Home Snowmaking With Multiple Pressure Washers

Q: Pros

Commercial pressure washers rated over 2–3 GPM can be very expensive, often costing more than $2,000 each . If you’re not ready to invest in a $3,000 pressure washer for extreme home snowmaking, that’s OK! Starting with one or two smaller pressure washers allows you to get started and add to your system over time as your needs grow. Using multiple smaller pressure washers is also a practical option for many homes with standard 110V power outlets . Larger pressure washers producing more than 2 GPM often require larger motors and 220V power , making them more difficult to use in a typical home setup. Another advantage of using multiple pressure washers is flexibility . With a multi-pressure washer system, you can run one, two, three, or four pressure washers in different combinations depending on how much snow you want to make. You may only need 1–2 GPM for one project, while another may call for 4–5 GPM . Simply choose the setup that fits your needs.

Q: Cons

Using multiple pressure washers does require more equipment and a little more setup time . You’ll have a few additional hoses and fittings to connect, but the overall setup is fairly straightforward. If you’re using electric pressure washers, make sure to plug them into separate power outlets . Running two or three pressure washers from the same outlet or breaker will likely trip the breaker. Simply use extension cords to connect the pressure washers to different outlets in your home, and you’re ready to go!

Increasing Snow Output with Multiple Pressure Washers

Adding multiple pressure washers to a residential snowmaking system increases the total Gallons Per Minute (GPM) the system can handle, ultimately allowing you to produce more snow.

How Much Snow Can You Make?

A common question we get asked is “How much snow will this system make?” The answer primarily depends on the amount of water flowing through the system. Simply put, the pressure washer’s GPM (gallons per minute) rating determines how much snow can be produced. As a general rule, 1 GPM of water produces approximately 1″ of snow per hour, 2 GPM produces approximately 2″ per hour, and so on. The higher the pressure washer’s GPM rating, the more snow you can make!

How to Increase Pressure Washer GPM

Now that we understand that more water flow means more snow, the next question is: “How can I increase the GPM going to the snow gun?” One option is to use a larger pressure washer with a higher GPM rating. Another option is to use multiple pressure washers together to combine their water flow. This allows you to use smaller pressure washers to achieve the same total GPM as one larger pressure washer. The image below shows what a home snowmaking system with two pressure washers looks like:

As you can see from the multiple pressure washer diagram above, water from your water spigot is split and fed to two pressure washers. The water is pumped from each pressure washer into separate hoses and combined in an engineered high-pressure manifold. The combined water then travels through one hose before entering the snow gun. This method allows you to increase water flow (GPM) while maintaining high pressure.

What are the Pros and Cons?

Pros

Commercial pressure washers rated over 2–3 GPM can be very expensive, often costing more than $2,000 each. If you’re not ready to invest in a $3,000 pressure washer for extreme home snowmaking, that’s OK! Starting with one or two smaller pressure washers allows you to get started and add to your system over time as your needs grow.

Using multiple smaller pressure washers is also a practical option for many homes with standard 110V power outlets. Larger pressure washers producing more than 2 GPM often require larger motors and 220V power, making them more difficult to use in a typical home setup.

Another advantage of using multiple pressure washers is flexibility. With a multi-pressure washer system, you can run one, two, three, or four pressure washers in different combinations depending on how much snow you want to make. You may only need 1–2 GPM for one project, while another may call for 4–5 GPM. Simply choose the setup that fits your needs.

Cons

Using multiple pressure washers does require more equipment and a little more setup time. You’ll have a few additional hoses and fittings to connect, but the overall setup is fairly straightforward. If you’re using electric pressure washers, make sure to plug them into separate power outlets. Running two or three pressure washers from the same outlet or breaker will likely trip the breaker. Simply use extension cords to connect the pressure washers to different outlets in your home, and you’re ready to go!