How Often Should You Pressure Wash Your Home?
Pressure washing is a fast option once your home starts to look drab and outdated. Within just a couple of hours, your home can be returned to its beautiful appearance from nothing more than high pressure water.
You can rent pressure washing equipment at many home improvement stores, or you can call a Wesley Chapel pressure washing service. It can be a little more expensive upfront, but you won’t have to deal with returning equipment or the risk of damaging your home because of lack of training or experience.
However, pressure washing can damage your home as quickly as it can clean it. The pressurized water can break windows, damage siding and destroy roof shingles. Therefore, you have to be careful how often you pressure wash your home 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 home is located and weather factors based on that location.
Most pros encourage having your home pressure washed once a year or, at least every 2 years.
Any pressure washing service that tries to tell you more frequent services 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 after a cleaning, you can pressure wash your home multiple times each year.
By touching the wood or siding of your home, you should be able to tell if it needs a cleaning. The presence of dust, mud and grime can stain the outside of your home permanently if it isn’t removed from time to time, so you could have to change from a set schedule if you notice too much buildup between cleanings.
Pressure washing often can be harmful, but not doing it enough will leave your home looking lackluster more than it should. It’s necessary to note that modern building materials, particularly vinyl siding, are resistant to stains, mold and mildew. These types of materials help to protect your home between pressure 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 a ladder with a rag and a bucket while pulling ahose. Pressure washing can be done from the ground in most residential situations.
Mold and mildew are organisms that can eat away at home exterior surfaces and eventually find their way into your home. They are not easy to get rid of, yet it is really easy for these organisms to create colonies on your exterior, especially on the north side where it usually doesn’t get much direct sunlight or wind as the other sides of your home.
Plus, pressure washing gets rid of 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 must be considered before you call a local pressure washer or think about doing the job on your own.
CLIMATE
Factors like humidity and extreme weather can create a perfect environment for mold and mildew to grow. If you live in a rainy area, you may also have wind and a lot of rain splashing mud on the exterior of your home.
ENVIRONMENT
Pollen, pollution and mold are bigger threat in some areas than in others. Having a home in a more rural area or near an unpaved road will determine what types of environmental factors impact your home more.
HOME CONDITION
If you think it is time to have your home pressure washed, it could be a good idea to have chipped siding replaced so the high water pressure doesn’t do more damage. Pressure washing can also worsen a peeling paint problem.
EXTERIOR FINISH
The techniques used for pressure washing are unique to your home’s exterior (brick, siding or paint) and the section of the home. For example, for roof cleaning, a pressure washing company will use soft washing instead of pressure washing to protect the roof shingles. And, the results can vary widely based on technique.
When to Pressure Wash Your Home
Choosing the right time to have your home pressure washed is just as important as deciding how often the service has to be performed. There are certain times during the year when pressure washing would be a total waste of time and money. Other times, however, a professional pressure washing service can benefit you in more ways than appearance.
WEATHER
Do not waste your money on professional pressure washing during a rainy time of year. You’ll end up with mud stains and mildew at the end of the season regardless. Winter, as an example, isn’t the best time of year. Pressure washing is the most impactful near the end of a season, whether it’s spring, summer, fall or winter.
BEFORE/AFTER HOME PROJECTS
Don’t have your home pressure washed the same time you are having different projects done on your home. Rock, brick or siding could not be sealed into place during a repair like it will normally be, which means you run the risk of damaging the area, disrupting the other project and even trapping water below building materials.
BEFORE SELLING
Pressure washing is a helpful way to increase your home’s 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 bright, sunny day, but don’t choose one that is blazing hot. This is the optimal condition for the surfaces to dry quickly without baking cleaning chemicals onto your home’s surfaces.
If you live in a neighborhood with an HOA, there could be rules about how regularly you have your home pressure washed or if you can do it yourself or if you are required to hire a professional. You may only be under HOA guidelines concerning how your home appears, but it’s really up to you to have it looking maintained.
Pressure washing is one of the easiest and most effective ways to clean your entire home. As long as it’s done the right way, it is safe for several home surfaces and can get rid of years of built up dirt and stains.