Powr-Flite® C131-7 13" Classic Metal Floor Machine, 1 HP, 175 RPM, Compact Floor Buffer

Restrooms, behind toilet partitions, small break rooms, kitchens between the prep tables, elevator cabs, stairwell landings. A 17 or 20 inch buffer bangs into everything there. The Powr-Flite C131-7 is a small floor machine with a 13 inch pad, so it swings where the big ones can't and still does real work: stripping, scrubbing, spray buffing and polishing.

Underneath is the same Classic recipe as Powr-Flite's bigger machines: an all-metal chrome housing, a 1 HP motor at 175 RPM and an all steel triple planetary gear box, on a 50 ft cord. At 95 lb it has the weight to bite into old finish. The pad driver is sold separately, or you can add the matching one below.

The C131-7 ships without anything on the bottom. To run a floor pad you need a pad driver, and it has to fit Powr-Flite's 13 inch machines. Tap a picture to see it up close.

Machine Only. Pick this if you already have a pad driver or brushes that fit a 13 inch Powr-Flite, or you plan to run brushes only. $1,289.

With 11" Tufted Pad Driver (613DP). Powr-Flite's tufted driver for its 13 inch machines: 1/2 in polypropylene bristles grip the pad, with a 1-1/4 in riser and a UP2P clutch plate. It holds 13 inch pads and bonnets and arrives with the machine, ready to go. $109 more than the machine alone.

Rule of thumb: if this is your first floor machine, or your other drivers are 17 or 20 inch, take the pad driver. Bigger drivers don't fit this machine.

I'll be straight with you about the price first. The C131-7 costs more than Powr-Flite's 17 inch Classic, the C171HD at $1,065, which has a 1.5 HP motor and covers more floor per pass. If your rooms are open, buy the 17 inch and save the money.

The 13 inch earns its place when space is the problem. Crews that clean restrooms, small kitchens and tight offices keep one next to the big machine, because a 17 inch spends half its time hitting partitions, toilets and table legs. The narrow head gets close to the fixtures, so there's less to finish by hand.

Two honest notes. It's 95 lb, the same as the 17 inch, so it's compact but not light to lift into a truck. And with 1 HP, Powr-Flite's manual lists carpet bonnet cleaning and shampooing under its 1.5 HP models, so the C131-7 is a hard floor machine first.

• 13 inch cleaning width. Gets into restrooms, closets, kitchens and aisles where bigger buffers won't fit.

• 175 RPM, the all-round speed. Strip with a black pad, scrub with blue or green, spray buff with red, polish with white.

• 1 HP motor, all steel triple planetary gear box. Smooth, steady torque on a 15 amp circuit breaker.

• All-metal housing. High polish chrome resists chips and corrosion.

• Full surround non-marking bumper. Protects walls, baseboards, fixtures and furniture.

• Thumb safety interlock. The dual lever switch works with either hand and won't start by accident.

• 50 ft UL listed 14/3 cord. With a heavy metal strain relief.

• Uses 13 inch pads or 11 inch brushes. Common sizes, easy to stock.

A good fit: janitorial contractors and in-house crews who strip and refinish restrooms, small offices, break rooms, commercial kitchens, convenience stores, clinics and classrooms full of furniture, and anyone who needs a second, smaller machine for the tight rooms on a big job.

Not the best fit: open corridors, gyms and warehouses, where a 17 or 20 inch machine finishes much faster, or regular carpet bonnet and shampoo work, which calls for a 1.5 HP machine.

Open rooms and some carpet work? The Powr-Flite Classic C171HD and C201HD run a 1.5 HP motor with 17 or 20 inch pads, from $1,065. The Powr-Flite Millennium uses a molded one-piece housing, from $979.

Want one machine that also spray buffs at higher speed? The Powr-Flite Classic C202 switches between 175 and 320 RPM, for $1,199.

Scrubbing tight spaces every day instead of stripping? The Powr-Flite PS030 is a 13 inch battery scrubber that scrubs and picks up the water in one pass, for $2,650. Want no cord at all in small rooms? The Orbot Slim is an 11 inch battery orbital floor machine, for $4,589.

See them all in our floor machines collection. Not sure which size fits your building? Tell us the rooms you clean, or call (855) 601-5678.

Installing the pad driver or brush. Lock the handle upright, unplug the machine and lay it on its back. Fit the three slots of the clutch plate over the three lugs and turn counterclockwise until it seats. Never set a driver on the floor and run the machine onto it.

Steering. Set the handle about waist high. Raise the handle slightly and the machine moves right; lower it and it moves left. Small moves, smooth arcs.

Picking pads. Black for stripping, blue or green for scrubbing, red for spray buffing, white for polishing. Our floor pad color chart explains each one. Powr-Flite also makes 11 inch nylon, poly, grit and shower feed brushes for this machine; ask us for any of them.

Power. Use a grounded 120 V outlet, ideally GFCI protected. If you need an extension cord, Powr-Flite says no lighter than 12/3 and no longer than 25 ft, and keep other loads off the circuit. If the 15 amp breaker trips, give it 2 minutes to cool before resetting.

Care. Once a month, take off the motor cover and vacuum out the dust, check that the fasteners are tight and inspect the cord.

Powr-Flite says each Classic floor machine is assembled and tested by its team in Fort Worth, Texas. Powr-Flite is a sister brand of Tornado under Tacony Corporation, so parts are easy to get and warranty service runs through Tacony's technical service team.

Powr-Flite backs the C131-7 for 1 year parts and 1 year labor. We're an authorized Powr-Flite retailer, so that warranty comes with every machine. Found a lower price? Call or message us and we'll beat it.