Karcher FC5 Fails after 120 uses, planned obsolescence, cash to rust converter exposed !

WATCH, READ before you buy a KÄRCHER FC5 floor cleaner ! Last warning before disaster !
Part 2, the fix, here: • How to protect KÄRCHER...
KÄRCHER FC 5, the ultimate most advertised wet floor moper.
Works really well, a thing of beauty. That is when it works.
Here I expose the embedded planned obsolescence mechanism that has turned our FC 5 into a bucket of rust in 10 months, that is about 120 uses.
We used it by the book, only Karcher concentrate and ordinary plain cold water.
Result, a bucket of rusty parts under the shiny plastic.
Landfill extravaganza ensued.

[@dinoflores4020]

I apreciate this review, i bought one 1 december 2017 which broke in 2 weeks, got money back, later in march 1 STUPID enough bought one again, broke after 22 uses in 3 months and 26 days, no warranty through official reseller, since waranty is 3 months and then still supposedly I BROKE it accordingh to the because of mal usage. Never again

[@MrPletnyov]

Хотел уже купить, тут призадумался! Thanks, you helped me make a choice.

[@anne-mariecox2016]

Many thanks for explaining the parts of the machine - my FC5 has seized and screams so I am going to look at my Amazon account to see when I purchased it.

[@pierrebugeja9308]

Same story. I persevered. the first one was taken for repairs 3 times. Finally they gave me a brand new one with lasted less than 10 uses.

[@zephyr59710]

Great video, just the facts, thank you !

[@rotorblade9508]

I’ve had mine for three years now and the gearbox failed 2times and were replaced on warranty pretty quickly. After the warranty expired and another 6 months of use the clutch started to slip again. The grinding noise is usually the clutch slipping I think so I decided to modify it. I saw the suction lip brake the wheels a lot. The torque on the clutch is quite high but the wheel have a lot of drag. I cut some grooves in the two lips that suck the water from the wheels. This makes them spin easier. After that the clutch didn’t spin anymore and I continued to use it for another 6 months like 15’ per day.

[@mhoobag1]

Thank you!. You saved me £300

[@christoff4735]

There's a roller bearing that will seize since I leave the roller on still wet. I ordered 2x of Part No. 6803 2RS you need that for the roller spline. Then there's a little servo belt 'cheap' it is 3m-168. I've replaced them for $10 us total with shipping. I bought this and it failed and was rusted so I filled in the bearing areas and around the outer edge of the inner housing with a lucas lithium grease called red & tacky. I reassembled and so far has worked good. I hope it will last longer than the 5 times I have used it. Once all the screws are removed and the green and blue caps are removed, the housing will come apart easy. Good luck

[@user-ix2ml9yk5l]

Thank you! You've saved me from buying this

[@MilkyWay428]

I have mine working for a couple of years fine, but had to get it serviced lately. I was told in the service that repairs are ok only within the warranty period, after that it doesn't add up. The wheels will brake the suction lip if they are worn and/or swollen up by dampness. Hence: NO washing in the washing machine (hand wash only), proper and full drying of wheels.

[@dmms9569]

Hi, any place to buy the big plastic gear?

[@daddysingh4612]

I bought a month back and within a month of use the rolller stopped working, I am going to return it to company.

[@_.koschara_official._6631]

Bravo!😀🇨🇭

[@617bw9]

I have the same problem the rollers have stopped rotating and the drive spindle is seized. I have taken the head apart but I cannot get the blue and green spacers off. In your video they are already off. I would appreciate your knowledge how to remove them so that I can gain access the the drive mechanism. Thanks for the video.

[@mmp669]

Mine broke as well after 6 months. No suction although the rollers are still spinning.

[@tarkancubukcu9125]

thanks

[@shampson1975]

Are there any brands that are properly engineered these days? Karcher used to have a good reputation but it seems the attraction of killing their reputation for some quick bucks was just too much.

[@ferre9002]

I had the same problem, i fixed it trough forcing the rear bearing to move (with wd40)

[@hakangurdol]

I expect the Karcher fc5 at wednesday, it’s on the cargo, i’ll shopt from the online store, it’s about 204 dolars in Turkey.

[@no66]

Bah, mine just locked up screeching noise. Damn, it was good when it worked. Have had it since summer 2018 so i got a lot of use from it