Believe it or not, your home accumulates dirt, mould and other residues over time, and will need a decent clean. Most opt for using a pressure washer which has its advantages and the main one being, that it’s faster. House owners will need to be careful while using a pressure washer though, so as to not damage the paint or even the material underneath, even if it’s brick. It is safe to clean your house with a pressure washer, so long as you’re careful, we’ll get into this a little later.
Pressure washing is a great way to clean your house not only because of its speed but because it is really effective at removing dirt and grime build-up. It’s possible to wash by hand, but it would take a long time and require a lot of elbow grease. So, unless you’re ready to be scrubbing for hours on end; a pressure washer is the best option out there. This article will explore some reasons why you would want to clean your house and why you should use a pressure washer.
The paint looks better
First of all, and most important to most people, is the looks. No one wants a dirty house that’s had years of mildew, dirt and grime build-up, a good clean with a pressure washer will make your house or building look better. If you’re looking at selling, having a clean and fresh house will increase the value by a fair margin.
Saves time
As discussed before the main advantage of a pressure washer is the time it saves. You could wash the entire house in the same time it would take to wash one wall by hand. Not only does it save time, but it’s more efficient and effective. The high pressure of the water is enough to wash everything away.
Prolongs paint life
Mildews, moulds and dirt all love to eat away at paint. By cleaning your house once a year or so, you prevent the paint on your home from being damaged, and requiring a new paint job. Consistently washed house paint could go from lasting 4-5 years to 7-8.
Prepares your house for a new coat of paint
A great way to prepare your home, or building for a fresh coat of paint is to give it a pressure wash. Your residential and commercial painting services will be able to do a much better job at getting your house painted, so it can last for the years to come.
Some things to keep in mind when pressure washing your house
Know your pressure washer
Before getting started you need to know how to use a pressure washer. Keep the nozzle pointed away from any people or your own skin. The high pressure can tear skin away and cause serious injury if used inappropriately.
Use a wide nozzle and be mindful of psi
Try to use a nozzle that has a wide arc, to give you more surface area to clean, and also helps prevent peeling paint. To clean house paint the psi should be around 1200 to 1500 and the head of the nozzle needs to be around 2 meters away. If you’re too close the water can not only peel paint away but chisel lines into the wood or brick underneath.
Be careful of the angle
If the house you’re cleaning is made from wood then likely it has sidings – how the panels of wood overlap one another – and you need to avoid cleaning up into them, and breaking into the interior of the wall. Not only will it damage the paint, but it can cause all manner of issues on the inside of the wall if it’s filled with water.
Avoid hot summer days
Australia has some hot summers, so if you’re using a cleaning or bleach solution it’s best to clean on a spring day when the temperature isn’t too high. The hot sun can bake the solutions to the paint and cause irreversible staining.
How to pressure wash your house
Equipment you will need
Pressure washer
Wide nozzle
Sponge
Ladder
Bucket
Plastic tarp
Bleach
Instructions
- Protect your utilities and avoid plants
If you have air conditioning units, or any electrical utilities mounted outside, it would be a good idea to try to avoid spraying on them. Cover them with a plastic tarp if you need to, just remember that the tarp is there when you’re finished.
- Rinse the whole house
Use your pressure washer without a cleaning solution to remove any large dirt or mould build-ups over your whole house. Try to avoid the electrical units and surrounding plants. If your house is especially dirty wearing a pair of safety glasses is a good idea to avoid any bit of debris landing in your eyes.
- Soak bleach into mouldy areas
After you’ve done your first initial wash do a quick look check. If there are any large areas of mould or dirt leftover, soak a bleach and water solution – 1 part bleach to 4 parts water – and carefully sponge the solution over the areas, so it can soak in. Don’t scrub it, as the bleach is strong enough to kill the bacteria. Avoid getting bleach on your skin or in your eyes, wear some latex or nitrile gloves, and safety glasses while doing this.
- Pressure wash again
If you have a pressure washer that has a tank on it, you can use the same 1 part bleach to 10 parts water solution in the tank, or purchase an exterior paint cleaning solution from your local hardware store, and use that. If your washer doesn’t have a tank, don’t worry too much, you will just need to do some more hand sponging from the previous step.
Once ready, do a thorough second pressure wash of the whole exterior of your house.
- Rinse excess bleach or cleaning solution
If you used a cleaning solution, wait around 10-15 minutes to let the solution do its work, then do the last rinse of your house. Clean from the top down, so you don’t have to wash over dirty spots again, to let the dirt run to the ground.
- Let your house dry
The paint and wood (if your house is made of wood) will inevitably have soaked in some water, so it’s best to let it dry if you’re looking to get your home repainted. Wait around 48 hours before you or your local residential painting services start slapping on a fresh coat.
Our Living Home Blog 