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Question: well did some more tested on the pumptech 356u water otter with the rotovac 360i. dis is what i found with the tile head at .015x3 jets it will run at 1250psi. and with the carpet head it will push 700 x3 psi. at .015 jets. strange same size jets and same number of them, and there is a of 550 psi different. only thing i can figure is that tile head is a jet and the carpet head is a flood jet. what a different. one question to all why is pumptech hated so much, is it because it junk or unreliable. i don't know just asking. mine run great and pump like a demon. am i going to have a bunch of problem with this pump. i read a lot of post and it sound like everybody think pumptech is junk. why please explained. thank you very much.
Answer: The Water Otter AS1200 Pumptec pumps have been finicky. Usually the unloader is the problem, not really the pump head or the pump motor. The advantage with Pumptec is a much smaller and lighter design. The Water Otter is designed to be oil free (no crank case) but the factory does recommend to rebuild and lubricate the pump head every 500 hours. At only 50 lbs it weight half as much weight as other units. This means you can carry into the job site and in and out of the service van much easier. The rebuild time frame on other plunger and piston style pumps is 1000 hours. The other brands of cold pressure washing pumps also seam to have the same level of unloader or pressure regulator issues. These unloaders are designed from the pressure washing industry and while pressure washing, the tech might squeeze and release the trigger a few times per job while hooked to the customers cold garden hose. Now as tile and carpet cleaners we take the same machine and squeeze and release the trigger hundreds of times while hooked to the customer hot water. When we release the trigger the water is re-routed from the unloader/regulator back into the inlet of the pump all the while the pump friction and pump head are raising the the pump head and water temperature. This is why it is recommended to add a 140 safety temperature release valve in the loop. Visit
This type of valve is huge in adding life to pumps that are hooked to hot water. In summary the hot water and number of times a the trigger is squeezed wears on the pumps aggressively, all types, and brands.
Advantage is lightweight
Disadvantage is more frequent rebuild window.
TMF is an equipment bashing forum filled with lots of very unprofessional comments and language. Please tread through the thread lightly with this understanding.
Related links:
Water Otter
Rotovac 360i
Answer: The Water Otter AS1200 Pumptec pumps have been finicky. Usually the unloader is the problem, not really the pump head or the pump motor. The advantage with Pumptec is a much smaller and lighter design. The Water Otter is designed to be oil free (no crank case) but the factory does recommend to rebuild and lubricate the pump head every 500 hours. At only 50 lbs it weight half as much weight as other units. This means you can carry into the job site and in and out of the service van much easier. The rebuild time frame on other plunger and piston style pumps is 1000 hours. The other brands of cold pressure washing pumps also seam to have the same level of unloader or pressure regulator issues. These unloaders are designed from the pressure washing industry and while pressure washing, the tech might squeeze and release the trigger a few times per job while hooked to the customers cold garden hose. Now as tile and carpet cleaners we take the same machine and squeeze and release the trigger hundreds of times while hooked to the customer hot water. When we release the trigger the water is re-routed from the unloader/regulator back into the inlet of the pump all the while the pump friction and pump head are raising the the pump head and water temperature. This is why it is recommended to add a 140 safety temperature release valve in the loop. Visit
This type of valve is huge in adding life to pumps that are hooked to hot water. In summary the hot water and number of times a the trigger is squeezed wears on the pumps aggressively, all types, and brands.
Advantage is lightweight
Disadvantage is more frequent rebuild window.
TMF is an equipment bashing forum filled with lots of very unprofessional comments and language. Please tread through the thread lightly with this understanding.
Related links:
Water Otter
Rotovac 360i
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