How Often Should You Pressure Wash Your Home?
Pressure washing is a fast solution after your house starts to look drab and outdated. Within hours, your house can be restored to its beautiful appearance by 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 Savannah pressure washing service. It could be a little more costly upfront, but you won’t need to deal with returning rented equipment or the risk of damaging your house because of lack of training or experience.
However, power washing can damage your home as quickly as it can renew it. The pressurized water is powerful enough to break windows, damage siding and ruin roof shingles. Therefore, you have 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 and weather factors based on that location.
Most professionals will encourage having your house pressure washed each year or, at least every 2 years.
Any pressure washing pro that tells you that more frequent services are needed is just trying to squeeze more money out of you. However, it’s your home, and if you love how it looks right after a cleaning, you can power wash your house many times a 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 periodically, so you could have to change from a set schedule if you start to see excess buildup between cleanings.
Pressure washing often can be harmful, but not doing it often enough will leave your house looking lackluster far more than it should. It’s important to note that modern building materials, especially vinyl siding, are very resistant to stains, mold and mildew. These types of materials protect your house between power washings.
Why Pressure Washing is the Preferred Method
Pressure washing is 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 pulling a garden hose. Pressure washing can be accomplished from the ground in almost all residential situations.
Mold and mildew are living organisms that can eat away at exterior surfaces and make their way into your house. They are not very easy to remove, yet it is really easy for them to grow into colonies on your house, especially on the north side of a home where it doesn’t get as much direct sunlight or wind as other sides of your house.
Plus, power washing eliminates more dirt and grime than hand scrubbing.
Factors that Affect Your Home’s Exterior
All of the following items can impact the appearance. All are factors that must be considered before you call a professional pressure washer or think about doing the job on your own.
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 may also have powerful wind and a lot of rain splashing mud on the side of your house.
ENVIRONMENT
Pollen, pollution and mold can be bigger problem in some areas of Savannah than in others. Having a home in a 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 could be a smart idea to have chipped siding repaired so the high water pressure won’t do any more damage. Pressure washing can also worsen a peeling paint issue.
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 service will use soft washing instead of power washing to protect the roof shingles. Additionally, the results can vary widely.
When to Pressure Wash Your Home
Determining the best time to have your house pressure washed is just as important as deciding how often the service needs to be completed. There are times during the year when power washing would be an ultimate 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 money on power washing during a rainy season. 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. 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 the same time you are having different projects done on your house. Rock, brick or siding could not be sealed into place during a renovation or repair like it will typically be, so you run the risk of ruining the area, prolonging the other project and trapping water below building materials.
BEFORE SELLING
Pressure washing is a helpful 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
Choose a sunny day, but don’t choose one that is extremely hot. This is the best condition for the surfaces to dry quickly without baking cleaning solutions onto your home’s surfaces.
If you are in an HOA, there could be guidelines about how often you have your house power washed or if you can do it yourself or if you have to hire a local company. You may only be under HOA rules concerning how your house looks, but it’s usually up to you to keep it looking good.
Pressure washing is one of the simplest and most effective methods to clean your entire home exterior. As long as it’s done correctly, it is safe for several surfaces and can eliminate months of dirt and stains.