Okay, so let me tell you about my day wrestling with a high pressure cleaning machine. The patio out back was looking seriously grimy, you know? Moss, dirt, just years of stuff caked on there. I'd been putting it off, but finally decided, enough is enough.

Getting Started

First things first, I had to get the machine out. Borrowed it from my neighbor, actually. He showed me the basics. Looked simple enough. Hauled it out of his garage and into my yard. It wasn't super heavy, but a bit awkward.

Unpacked everything that came with it. There was the main unit, the spray gun thingy, a long hose for the pressure, and a couple of different nozzles. Looked like little tips you screw onto the end of the gun.

Assembly Time

Putting it together was pretty straightforward. Clicked the high-pressure hose into the machine and the gun. Then, hooked up my garden hose to the water inlet. Made sure that connection was tight – didn't want water spraying everywhere before I even started. Plugged the power cord in. Checked the oil level, just in case, like my neighbor mentioned.

The Main Event: Cleaning

Alright, time for action. I picked a nozzle that looked like it gave a wider spray, figuring I'd start gentle. Turned on the water tap first, then flipped the power switch on the machine. It hummed to life, a bit loud, but not crazy.

Pointed the gun at a corner of the patio, squeezed the trigger. WHOOSH! Man, that water comes out fast. You really gotta hold onto that gun. Started sweeping it back and forth across the paving stones.

• The difference was immediate. Like drawing a clean line through the dirt.
• Saw years of green slime and black muck just peel away.
• Had to experiment a bit with how close to hold the nozzle. Too close felt like it might damage the stone, too far and it wasn't cleaning as well.
• Switched to a nozzle with a more focused jet for some really stubborn spots, especially between the slabs. That worked great but took longer because the spray area was tiny.

It took a while, maybe a couple of hours, methodically working my way across the whole patio. It's kinda tiring holding that trigger down and bracing against the force, honestly. Got splashed a fair bit too, definitely wear old clothes for this job.

Wrapping Up

Once I finished the main area, I gave the garden furniture a quick blast too – amazing how much dirt collects on plastic chairs. Then, turned off the machine, turned off the water tap, and squeezed the trigger one last time to release the pressure, just like my neighbor said.

Disconnected the hoses, wound everything up. Bit of a cleanup job for the machine itself too, wiping it down.

But man, the patio? Looks almost new. So much brighter. It was hard work, yeah, and noisy, but seeing that clean surface made it totally worth the effort. Simple machine, really, but does the job.