Ryobi's Water Broom: What To Know About This Undercarriage Cleaner Before You Buy

We're in the thick of the spring season, a time of fresh life and plenty of mess. Chances are you've already had your run-ins with pollen, mud, and debris in and around your home. While keeping clean inside is important, tidying up outdoors is a great way to prevent messes from tracking inside. When it comes to outdoor cleaning, Ryobi is a top choice for homeowners everywhere thanks to its variety of useful products that are economical and easy to use for even the most novice tool user. 

If you're already a loyal Ryobi fan, you're likely familiar with the brand's set of powerful pressure washers, which have more uses than you might have realized. From cleaning your patio and windows to stripping paint off your home, these devices have developed into must-have tools for any garage tool set. Now, in tandem with this device, is another potent product from Ryobi that will kick your cleaning game into high gear — the Ryobi 11-inch Water Broom. 

Currently sold for $54.97, this attachment might seem simple at first glance, but seeing it in action makes it apparent that it has a lot to offer. But before getting a water broom for yourself, it's a good idea to arm yourself with some know-how of its functions, perks, and potential drawbacks that other buyers have noted. Without further ado, here's what to know before purchasing the Ryobi 11-inch Water Broom.

As its name suggests, the Ryobi 11-inch Water Broom operates similarly to a broom or mop that you'd use to clean the inside of your home. However, instead of pushing it along the ground to take care of any debris, the water broom is designed to maximize your pressure washer's capabilities to get into areas that would otherwise be impossible to reach with a hose alone. 

Along the 11-inch path are three high-pressure nozzles that expel water and a pair of compact wheels on the side to push along. Its most useful feature is its two-position pivot, with the ability to point toward the ground to clean up flat surfaces such as a driveway or patio or point upwards so you can reach under your car and pressure wash gunk off of your undercarriage. The broom path is attached to the included quick-connect capable wand and can be paired with any pressure washer rated up to 3300 PSI. This bombastic tool is advertised as a 5x faster cleaning solution than working with a spray nozzle alone, easily tearing through everything from dirt to oil grease.

The Ryobi 11-inch Water Broom sounds like a fantastic tool across the board with its powerful set of features. However, the ultimate determining factor for new buyers is what previous users have had to say. Thankfully, it largely seems that the product lives up to its bold assertions.

On the Ryobi website, the 11-inch Water Broom sports a 4.7 out of five-star rating average based on 51 reviews, along with a 4.2 rating average aggregated from 573 reviews on The Home Depot's website. Reviewers have commended the water broom's ability to tackle various messes, from cleaning ceramic terrace tiles and garage floors to rinsing off salt and skunk smell from under cars. Ultimately, many praised how much easier it made cleaning, such as an anonymous user who commented, "I have been using just the power hose for my driveway power washing and it's back-breaking and very time-consuming. Then I found this tool – LOVE IT! saves a lot of time and back pain and does a great job as well!!"

As for complaints, some individuals have stated that the product could benefit from some enhancements, such as a slightly longer broom path and the ability to select which nozzles turn on during use. A few who have had one for an extended period have reported that the device was no longer functional after moderate use. Such was the case for @Xx1x who noted, "It's cheap but not cheap enough. One of the nozzles quit spraying water after 2 years ... I have used it maybe 10 times. Find something better."

Even with a grab bag of helpful functions and stellar reviews, the 11-inch Water Broom from Ryobi is not without its shortcomings — quite literally. Along with its 11-inch broom path being considered too short by some to be useful for deep cleaning purposes, its lance is also especially short. People needing to pressure wash the undercarriage of their car may have to kneel or squat to get a full clean. As a result, some users have recommended to also get a lance extension for their water broom. 

Similarly, depending on your intent, certain elements of the broom may need some adjusting. When pivoting upwards for undercarriage cleaning, the nozzles are pointed at a roughly 45-degree angle, which may irritate some who would rather have the water shooting straight up. YouTuber @JEFFIX came up with a solution to this dilemma. By drilling another hole under the undercarriage function that the straight pin goes into, the nozzles now assume a nearly 90-degree angle when pointed up. The user also removed the filter hidden inside the nozzle connecting to the pressure washer to strengthen the water flow.