2000 - Volume #24, Issue #6, Page #17

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A Letter From Cam Spray

A Letter From Cam Spray CLEANING EQUIPMENT Cleaning Equipment 24-6-17 I am sending this letter to let you and your readers know that we were concerned that one of our customers, David Weigand, reported on a negative experience with a Cam Spray Pressure Washer in the last issue of FARM SHOW. I called David to express my concern and asked if we could meet. David invited me to come down and take a look at the machine which had been giving him trouble. I asked him to set it up the way most of the washing is done. While the machine was being set up, I checked several things with a digital multi-meter. The voltage at the receptacle had an output of 118 volts with no electrical load. While the machine was running, the voltage at the receptacle dropped to between 115 and 116 volts. The wash pad is 45 ft. or so from the electrical receptacle in the shop area. Therefore an extension cord was being used to run the 1.5 hp. machine. The voltage at the connection between the extension cord and the pressure washer read 108 volts during operation, and it would drop to 106 volts at the motor. This low voltage would explain the "throwing the breaker" problem David was having with his pressure washer. While Dave was running the washer, the grain dryer shut off and there was a 4-volt increase in line readings. The pressure washer was originally sold with a cord connected to a GFCI (ground fault circuit interrupter) but I noticed it had been removed. David said it would trip out on occasion and was a nuisance. I recommended we plug the pressure washer directly into the wall receptacle. All pressure washers, regardless of manufacturer, use all the available motor horsepower virtually 100 percent of the time to produce water pressure and flow. Therefore, using an extension cord is not recommended. When we plugged the machine's 35-ft. power cord directly into the receptacle, the voltage at the receptacle read 121 volts with the grain dryer turned off. The voltage at the motor read 119.3 volts with the machine running. When the dryer kicked in, we could still maintain 116 volts at the motor. Under these conditions, the pressure washer operated well and should run indefinitely. I apologized to David for the phone conversations he had with Cam Spray. If someone in our operation came across to him as rude and unprofessional, we are truly sorry. I assured David that he was not alone in having troubles with low voltage. Low voltage problems crop up in rural areas all the time. Equipment like pressure washers, auger motors and grain dryers that tend to operate at peak load under all types of temperatures and circumstances, will find flaws in many electrical systems. I sent David a 40-ft. washer hose extension so he could avoid using an extension cord. And because a local pressure washer supplier had mentioned scoring of a plunger when he looked over the machine, I felt it best to leave a new machine with David even though the old machine now appeared to be working fine. All things considered, it was a beautiful day in southern Iowa. The Wiegand family farm has one of the most beautiful settings I've seen in some time. David and I met and solved the problem at hand and we both felt better about the circumstances. I felt I had made a customer happy and gained a friend in the meantime. That's the way business is meant to be. (Jim Gillespie, President, Cam Spray Pressure Washers, Box 726, 520 Brooks Rd., Iowa Falls, Iowa 50126 ph 800 648-5011 or 515 648-501