Great vid, I have 1000ltrs worth of spare water in butts after summer and don’t know what to do with it, just ordered the bits from you’re link and will give it a go, I have a K2 but for a few quid it’s worth a go, cheers👍
@@bigtedshome … Well!!!… gob smacked, fitted the exact parts you recommended and just tried it from my butt, just done all the path at the side of the house with no problem, didn’t even feel any different than from the house mains tap, and I was using a K2 and dirt blaster, As someone who hates using “drinking water” for watering the plants this is a revelation! as a foot note I have solar panels so I have just done this at no cost….. I see what you mean about the in-line filter as there was muck in it after one use, just walked in the house and my water bill has arrived, on the front it says “save water, save money”….. how ironic…. can’t thank you enough for sharing your vid👍
After watching I got the bits from Amazon and it took no no time to set up my K4 and water butt as per your video. I had doubts about the filter after seeing a few negative reviews on Amazon but was persuaded by the the majority which were favourable. I needn’t have worried as it works fine. So all in all very happy ! Thanks very much 👍
Thanks John. I think the majority of the negative reviews on amazon are due to the plastic snapping when the filter is being screwed on (possibly due to over tightening). It's good to hear that everything works well for you 🙂
By the way I bought a Gardena connector with a “Stop” built in so I can remove the house from the filter without going back to the tap to turn the water off.
@millsiej I read somewhere that water stop hose connectors can restrict water flow and affect the operating pressure of pressure washers. I'm not sure how reliable this info is.
Thank you so much for this! I would have been one of those people asking how to connect the adapters to the hose - nothing is ever to basic in my opinion!
Great video. I don't think you could make this video any simpler. It's filmed by the everyday user not a professional video setup. So, I've got a few questions that I'd be grateful if you could answer. Is there a maximum length of garden hose between the water butt and the Karcher? The water butt is supplying water to the Karcher at gravity/atmospheric pressure. Do you know if the Karcher creates a 'suck' at the inlet? I ask that out of curiosity because if it doesn't and the water butt is at a lower elevation to the Karcher, water won't travel up an elevated garden and won't supply water to the Karcher unless it's forced into the Karcher i.e. a pressure fed supply.
@Maersky-747 Thanks for the great feedback 🙂 I've not tried using a particularly long hose, so will have to refer you to this thread: www.hotsycarlson.com/under-pressure-how-hose-length-affects-clean#:~:text=Assuming%20a%20best%2Dcase%20scenario,of%20hose%20that%20you%20use. The Karcher pump will pull water through the hose, but if you want to use it at a level above that of the water source, then I would think that it would be best to prime the pump first by using it at a height below the water butt level and then move the pressure washer up the slope. I've not tried this though as my garden is fairly flat 🙂
Thank you, as I live on the second floor the housing does not like electric cables running from my flat so would more than likely have a dicky fit with a hose pipe as well, so as we have nine garage roofs to drain water from, SORTED.
Brilliant video! and British aswell😌 this is the only one I have found on UA-cam that is exactly what I was looking for! because I do not have a mains tap supply outside my house but have a big waterbutt which I want to utilise great that you have demonstrated not only how to do this, you also have shown what kit you need to buy (with the links) for conversion on the waterbut. which is really helpful no one else shows you this! so well done! 🙂one question I do have is this possible to do with all the Katcher models aswell including the k2 etc cheers
Thanks for the great feedback. There is a comment below confirming that this works for the K2 as well. I suspect it would actually work better for the K2 as it has a lower water flow than the K4.
@@bigtedshome thanks you promp reply and the info this is also great! because usually nobody replies this quickly or never which is very frustrating keep these videos coming you have a new subscriber take care.
Pressure washers have a minimum input rate and pressure. My Karcher had a 8 litres a minute minimum water input requirement, if this is lower then the unit will have a reduced life span. Review the Technical Details section of your manual. I recommend getting a water butt submersible pump to feed the pressure washer.
Thanks for your interesting comments Adam. The maximum output (and therefore the maximum input) of the karcher k4 is 420 l/hr or 7 l/min. I've just measured the output of the hose attached to my water butt which was just under 5 l/min. I personally think that the pump in the K4 should be able to cope without the need for using a second pump.
Good video. I'm thinking fill a couple of 25litre containers with warm water to use to wash van. Would this give enough water? And is it just a matter of putting hose into the container
How do you know that the filter you specified is good enough to cope with water from a butt? If it is not, then the pump of the Karcher might be damaged.
@@bigtedshome Thanks Ted, but does the manufacturer actually state that his filter will cope with water from a butt (which may have lots of debris from the roof tiles) or is he just saying the filter will easily fit the Karcher? I examined one of these filters and it looked no finer than the one that comes with the Karcher. It may well be that this is good enough. I have no idea how fine the contaminants are in water from a water butt. The particles may well be quite large in which case no extra filtering would be required. If they are small enough to go through the filter they might be harmless anyway.
@user-de6vj6kx7d The manufacturer mentions water tanks which is how water butts are referred to in most countries. I worked on the assumption that the internal filter will protect the pump from anything big enough to block/damage the pump and that adding an external filter like the one in the video will take out most of the larger pieces of silt/grit before they get into the machine. It is much easier to remove and clean the external filter if it gets blocked.
@@bigtedshome I tried washing my car via the water butt today and the results were the best I've ever had. Washing with tap water always left white streaks on the paintwork because the water was very hard, but of course the rainwater from the butt is very soft so the white streaks are eliminated. I shall continue to use the filter you recommended and will not worry further, thankyou Ted.
@user-de6vj6kx7d Thanks John. That's an interesting comment about the white streaks caused by hard water. Where I live, we don't have that problem but hopefully others will find your observation useful 🙂
Hiya I've a karcher k4 with a 100litre water butt the jetwash is fine for a few seconds but after that the water butt is having trouble keeping up,the water has to travel around 50 feet is it the distance that's giving me this problem any help would be greatly appreciated
Good question! In theory the distance shouldn't matter. The pressure in your system will depend on the weight of water above the tap in your water butt (pressure = height x density x gravitational field strength). If there is enough pressure to start up OK, it sounds like the flow rate is too low. Have you checked for leaks or kinks in the hosepipe or that the water butt tap is clear of silt?
@@Andrew-yw7bk Exacly, but pressure washer has its own pump and I am pretty sure it can create enough negative pressure to suck water up a meter or two. I will do experiment and report back.
@MarkRidge-yf5kq The amazon links are in the video description. If you are watching on your phone, click on the video title and this should open up the description. Then scroll down to find the links. Hope this helps 🙂
Great vid, I have 1000ltrs worth of spare water in butts after summer and don’t know what to do with it, just ordered the bits from you’re link and will give it a go, I have a K2 but for a few quid it’s worth a go, cheers👍
Thanks Ricky. Can't see any reason why it shouldn't work with your K2.
@@bigtedshome … Well!!!… gob smacked, fitted the exact parts you recommended and just tried it from my butt, just done all the path at the side of the house with no problem, didn’t even feel any different than from the house mains tap, and I was using a K2 and dirt blaster, As someone who hates using “drinking water” for watering the plants this is a revelation! as a foot note I have solar panels so I have just done this at no cost….. I see what you mean about the in-line filter as there was muck in it after one use, just walked in the house and my water bill has arrived, on the front it says “save water, save money”….. how ironic…. can’t thank you enough for sharing your vid👍
@@rickyweird01 That's great Ricky, thanks for confirming that this works for the K2 as well. I need to get some solar panels now 🙂
From Karcher website, only k4 and earlier versions is built to draw water from a water butt.
After watching I got the bits from Amazon and it took no no time to set up my K4 and water butt as per your video. I had doubts about the filter after seeing a few negative reviews on Amazon but was persuaded by the the majority which were favourable. I needn’t have worried as it works fine. So all in all very happy ! Thanks very much 👍
Thanks John. I think the majority of the negative reviews on amazon are due to the plastic snapping when the filter is being screwed on (possibly due to over tightening). It's good to hear that everything works well for you 🙂
@@bigtedshome I just hand tightened as you suggested and that’s enough. Thanks again
By the way I bought a Gardena connector with a “Stop” built in so I can remove the house from the filter without going back to the tap to turn the water off.
@millsiej I read somewhere that water stop hose connectors can restrict water flow and affect the operating pressure of pressure washers. I'm not sure how reliable this info is.
@@bigtedshomeworth knowing, thanks I haven’t tried it on full pressure yet so will test it when I get a chance and report back.
Thank you so much for this! I would have been one of those people asking how to connect the adapters to the hose - nothing is ever to basic in my opinion!
Thanks for the great feedback. I'm glad you found the video helpful 🙂
Great video. I don't think you could make this video any simpler. It's filmed by the everyday user not a professional video setup. So, I've got a few questions that I'd be grateful if you could answer.
Is there a maximum length of garden hose between the water butt and the Karcher?
The water butt is supplying water to the Karcher at gravity/atmospheric pressure. Do you know if the Karcher creates a 'suck' at the inlet? I ask that out of curiosity because if it doesn't and the water butt is at a lower elevation to the Karcher, water won't travel up an elevated garden and won't supply water to the Karcher unless it's forced into the Karcher i.e. a pressure fed supply.
@Maersky-747 Thanks for the great feedback 🙂
I've not tried using a particularly long hose, so will have to refer you to this thread: www.hotsycarlson.com/under-pressure-how-hose-length-affects-clean#:~:text=Assuming%20a%20best%2Dcase%20scenario,of%20hose%20that%20you%20use.
The Karcher pump will pull water through the hose, but if you want to use it at a level above that of the water source, then I would think that it would be best to prime the pump first by using it at a height below the water butt level and then move the pressure washer up the slope. I've not tried this though as my garden is fairly flat 🙂
Thank you, as I live on the second floor the housing does not like electric cables running from my flat so would more than likely have a dicky fit with a hose pipe as well, so as we have nine garage roofs to drain water from, SORTED.
Nice one, I hope it works well for you. I would be tempted to run a hose down from the second floor though just to wind them up 😂
Brilliant video! and British aswell😌 this is the only one I have found on UA-cam that is exactly what I was looking for! because I do not have a mains tap supply outside my house but have a big waterbutt which I want to utilise great that you have demonstrated not only how to do this, you also have shown what kit you need to buy (with the links) for conversion on the waterbut. which is really helpful no one else shows you this! so well done! 🙂one question I do have is this possible to do with all the Katcher models aswell including the k2 etc cheers
Thanks for the great feedback. There is a comment below confirming that this works for the K2 as well. I suspect it would actually work better for the K2 as it has a lower water flow than the K4.
@@bigtedshome thanks you promp reply and the info this is also great! because usually nobody replies this quickly or never which is very frustrating keep these videos coming you have a new subscriber take care.
Highly recommend getting couple of ibc tanks ,they hold 1000 ltrs,paid 50 for each 1
Thanks Phil 👍
Excellent tutorial video mate!
Thanks. I'm glad you found it useful 🙂
Pressure washers have a minimum input rate and pressure. My Karcher had a 8 litres a minute minimum water input requirement, if this is lower then the unit will have a reduced life span. Review the Technical Details section of your manual. I recommend getting a water butt submersible pump to feed the pressure washer.
Thanks for your interesting comments Adam. The maximum output (and therefore the maximum input) of the karcher k4 is 420 l/hr or 7 l/min. I've just measured the output of the hose attached to my water butt which was just under 5 l/min. I personally think that the pump in the K4 should be able to cope without the need for using a second pump.
When you have the filter before the mashine it may slow it down even more?!
Great video! Would you say it was safe to use the water to clean cars?
Personally, I wouldn't use water from a butt to clean my car.
Great video.
Thanks Paul 🙂
Good video. I'm thinking fill a couple of 25litre containers with warm water to use to wash van. Would this give enough water? And is it just a matter of putting hose into the container
Good questions 🤔. It would depend on the size of the van but while filming a new video last week, my k4 used
Great video .I will try it out thanks 😀
Thanks Cam 😁
@@bigtedshome don’t worry 😉
Nice to know that Karchers can draw from a supply like this, is there a noticeable drop in pressure or does it appear the same?
The pressure seems the same. I tested it with the highest pressure (dirtblaster) lance and there was no noticeable difference.
Ah great thanks!
Now i know which animal the Karcher beast inherited its color from :)
Se puede purgar con esa presión del tambo
Sí, funcionó bien para mí y para otros que comentaron en este hilo.
Hi, can anyone please advise the part numbers or description for these items on Amazon ?
There are direct links in the video description
call me thick, but as i have a brain tumour I cannot find the links can you help please.
its Ok i found the links cheers
@@alanparr3289 Sorry I didn't reply sooner, I've been out all day. Best wishes for your recovery 🙏
Hi are you using 1/2 or 3/4 water hose thanks
I use this 1/2" diameter hose: www.screwfix.com/p/fitt-50m-heavy-braided-nts-wintech-hose/6545j
3/4 not so good specially foaming keep pulsing ?
@@David-np4vo I think pressure washers normally pulse when there's not enough water flow. I had it once when an old hose was kinked.
How do you know that the filter you specified is good enough to cope with water from a butt? If it is not, then the pump of the Karcher might be damaged.
Thanks for your question John. The filter I used in the video is specified by the manufacturer as suitable for filtering water for pressure washers.
@@bigtedshome Thanks Ted, but does the manufacturer actually state that his filter will cope with water from a butt (which may have lots of debris from the roof tiles) or is he just saying the filter will easily fit the Karcher? I examined one of these filters and it looked no finer than the one that comes with the Karcher. It may well be that this is good enough. I have no idea how fine the contaminants are in water from a water butt. The particles may well be quite large in which case no extra filtering would be required. If they are small enough to go through the filter they might be harmless anyway.
@user-de6vj6kx7d The manufacturer mentions water tanks which is how water butts are referred to in most countries. I worked on the assumption that the internal filter will protect the pump from anything big enough to block/damage the pump and that adding an external filter like the one in the video will take out most of the larger pieces of silt/grit before they get into the machine. It is much easier to remove and clean the external filter if it gets blocked.
@@bigtedshome I tried washing my car via the water butt today and the results were the best I've ever had. Washing with tap water always left white streaks on the paintwork because the water was very hard, but of course the rainwater from the butt is very soft so the white streaks are eliminated. I shall continue to use the filter you recommended and will not worry further, thankyou Ted.
@user-de6vj6kx7d Thanks John. That's an interesting comment about the white streaks caused by hard water. Where I live, we don't have that problem but hopefully others will find your observation useful 🙂
Awesome:)
Thanks for the great feedback 👍
Hiya I've a karcher k4 with a 100litre water butt the jetwash is fine for a few seconds but after that the water butt is having trouble keeping up,the water has to travel around 50 feet is it the distance that's giving me this problem any help would be greatly appreciated
Good question! In theory the distance shouldn't matter. The pressure in your system will depend on the weight of water above the tap in your water butt (pressure = height x density x gravitational field strength). If there is enough pressure to start up OK, it sounds like the flow rate is too low. Have you checked for leaks or kinks in the hosepipe or that the water butt tap is clear of silt?
I have rain water tank underground do you think karcher pump can pump it up from underground around 1m height differnece?
Good question. I don't know. If you do have any success with this, I would like to hear how you did it. Good luck 👍
The water would need to be pumped to ground level. Without the pump it’ll be fighting against gravity.
@@Andrew-yw7bk Exacly, but pressure washer has its own pump and I am pretty sure it can create enough negative pressure to suck water up a meter or two. I will do experiment and report back.
Do you think I've tap higher up on container the crap sit at bottom
You will get silt building up at the bottom of the water butt after a while. I empty mine and flush it out every few years.
@@bigtedshomeHi Tedd good video, but i cant find the links for Amazon so i can buy all the connectors, can you helpme please, kindest regards mark.
@MarkRidge-yf5kq The amazon links are in the video description. If you are watching on your phone, click on the video title and this should open up the description. Then scroll down to find the links. Hope this helps 🙂