Alright, let's talk about tackling the grime with a pressure washer. Mine had been sitting in the garage for a bit, so first things first, I had to drag it out. It's not super heavy, but still a bit awkward.

Getting Started

I uncoiled the hoses – the main pressure hose and my garden hose. Connected the garden hose to the inlet on the washer, making sure the little filter screen was clean. Then screwed the other end onto the spigot outside. Turned the water on slowly, let it run through the machine for maybe a minute before even thinking about power. This gets the air out, apparently it's important.

Next up was the high-pressure hose. One end screws onto the washer outlet, the other connects to the spray gun. Made sure those connections were really tight. Last thing you want is that thing whipping around.

Then, picking the right nozzle. Mine came with a few:

• A red one (zero degrees) - scary powerful, basically avoid it unless you know exactly what you're doing.
• A yellow one (15 degrees) - good for tough stains on hard surfaces.
• A green one (25 degrees) - kind of the all-rounder.
• A white one (40 degrees) - wider spray, gentler, good for cars or wood.
• A black one - for soap.

I was cleaning the concrete patio, it was pretty nasty. So I snapped the green nozzle (25 degrees) onto the wand. Seemed like a safe bet to start.

The Actual Washing

Plugged the machine into an outdoor outlet (mine's electric). Took a deep breath, grabbed the spray gun firmly with both hands, braced myself a little, and squeezed the trigger. Whoosh! That water comes out fast.

Started on a corner of the patio, keeping the nozzle maybe a foot or so away from the surface. Moved the wand in steady, overlapping strokes. It's pretty satisfying watching the dirt just peel away. You see the clean concrete emerge right before your eyes. Found a rhythm, just sweeping back and forth.

Had to be careful near the edges, didn't want to blast dirt all over the house walls or dig up the grass. There were a couple of tougher spots, mossy bits. For those, I moved the nozzle a little closer, maybe 8 inches away, and went over them slowly. Did the trick.

It took a while, maybe an hour for the whole patio? You gotta keep moving. My arms got a bit tired holding the trigger down, but seeing the results kept me going.

Wrapping Up

Once done, I released the trigger, turned off the machine, and then turned off the water at the spigot. Squeezed the trigger again just to release any pressure still built up in the hose. Safety first, right?

Then just disconnected everything. Drained the hoses as best I could, wiped the machine down a bit. Coiled the hoses and power cord back up, snapped the wand parts together, and rolled the whole thing back into the garage. The patio looked so much better. Night and day difference. Definitely worth the effort.