Unsightly stains, dirt, mildew, and grime accumulate on outdoor structures and materials over time. Hiring a professional for pressure washing cleaning removes different kinds of filth, breathing new life into surfaces.
Power washers forcefully spray hot water, which can agitate tough grime. This is especially useful for removing salt, mold, mildew, grease stains, and chewing gum from surfaces like walkways, driveways, and garage floors. Check this out!
Decks
Decks are great places for relaxing or hosting friends, but they can be prone to serious grime. Routine pressure washing of the deck can help remove standard debris like dirt, leaves, and twigs, as well as dislodge items that have become stuck between boards. It is also an effective way to remove mildew, mold, and other fungus that can damage the structure of your deck.
HGTV recommends starting with the widest nozzle and using a sweeping motion to wash the deck. Make sure to keep the nozzle at a consistent distance from the wood to prevent stripping or damaging it.
Once you’ve thoroughly washed the deck, you can rinse it with a regular water spray. Then, let it dry completely before walking on it to avoid bending or warping the wood. Keeping your deck clean can help protect the health and beauty of your home, and it can even increase its resale value. Get a near-instant real estate house price estimate for your home, for free.
Gutters
Gutters are an essential part of your home’s roof system. They help to drain rainwater, keep your foundation and walls dry, and extend the life of your roof. However, they can get clogged with leaves, pine needles, acorns, silt, and more. Cleaning them is a must, but climbing a ladder to do it can be dangerous.
Pressure washing can clean your gutters in a safe and efficient manner without the need to climb a ladder. There are gutter cleaning attachments that snap onto your pressure washer and allow you to position a nozzle directly into the gutter and flush it out.
Before using a pressure washer on your building, always close windows and doors and cover outlets, doorbells, and lights to prevent water and electricity from mixing. Then, make sure that your pressure washer is set to a low-pressure setting and only apply it on a small area at a time to avoid damage.
Vinyl Siding
Vinyl siding is a plastic exterior for homes and apartment buildings, imitating clapboard, wood shingles, or batten board and batten. It’s easy to keep vinyl looking new by cleaning it regularly with a pressure washer.
Be careful not to damage the vinyl by using too much pressure or the wrong type of cleaner. General house washing detergents are fine, but there are also products specifically designed for vinyl and other types of siding, like aluminum, stucco, terra-cotta roof tiles, or painted wood.
Use the black soaping nozzle to apply the cleaner, then switch to a yellow or green tip for rinsing. These are less powerful and minimize the risk of damaging the vinyl siding. If you need to get in hard-to-reach areas, mount a ladder and carefully spritz the soapy solution with the long-handled brush, being sure not to tilt the wand upward or blast the cleaning detergent in the seams where the vinyl slats meet.
Driveways
Many homeowners choose to have their driveway pressure washed. This can help to remove mold, mildew, oil residue, and other grime that has built up over time, which can make a driveway look dirty and unappetizing. It also helps to reduce the risk of injuries from slippery surfaces and prevents the formation of black mold, which can release spores that cause respiratory distress, aggravate allergies and asthma, and in severe cases may even lead to pericarditis, a condition that causes sack around the heart to swell.
Before beginning to pressure wash the driveway, you should clear away any vehicles, outdoor furniture, and other items from the area. You should then start to pre-treat the area by sweeping to loosen up dirt, gravel, and debris, and then if needed, apply a degreaser.
After this, you can prepare the pressure washer by attaching a detergent siphon tube to the detergent container and then turning on the machine. Next, you should change the tip to the 25-degree nozzle and spray the surface of your driveway, working from one end to the other, making sure to overlap each stroke by 6 to 8 inches. Read on to find out!
