With all of the vehicles that make there way in and out of the Car-Revs-Daily, it’s always a treat when something unique makes its way into our offices. That was exactly the case when the folks at SunJoe/SnowJoe reached out, and asked us to review their newest pressure washer offering.
Can the all-electric SPX3000 succeed in being the perfect jack-of-all-trades offering? Or is it all washed up?
To find out, we unleashed our tester on a wide range of jobs at our office to see how it measured up in real world use. Before we could do that though, we had to formally assemble our unit first. On that front, the SunJoe proved to have a very straight forward assembly process, with many components easily lining up into place. There are some tabs that require a bit of dexterity and patience to formally snap into their assigned locations, but we only encountered this twice in the assembly process.
These snafus were relatively minor annoyances compared to one major gripe that we encountered, the electrical cord. When we unboxed our tester, we discovered that the local Boy Scout troop was apparently given the task of wrapping the cord for shipping. The end result was a sea of tangles and knots, which took a bit of time to fully navigate, and generated unnecessary amounts of hassle and frustration. Lastly, our tester had a subtle resemblance to Mike from the movie Monsters Inc and accordingly, was unofficially named “Mike” by visitors to our office.
After the electrical cord was untangled, and our tester was fully assembled, we wheeled “Mike” out to the yard for its list of chores. The SPX’s first task was cleaning mold and dirt off of an ironically named SunCast outdoor storage box. Thanks to its quick connect nozzles, switching between various cleaning settings was quick and easy, with our tester having enough muscle to easily finish the job with a noticeable difference being observed after the box was fully dried off. Our hose was able to easily connect to the SPX’s connection point, with virtually no leaks or drips noticeable when we used the lightweight spray gun.
A more challenging opponent was an older propane powered barbecue grill that was dropped off by my younger brother. The grit and grime on the grill was similar to some of the grime that is often encountered on automobiles, so it proved to be a good stand in for our fleet of recently washed cars. Once again, the SPX 3000 proved to be the perfect tool for the job, with our tester blasting through alot of the aforementioned grime. Tougher cooked on grease required us to use its strongest nozzle (the “0” setting) which is also responsible for its 2030 psi rating. This mighty nozzle helped cut through the mess, though we do not recommend using it on automobile paint due to its potency, as well as the high risk of damaging the clear coat. Instead, we recommend using one of its lower pressure nozzles to help handle more delicate aspects of an automobile. As a bonus, we discovered that our tester even managed to remove some of the rust from the exterior of the grill (an impressive feat.)
The washer itself is reasonably quiet when in operation, and the noise it does generate is roughly on par with other offerings. Our tester even came equipped with two detergent tanks that can transform the washer into a high powered soap system, which is perfect for certain jobs, including cleaning the sides of houses, as well as assisting in breaking down dirt on automobiles. Our tester’s final job was cleaning muck from the wheel wells of our resident 2002 Chevrolet Suburban. This particular Suburban’s rust issues kept the SunJoe from being used extensively on its painted surfaces, but the wheel wells of this heavily used SUV were noticeably cleaner after a few minutes of extensive spraying, and the wand was able to extend into some of the nooks and hard to reach spaces of the wheel wells to help deliver an extensive clean.
Pricing for the SPX 3000 is undeniably its best trait, especially considering its high levels of performance and versatile convenience. Wheras other pressure washers are often accompanied by big price tags, SunJoe’s offering demands less from your wallet, and asks $150 for the privilege of adding it to your arsenal of cleaning tools. This should please buyers that need a budget focused option but still want the capability and versatility of a high strength pressure washer. As a bonus, the all electric motor eliminates additional purchases of gasoline which is a handicap with petrol powered power washer units.
Overall, the SunJoe SPX 3000 did an excellent job of making a worthwhile first impression, and it should be a viable choice for not only homeowners looking for a solid companion for household jobs, but also professional detailing shops that need a compact offering to augment existing power wash solutions. In an age where all electric power is becoming more of a precious commodity, expect the SPX 3000 to be a formidable contender in a hotly contested market that craves perfection and value. You can check out SunJoe’s full and diverse lineup in the link below.
https://www.snowjoe.com/collections/pressure-washers
Carl Malek has been an automotive journalist for over 10 years. First starting out as a freelance photographer before making the transition to writing during college, his work has appeared on numerous automotive forums as well as websites such as Autoshopper.com.
Carl is also a big fan of British vehicles with the bulk of his devotion going to the Morgan Motor Company as well as offerings from Lotus, MG, and Caterham. When he is not writing about automobiles, Carl enjoys spending time with his family and friends in the Metro Detroit area, as well as spending time with his adorable pets.