Karcher powerhouse leaking water

yellow hen

Took the karcher out for the first time since autumn and it's spewing water everywhere. Admittedly I hadn't it covered in the shed but it wasn't that cold a winter. Is it repairable would you think? No idea how to trouble shoot it even.

jack of all

My old Karcher suffered a similar fate many years ago- the lance/ gun got damaged by frost and had to be replaced. Is it the actual power washer unit itself or the lance and hose? If it's the powerwasher unit itself it may not be an economical repair. In my case a local company were able to supply a new lance and make up a matching hose (the Karcher fittings were not standard if I recall) for about €80. Powerwasher is still going, and it's 20 years old.

yellow hen

Got sidetracked and misses this and now have come across the karcher again today. Iys the actual machine itself that's leaking. Tried the local electrical repair shop and they won't touch it. Any idea where I can bring it?

PsychoPete

Not sure what part of the country you are in, I'm sure there's karcher store in Dublin but if Google pressure repairers you'll find somewhere that will sort you out

yellow hen

Thanks, should have said Dublin area but could travel within reason. I'll look it up, thanks.

Dr_Colossus

What model Karcher is it and how old (Karcher have a 3 year guarantee so check that first before making any repairs).

When the unit is leaking is it a steady flow of water or is the machine pulsing and spraying water when activated?

I’ve a nearly 5 year old Karcher K4 (in fairness it has done quite a lot of hours) and earlier this year the unit started leaking when switched on. Disassembled the unit but nothing visible until it was powered on and activated which revealed a hairline crack on the pump manifold where the chemical mix piston is located. Machine was pulsing and spraying water through the crack resulting is reduced pressure at the nozzle. No easy means of fixing as the pump housing was plastic so tried 3 layers of duct tape as a temporary solution but the water pressure blew straight through the tape itself rather than it’s bind with the manifold.

Searched for a part online which were around £45 plus postage from UK suppliers but before ordering called into the Karcher Centre near the Red Cow, Dublin 22. They didn’t have the part in stock (Covid & Brexit problems) but did confirm a large shipment of parts was due into the UK that week and they could courier one out when available. Was pleasantly surprised that all in cost to the door was €40 and Karcher Centre were great to deal with so ordered it there and had it delivered within a week or so. Part fitted and machine as good as new since.

Mine didn’t crack due to frost damage as I run it dry prior to winter storage (some people fill it with antifreeze instead) and we’d a very mild winter anyway but I do run it for a few hours at a time which isn’t ideal for a domestic unit. Better to run them for shorter durations with rest periods in between. Anyway if you’re anyway DIY inclined have a go at repairing yourself, it’s a finicky process and somewhat time consuming but not complicated.

Tails142

Yeah I had mine in the shed a couple of years ago and it got frost damaged, they are very susceptible to it. I stripped mine down and I could see a tiny crack the water was coming out of. I just put it back together, works fine still just leaks everywhere. Very annoying. Could probably get a replacement part but don't want to spend anything more on it.

Don't think I'd buy karcher again to be honest, either go cheap entirely or go for a nilfisk, and this was a karcher with the metal pump body which is supposedly better at resisting cracks. Anyway crap brand imo, it's all marketing nonsense.