What Soap to Use in Pressure Washer: Choosing the Right Cleaning Chemicals for the Job

Have you ever wondered why some properties always look clean while you’re stuck scrubbing away at stains?

Maybe you even have a fantastic pressure washer, but it still feels like something’s missing. It’s because those companies know something you don’t: what type of soap to use in pressure washers.

Industrial cleaning is a game of chemistry. If you don’t know what soap to use in pressure washers, you’re cleaning with one hand tied behind your back.

This guide will walk you through everything, separating the winning suds from the ineffective duds. Depending on the stains you regularly encounter, we’ll pinpoint what kind of soap to use in pressure washers.

If you need help along the way, talk to our team at RJP Hotsy New Jersey. As the Garden State’s only Hotsy retailer, you can rely on us to supply you with the perfect detergent.

Why the Type of Pressure Washing Soap You Use Matters

Okay, but is figuring out what soap to use in pressure washers necessary?

The detergent you use isn’t just a bunch of bubbles and foam.

Quality soap gets you cleaning results that make your competitors gasp in awe. Unsuitable soap just results in them laughing in your face.

Cleaning Performance

Results matter over everything else. When you first switch to pressure washing from manual scrubbing methods, you aim to eliminate stains in record time.

This is why figuring out what soap to use in pressure washers is critical. High-quality soaps offer the cleaning power you need in a way that lesser detergents can’t.

Consider this–some of the stains you’re dealing with have existed for months or years. Using a bargain bin solution is a recipe for disaster.

But with a suitable soap, you can cut through those stains like a knife through cake.

Surface Safety

When using a pressure washer, you intend to restore your property’s surfaces to a just-like-new state.

But with the wrong soap, a nightmare scenario can occur. You clean the surfaces and see no sign of stains–because you’ve completely stripped all the paint or siding off the wall or vehicle.

Figuring out what soap to use in pressure washers is a matter of juggling chemical reactions; it’s not a decision to take lightly. Every underlying surface, whether wood, concrete, metal, or acrylic paint, has unique sensitivities.

You open yourself up to discoloration, corrosion, and structural damage with the wrong soap.

Thankfully, those risks are exclusive to the wrong soaps. High-quality soaps eradicate tough stains while being gentle on your sensitive commercial property.

Equipment Longevity

Determining what soap to use in pressure washers is vital for more than just avoiding immediate disasters. Suitable soaps help extend the lifespan of your equipment.

Stains and gunk can do a number on your tools and machinery over time. Quality soaps help unclog those pumps, eliminate rust on machinery, and restore efficiency to your engines.

The same is true for your pressure washer itself. The best soaps work harmoniously with your machine, keeping the internal pumps and hoses operating effectively.

Conversely, poor-quality soaps will break down your equipment over time. Even if you don’t see an immediate drastic result like stripped paint, the wrong detergent will be a ticking time bomb on your equipment.

Environmental Impact

In today’s business world, ecological impact is essential to consider. Your clients and customers are more aware of a company’s environmental footprint than ever. Plus, new regulations are popping up seemingly every day.

The good news is that the most effective pressure-washing soaps are often biodegradable and eco-friendly. Gone are the days when chemical cleaners featured toxic ingredient lists straight out of a witch’s brew.

Today, the best biodegradable soaps are as powerful as their old-school counterparts.

As the future trends towards green products, choosing a biodegradable soap ensures you won’t be scrambling for a solution in the face of new regulations.

What Soap to Use in Pressure Washer: Tips on Picking the Perfect Detergent for Any Job

When choosing a soap for your business, you must get specific. What types of stains do you typically deal with? How often do you plan to clean? And what underlying surfaces are you working with?

The best pressure washer chemicals will depend on all of these answers.

General-Purpose Cleaners

All-purpose cleaners are the best starting point. These soaps can quickly eliminate most stains while keeping underlying surfaces safe.

When you need a Swiss Army Knife-style soap, we have two options we love. Hotsy Breakthrough is gentle on surfaces, adaptable to hot or cold water, and has extra foam for a thorough clean.

Hotsy Verde All-Purpose is another fantastic option. It’s completely eco-friendly with heavy foam and a lower pH than Breakthrough. You can’t go wrong with either choice for most stains.

But some stains will break down faster with specialized soaps, so consider all options before reverting to an all-purpose detergent!

Heavy-Duty Degreasers

Tackling caked-on stains like oil, grime, and grease without a degreaser is like bringing your fists to a knife fight. Can you win? Maybe, but it’s going to take a while.

Instead, a heavy-duty degreaser will eliminate that stain in a fraction of the time. Hotsy’s Ripper line of soap is the best in the industry. As the name applies, it will “rip” the grime from your industrial machinery and surfaces.

Hotsy Citrus Clean is also a great option, as it uses d-limonene for a natural clean that smells lovely afterward.

Specialty Cleaners

Specialization is the name of the game when choosing a detergent. When you can lock in on specific stains, you’ll achieve mind-blowing results faster than ever.

For example, consider Hotsy Carbochlor. Most industries would be better served with another soap–but not food manufacturers. Carbochlor is NSF-registered for food safety, with a specific formulation that removes odors, soaks up oil, and keeps your equipment in peak condition.

Similarly, Hotsy’s Shop Floor Cleaner soap is a phosphate-free blend for soaking up petroleum stains. If you own a repair shop, there’s no better way to restore your floor while preserving the underlying epoxy or paint.

Concrete and Driveway Cleaners

Concrete and Asphalt seem indestructible from the outside, but the pores within are hiding spots for grime and oil. Identifying the best soap to lift out stains is a key part of learning how to pressure wash concrete.

Great choices include all-purpose soaps like Breakthrough, Verde All-Purpose, and Hotsy Blue Thunder. Blue Thunder is especially effective at cleaning road film.

If you have extra concrete you need to clean, then a soap like Hotsy Con-B-Gone or Hotsy “99” will work best. They are formulated to remove splatter from concrete trucks.

Vehicle and Fleet Washes

Your vehicle fleet is often the lifeblood of your business. Finding a soap that can clear stains from the exterior and underlying machinery without damaging the vehicle itself is crucial.

There’s a 1-2 punch from Hotsy that is ideal for vehicles. Start with Hotsy’s Vehicle Pre-Soak, which will loosen up dirt, bugs, tar, and oil.

When that has completely soaked in, follow up with Hotsy Carbon-Ate. It’s formulated for road film, vehicle parts, tires, and carbon residues like exhaust stains.

Alternatively, Hotsy Power Shine provides a similar level of effectiveness for vehicles, with a high-foaming formulation that leaves a delightful citrus mint scent behind.

Wood and Deck Cleaners

Wood surfaces are some of the most delicate, so you want a gentle soap to avoid damaging the fibers and any sealants you have on it.

We recommend eco-friendly detergents like Hotsy Enviro-Clean and Verde All-Purpose. Remember to use a lower PSI setting on your machine and always work with the grain rather than against it to avoid any damage.

Biodegradable and Eco-Friendly Options

When your company uses eco-friendly soaps, it’s a badge of honor that can be proudly displayed to customers and clients. Thankfully, the best soaps are biodegradable where possible.

Hotsy has Enviro-Clean and Verde All-Purpose, which feature all-natural ingredients. But their lineup has other biodegradable options, like Ripper I, Breakthrough, “99”, and plenty more.

These soaps are even more effective than less green options from other brands, so there’s no downside to adding them to your arsenal!

Concentrated vs Ready-to-Use Solutions

A debate often goes overlooked in pressure washing soaps: concentrated options compared to ready-to-use blends.

Concentrated solutions are more cost-effective, require less storage space, and feature less plastic waste. With concentrates, you can adjust the dilution ratio, which lets you use the exact amount of soap you need to tackle a stain without going overboard.

Ready-to-use soaps do have their place, especially with smaller jobs. For example, Hotsy’s Vehicle Tire & Rim Cleaner can be quickly sprayed in between pressure washes for some quick shine.

But in most cases, concentrates are the way to go. By taking the extra time to balance dilution, you’ll achieve jaw-dropping cleaning results far quicker than your competitors.

We’ve explored everything you need to know to determine what soap to use in pressure washers. Now, the only thing left is to pick up a tub (or two) for your business!

But where can you find the best selection of pressure-washing detergents?

If you’re in the Garden State, you’re in luck. The #1 home for commercial hot water pressure washers in New Jersey, RJP Hotsy, is right before you.

Discover All the Different Pressure Washer Detergents You Need at RJP Hotsy!

If you want to elevate your cleaning potential, RJP Hotsy has everything you need. As the #1 home for commercial pressure washers in New Jersey, we pair decades of expertise with the industry leader, Hotsy.

We’ve helped thousands of local businesses, from Penske to the Phillies, revolutionize their cleaning results. Our friendly team is here to guide you through every step of the process.

Start by telling us the type of stains your business typically deals with. We’ll recommend the perfect soap, show you how to fill your pressure washer, and even pinpoint the ideal dilution.

We have a showroom full of powerful machines and are the state’s only Hotsy Dealer. We offer sales and commercial pressure washer leasing in NJ, helping you get set up with a machine to eradicate stains.

And if you’ve wondered where to rent a pressure washer, we’ve got you covered there, too. We are the #1 home for commercial pressure washer rental in NJ, offering speedy drop-off and pick-up to help you avoid delays.

We’ll walk you through how to rent a pressure washer and get you a suitable machine to help you save on the cost of renting a power washer.

We also sell and design commercial pressure washer trailers in NJ for mobile jobs.

You can ditch your DIY pressure washer trailer, as our knowledgeable team knows how to plumb a pressure washer trailer and mount a pressure washer to a trailer to fit your specifications.

We’ll even walk you through how to maintain a pressure washer and how pressure washer troubleshooting works with the help of our dedicated repair shop team.

Final Thoughts on What Kind of Soap to Use in Pressure Washer

When juggling powerful chemicals, you must have a suitable soap. The best soaps will eradicate stains while protecting your equipment, underlying surfaces, and the environment.

Whether you’re picking up new soap or want to buy or rent a pressure washer, RJP Hotsy has you covered.

You can use our expertise to help you find the ideal equipment for your business. We’ll walk you through choosing hot vs cold water pressure washers, electric vs gas pressure washers, what size pressure washer you need, pressure washer GPM, and how much pressure washer PSI you need.

We’ve even mastered the art of how to repair pressure washers. We’re the go-to shop for commercial pressure washer repair in NJ, with speedy service, a 24-point inspection process, and affordable pressure washer repair costs.

So, if you’re ready to step up with powerful soap, visit the #1 home for commercial cold water pressure washers in New Jersey at our New Egypt store, or call us to learn more!