How Often Should You Pressure Wash Your Home?
Pressure washing is a fast option after your house starts looking drab and outdated. Within just a few hours, your house can be renewed to its beautiful appearance by nothing more than high pressure water.
You can rent power washing equipment at many home improvement stores, or you can call a Fort Worth pressure washing service. It can be expensive upfront, but you don’t need to deal with returning equipment or run the risk of damaging 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 is powerful enough to break windows, damage siding and destroy roof shingles. Therefore, you really 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 weather factors around that location.
Most professionals recommend having your house pressure washed once a year or, at least every 2 years.
Any pressure washing technician that tries to tell 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 touching the wood or siding of your house, you will be able to tell if it needs a cleaning. The presence of dust, mud and grime can stain the outside of your house permanently if it isn’t removed from time to time, so you may have to deviate from a planned schedule if you notice excess buildup between cleanings.
Pressure washing sometimes can be detrimental, but not doing it often enough can leave your house looking lackluster far more than it should. It’s necessary to note that home building materials, particularly vinyl siding, are very resistant to stains, mold and mildew. These types of 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 won’t need to climb a ladder with a brush and a bucket while pulling a garden hose. Pressure washing can be performed from the ground in almost all residential situations.
Mold and mildew are living organisms that eat away at exterior surfaces and find their way into your house. They are not very easy to remove, yet it is extremely easy for these organisms to grow into colonies on your exterior, especially on the north side of a home where it usually doesn’t get as much direct sunlight or wind as other sides of your house.
And, power washing eliminates more dirt and grime than manual hand scrubbing.
Factors that Affect Your Home’s Exterior
All of the following items can negatively impact the appearance. All are factors that must be considered before you hire a local pressure washer or attempt the job yourself.
CLIMATE
Factors like humidity and extreme weather create a perfect environment for mold and mildew to grow. If your home is in a rainy area, you might also have wind and rain splashing mud on the side of your house.
ENVIRONMENT
Pollen, pollution and mold are bigger threat in some areas than in others. Living in a more rural area or next to an unpaved road will factor into what type of environmental factors affect your house more.
HOME CONDITION
If you think it is time to have your house pressure washed, it may be a good idea to have chipped siding replaced so the high pressure water won’t do any more damage. Pressure washing can also expedite a peeling paint issue.
EXTERIOR FINISH
The methods used for pressure washing are specific to your home’s exterior (brick, siding or paint) and the section of the home. For example, for roof cleaning, a pressure washing technician will use soft washing opposed to power washing to protect the roof shingles. Also, the expected results can vary widely.
When to Pressure Wash Your Home
Choosing the optimal time to have your house pressure washed is almost as important as choosing how often the service has to be completed. There are different times during the year when power washing would be a real waste of time and money. Different times, however, a professional pressure washing service might help you in more ways than just appearance.
WEATHER
Don’t waste your money on professional power washing in a rainy season. You’ll just end up with mud stains and mildew at the end of the season anyway. Winter, as an example, isn’t the best time. Pressure washing is most impactful near 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 different work done on your house. Rock, brick or siding may not be fastened into place during a repair like it should typically be, so you run the risk of ruining the area, disrupting the ongoing work and trapping water below building materials.
BEFORE SELLING
Pressure washing is a helpful way to increase your curb appeal. It’s the easiest solution 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 don’t choose one that is very hot. This is the best condition for the exterior surfaces to dry quickly without baking cleaning solutions onto your home’s siding or brick.
If you have an HOA, there may be requirements about how regularly you have your house power washed or if you can do it by yourself or if you have to hire a professional. You might only be under HOA rules concerning how your house looks, but it’s ultimately up to you to keep it looking good.
Pressure washing is one of the quickest and most effective ways to clean your entire home. As long as it’s done right, it is safe for several surfaces and can get rid of years of built up dirt and stains.