How Often Should You Pressure Wash Your Home?
Pressure washing is a quick solution once your home starts to look drab and dated. Within just a few hours, your home can be returned to its beautiful appearance from nothing more than high pressure water.
You can rent power washing equipment from many home improvement stores, or you can hire a Inglewood pressure washing service. It could be a little more expensive upfront, but you won’t have to deal with returning rented equipment or the risk of damaging your home because of lack of training or experience.
However, power washing can damage your home as fast as it can renew it. The pressurized water is powerful enough to break windows, damage siding and destroy roof shingles. Therefore, you have to be careful how often you power wash your home 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 on where your home is and weather factors based on that location.
Most professionals recommend having your home pressure washed every year or, no longer than every 2 years.
Any pressure washing service that tries to tell you more frequent cleanings are necessary is probably trying to squeeze more money out of you. However, it’s your home, and if you love the way it looks shortly after a cleaning, you can power wash your home multiple times each year.
By simply touching the wood or siding of your home, you will be able to tell if it’s time for a cleaning. The presence of dust, mud and grime can stain the outside of your home permanently if it isn’t removed periodically, so you might have to change from a set schedule if you start to see excess buildup between cleanings.
Power washing often can be detrimental, but not doing it often enough will leave your home looking lackluster far more than it should. It’s necessary to note that modern building materials, particularly vinyl siding, are very resistant to stains, mold and mildew. These materials protect your home between power washings.
Why Pressure Washing is the Preferred Method
Pressure washing is safer than scrubbing the outside of your home because you won’t have to climb up and down a ladder with a brush and a bucket while dragging a garden hose. Power washing can be done from the ground in most residential situations.
Mold and mildew are organisms that eat away at exterior surfaces and eventually find their way into your home. They are not very easy to get rid of, yet it is very easy for these organisms to form colonies on your home, especially on the north side where it doesn’t get as much direct sunlight or wind as other sides of your home.
And, power washing gets rid of more dirt and grime than hand washing.
Factors that Affect Your Home’s Exterior
All of the below items can impact the appearance. All are factors that need to be considered before you call a professional pressure washer or think about doing the job on your own.
CLIMATE
Factors like humidity and weather create a perfect environment for mold and mildew to grow. If your home is in a rainy area, you might also have powerful wind and rain splashing mud on the side of your home.
ENVIRONMENT
Pollen, pollution and mold can be more of a threat in some areas than in others. Having a home in a rural area or near an unpaved road will factor into what types of environmental factors affect your home more.
HOME CONDITION
If you think it is time to have your home pressure washed, it might be a good idea to have chipped siding repaired so the high water pressure won’t do any more damage. Power 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 wood) and the area of the home. For example, for roof cleaning, a pressure washing technician will use soft washing instead of power washing to protect the roof shingles. Additionally, the results can vary widely based on technique.
When to Pressure Wash Your Home
Determining the best time to have your home pressure washed is almost as important as deciding how often the service has to be completed. There are certain times throughout the year when power washing would be a real waste of time and money. Different times, however, a professional pressure washing service could benefit you in more ways than appearance.
WEATHER
Do not waste any money on professional power washing during a rainy season. You’ll end up with mud stains and mildew by the end of the season anyway. Winter, for example, isn’t the best time of year. Pressure washing is most useful near the end of a season, whether it’s spring, summer, fall or winter.
BEFORE/AFTER HOME PROJECTS
Don’t plan to have your home pressure washed while you are having different work done on your home. Rock, brick or siding might not be fastened into place during a renovation or repair like it will normally be, which means you run the risk of damaging the area, disrupting the other project and trapping water under building materials.
BEFORE SELLING
Pressure washing is a smart way to increase your 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
Pick a sunny day, but don’t choose one that is blazing hot. This is the best condition for the surfaces to dry fast without baking cleaning chemicals onto your home’s exterior.
If you are in an HOA, there might be rules about how regularly you have your home power washed or if you can do it on your own or if you are required to hire a professional. You might only be under HOA guidelines concerning how your home looks, but it’s ultimately up to you to keep it looking good.
Power washing is one of the quickest and most effective ways to clean your entire home. As long as it’s done the right way, it is safe for several surfaces and can eliminate years of dirt and stains.