Alright, let's talk about this yellow pressure washer I got. The K2 model. Needed something to blast the grime off the patio, it was getting embarrassing frankly. Looked like something out of a jungle.

Getting Started

Pulled it out of the box. Felt pretty light, mostly plastic as you'd expect for the price. Not complaining, just saying. Putting it together wasn't too bad. Snapped the handle in, attached the wheels – they just clicked on. Had to screw the high-pressure hose onto the machine and the trigger gun. Took a minute to figure out which end went where, the instructions had pictures but, you know, pictures.

Then connected my regular garden hose to the input using the adapter thingy they give you. Plugged the power cord in. That cord isn't super long, by the way, so had to dig out an extension lead suitable for outdoors. Safety first, right? Don't want to zap myself.

The First Blast

Okay, time for the fun part. Grabbed the trigger gun, felt okay in the hand. Came with two lances: one called a 'Dirt Blaster' with a spinning jet, and another 'Vario Power' lance where you twist it to change the pressure. Smart idea.

Started with the Dirt Blaster on the really green, slimy paving slabs. Turned the machine on – bit noisy, but not crazy loud like some petrol ones. Pulled the trigger. Whoosh! It definitely shifted the muck. You could see the clean stone appear right away. Had to move kinda slow to get it all off, it's not like a magic wand, but it worked. Took me a good hour to do the main bit of the patio. Got quite satisfying, watching the dirt disappear.

• Dirt Blaster: Good for stubborn stuff on hard surfaces. Really cuts through algae.
• Vario Lance: Switched to this for rinsing down and trying on the fence panels. Turned it to the lower pressure setting. You have to be careful with wood, don't want to shred it. It cleaned off the surface dirt okay without damaging the panels, which was a relief.

Also used it to quickly rinse the car wheels. Didn't use the Dirt Blaster for that, just the Vario lance on a medium setting. Got the brake dust off easily enough.

Thoughts After Use

It did the job I bought it for. The patio looks a hundred times better. It's definitely a 'homeowner' machine, you know? Not super powerful, but enough for paths, fences, maybe washing the car carefully. It's small, easy to store away which is good because my shed is already full of stuff I thought I needed.

Putting it away was simple too. Disconnected the hoses, drained the water out best I could, coiled up the pressure hose and power cord. The onboard storage for the lances and cable is handy.

It’s not perfect. The plastic feels a bit basic, and I wonder how long it'll last if I use it really heavily. But for giving things a good clean a few times a year? Seems decent enough. Better than scrubbing on my hands and knees, that's for sure. My back was thankful.

Reminds me of when I bought that cheap electric screwdriver years ago. Thought it was a gimmick, ended up using it all the time for little jobs. Sometimes the simpler tools are the ones you reach for most. This Karcher K2 feels a bit like that. Does what it says on the tin, mostly.