Karcher Patio Cleaners

Why use a patio cleaner attachment instead of the lance?

Jet washing a patio with just the spray gun works, but it is slow and messy. You hold one narrow jet a few centimetres off the slabs, sweep it back and forth, and it's hard to keep the distance even, so you get light and dark stripes. Water, sand and dirt fly everywhere: on your shins, the house, the windows and the garden plants.

A patio cleaner attachment (Karcher calls theirs a T-Racer) clips on in place of the lance. Inside a round hood, an arm with two jets spins under the force of the water, so it covers a full circle at a fixed height. That gives you three things the gun alone can't:

• Even results. The jets stay the same distance from the ground, so there's no striping and less risk of gouging soft stone or wood.
• Speed. On Karcher's T 5 T-Racer page, Karcher says it cleans in around half the time needed by a spray lance.
• Far less splashing. The hood or brush skirt keeps the spray in, so you can work right up to doors and borders.

For a small patio the gun and a turbo nozzle will do. Once you have more than a few square metres of outdoor paving, or a whole driveway, one of these pays for itself in time and mess saved.

Which Karcher patio cleaner fits your machine?

The range is split by machine, and the home and professional ones are not interchangeable. Check the model on the sticker on your machine first.

K2 to K7 home pressure washers

• T 2 T-Racer: the entry level T-Racer for K series machines. Twin rotating jets that can be repositioned and removable extension poles.
• T 5 T-Racer: the one most people buy. It fits the whole K series, has a dial to set the jet height (higher for wood, lower for stone and concrete) and comes with two extensions. Karcher lists it as compatible with everything from the K 2 Classic to the K 7 and K Silent.
• T 7 Plus T-Racer: K4 to K7 only. It adds a power jet for corners and edges and a rinse jet, both switched with your foot, so there's no second pass along the edge.

There's no separate Karcher K2 patio cleaner: the T 2 and T 5 both fit the K2, and our Karcher K2 page lists the machines. With a K4, K5 or K7 you can choose the T 7 Plus too; see the Karcher K5 and Karcher K7 pages.

Power scrubbers: the small option

The PS 30 Power Scrubber and the PS 30 Plus kit fit K2 to K7 too, but they are a different tool. A rectangular head with three jets and a squeegee blade cleans steps, garage floors and the edges of a patio where a round T-Racer can't reach. The PS 20 is a lighter two-nozzle version for K2 to K5. Use them as well as a T-Racer, not instead of one, for a big patio. For brushes that don't spin water, see pressure washer brushes.

One to watch: the PS 20 handheld surface cleaner is for the KHB 5 cordless cleaner, not for K series pressure washers.

HD and XPERT professional machines

The pro range is called FR (for floor). The 300mm FR TR Classic is rated to 150 bar and uses an Easy!Lock connection; the FR Classic is the screw-lock version for older guns. The FR TR 30 has double ceramic bearings, and the stainless steel FR TR 30 ME and 500mm FR TR 50 ME take 250 bar and water up to 80°C for hot water machines. Several need a jet kit matched to your machine, ordered separately, and none fit a K series. The machines are on our Karcher professional pressure washers page.

Bosch and Sealey pressure washer patio cleaners

Bosch AquaSurf for AQT and Aquatak

With an AQT you need a Bosch patio cleaner. There are three. The AquaSurf 250 is small and light (680g) with a 250mm head; the listing says it cleans about 1 square metre a minute. The AquaSurf 280 Hard Surface has a 280mm head and an extra wand. The AquaSurf 280 Multi Surface has a domed head and handles for vertical work. All three use a brush skirt to stop splashing. Bosch's AquaSurf 280 page says it floats over the ground to lift algae, lichen and moss from stone, brickwork and timber. Check your model against each listing before you buy; not every AQT fits every AquaSurf. More on the machines in Bosch pressure washers.

Sealey rolling surface cleaners

The Sealey PWAK18 (18 inch) and PWAK24 (24 inch, 610mm) are a step up in size: stainless steel decks on wheels with twin handles and a high speed spray arm, supplied with a hose, adaptors, PTFE tape and a spanner. They suit large yards and long driveways, and need a strong machine to spin an arm that wide. The Sealey PWA05 floor brush fits the Sealey PW2200 and PW2500. See Sealey pressure washers for the machines.

Patio cleaners compared

Everything on this page, from the listings. Prices change daily, so these are bands.

How to use a patio cleaner on slabs and decking

1. Sweep first. Clear leaves and grit from the patio or driveway with a stiff broom so the jets aren't throwing it around, and scrape weeds out of the joints.
2. Pre-treat if it's green. Heavy algae comes off faster with a stone cleaning detergent applied first through the machine's detergent system; see pressure washer detergents.
3. Set the height. On a T 5, turn the dial up for softwood and down for concrete and block paving.
4. Work slowly in overlapping lanes. Let the cleaner float; don't press down. Walk at a steady pace and overlap each lane a little, like mowing a lawn.
5. Do the edges. Finish along walls and steps with the T 7 Plus edge jet or a PS 30.
6. Rinse and re-sand. Rinse the dirty water off, let it dry, then brush kiln-dried sand back into block paving joints.

Karcher's step-by-step guide to cleaning patio slabs covers natural stone, concrete and the joints in more detail, and our own how to jet wash a patio guide goes through it with the kit we list.

Surfaces to be careful with

Soft sandstone, old Indian stone, poor pointing and softwood outdoor decking can all be damaged by high pressure. Test a hidden corner first and keep the jets set high. For decks, our pressure washers for decking page has more. If you'd rather not use high pressure at all, see how to clean a patio without a pressure washer.

What to look for in a pressure washer surface cleaner

• Fit first: K series (Quick Connect), HD/XPERT (Easy!Lock or screw lock), Bosch AQT and Sealey all use different connections. Buy the one listed as compatible with your model.
• Head size: 250mm to 300mm suits most home patios and garden paths; 18 to 24 inch rolling decks and 500mm pro heads are for big drives and commercial yards.
• Pressure and flow rate: a bigger head needs more pressure and more litres per hour to spin well. A small machine will run a T 5, but a K4 or above cleans faster.
• Weight: 1.4kg to 2kg for home T-Racers and AquaSurfs, against 8.75kg to 11.9kg for the Sealey rolling decks.

Patio cleaner FAQs

Which T-Racer fits a K2?

The T 2 and T 5 both do, as do the PS 20 and PS 30 scrubbers. The T 7 Plus needs a K4 or bigger. A K2 runs at lower pressure, so expect a slower walk than on a big machine.

Will Karcher attachments fit a Bosch or Nilfisk?

Not directly. Each brand has its own fittings. Bosch owners should use an AquaSurf; adaptors exist for some machines but can leak, and the jets are sized for each brand's pump. See hose connectors and adaptors.

Is a pressure washer patio cleaner the same as an electric patio cleaner?

No. A pressure washer patio cleaner is an attachment that uses high pressure jets. An electric patio cleaner, like the PCL range, is a separate machine with rotating brushes and a gentle water feed. See electric patio cleaners.

Will a patio cleaner damage block paving?

It is gentler than a lance because the jets stay at a fixed height, but it will wash sand out of the joints. Re-sand once it's dry.

Not sure which machine to pair it with? Our K2 vs K3 vs K4 vs K5 vs K7 comparison helps, and the full pressure washer accessories range has lances, hoses and nozzles.