How Often Should You Pressure Wash Your Home?
Pressure washing is a fast fix when your house starts looking drab and outdated. Within just a few hours, your house can be returned to its beautiful appearance by nothing more than high pressure water.
You can rent power washing equipment from most home improvement stores, or you can call a Fontana pressure washing service. It might be costly upfront, but you won’t need to deal with returning rented equipment or run the risk of harming your house because of lack of training or experience.
However, power washing can damage your home just as quickly as it can clean it. The pressurized water can break windows, damage siding and ruin roof shingles. Therefore, you need to be careful about how often you power wash your house and who you hire to do it.
Is it Time to Pressure Wash Your Home?
The question of how often to pressure wash your home is one that depends a lot on where your house is located and environmental factors around that location.
Most professionals recommend having your house pressure washed once a year or, at least every 2 years.
Any pressure washing service that tells you that more frequent services are needed is probably trying to squeeze more money out of you. However, it’s your house, and if you love how it looks after a cleaning, you can power wash your house many times a year.
By just touching the wood or siding of your house, you should be able to tell if it needs a cleaning. The presence of dirt, mud and grime can stain the outside of your house permanently if it isn’t washed off from time to time, so you might have to deviate from a set schedule if you notice excess buildup between cleanings.
Pressure washing often can be detrimental, but not doing it enough will leave your house looking dirtier far more than it should. It’s important to note that modern building materials, especially vinyl siding, are very resistant to stains, mold and mildew. These materials help to protect your house between power washings.
Why Pressure Washing is the Preferred Method
Pressure washing is a lot safer than scrubbing the outside of your house because you don’t need to climb up and down a ladder with a rag and a bucket while dragging a garden hose. Pressure washing can be accomplished from the ground in almost all residential situations.
Mold and mildew are living organisms that eat away at home exterior surfaces and eventually find their way into your house. They are not very easy to remove, yet it is very easy for these organisms to create colonies on your home, especially on the north side where it usually doesn’t get much sunlight or wind as the other sides of your house.
Plus, power washing removes more dirt and grime than hand washing.
Factors that Affect Your Home’s Exterior
All of the below factors can impact the appearance of a home. All are factors that have to be considered before you hire a local pressure washer or attempt the job on your own.
CLIMATE
Factors like humidity and weather events create a perfect environment for mold and mildew to grow. If your home is in an area that is rainy, you might also have wind and a lot of rain splashing mud on the exterior of your house.
ENVIRONMENT
Pollen, pollution and mold can be bigger threat in some areas than in others. Having a home in a more rural area or near an unpaved road will determine what type of environmental factors impact your house more.
HOME CONDITION
If you do decide to have your house pressure washed, it might be a good idea to have damaged siding replaced so the high pressure water doesn’t do any more damage. Pressure washing can also worsen a peeling paint issue.
EXTERIOR FINISH
The equipment used for pressure washing are specific to your home’s exterior (brick, siding or paint) and the area of the home. For example, for roof cleaning, a pressure washing company will use soft washing opposed to power washing to protect the roof shingles. Also, the expected results can vary widely based on technique.
When to Pressure Wash Your Home
Determining the correct time to have your house pressure washed is as important as determining how often the service should be performed. There are times during the year when power washing would be an ultimate waste of time and money. Other times, however, a professional pressure washing could benefit you in more ways than just appearance.
WEATHER
Don’t waste money on professional power washing during a rainy time of year. You’ll just end up with mud splatter and mildew at the end of the season anyway. Winter, for example, isn’t the best time. Pressure washing is the most impactful at the end of a season, whether it’s spring, summer, fall or winter.
BEFORE/AFTER HOME PROJECTS
Don’t plan to have your house pressure washed while you are having other projects done on your house. Rock, brick or siding might not be tightened into place during a renovation or repair like it will normally be, so you run the risk of ruining the area, prolonging the other project and even trapping water below building materials.
BEFORE SELLING
Pressure washing is a great way to increase your home’s curb appeal. It’s the simple answer for all your home’s outside surfaces, including sidewalks, porches, driveways, patio furniture and wood and composite decks.
SUNNY DAYS
Choose a sunny day, but not one that is blazing hot. This is the perfect condition for the surfaces to dry quickly without baking cleaning solutions onto your home’s surfaces.
If you are in an HOA, there might be rules about how regularly you have your house power washed or if you can do it by yourself or if you are required to hire a professional. You might only be under HOA rules concerning how your house looks, but it’s ultimately up to you to have it looking good.
Pressure washing is one of the quickest and most effective methods to clean your entire home. As long as it’s done the right way, it is safe for most home surfaces and can eliminate years of built up dirt and stains.