Kärcher KHB 5 multi jet battery handheld cleaner 18V yellow is good for cleaning garden furniture, bikes and cars. Bike a bit dirty? Just stick it in the garden, grab the KHB 5, pop the hose on and spray, then shove it back in the shed. Need to give the furniture and barbecue a quick clean before friends come round? Grab it, and wander around the garden (as far as your hose reaches) without fiddling with extension cables or tangling the power cord in plants.
The small body and versatile nozzles make the Karcher KHB 5 Multi Jet a useful cordless pressure washer for all types of jobs from cleaning your car or patio to dealing with dirty garden furniture. With 10 minutes of run-time from a 290-minute charge, it’s best for smaller jobs; plus you’ll need to plan ahead if you have multiple jobs to tackle as additional batteries add to the price. You can get cheaper powered jet washers that will handle the toughest of stains – but if you value flexibility and size above all, this is a great choice.
Kärcher KHB 5 multi jet battery handheld cleaner 18V yellow Specs
| Batteries | 1 x 2.5ah Li-ion |
|---|---|
| Brand | Karcher |
| Charger | Charger |
| Cooling Type | Air Cooled |
| Detergent | None |
| Flow Rate | 200l/h |
| Max Bar Pressure | 24bar |
| Max Temperature | 40° |
| Model No | KHB 5 Multijet |
| Power | 240v Mains |
| Rated For | Domestic / DIY Use |
| Weight | 3.66kg |
Features & benefits of Kärcher KHB 5
- Compact handheld pressure washer designed for quick cleaning tasks around the home
- Powered by a rechargeable lithium ion battery
- Only needs to be connected to a tap and can be operated away from plug sockets
- Supplied with a choice of two lances
- Dirt Blaster lance for powerful cleaning
- Multi Jet lance for a choice of spray patterns
- Multi Jet lance includes Point, Flat, Rinse, Mist and Irrigation jet modes
- Bayonet lance connection with Quick Connect
- Battery lock and release function
- 2.5ah Battery provides average of 10 minutes runtime
- LCD screen on battery shows remaining charge percentage
Contents
- KHB 5 Cordless Pressure Washer
- Karcher 18v 2.5ah Lithium Ion Battery
- Battery Charger
- Multi Jet Spray Lance
- Dirt Blaster Spray Lance
Is any good in Kärcher KHB 5 multi jet?
The small size of the Karcher KHB 5 Multi Jet is its main advantage, taking up little room in the shed. On full blast with the rotary nozzle attached, it can tackle most tough stains, cleaning up our patio in no time at all. Meanwhile, the multi-nozzle’s range of modes makes it great for rinsing items and cleaning garden furniture.
With 10 minutes of run-time, followed by a lengthy charge, the KHB 5 isn’t good for cleaning larger areas or tackling multiple jobs at once. There’s no getting around the price, either, with the more powerful Karcher K4 available for less and delivering a power range between 24- to 130-bar for tougher jobs.
Ultimately, the model you go for will depend on the type of jobs you need to handle. If you don’t have much space and would use a washer sparingly for easier jobs (patios, cars and garden furniture), the KHB 5 is expensive but does well. For larger areas of decking, or spaces where there’s tougher dirt to remove, a powered washer would make a better choice.
Kärcher KHB 5 multi jet battery handheld cleaner 18V yellow review
Design
It is made of plastic, light weight and its dimension is 36.5 x 10.5 x 29.5 cm. It weighs around 2.7 kgs. One of the other things that makes the KHB 5 less suitable than a wired model for big cleaning jobs such as a patio or fence is the weight. It’s a little over 3kg, which is not a small amount of weight to be holding in an extended arm for any period of time.
Again, this is no problem at all for the jobs it’s intended for – spraying your bike over for a couple of minutes, or walking around your garden furniture spraying away bird droppings when needed – but a regular Kärcher in undeniably more ergonomic for an hour-long task.
Battery life
The provided battery is rated to last 10 minutes, which squares with our experience. This sounds like nothing, but is perfectly fine for those small cleaning jobs around the house. You don’t really spend much time continuously spraying – a solid clean of a bike will include a minute of spraying at the maximum, usually.
We used the KHB 5 multiple times over the course of a week, getting ready for the good weather, and only needed to charge it at the end of all that (and it hadn’t actually reached empty yet anyway).
The battery slots onto the bottom, and has a little display with the current charge level. There’s a separate charging cradle for juicing up the power pack, and you could buy an extra unit for swapping in for longer jobs if needed.
Battery AH
The best way to describe battery amp hour is that this is effectively the size of your fuel tank, the more amp hours your battery has then the longer the battery will last between charges. More amp hours does not increase the power of a given tool.
Battery Voltage
A tool with a higher voltage than another is a bit like choosing an engine in a car, the higher voltage will generally mean higher power & performance. As with cars though a bigger engine does not always translate to better performance so it is important to compare the specifications of tools at different voltages between different manufacturers.
To help determine the type of pressure washer required it is important to consider the size of your cleaning task and level of duty, i.e. how big is the cleaning object and how often will you need to clean it? Below is an explanation of the two main types of pressure washer. Whilst bar pressure is important the overiding factor in cleaning power is the water flow rate. More water = better cleaning.
LCD display
The battery displays the time remaining in minutes on its LCD screen. The positioning is poor, as you’ll have to stop cleaning in order to quickly steal a glance of the display. It would have been better if Karcher had engineered the Karcher KHB 5 Multi Jet so that the battery’s screen appeared on the rear of the handle, for example.
You can see the remaining run-time on the battery’s LCD screen. The battery charger takes a staggering 290 minutes to charge fully. You can buy additional batteries: a larger 5000mAh battery will give around 20 minutes of run-time, but it costs £135. The battery takes 290 minutes to reach full charge
Noise level
The KHB 5 is pretty good for noise levels – no pressure washer is quiet, but it doesn’t make nearly as much racket as our older K2.
It also keeps its vibrations to a minimum impressively – you won’t feel like your bones are still rattling in your arms afterwards. It’s perfectly comfortable.
Home & Garden
Lightweight, easily portable and designed for regular use in a domestic environment, these machines range in power to suit the size of your cleaning task. Models featuring ‘water cooled motor’ technology offer greater performance, and top of the range machines are often fully loaded with accessories.
Durable and fit for both commercial and professional
Heavy duty, robust and designed for maximum durability, Xpert or Professional machines have higher pressure and flow ratings, enabling you to clean with far greater speed and efficiency. These machines are not readily available on the high street or in DIY superstores and often feature upgraded components throughout
Jargon Buster
• Bar or PSI: Bar is the most common measure of pressure. PSI = bar x 14.5.
• Bar (max): This is the pressure achieved when the machine is first turned on
• Bar (rated) pressure: This is the operating water pressure of the machine.
• Motor size (kW): Motor size indicates power providing the machine runs efficiently.
• Flow Rate (l/h): Higher flow rates enable you to clean large areas or objects faster
Kärcher KHB 5 multi jet battery handheld cleaner 18V yellow cleaning performance review
With the Karcher KHB 5 Multi Jet, you get two nozzles in the box. The rotary nozzle is designed to tackle stubborn dirt, while the 5-in-1 multi-jet gives you options: a point jet for tough stains; a 25-degree flat jet for cleaning surfaces and objects; a 60-degree rinse jet for rinsing off dirt; a mist jet for cleaning up plants gently; and an irrigation jet for watering plants. Water is input via the standard ¾-inch garden hose connector that’s found on the rear of the jet washer.
The 5-in-1 multi-jet nozzle provides plenty of flexibility. Tackling the patio, which had seen a winter’s-worth of dirt build up, the 24-bar KHB 5 proved that it was capable of cleaning up most of the mess. The rotary nozzle picked up most of the ingrained dirt, particularly in the grout lines, before I switched to the jets for cleaning up the surface and rinsing the dirt away.
Cleaning test
The level of pressure is sufficient for you to feel the washer in action, but you don’t get the full impact and force of a powered pressure washer. For big areas or much tougher stains, the jet from the Karcher KHB 5 Multi Jet isn’t going to cut it.
There’s no way to add detergent into the system, although you can use spray cleaners on furniture, bikes and patios to give you a helping hand to break down tougher stains.
The KHB 5 can tackle garden furniture and washing down cars, with the lower-power jet proving to be friendly enough to clean without causing any damage.
Although the small body of the Karcher KHB 5 Multi Jet makes it easier to store, it’s a relatively heavy device, weighing in at 2.6kg. You’ll soon begin to feel its heft if you’re holding the pressure washer one-handed – although two-handed operation, with one hand supporting the nozzle at the front, eases the burden. A powered jet washer is a little easier on the arms, since the weight is in the main unit and you have to hold only the hose.
Buying guide – Kärcher KHB 5
Over the years, cordless, battery powered washers have taken over the gardening world. You might think that petrol or electric washers are more popular these days. However, that is not the case.
Battery powered pressure washers have their advantages and disadvantages. But, this is the case with even electric models. The rechargeable batteries, lack of cables and easy transport are just a few features that make them appealing.
Let’s take a look at some of the features that might interest you when buying a battery powered pressure washer.
1. Is it Easy to Handle?
Cordless pressure washers are much easier to use in comparisons to the standard electric appliance.
Firstly, they happen to be lightweight. This is important if you are an option for a handheld model such as WORX Cordless HYDROSHOT. After a couple of minutes of cleaning, you will get tired and leave unfinished work. To prevent this from happening, opt for a model that is lightweight and easy to handle.
The second part we value is the cordless feature — no more tangling of cables. Cordless washer is best for safety issues. You won’t worry about getting the wires wet and causing a hazard.
2. Power
Most of the cordless pressure washers cannot compete with electric ones in the power department. However, for battery power models, they do their best. Power depends on the type of batteries. You should consider a rechargeable pressure washer UK because they guarantee a longer battery life. Also, you can never go regret choosing a model with interchangeable batteries. These types of cells can be used with multiple appliances from the same manufacturer.
3. How Reliable is the Pressure Cleaner?
Most of the pressure washers we reviewed in this article have a high-pressure bar. Of course, we have to mention again; they are nothing compared to electric ones. The low-pressure bar serves many tasks.
For example, you don’t want to choose a high pressured cleaner if you’re going to wash the windows or clean your pet. This kind of pressure is too powerful and can end up damaging the surface.
This is where the battery powered washers come into the picture. Because they have low pressure, they are perfect for lighter tasks.
This doesn’t mean that they won’t tackle some demanding mission, but they will take more time in doing so.
4. Nozzle
The nozzle determines what kind of spray you will get. Most of the models have different nozzle functions. When dealing with muddy tiers or a dirty bike, choose the jet spray. On the other hand, if you need a more gentle clean, choose the ”shower spray.” Gentle sprays are best if you are washing up a pet or rinsing windows.
5. Portable Option
If you already choose a cordless washer, you know it’s portable. But, is it easy to carry it around? There is nothing more annoying than carrying around a piece of heavy machinery. The washer might seem light at first; however, once you fill the tank with water, it will double in weight. Nonetheless, cordless pressure washers are easier to transport than electric ones. This is mostly due to a smaller tank and a lack of cables.
6. Detergent Bottles
Detergent bottles are an ideal solution if you want a quick clean. Sometimes, you can’t be bothered carrying a separate bucked just for soap, and this is where soap bottles come in handy. Some models have a built-in soap dispenser bottle. For some, you do need to buy this attachment. Whatever you decide, you won’t regret buying it.
A note we must mention is the type of soap you will use. Pay attention that you buy soaps that are specially made for washers. These types are used to clean vehicles, patios, driveways, floor or furniture. This way, you will avoid buying soap that won’t do its job, and you end up with a sticky surface.