Pressure washer inlet 1" barb to 1/2" NPT homemade fitting for $1.42

DIY
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NOTE: it’s been brought to my attention that installing plastic fittings on the pump head is a bad idea, for a number of reasons:

1. Vibrations will cause leaks and cracks
2. You cannot fully tighten plastic into metal
3. Broken plastic in a pump will chew up check valves

I recommend that you do not attempt this project. I’m leaving this here for the sake of anyone else searching for info on the use of plastic fittings on pressure washing pumps.

I wanted to run my 1 inch supply line directly to the inlet of my pressure washer. But there is no reasonably priced fitting that goes directly from a 1" barb down to the 1/2" pipe thread on the pump. So I improvised.

All of this was done with a soldering iron in about ten minutes:

  1. Cut the barb portion off the 1"x1" fitting
  2. Melt down the barbs slightly on the 3/4"x1/2" fitting
  3. While the plastic is still soft, quickly slip the 1" barb piece over the 3/4" barb
  4. Weld the pieces together by running the soldering iron around the inside of the barb end. You want the inner piece to melt outward and fuse with the outer piece
  5. Weld the back end of the fitting by carefully running the point of the soldering iron in the joint where the two pieces meet, and then smoothing over the plastic. Make sure to leave enough flat space on the hex portion so you can still grip the fitting with a wrench
  6. Last, but certainly not least, take a small file to the inside of the fitting to smooth out the opening and get rid of any loose chunks of plastic. They won’t play nice with the inside of your pump!

Total cost: $1.42. And I think this is a better solution than anything available off the shelf at the hardware store.

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https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AB5X4HA/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AB5XBGY/ref=od_aui_detailpages00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

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This may be the dumbest thing I have ever seen. Not really sure if this is a joke. If so it’s a good one

3

What are you sniffing SH. Why do you have to insult someone like that.

Did You ever hear …"if you have nothing good to say than don’t say anything at all "

I would love to see some creative things you came up with. Other than a straw for sniffing bleach.

It’s an idea if it doesn’t work it doesn’t work . I don’t think it’s stupid.

Alex is pritty innovative he comes up with some good creative ways of doing things

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You are to funny. Unfortunately there are a lot of guys out there with no idea what they are doing making it hard for legitimate businesses. I really think he is just yanking your chain though. No one would actually melt plastic to make a connection, much less screw plastic into their pump.

5

The point of the boards is to help each other. Posting crazy stuff like that is just going to make the less intelligent think it will work. I designed the remote control soaper Russ Johnson sells. I spent three days as a guest of Udor working on improvements for their g series. I design and make my own nozzles. I’ve helped 3 different vendors design skids. I stay off the boards usually but have to comment when I see something that’s above the norm in lunacy.

6

So if you believe that… instead of saying something stupid hot shot . Why don’t you tell us your way of doing it . Isn’t that what the boards are all about ?

7

Do not put plastic thread into a pump head. Everyone already knows that. Like I said. I am pretty sure he was messing with newbies or something. You fell for it. Move on.

8

I honestly did not know this (and I’ve done a ton of reaearch over the last 3 years).

So why no plastic on the pump head?

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Vibrations will cause leaks and cracks. You cannot fully tighten plastic into metal. Broken plastic in a pump will chew up check calves. Just go to home depot or any place that sells plumbing supplies and pick up the right piece. Kudos for trying to some up with a solution. I honestly thought you were just messing with the new guys. One of them got their panties in a wad anyway lol. I once posted how to make an electric hammer with an old extension cord, tape and a hammer. I thought you were messing with them the same way. Metal all the way from tank to pump. Spray all the fittings with plasti dip afterwards.

10

Thank you for the helpful info. I’ve updated my original post with a strong warning.

I honestly don’t have any time or interest for trolling the newbies. I still consider myself a bit of a newbie.

I know that Mike (@majestic66) isn’t new to this, though. His ignorance on the use of plastic fittings indicates that this isn’t something that ‘everyone knows’.

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I didn’t fall for ■■■■. I’m just saying learn how to talk to someone.

I think the creativeness is where I give him kudos.

I even suggested a different way for him without calling him stupid.

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Stick that in that hash pipe your smoking

12

You are to funny. Be safe and carry on.

13

It’s ok, Mike. I’ve come to accept that it’s just a rougher crowd over here. I honestly expected some criticism when I cross-posted this topic. And I now have zero intention of sharing any other parts of my setup here. There are certain features that I know will be too out-of-the-box for this group. No hard feelings to the experts here, but why would I put myself in a situation where I know I’ll just get dumped on?

The info about plastic fittings was appreciated- I certainly don’t want to be giving faulty advice to anyone.

14

Alex, it might be a good idea to post some your out of the box ideas, even if you take some heat for it. @Innocentbystander just saved you a bunch of hassle and money by telling you why that wouldn’t work. If your stuff is “out of box” and it works, you’ll help a lot of people out. If it’s “out of box” and it WON’T work, the experienced guys on here will be able to tell you before you have a disaster.
Just my $0.02 bro!

1 Like