff soon, but cannot figure out where to get the item you and Steelghost showed me (shop-wise) or would I have to order online?


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## AllenF

B&a or a garden centre.
Common enough fitting. If you get really stuck look for the local hydraulic hose place .. they should have them (or very very similar)


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## steelghost

goldenpirate said:


> @ Steelghost - Is the hosebarb meant to go into the hose and then onto the tail fitting with a jubilee clip?


Hose barb goes into the hose, ideally secured with a jubilee (this is where the boiling water trick comes in handy). 
The captive collar then attaches to the threaded inlet of your Nilfisk - there are two nibs you can use to tighten / loosen it.


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## goldenpirate

I am tempted to just order them online esp, because I don't have a B&A around me and I called all the local places and none seem to have it.

Although, I would need help with ensuring I am buying the correct parts so I will show links to what I have and then maybe we can see which ones I need so here it goes:

Water butt - http://www.wilko.com/water-butts+accessories/water-butt-slim-injection-100ltr/invt/0313385

The tap (I did not buy this separately, it comes with the Water butt, this is just for anyone who wants to know exactly what it looks like) - http://www.wilko.com/water-butts+accessories/wilko-water-butt-spare-tap-display/invt/0313389

The pressure washer - Nilfisk C110 4-5 X-Tra Pressure Washer with 1400 W Motor: Amazon.co.uk: DIY & Tools

A picture of the tap connector on the machine - https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Uf96MPRowq0/maxresdefault.jpg

The hose - http://www.wilko.com/hose-pipes-spr...ko-edv-hose-with-starter-set-15m/invt/0338892

So what I was going to buy:

Lugged fitting - http://www.thehosemaster.co.uk/lugged-fitting-swivel-nut-washer-and-flat-tail

- 3/4" BSPP Female Thread x 1/2" ID Lugged Fitting

And just two jubilee clips:

http://www.wilko.com/all-hardware/wilko-hose-clips-zinc-plated-12mm-20mm/invt/0344938

Like these.


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## goldenpirate

steelghost said:


> Hose barb goes into the hose, ideally secured with a jubilee (this is where the boiling water trick comes in handy).
> The captive collar then attaches to the threaded inlet of your Nilfisk - there are two nibs you can use to tighten / loosen it.


Oh I get it now, so I'd just take of the normal plastic tap connector that goes on top of the threaded inlet and use this instead.


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## steelghost

If you're buying online, it might be worth getting yourself some 19mm / 3/4" hose (£1.45/m from here) and the "3/4" BSPP Female Thread x 3/4" ID Lugged Fitting" variant, along with some bigger hose clips. That way you give yourself the best possible flow for minimal additional outlay (less than a fiver for 3m of that 19mm ID hose) - the other parts cost very similar whether you go 1/2" or 3/4".


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## steelghost

goldenpirate said:


> Oh I get it now, so I'd just take of the normal plastic tap connector that goes on top of the threaded inlet and use this instead.


Exactly so, yes :thumb:


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## goldenpirate

steelghost said:


> If you're buying online, it might be worth getting yourself some 19mm / 3/4" hose (£1.45/m from here) and the "3/4" BSPP Female Thread x 3/4" ID Lugged Fitting" variant, along with some bigger hose clips. That way you give yourself the best possible flow for minimal additional outlay (less than a fiver for 3m of that 19mm ID hose) - the other parts cost very similar whether you go 1/2" or 3/4".


Just to confirm then what I am ordering:

19mm (3/4") Reinforced PVC Braided Hose (3M)

3/4" BSPP Female Thread x 3/4" ID Lugged Fitting (X1)

18-25mm Jubilee Hose Clip (Mild Steel) (X2)


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## steelghost

Assuming 3m hose is enough for what you need, yes that looks good to me.


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## goldenpirate

steelghost said:


> Assuming 3m hose is enough for what you need, yes that looks good to me.


Should be enough, that's what my current hose is and it is long enough.

Everything has been ordered, will update this thread once tried again. Would like to thank you both for your help!


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## AllenF

No worries when you put the clips on you might want to wrap some insulation tape or such over it to save knuckles. Believe me it hurts when you inadvertently catch them


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## goldenpirate

AllenF said:


> No worries when you put the clips on you might want to wrap some insulation tape or such over it to save knuckles. Believe me it hurts when you inadvertently catch them


Haha I'll defo keep that in mind when doing it  really hoping it works this time!


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## AllenF

If you get open flow then no reason it shouldn't as long as your pw can accept low pressure flow ( most can) if not then it's a case of raising the flow pressure or head pressure in your case. This is done by using a bigger head of water OR bigger tank higher up


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## goldenpirate

AllenF said:


> If you get open flow then no reason it shouldn't as long as your pw can accept low pressure flow ( most can) if not then it's a case of raising the flow pressure or head pressure in your case. This is done by using a bigger head of water OR bigger tank higher up


The Nisflik C110 I have documentation does say it works with harvested water techniques such as water butts' so I would assume it does accept the low pressure flow. I mean I don't get it though, if you see on the first page one guy is using a wheelie bin with a tap and the second with a 25L tank. So I guess it is just getting the open water flow.


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## AllenF

Sounds like it's a flow issue yes.
Let's see how the new hose goes before we try solving anything else


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## goldenpirate

AllenF said:


> Sounds like it's a flow issue yes.
> Let's see how the new hose goes before we try solving anything else


I've ordered them they should arrive in about 3 days, I will probably end up testing on the Sunday fingers crossed and will let you guys know how it goes.


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## goldenpirate

Update for you guys, and it is a rather disappointing one. 

The problem didn't seem to be with the hose and the pressure washer, it is the butt that is faulty. It leaks, from the outside and from the tap even with the hose in from the actual place you turn it on! I received a faulty butt, which I will now have to return.


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## steelghost

How annoying! 
Fear not though - the parts you've ordered will give you a high-flow leak-free connection whatever butt you're using.

One of the benefits of using a larger ID hose is that you will have enough flow down to a lower level in the water butt, effectively giving you a larger usable capacity :thumb:


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## goldenpirate

Yes I was shocked to see it was still leaking and then realised it's coming from the actual tap! Will have to see what I do now  may have to put this on hold as I'm getting really busy. May be tempted to buy a 25L tank like the video as it's less hassle.


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## steelghost

If you're taking the duff one back, you've may as well just get a replacement 

25l will barely last 5 minutes, if that. 50l would be the bare minimum IMO.


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## AllenF

Can't you tighten it up or dismantle and ptfe tape it


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## goldenpirate

@ Steel - I'll have to order another one, surprisingly no shops keep the water butts on them they only get it delivered when needed, I guess they take up too much space?

@ Allen - Tried it mate, I think the whole they made is too big for the tap, or just the tap itself is fxked.


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## minibbb

goldenpirate said:


> Yes it is a 12mm, value hose with honestly cheap connectors. It was previously a 15M hose, but I cut it to perhaps 8M, and I may even cut it down further to 3-4M would this improve flow, as I am able to move the water butt closer to my car as it is parked at the front of the house.
> 
> Yes I would be able to make it go around 3ft in the air possibly by placing it on a step ladder.
> 
> I have actually seen your post it was the first post I have seen, I like your setup and the filtering idea is great but as I said I would pretty much like to use tap water simply because I am trying to reduce costs (there is no hose pipe ban over here and I don't have access to an outdoor tap, pretty much the only reason why I am doing it)
> 
> In terms of the flow rate coming out of the waterbutt I would say its around 4/5L per minute give or take.
> 
> I've seen this video:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> and also this video:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Which one is using a wheelie bin with a tap adaptor of course on the floor and the other with a 25L tank with a hole for air. So would my problem simply be having a long hose (15M) and 12MM making it not pass enough water from the water butt. Would I be better of investing in a better hose pipe?


Didn't think I'd see my video clip again after all this time! (The second one)

That set up was so so simple and worked fantastically with the C110- got me through the hose pipe ban no probs! The connectors used were free flowing.

Couldn't you have two of the 25l tanks with a rubber Bung to block the air hole until it's on its side ready to use?


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## AllenF

K you could try making a rubber gasket for behind the tap. It sounds like it's either loose or put together wrongly there should be a rubber washer both sides of plastic on tap threads that go through drum. Maybe the backnut is loose??
If you are near suffolk I have a 205l blue drum sitting in the garden 

if you want it come an get it lol


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## goldenpirate

Your video got my hopes up! I thought it would have worked perfectly thats why I got the C110 haha  I could try that actually, it's not a bad idea. 

@ Allen - That's what I was thinking when I first got it, theres actually no rubber anywhere it just screws in and thats it, so I'm guessing that's the problem because theres nothing blocking or sticking too it.

I wish I was near Suffolk, only a mere 100 miles away haha  how kind of you for the offer though! 

This was one of my other options:

Getting a pressure washer such as Bosch or Karcher with a self priming suction hose, and just getting a 40-50L tank of some time and just drawing the water from there?


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## steelghost

Sounds like whoever assembled the water butt forgot the o-ring. If I were you I'd keep hold of it, get yourself a roll of PTFE tape (no more than a couple of quid from any plumber's merchant) and put, at a guess, 5-6 turns around the thread of the tap. This should enable it to form a seal with the butt, then you're good to go.


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## AllenF

If your essex or london way i can meet you with it lol.
I'm down hornchurch on monday

Unscrew it ptfe tape it glut of bath dealer round flange and screw it back in see if that works


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## goldenpirate

@ Steel - Will keep my eye out for this as I'm going out tomorrow anyway. Will let you guys know.

@ Allen - What time roughly? I'll see if I can pop out of work perhaps.

No one thought the water suction idea was good eh?


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## AllenF

Be there between about 9am and about threeish.

Thing is you have everything you need its just sorting the problem out. It will work it's just getting it together

Remember a 205l drum is a full size oil drum though so you ain't gonna get it in a pug 206 lol


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## steelghost

goldenpirate said:


> Getting a pressure washer such as Bosch or Karcher with a self priming suction hose, and just getting a 40-50L tank of some time and just drawing the water from there?


It's (some) pumps that are self priming, rather than hoses.

What matters is that you have sufficient flow to the machine. Given that you don't have mains pressure behind it to shove the water down a narrow pipe, you need a larger pipe to move a sufficient quantity of water, and as m uch "head" as you can manage (hence lifting the water butt as high as possible). I'm with AllanF here, I think you have everything you need (once your hose and connectors turn up), just need to sort the leaky tap and you're off to the races.


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## goldenpirate

Update: 

Hey guys, so the pipe and connectors came this morning including the lugnut thing. Everything fit perfectly, sadly the tap is still leaking so no water is going into the PW (well very little, so it just keeps dribbling out water) I guess I will have to look out for the PFTE tape, or may replace the butt. Not sure at the moment, which ever comes first. Very disappointing indeed.

@ Alan - I got a little small Yaris, I do not see it fitting in there haha! The 100L struggled to fit


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## AllenF

Post pics of the tap mate.
This is something simple


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## steelghost

goldenpirate said:


> I guess I will have to look out for the PFTE tape, or may replace the butt. Not sure at the moment, which ever comes first.


The level of effort in getting some PTFE tape and applying it to the tap, compared to taking the butt back (especially since it only just fits in your car) is not even comparable.

If you're not sure where to go to get some you can get it posted to your door for less than £1.50 :thumb:


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## goldenpirate

Hey guys,

Sorry about the long time to update, have been so busy really with education and work!
Okay, so I tried it temporarily and it was giving decent pressure after the tape etc. the only problem is my Nilfisk C110 was a refurb and it's acting quite funny (won't turn off until I take out the plug etc, pretty sure this is terrible for the motor/machine in general) so did end up giving it back to Amazon. Does anyone know any good PWS which would work fine? I see Karcher outlet have some but those are also refurbs.


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## steelghost

All your outlet stock will be refurbs, to be honest. Not necessarily a bad thing, depends on the reason it got refurbed. Do you have a budget in mind?


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## goldenpirate

Under 100, I only see K2s about but those don't seem that good, pretty much like the Nilfisk. I've heard bad things about outlets (just like how my Nilfisk died out) there isn't no problems with getting a refund, but just wastes time..I've seen a K4 Eco Premium on the Outlet for less than half price, worth a shout? It even comes with a free suction hose.


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## steelghost

From what I've read on here and elsewhere, buying PWs at the cheaper end of the market is a lottery. Some folk come on and say how their K2 has washed 5 cars every weekend for the last three years, other have had half a dozen cheap PWs fail on them in five years.

So if you're getting a refurb from the outlet, I'd definitely upgrade to the full year's warranty (not sure how that works with the Sale of Goods Act, but anyway). This K4 looks OK, haven't used one so can't comment on specifics.


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## goldenpirate

Yes I've also noticed that, same with the Nilfisk C110 (the videos, and other reviews made me buy it as I thought it'd be reliable, maybe I was just unlucky this time). 

I was going to get that K4, and did end up putting an order through but it was actually for the premium eco version which was around the same price for some reason? I've left it as 6 months just to make sure it works with my water butt etc, and then will upgrade if it ends up working. 

130 bars seems good enough, and the suction hose could take away the problem from the tap (even though it really isn't a problem anymore), but putting the hose on top of my full water butt would be great and less hassle then clipping it each time etc. do you have any idea how it works though? Apparently if you just dunk it in the water butt for a couple of minutes so the hose is full of water then connect one end to the PW and keep the non return valve in the butt it should just work?


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## steelghost

Essentially it's working as a siphon. Seems a bit dicey to me to be honest, since the level of the water will drop as you're using it - so to be safe, the end of your hose has to be held near the bottom of the butt. If it slips, the machine is going to be running on air, and that is *not* good for it.

If it were me I'd get some camlock fittings so you can easily join the hose on and off, rather than having to tighten up and undo the jubilee each time (if that's what you're doing?)


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## goldenpirate

Yeah I heard running the machine dry is terrible, but I guess that's why they give a weight to hold it down at the bottom of the butt, it's kinda like a horse shoe or something which acts as a paper weight essentially.

Yeah that'd be a better idea, and I would prob be doing that as I'm sure some idiot will prob nick the clips or hose if I just leave it connected to my butt in the front garden.

Will have to see what happens, was quite tempted on the suction hose really (I'm lazy), if not the tap will have to do. I'm guessing the pump on this machine will be much better than the C110 so it'll work properly.






This video it seems pretty brill but who knows.


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## goldenpirate

Update:

Hey guys, finally got to test my machine after many errors from the courier (constantly giving it to the wrong house, really?)

Anyway, I done what they said with the hose (dunk it in the water butt then connect it up to the machine) ... and it works perfect, as though it is connected to a mains. Such strong pressure, I'm really impressed with the suction hose and I am sure it would just work as good as with the tap (just takes the sting out of getting camlocks etc.)

Thanks for your guys help (Steelghost and Allen)

For any newbies: I would recommend simply just getting a Karcher K4 or higher with the suction hose, dunk it in the bucket for a couple of minutes make sure its filled then connect it up, turn the machine on and away you go.


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## steelghost

Glad to hear you got a system that works for you in the end :thumb:


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