Karcher Not Working? - Karcher Pump Faults Fixed!

How to Diagnose Pressure Washer Pump Problems
Dealing with pressure washer pump issues? Don't worry, in this video eSpares will show you how to get to the bottom of why the pressure washer pump is not working and restore your pressure washer to working order. If your Karcher pump leaks this is the video for you!

There are various signs that your pressure washer's pump is faulty or damaged to look out for. These include a pulsing pressure washer motor, pressure washer leaks and also pressure washer low pressure. In this video, we'll guide you through what each of these problems means for your pressure washer pump and what steps you can take to repair your appliance and get it back up to scratch.

When fixing your pressure washer, you may need to get hold of some spare parts. You can find anything you might need on our eSpares website right here.

Now your pressure washer is back up and running, it's important to know what safety checks to perform to make sure it's working correctly. Take a look at our video here which shows you how to check your pressure washer:

If you need help finding the model number to get the correct parts for your model, take a look at our video here.

You can also view our pressure washer safety checks video below to make sure you’re using your appliance as safely as possible.

Want to skip straight to the information you need? Here's what we talk about in each part of our video:

0:00 Introducing the video
0:40 How to check the O-ring seal
0:58 Internal parts that can cause a leak
1:18 Suggested video: Important Safety Checks For Your Pressure Washer
1:19 How to test for internal leaks
1:35 Problems with a leaking cylinder head
1:51 The causes of a pulsing motor
2:04 The causes of low pressure
2:25 Suggested video: How to find a Karcher pressure washer's model number

Thanks for watching!

[boerieza]

Love it. No boring stories. Just straight-up information. So refreshing!

[tonyburton]

My Karcher has an odd issue - with 2 attachments it works fine - the patio cleaner and one other (rated at 130bar max), but with 2 other attachments (rated at 120 and 150 bar max), it pulses in use, i.e. it turns on and just about as soon as the water coming out hits full pressure, the motor cuts out briefly and then it repeats.

Both the attachments it works with come from my old, smaller karcher. It's not an issue with the attachments as I've borrowed other identical ones to test.

There is no issue with water pressure from the tap - using a 1m length of hoselock hose connected to a mains pressure tap.

With the non-pulsing attachments, it works absolutely fine and there are no leaks.

[easychats]

Cool. I like the way you give advice that can help people without spending any money as well, not just trying to get us to buy stuff. To me it makes your company more credible and when I do want spares I will use you. Thanks

[stuartcouzens]

Glad I watched this vid. What I thought was a £150 replacement was just a blocked filter. Thanks 😁

[andrewramsay]

Great video, thanks for guidance. Had pressure washer 6 months and water leaking out from inside.

[planetpeckham]

What a great little video! I now know where to look to repair my machine.

[kriegaufkreuz]

Hi, I have a Karcher K5 and it’s fine apart from one issue. When I pull the trigger the pressure is very low. In order for it to return I have to remove the lance (vario or dirtblaster, doesn’t matter) pull the trigger and let the water run through in the wide spray flow, reattach the lance and off it goes perfectly. If I let go of the trigger for even a few seconds I have to go through this process again and it’s quite annoying. Any idea what’s causing this problem?

[Eleven]

Straight to the point, best video I've seen in a long time. Thanks.

[GPSGO]

Great stuff-- my 5 month old Karcher started pulsing & has no real pressure--this is what I need to fix it myself ---A+++

[FamiliaPhoenix]

Thx for the video. I'm not quite sure if I need to change the whole cylinder head or not. When I run water after opening the unit...it's leaking from the cylinder head. I took a video. I have a k5.65 qc.

[MrNorsewise]

great video man!
I have a karcher 3.68M 1.601-742. it's for low pressure and the machine turns on when I turn the switch. is it supposed to be running without the trigger being pulled? when I pull the trigger, I get the same flow as when the machine is turned off . I appreciate any feedback. thanks JB

[eSpares]

RE MrNorsewise: (cannot post on your comment, check your settings?)
Thanks for the comments JB. We have known the motor drive to shear as it joins the pump, this results in the motor running but no pressure or pumping. Looks like you might have to dismantle the pump to check this.

[MrShaunys]

Hi, I'm having problems with a snow foam cannon on a karcher k4, when using the cannon the jet wash will pulse on and off but with the adjustable lance it's fine, do you know what could cause this? Thanks Shaun

[bolzonperformancehorses]

Have a Karcher K4, turn it on and motor can be heard running even when trigger is not pulled but water does not come out when you pull the trigger. The pump is running constantly until you turn off the power. It does not spray water.

[cathydudley]

My K2 karcher has a leak from the body. I have seen your video and am ready to take the cover off. It has tamper-proof screws and I need a special tool. Can you please identify the special tool.

[barbarabcs]

I have found an electric k2 1500 psi on sale cheap. Seller thinks pump needs replaced says works on low pressure and needs pump to work properly. If runs and sprays on low that wouldnt b the pump itself would it? Im thinking something else but unsure and would like to know b4 i purchase and end up spending more than its worth to fix. Seller says electrical wand and hoses good so what could it b? Please let me know what u think asap thanks

[chriscars]

Hi I have a hot and cold washer but it is not igniting it’s getting fuel through but no ignition do you have any suggestions

[TheRunner]

I've got Kärcher SE 4001 machine. The water jet doesn't come out at all. No water leaks. When I press the spray gun, nothing happens. Any suggestion to fix that problem?

[bryanbrown]

I have a K1900 electric pressure washer. The motor will not cut off when the spray gun trigger is released but instead runs slower. Prior to the motor running constantly, the unit was pulsating when using the spray gun and cycling on and off when not using the spray gun. No leaks found.

[vinerscott]

Brilliant video but please can you explain how I remove the inlet filter as I have no water coming through the gun but washer is pulsing continuously.