How Often Should You Pressure Wash Your Home?
Pressure washing is a quick option if your house starts to look drab and outdated.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 pressure washing equipment from home improvement stores, or you can enlist the help of a Johns Creek pressure washing service. It could be expensive upfront, but you won’t need to deal with bringing back rented equipment or the risk of harming your house because of lack of training or experience.
However, pressure washing can damage your home just as quickly as it can clean it. The pressurized water can break windows, damage siding and destroy roof shingles. Therefore, you really need to be careful how often you pressure 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 on where your house is and environmental factors based on that location.
Most pros recommend having your house pressure washed each year or, no longer than every 2 years.
Any pressure washing pro that tells you that more frequent services are needed is probably trying to squeeze a little more money out of you. However, it’s your home, and if you love how it looks shortly after a cleaning, you can pressure wash your house several times a year.
By simply touching the wood or siding of your house, you should 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 washed off periodically, so you might have to change from a set schedule if you start to see a lot of buildup between cleanings.
Pressure washing sometimes can be harmful, but not doing it enough can leave your house looking dirtier far more than it should. It’s important to note that modern building materials, especially vinyl siding, are resistant to stains, mold and mildew. These types of materials protect your house between pressure washings.
Why Pressure Washing is the Preferred Method
Pressure washing is a lot safer than scrubbing the exterior of your house because you don’t need to climb up and down a ladder with a rag and a bucket while dragging ahose. Pressure washing can be completed from the ground in most residential situations.
Mold and mildew are organic organisms that eat away at home exterior surfaces and find their way into your house. They are not easy to get rid of, yet it is really easy for these things to create colonies on your home, especially on the north side where it usually doesn’t get much direct sunlight or wind as the other sides of your house.
Plus, pressure washing eliminates more dirt and grime than hand scrubbing.
Factors that Affect Your Home’s Exterior
All of the below items can impact the appearance of a home. They are all factors that must be considered before you call a nearby pressure washer or think about doing 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 rain splashing mud onto the side of your house.
ENVIRONMENT
Pollen, pollution and mold are more of a threat in some areas of Johns Creek than in others. Having a home in a more rural area or next to an unpaved road will factor into what types of environmental factors affect your house more.
HOME CONDITION
If you think it is time to have your house pressure washed, it might be a smart idea to have damaged siding repaired so the high water pressure doesn’t do any more damage. Pressure washing can also worsen a peeling paint issue.
EXTERIOR FINISH
The techniques 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 service will use soft washing opposed to pressure washing to protect the roof shingles. And, the expected results can vary widely based on technique.
When to Pressure Wash Your Home
Choosing the best time to have your house pressure washed is almost as important as choosing how often the service should be completed. There are times throughout the year when pressure washing would be a real waste of time and money. Different times, however, a professional pressure washing service could help you in more ways than just appearance.
WEATHER
Do not waste your money on pressure washing during a rainy season. You’ll just end up with muddy splatter and mildew by the end of the season anyway. Winter, for 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 house pressure washed the same time you are having different work done on your house. Rock, brick or siding might not be fastened into place during a renovation or repair like it would normally be, so you run the risk of damaging the area, prolonging the other project and even trapping water underneath building materials.
BEFORE SELLING
Pressure washing is a cost-effective way to increase your home’s curb appeal. It’s the easiest answer for all your home’s exterior surfaces, including sidewalks, porches, driveways, patio furniture and wood and composite decks.
SUNNY DAYS
Pick a bright, sunny day, but not one that is very hot. This is the best condition for the exterior surfaces to dry quickly without baking cleaning chemicals onto your home’s siding or brick.
If you live in a neighborhood with an HOA, there might be requirements about how often you have your house pressure washed or if you can do it yourself or if you have to hire a local service. You might only be under HOA rules concerning how your house looks, but it’s usually up to you to have it looking maintained.
Pressure washing is one of the quickest and most effective ways to clean your entire home. As long as it’s done correctly, it is safe for a multitude of home surfaces and can get rid of months of dirt and stains.