Work through this before concluding anything has failed.
Pressure washers
Inlet filter out and rinsed. Nozzle checked against the light — a rotary nozzle that will not spin freely is usually limescale. Purge the air with the trigger open and the motor off. Only then look for a fault.
Steam cleaners
Descale before the first use if the machine sat with water in it. Check the pads: a pad left damp in a cupboard for four months belongs in the bin.
Sweepers and outdoor tools
Brush height reset for the surface, bristles checked for a permanent set from being stored on them. Store a sweeper on its wheels, not on its brushes — a flattened bristle row never fully recovers.
Petrol machines
Fresh fuel, drained bowl, clean plug, oil level checked before the first pull.
And the frost damage check
If the machine was stored somewhere cold, look for a hairline crack at the pump housing before connecting water. Better to find it dry than at 140 bar.
The questions we hear
The machine runs but the pressure is low. What first?
The inlet filter, then the nozzle. Both block over winter — the filter with sediment, the nozzle with mineral deposits. Then check the supply is fully open and the hose uncoiled. Only after those three is it reasonable to suspect the pump.
The petrol machine will not start.
Old fuel, nine times out of ten. Drain the tank and the carburettor bowl, refill with fresh, and check the plug. That sequence starts most machines that sat all winter.
Last reviewed 2026-08-15
