Buy an electric pressure washer for a UK house. A tap and a 13A socket still beat a petrol frame for cars, furniture and a normal patio. Petrol is the other answer only if there is no outdoor socket, or the plot is huge enough that 400 to 500 L/h will take all afternoon.
This is the type decision between the two live class hubs, not a second shortlist. Model depth lives on the electric pressure washer guide and the petrol pressure washer guide. Specs come from the manufacturers. Street prices come from Screwfix, Wickes, ITS, Hyundai UK and Amazon in August 2026.
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A long plot that still has a socket is a driveway job, usually a K5, not a 213 bar Hyundai. The yellow mains range is the Kärcher hub. The petrol brand path is the Hyundai hub. If £200 is more than you will spend, use the budget shortlist. First-use setup and frost drain-down are on how to use a pressure washer.
Quick picks
Electric default
Kärcher K4 Power Control Flex
From £200
130 bar, 420 L/h, 8 m Flex hose. The UK house buy if you have a tap and a socket.
Petrol, if you must
Hyundai HYW3100P2
£599.99
213 bar, 10 L/min, AR triplex pump. Buy it only when the lead will not reach, or the plot is huge.
Comparison table
| Model | Power source | Noise | Hose | Typical UK price (Aug 2026) | When to buy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kärcher K4 Power Control Flex | 13A mains and a tap | Quieter than petrol. Water-cooled 1.8 kW | 8 m PremiumFlex | £200 to £220 | Default UK house |
| Bosch UniversalAquatak 135 | 13A mains and a tap | Quieter pump than a K2. Still mains | 7 m PVC | £128 Wickes; Bosch lists £184 | Value electric if you will carry it |
| Kärcher K5 Power Control Flex | 13A mains and a tap | Same class as the K4 | 10 m PremiumFlex | ITS £340 inc VAT. Typical £300 to £340 | Long drive. Still electric |
| Hyundai HYW3100P2 | Petrol 212cc 4-stroke, plus a tap | 108 dB at 7 m | 7.5 m | £599.99 | No outdoor socket, or a plot too big for 500 L/h |
| Hyundai HYW3400P | Petrol 209cc 4-stroke, plus a tap | Louder than any electric | 10 m | £252 Hyundai UK; about £280 elsewhere | First petrol if you will not spend £600 |
Prices checked August 2026. Home kits and Car & Home boxes cost more. Confirm what is in the carton.
Who should buy which
Buy electric if the tap and a 13A socket are both on the drive, or you can reach a socket with a proper outdoor-rated lead. A K4 at 130 bar, or a Bosch at 135 bar, will do cars, furniture and a normal UK patio with less noise, less weight and no fuel to go stale. A K5 is still electric. It is the long-hose upgrade, not a reason to jump classes.
Buy petrol when at least one of these is true: there is no outdoor socket within a safe lead of the work, or the area is large enough that a 400 to 500 L/h mains washer will take all afternoon. You also need a water source. Petrol does not invent a tap.
Buy neither of these frames if the missing thing is a tap, not a socket. A battery gun will rinse a car. It will not match a tap-fed K4 on a mossy patio, and it will not replace a Hyundai on a farm lane. That path sits on the cordless guide, not here.
Petrol does not make a small job faster. It makes a big job possible. A 213 bar Hyundai on a Fiesta is how paint gets marked. A K4 on a 40 m yard is how a Saturday disappears.
Electric: the default house buy
Start with the Kärcher K4 Power Control Flex if you can spend about £200
- Buy: Amazon around £200 · Screwfix £199.97 · B&Q £209 · Kärcher UK £219.99
- Pressure / flow: 20 to 130 bar, 420 L/h
- Hose: 8 m PremiumFlex
- Motor: 1.8 kW, water-cooled
- Weight: 11.5 to 12.1 kg without accessories
- Who it is for: cars, bikes, furniture and a normal UK patio, if you have a tap and a 13A socket
This is the machine most UK households should take home. 130 bar with a twist-to-adjust Vario is the useful home class. Drop the setting for paint. Open it for arches and stone. The LED on the gun shows the step. Eight metres walks a family hatchback if you park the trolley at a corner. The dirt blaster is for stone, not lacquer.
You plug it in, you attach a garden hose, you put it away when you are done. There is no unleaded to go stale, no 38 kg frame to wheel over a kerb, and no 108 dB conversation with the neighbours. That is why electric is the default, not a compromise while you save for petrol.
The class argument against the K5 is on the electric hub and on the driveway page. Buy the K5 Flex if the drive is 30 to 40 m² or the K4 hose will come up short. ITS has sat at £340 including VAT. Amazon has been from about £346. Typical UK money is £300 to £340. That is still a 13A trolley. It is not a petrol frame.
The value electric is the Bosch UniversalAquatak 135 if you will not spend £200 and you will carry the washer up steps. Wickes is £128. Bosch lists £184. 135 bar, 7 m PVC hose, 7.9 kg. Same useful home class as a K4. You give up the 8 m Flex hose and the gun that shows the pressure step. Full notes sit on the electric guide and the budget page.
Skip electric if there is no outdoor socket you can reach safely. A longer Flex hose will not invent a 13A point. Skip a K4 if you only rinse one small car and will never touch the slabs. That is a cheaper K2 conversation on the budget page, not a reason to buy petrol.
Petrol: only if the socket will not reach
The sensible petrol is the Hyundai HYW3100P2
- Buy: Hyundai UK £599.99 · Amazon (listing exists; live price not captured on the last check)
- Pressure / flow: 213 bar, 10 L/min (600 L/h)
- Engine: Hyundai 212cc 4-stroke, recoil start
- Pump: Annovi Reverberi RSV 3G31 triplex
- Hose: 7.5 m
- Weight: 38 kg
- Noise: 108 dB at 7 m
- Who it is for: a long lane, a yard, or a plot the 13A lead will not reach
Petrol is not a faster K5. You get more water and no plug. You also get fumes, a steel frame, an engine that wants oil and fresh unleaded, and a jet that will mark paint if you treat it like a Vario. Use it on stone and plant. Keep a 40° tip on if a car has to share the same Saturday. The AR triplex pump is why this is the petrol to start with, not the cheaper axial Hyundai.
The 7.5 m hose is shorter than a K5 Flex. You move a heavier frame more often. That is still the right trade if 500 L/h will take all afternoon, or if the socket is in the house and the work is a field away. A typical UK outdoor tap can feed 10 L/min if the hose run is short and the stopcock is open. Gravity feed from a barrel is listed at 2 m. Prime on a mains tap first.
The brand path for this machine, and the two other current Hyundai petrol boxes, is the Hyundai hub. Class comparisons stay on the petrol guide.
The budget petrol is the Hyundai HYW3400P if you will not spend £600 and you accept a weaker pump. Hyundai UK is £252 (was £279.99). Other shops around £280. 234 bar peak, 9 L/min, axial pump, 10 m hose, 27.5 kg. The headline bar looks stronger than the P2. Treat it as a peak figure on an axial pump. Rated pressure, where published, sits nearer 193 bar. Fine as a first petrol for a long garden. Not the weekly machine.
Skip petrol if a mains K4 or K5 will reach the job. Noise, weight and fuel are not a weekend upgrade. Skip the P2 if you will use it only a few times a year and the budget is £250. That is the HYW3400P, with the weaker pump accepted. Skip both Hyundais if cars are the only job. Electric is quieter, lighter and cheaper to own for a Saturday wheel clean.
The yellow petrol, if you already want trade kit
Kärcher’s home range in the UK is electric. The petrol model you can actually buy here is the HD 7/15 G in the Professional catalogue. Honda GX160, 150 bar working / 210 bar max, 650 L/h, 10 m hose, about £1,767 to £2,299 at UK dealers. Kärcher UK is the live path.
It is not the hero on this page. It is three times the Hyundai P2 because it is built for a van that leaves at 7am: Honda service agents, a pump that can draw from a pond, EASY!Force fittings. It is not three times better for a Saturday patio. If that is not your week, the Hyundai is the petrol buy, and a K4 is still the house buy.
Skip it if
- Skip petrol if a 13A lead will reach a K4 or a K5. You are buying noise and fuel for a job electric already finishes.
- Skip a K4 if the drive is long and green. That is the K5, still electric. See the driveway guide.
- Skip a K5 if the only job is cars and garden furniture. Keep the K4.
- Skip both electric trolleys if there is no outdoor socket. Buy petrol, or a battery gun if the missing thing is a tap.
- Skip the HYW3400P if you will use petrol every fortnight. Spend the extra on the P2 and the AR pump.
- Skip the HD 7/15 G if you wanted maximum bar per pound, or a first petrol jet wash. It is trade money.
- Skip this whole comparison if you already know you want a named Kärcher or a named Hyundai. Use the Kärcher hub or the Hyundai hub.
How to choose
- Tap and socket on the drive, cars and a normal patio. K4 Power Control Flex, from £200. Bosch at £128 if you will not spend that and you will carry it.
- Tap and socket, long or filthy drive. K5 Power Control Flex. Still electric. Do not buy petrol because the path looks long.
- No outdoor socket, or a plot 500 L/h cannot finish. Hyundai HYW3100P2. HYW3400P if the budget is £250 to £280 and use is occasional.
- No tap. Battery, not a bigger engine. A K4 in the kitchen is not a plan.
- Trade week, Honda engine, dealer network. HD 7/15 G. Not a home K-series.
Walk the job once before you shop the bar number. If the lead reaches, electric wins. If it does not, petrol is a tool, not a trophy. Setup, nozzles and winter drain-down are on how to use a pressure washer.
FAQ
Should I buy petrol or electric?
Electric, unless there is no outdoor socket or the plot is huge. A K4 from £200 is the default UK house buy. A Bosch at £128 is the value electric. Petrol starts at £252 for the HYW3400P and £599.99 for the HYW3100P2. You pay that for distance and volume, not for a nicer car wash.
Is a K5 enough instead of petrol?
Yes, if a 13A lead will reach. 145 bar and 500 L/h on a 10 m Flex hose is the useful UK driveway class. Petrol is the jump when the lead will not reach, or when 500 L/h will take all afternoon. It is not the next number after a K5.
Can I wash a car with a petrol pressure washer?
Yes, carefully, on a 40° or soap nozzle, from a sensible distance. The HYW3100P2 and HYW3400P can do it. A K4 or a Bosch is the better car washer. 213 bar on lacquer is how you pay for a respray. Paint-safe electric settings sit on the cars page.
What if I have no outdoor socket?
A mains washer will not invent one. If the work is a car and some furniture, a battery gun is the honest small answer. If the work is a lane or a yard, that is the HYW3100P2. Do not buy a bigger K-class and hope the hose will stretch to a kitchen socket.
Is the cheaper Hyundai enough?
As a first petrol buy, yes. The HYW3400P at £252 is lighter, has a 10 m hose and a detergent tank. The pump is axial. If the machine will come out every fortnight, spend £599.99 on the P2 and the AR triplex. That split in full is on the petrol page.
How loud is a petrol pressure washer?
Hyundai quotes 108 dB at 7 m on the P2. The class sits around 108 to 111 dB. Wear ear protection. Do not run it at 8am on a terrace of houses. A mains K4 is quieter, which is one reason it is the default house machine.
What about the petrol Kärcher?
The HD 7/15 G is the yellow petrol. Honda engine, Professional parts, about £1,767 to £2,299. Useful if you already want trade kit and a dealer network. It is not a home K4 with a tank on the back, and it is not the first petrol we would send a household to.