REVIEW – I have mentioned before that one thing I enjoy doing is detailing my cars. You can be much more efficient and use less water when washing your car using a pressure washer. A gas-powered pressure washer can do the trick, but then you have to worry about engine maintenance, making sure you do not use too fine of a nozzle, and taking the paint off your car! There are many smaller electric pressure washers out there to choose from. The Chemical Guys, known for their excellent car cleaning and detailing products, have developed their electric pressure washer for car cleaning. I was the lucky person chosen to review it. Read on to see what I think about it.
What is it?
The ProFlow PM2000 is an electric pressure washer developed by The Chemical Guys for car detailing. It has a working output of 1305 PSI and quick disconnects to make working with the washer simple and easy to use.
What’s in the box?
- Chemical Guys ProFlow PM2000 electric pressure washer with attached power cord
- Water hose from the machine to the spray gun
- User Manual and warranty card
- Assorted quick connect attachments for garden hose, power wash hose, and wand
- 5 quick connect nozzles: 0-degree, 15-degree, 25-degree, 40-degree, 65-degree
- Wand extension
- spray gun
- Four wheels for the bottom of the pressure washer
Hardware specs
- The powerful 1680-watt electric motor makes it easy to tackle everyday cleaning jobs around your home, buildings, RVs, cars, trucks, boats, driveways, patios, patio furniture, and more
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The maximum flow rate of 1.77 GPM makes quick work of heavy-duty cleaning
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Generates up to 2030 PSI of high-pressure water to easily blast away dirt, grime, debris
- 1305 working PSI & 1.06 working GPM optimal for car washing & versatile all-purpose cleaning
- Extra-long 35 -foot-long GFCI power cable for easy all-access maneuvering
- Combines with foam cannon for the ultimate foam wash
- 360-degree rolling casters allow your ProFlow to follow you around
- Compact & lightweight design for easy portability 10.5lbs, 14″ x 9″ x 8.25″
- Extended range 20-foot long high-pressure hose allows for flexible use in large areas
- Short barrel gun attachment gives you ultimate close-range control
- Long barrel gun attachment helps you clean hard-to-reach areas with ease
- Quick Connects allows you to connect your foam cannon and water hose in seconds
Design and features
The picture below shows the front of the Chemical Guys ProFlow PM2000 electric pressure washer. On the left-hand side is a full metal quick disconnect that will allow you to connect the hose that goes to the spray gun. You can find the Chemical Guys logo in the middle, and to the right is the on/off switch. The entire unit is made of plastic except for the metal quick disconnects.
The top of the unit has a large plastic handle.
The back side of the unit has a safety sticker and the connection spot where the garden hose would go. That connection is made of metal. There is a special adapter that I will talk about later that will let you quickly connect your garden to the unit.
The bottom of the Chemical Guys ProFlow PM2000 electric pressure washer has four rubber feet. More info on those in the setup section.
Setup
The first thing I did to set up the Chemical Guys ProFlow PM2000 electric pressure washer was to add the wheels to the bottom of the unit. This is a personal preference, and I like how the Chemical Guys (CG from here on out) provide rubber feet if you don’t want wheels. Depending on the vehicle you are washing, you may not want the unit rolling into the side of your vehicle if you pull the cord too hard when washing the car. The rubber feet pop out of their holes. You can see them in the picture below.
The bolts on the end of the wheels go into the holes and screw into the bottom. I love how each wheel has a lock that can keep the washer from rolling if you are on a slope.
The next step is connecting the Chemical Guys ProFlow PM2000 electric pressure washer’s hose to the spray gun. This is where the PM2000 shines. I love how CG provides a quick disconnect for the hose. Every other pressure washer I have owned required me to screw the spray gun hose onto the pressure washer and the gun. The quick disconnect on the machine was already attached, and it was simple to attach the hose.
The bottom of the spray gun has a simple push-button clamp that lets you attach the other end of the hose to it. I was disappointed that it was not a metal quick disconnect, but it is much better than having to screw the hose onto the gun. The spray gun itself is all plastic and does feel a bit cheap.
I then mounted the set of spray nozzles on the top of the Chemical Guys ProFlow PM2000 electric pressure washer. There are three holes to mount closer to the power cord and an attachment on the other side. I chose the side where I figured they would not get bumped around as much. The holder popped in pretty easily, and it did fall out while I was using the pressure washer. I will probably put some gorilla glue in the holes to make it a more permanent mount.
The wand attaches to the gun via a built-in plastic attachment on the metal wand. Once again, I would have preferred traditional metal quick disconnects here. The way things connect to this spray gun makes it rather limited. If I continue to use this pressure washer, I will buy an after-market spray gun that allows you to use quick metal disconnects to attach the hose on one end and then the wand or foam cannon to the other. It is nice that CG provides some form of quick disconnect rather than making you screw and unscrew attachments like other pressure washers.
These next couple of pictures show how I replaced the wand on the gun with another quick disconnect provided by the Chemical Guys. One end was the long black plastic piece, just like the wand has. The other end is a metal quick disconnect. I used that to connect the foam cannon to the spray gun. I am using the Chemical Guys Big Mouth foam cannon.
I want to mention that there is also a quick disconnect at the end of the spray wand to allow you to change out the various spray tips quickly.
I was pleased that the CG provided a quick disconnect for your garden hose. If you have leaks anywhere, it will be where the garden hose connects to the pressure washer. They even provided some plumber’s tape so you can install the plastic quick disconnect once, and hopefully not have any leaks. I was disappointed that this piece was plastic. Also, if the filter becomes clogged, it is impossible to remove and clean it. They did provide you with an extra one of these connectors. That is a good thing because, depending on how you move the unit around, the garden hose can put a large amount of torque on the connector.
Performance
I love that the CG provided quick disconnects for everything. I have owned about four different pressure washers. One was gas, and three were electric. None came with quick disconnects. I was not impressed with the plastic connector for the garden hose. That is the weak point of the unit. Plus, there is no way to clean the filter should it become clogged. I liked that they provided locking wheels for the unit should you choose to use them. They also provided plumber’s tape to prevent leaks at the various connection points. I did not use the tape initially and had a few small leaks where the garden hose connected to the unit. After putting on the plumber’s tape, the leak went away.
The Chemical Guys ProFlow PM2000 electric pressure washer is an electric unit. I found the power cord to be more than long enough for my needs. I was not as impressed with the hose provided to connect the spray gun to the unit. It was not very flexible and would require some ‘unwrapping’ before I could use it. The hose tended to curl up on itself. I also found the spray gun to be rather cheap feeling. However, it did have its pluses. It was designed from the get-go to allow you to remove the wand and attach a foam canon easily. Many pressure washer spray guns are not set up for this, and you would have to buy a new spray gun before you could even use a foam canon with them. The unit’s motor only came on when you were spraying water from the gun. This is nice, unlike gas-powered pressure washers that run constantly. I also found it very quiet compared to gas-powered units.
This pressure washer can clean your driveway, but it is not designed to be used for that purpose. It is a bit underpowered for that type of use. You could use it to clean your deck and house from dust and mold, but a gas-powered or more powerful electric pressure washer would be better suited to pull up heavy-duty stains over large areas.
I have a couple of videos below showing me using the pressure washer. It did a great job at cleaning the car. The unit is small and light, and the quick disconnects make setting it up easy and quick. Please note that I am still working out how much soap to put in the foam cannon. I did not put as much as I should, and the foam was a bit runny. A good foam should stick to the car and not drip as much.
What I like
- The spray wand is made to work with a foam cannon.
- Quick disconnects are provided for all connections
- They provide locking wheels for the unit.
- They provide storage for the spray tips.
What I’d change
- Nowhere to store the power cord
- The quick disconnect for the garden hose is plastic, and the filter cannot be cleaned.
- The spray gun feels cheap, and the connection to the hose is not metal but a simple clip.
- The hose to the spray gun is not very flexible and coils up too much.
Final thoughts
The Chemical Guys ProFlow PM2000 electric pressure washer is made to clean cars and does a good job. I complained about several things, and initially, for the price, it seemed to be rather overpriced. You can get cheaper electric power washers, but you will have to immediately replace the spray gun and then the hose in order to be able to use it with a foam cannon. You would also have to go out and buy many quick disconnects. I recommend this for home use, where you clean your car a few times a month. You must be careful with that garden hose attachment and ensure the connector does not crack. Worse case, you can replace it with a metal quick disconnect later. If you are a full-time car detailer, I would say go with a different pressure washer because you will buy your own spray gun, hose, and quick disconnects anyway. That way, you end up with a more durable unit.
Price: $199.99
Where to buy: Amazon or Chemical Guys
Source: The sample of this product was provided by the Chemical Guys.
