How Often Should You Pressure Wash Your Home?
Pressure washing is a quick solution once your house starts to look drab and dated. Within just a few hours, your house can be renewed to its beautiful appearance with nothing more than high pressure water.
You can rent power washing equipment at most home improvement stores, or you can enlist the help of a Grand Prairie pressure washing service. It will be a little more costly upfront, but you don’t need to deal with bringing back rented equipment or the risk of harming your house because of lack of training or experience.
However, power washing can damage your home as fast as it can clean it. The pressurized water can break windows, damage siding and ruin shingles. Therefore, you need to be careful about how often you power wash your house and who you let 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 based on that location.
Most pros recommend having your house pressure washed every year or, at least every 2 years.
Any pressure washing pro that tries to tell you that more frequent cleanings are necessary is probably trying to squeeze more money out of you. However, it’s your house, and if you love how it looks right after a cleaning, you can power wash your house multiple times each year.
By simply touching the wood or siding of your house, 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 house permanently if it isn’t removed from time to time, so you might have to change from a planned schedule if you notice too much buildup between cleanings.
Power washing can be harmful, but not doing it often enough can leave your house looking lackluster far more than it should. It’s important to note that building materials, particularly vinyl siding, are 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 a ladder with a rag and a bucket while dragging ahose. Power washing can be completed from the ground in most residential situations.
Mold and mildew are organic organisms that can eat away at home exterior surfaces and make their way into your house. They are not easy to remove, yet it is extremely easy for these things to grow into colonies on your home, particularly on the north side of a home where it doesn’t get much sunlight or wind as other sides of your house.
Plus, power washing eliminates more dirt and grime than manual hand washing.
Factors that Affect Your Home’s Exterior
All of the below factors can impact the appearance of a home. They are all factors that have to be considered before you decide to call a professional pressure washer or attempt the job yourself.
CLIMATE
Factors like humidity and extreme weather events can create a perfect environment for mold and mildew. If you live in a rainy area, you might also have powerful wind and rain splashing mud on the side 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 next to an unpaved road will determine what types of environmental factors affect your house more.
HOME CONDITION
If you do decide to have your house pressure washed, it might be a smart idea to have chipped siding replaced so the high pressure water won’t do more damage. Power washing can also worsen a peeling paint problem.
EXTERIOR FINISH
The methods used for pressure washing are specific to your home’s exterior (brick, siding or wood) and the section of the home. For example, for roof cleaning, a pressure washing service will use soft washing instead of power washing to protect the shingles. Additionally, the expected results can vary widely.
When to Pressure Wash Your Home
Choosing the right time to have your house pressure washed is almost as important as deciding how often the service should be performed. 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 can benefit you in more ways than appearance.
WEATHER
Do not waste any money on professional power washing in a rainy season. You’ll end up with mud splatter and mildew at the end of the season regardless. Winter, for example, isn’t the best time. Pressure washing is most useful 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 different projects done on your house. Rock, brick or siding might not be sealed into place during a renovation or repair like it should typically be, so you run the risk of ruining the area, prolonging the other project and even trapping water under building materials.
BEFORE SELLING
Pressure washing is a cost-effective way to increase your curb appeal. It’s the simple solution 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 not one that is extremely hot. This is the perfect condition for the surfaces to dry fast without baking cleaning products onto your home’s exterior.
If you live in a neighborhood with an home owner’s association, there might be guidelines about how often you have your house power washed or whether you can do it on your own or if you are required to hire a local company. You might only be under HOA guidelines concerning how your house looks, but it’s usually up to you to keep it looking good.
Power washing is one of the simplest and most effective ways to clean your entire home exterior. As long as it’s done correctly, it is safe for most home surfaces and can eliminate years of built up dirt and stains.