Garden Pump Sprayer:
One of Darren's tricks to becoming more profitable

If time really is money, then a garden pump sprayer deserves your attention. And once again I find myself going outside of my own industry for innovative ways to become more profitable!

I find it forever amusing as I witness the confused and perplexed expressions on both my customers faces, along with any nearby onlookers as I use some of the very uncommon tools as a detailing professional. I have had many a customer inquire as to what I could possibly use one of these traditional manual pump sprayers for if I am there to detail there car.

Smith 190285 1-Gallon Bleach and Chemical Sprayer for Lawns and Gardens or Cleaning Decks, Siding, and Concrete

The Garden Pump Sprayer:
not all pump sprayers are created equal

Likely this would be the time where most people would go into some sales pitch as to why you need to spend more money, not less money.

If you click on that link above, you will have noticed how inexpensive (cheap) this specific garden pump sprayer really is. I could easily steer you towards getting a more expensive stainless steel pump sprayer and I am sure I could come up with a rather compelling argument with intent to separate you from more of your money.

But here I am offering up my chemical pump sprayer review on a very inexpensive sprayer; to which I can respond with a single word:

Experience!

When I first decided to try a garden variety pump sprayer for the dispensing of chemicals, it was all in the name of efficiency and utility. There are certain tasks of detailing that require the need to dispense large amounts of liquid chemicals that would tire your hand out if using a traditional hand-held sprayer. And based on the volume of the chemical needing to be sprayed, your hand could begin to really "feel the burn"!!

And I was tired of "feeling the burn"!

In the attempt to forever become more and more efficient, which in turn leads to profitability, I am forever looking for certain detailing hacks to accomplish this. The garden pump sprayer I have chosen here is based on experience, and what I always consider the winning balance. You might refer to this as the cost/benefit analysis in your own world.

So the question naturally becomes: "Why this particular garden pump sprayer Darren?"

No Sprayer Lasts Forever:

• I don't care what the manufacturer calls it; they will ALL eventually "break".
  
• And by "break", I am referring to either the trigger handle or the nozzle-tip going bad.
• And because they all eventually break; I don't like to over-spend. ( I offer tips to making your sprayer last longer towards the end of this page)
  

Chemical Resistant:

• Typically means that the moving parts, rubbers seals, etc. are resistant to breaking down from chemicals. (this one is specifically designed for bleach and other "harsh" chemicals)
• While most of us follow the "more is better" philosophy in life and you could spend more on getting "more" in the form of a stainless steel pump sprayer, the reality is that many of the chemicals I use would negatively react to any type of metals. For this reason (along with the others I will list) I go with what many would consider a lesser quality, plastic sprayer pump. (you may have noticed that the majority of detailing products/chemicals are packaged in plastic containers. While plastic is cheaper than metal, it often has to do with chemical reactions. And just because a chemical reacts negatively to metal, does not automatically render it harmful. It simply means that it reacts to metals in a bad way. (this would be the part where I could deliberate long with the endless debate over acid based wheel cleaners versus non-acid based wheel cleaners)
  

Adaptable:

• I can "reconfigure" this particular garden pump sprayer to suit my needs.
• There is very little to assemble before use. One of the pieces is the 12" extension tube that goes from the trigger handle to the nozzle tip.
• In many cases you will like this "extension". But in many cases (I have 3 of these garden pump sprayers) I leave the extension off so I have fit the nozzle tip directly to the end of the hose without extension wand.
• I prefer this when I am using this pump sprayer for my choice in wheel cleaners as I prefer to have more control of the chemical being sprayed as it comes directly out of the nozzle.
  
• Not all garden pump sprayers allow you to bypass the plastic extension tube and allow you to screw the nozzle directly to the trigger handle like this one allows.
  

Adjustable Nozzle:

• Some sprayers have a spray nozzle with 3 pre-set spray patterns. With a simple twist you can decide on the pre-set spray pattern.
• This particular plastic sprayer pump has an adjustable spray tip that can go from a sharp stream to a large, cylindrical pattern. (I prefer the versatility of this over the other, pre-set versions)
  

Darren's Tips of Use:

As a professional or a driveway detailer, I personally think everyone would benefit from having one of these sprayers on hand. Once you see how convenient they are in dispensing large amounts of product/chemical versus a traditional hand held trigger sprayer, it is hard to go back. These are the major areas I use the garden sprayer from above:

Super-Degreaser:

• Degreasing tire side-walls: cars, off-road vehicles, RV's, commercial equipment, etc.
• Engines of all kinds.
• Inside fender wells.
• Pre-spotting large areas that require a heavy duty cleaner like the super degreaser.
  
• RV roofs for heavy duty cleaning.
  

Wheel Cleaner:

• Wheels of all kinds.
• When using acid/non-acid based wheel cleaner to remove water-spots on large panels of a car, boat, RV, etc.
  

All-purpose cleaner:

• When I need to clean/shampoo large areas of carpeting or other large areas of cleaning.

Car Wash Shampoo:

• I dilute my car wash soap down to an appropriate level and I use the manual pump sprayer to dispense onto cars, RV's,  boats during the washing process.
  

Smith 190285 1-Gallon Bleach and Chemical Sprayer for Lawns and Gardens or Cleaning Decks, Siding, and Concrete

Darren's Tips:

Cleaning wheels is one of the dirtiest jobs of detailing and an area in which I go through large amounts of wheel cleaner. For this reason I have used one of these garden pump prayers for a very long time. I have found that on these pump sprayers that if I unscrew the knob located on the trigger itself, it exposes a metal spring that is there to push back the handle everytime you depress it. After awhile this will become corroded and stop working. So I apply some heavy duty grease to the spring and it prevents corrosion for a very long time.

You can also spray WD-40 on the nozzle tip to extend the life of this part of the sprayer.

While not specifically intended for use in the world of auto detailing, this plastic sprayer pump has many uses to help make you more efficient in your detailing efforts, but also relieve a little more the agony that is a natural part of a labor intensive job/hobby!

P.S. If you are considering one of the small, hand held sprayers as they appear to be the more "winning balance" over this bigger garden pump sprayer... just know that I too have tried those but find that for the amount of liquids I go through, the small hand held versions will not allow for enough air to be pumped into them to pressurize the container. Therefore I have found I am having to continuously pump them up to keep them pressurized. This is not the case with this bigger one.

Sincerely,

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