The Ultimate Guide to Pressure Washer Truck Rig Setups

A lot of pressure washing companies are moving from traditional trailer mounted washers to a truck based rig set up. The question is why? What benefits are there over the traditional setup?

Benefits of Having a truck mount rig for pressure washing

Portability - Pressure washer trucks are a lot easier to relocate than traditional pressure washing trailers. A pressure washing trailer requires the use of large truck or SUV and proper setup to be moved. Pressure washing trucks can be driven just like normal pickup trucks, they are fast and easy to set up when needed by skilled pressure washing technicians. Fuel efficiency - pressure washers mounted on vehicles have far greater fuel efficiencies than pressure washing trailers. When you factor in that trucks pulling a trailer are going to be forced to hit the gas a lot more often than pressure washing trucks and you will realize you have increased fuel efficiency.

Cost - pressure washers mounted on vehicles can cost less than pressure cleaning trailers. Depending on your pressure cleaning experience this could mean thousands of dollars per year saved by ditching your pressure washing trailer. Pressure washing trucks rigs can also see increases in profitability. A pressure washing trailer can cost in the range of $12,000 to $25,000 it is more expensive than pressure washers mounted on vehicle which are typically less than $15,000 for a good rig.

The pressure washing trailers and pressure washing trucks both have their place in the pressure cleaning industry. The goal of this article is to unveil the pressure washing truck advantages and give you a good idea of how pressure washing trucks can be implemented into your pressure cleaning business.

Dont have to worry about backing up a trailer. 

You can quickly make a turn around and hit the next site.

Rigs can be made more mobile to get in and out of smaller spaces – pressure washers mounted on vehicles have less over hang then trailer mounted rigs, this means you will not need as much space for your truck mount rig setup. You may even be able to get into small alleys or parking lots that were not accessible with a conventional pressure washing trailer.

Have all your hose and other equipment neatly organized and in one place – with truck rig you can keep all of your hoses, nozzles and chemicals securely stored on the back of your rig.

Pressure wash Truck skid security?

You do not have to worry about someone taking off with your equipment trailer if you do not have it secured onto your truck. You also are able to back up into a parking spot instead of having to pull forward to park.

How Do I Build a Truck Mounted Pressure Washing Rigs?

When looking at building a pressure washing rig you first need to decide what type of pressure washer and other equipment you want to use. Below are some things you need to think about before building your rig.

• Truck bed length
• Truck size f250 or Chevy 2500
• How much water you carrying?
• How much soap?

What Size Truck do I Need?

You are going to have at least an F2 50 or a three-quarter ton truck. There's a lot of weight that will be in the back of a pick up with the pressure washing rig. A half ton will not be strong enough to handle the load.

Be sure to have good tires and suspension for your pressure cleaning truck mount setup.  

Tires - the tires on a pressure washing truck rig should be extremely tough so that they do not get damaged when bumping into curbs, driveways or other obstacles. Be sure to get a set of tires that can handle your weight and the power of your pressure washer.

The suspension on your truck should also be very strong so that when you go over bumps or potholes in the road are not transmitted through the suspensions to the rest of the rig. The last thing you want is for your equipment to be damaged because of a cheap suspension.

What Makes up a pressure washing rig?

The pressure washer - As I am sure you all know, pressure washers are typically rated by their PSI (pounds per square inch), GPM (gallons per minute) flow rate, pressure tips (how many pressure tips the pressure washer has), and GFSI certification.

Higher the GPM The better the pressure washer should be at cleaning.

Higher the Gpm The more flow the pressure washer will have and pressure wash faster you can clean with it.

Tools - Every pressure washing rig will have some of these tools permanently mounted to it for complete functionality. Here are some of those tools that one needs no matter where you go:

• pressure washer hose reel
• pressure washer hose
• pressure washer gun
• pressure washer
• garden hose reel
• garden hose
• water tank
• soap tank
• gas tank
• pressure washer spray wand
• soft wash system pressure washer soap fogger

Here a video of a pressure washer truck skid build

Which pressure washer is best to use?

The 8 Gpm is a great pressure washer for pressure washing houses. Being that pressure washing trucks rigs are small, the 8 GPM pressure washer is perfect because it does not sacrifice pressure washing power and is still small enough to fit inside the pressure washer truck.

Different Types of pressure washing Hose Reels

Hand crank pressure washing hose reels are easy to use and can be placed on the outside of your truck or trailer. Many companies remove the cover to make it easier to use.

This pressure washing hose reel is mounted on the side of a truck and can hold up to 300 feet of hose. This type of pressure washing hose reel can be used with low-pressure or high-pressure hoses, which makes it perfect for any business that needs versatility in their pressure washing business.

However, you will need to make sure that the type of hose reel that you buy can handle the amount of water pressure that you want in your pressure washing rig. You do not want a low pressure reel and use high pressure. This type of setup could lead to hose blowouts, which means too much water is coming out of the attachment end of the hose.

How much High pressure washer hose?

Most pressure washing trucks rigs will have their hose volume mounted outside of the truck. The goal is to find a good balance between having enough length and not too much length which is hard to move around once you roll your pressure washing rig into a job site. I generally like about 150-200' feet of pressure washer hose.

What Size Garden Hose for a pressure washer?

The garden hose is connected to your pressure washer buffer tank and will be used for spraying the dirt off of hard surfaces. You do want a large garden hose because it will help keep the pressure washer from caveating. A garden hose reel is also an excellent option to make life easier because you can wind up the hose when you are done using it.

How long of hose for Pressure washer rig?

I have worked on several pressure washer trucks and there is always a debate of how much hose that needs to be purchased for the unit. I generally say about 150 to 200 feet of garden hose, but it really depends on you location. If your location is in a rural area, you will need more hose than if you are stationed on the side of a road in town.

The reason I say about 150 to 200 feet of garden hose is because it will help with if you have long driveways in your area.