DIYbanter - View Single Post - Karcher steam cleaner HDS 601 C ice damage

The Medway Handyman

wrote:
hi there

I worked for Karcher UK for 8 years, so I might be able to assist :-)

Not familiar with that model, its after my time, but they all work on a
similar princople.

First question, when it was working OK, what happened when you were using it
& shut the trigger gun? Did the whole machine stop, or did the pump
continue to run & the heater stopped?

Mine recently froze up. I replaced the interior high pressure hose
which had burst. The 240V pump seems good.

Do you mean the hp hose that goes from the pump to the heater?

I have to hold down the float in the float chamber to fill it up
before it builds up enough pressure to jet water out of the lance. The
burner kicks in and smoke comes out the exhaust but the water's cold
even on max temp.

OK, we need to sort the pump side first. Forget the burner for the moment.

Is there enough water coming in to keep the tank full? The pump won't work
properly without enough water.

Water sometimes jets out of the junction of the
cylinder head and the pump on the left hand side, by the high presure
hose outlet. I have to retighten the cylinder head to stop it. This
suggests to me some sort of blockage from the head out the lance. The
pressure guage on the head is permanently stuck at 100Bar, machine on
or off.

Right, take the main pressure hose off the machine & run it on cold. Do you
get a steady stream of water? If so, re connect the hose & take the gun off
etc so we can find where the blockage (?) is. Process of elimination.

Bear in mind the gauge could have been buggered by the frost. The nozzle on
the end of the lance is the most likely place for a blockage.

Let me know & we will work through it.

--
Dave - The Medway Handyman
www.medwayhandyman.co.uk