In most cases, you should power wash your home at least annually between March and November. Power washing is a routine but essential home maintenance task that will protect outdoor surfaces and extend your property's life span.
Experts agree that spring or fall is the best time to pressure or power wash your house. The goal is to avoid cleaning when the temperature is too cold or hot. The best practice is to ensure that you pressure wash your home once per year between March and November when the temperatures are not extreme.
Cleaning your roof, siding and gutters in the spring after the rainy season protects your surfaces from growing mold and mildew. Enjoy comfortable outdoor weather: Pleasant temperatures make power washing easier. You'll clean more efficiently with better weather in spring when you aren't too cold or hot.
The ideal time for pressure washing is typically during the spring or fall seasons, as long as rain is limited. These seasons offer the most favorable conditions for the task, ensuring that water can evaporate properly and that the surfaces can dry thoroughly.
The average cost to pressure wash a house ranges from $500 to $900, with most people spending around $700 to pressure wash a 2,000 sq. ft. vinyl-sided home with normal grime levels, including the cost of all labor, equipment usage, and other materials.
You may be surprised to learn that pressure washers actually use less money than regular garden hoses! Therefore, by hiring a professional power cleaning service instead of trying to do it yourself with your hose, you're actually saving money on your water bill.
The main difference with power washing vs. pressure washing is the heat. The jet wash in a power washing machine uses heated water, whereas the water in a pressure washer is not heated.
Vinyl siding: Using high pressure on vinyl could strip the protective sealant, leaving an uneven appearance to the siding. Paint: Painted surfaces are prone to chip, peel or discolor with applied water pressure. Roof shingles: Shingles can lose their granules, detach or break if immense pressure is applied.
Most homes should be power washed a minimum of once a year. Power Washing your siding will actually extend the life of it so it won't need repairs and you won't need to replace it as often. It also makes your home look as good as new when it's tidy and clean on the exterior.
Keep it Warm
Now that you've taken care to disassemble and organize your pressure washer and its parts, don't leave it out in the cold. You'll want to store your pressure washer in a place that won't reach freezing temperatures.
Every home is unique, from its square footage to the materials it's made from, making it difficult to give an exact estimate. For example, a 2,000 square foot home can take anywhere from one to three hours to power wash.
Residual Dirt
Pressure washing will remove most of the dirt, however, if the area has not been cleaned in some time it may hold onto some of the dirt. Applying a cleaning agent such as diluted sodium hypochlorite can quickly remove residual dirt and algae staining.
Yes, using soap would increase the cleaning power of the pressure washing process, so the efficiency in removing dirt, grime, and persistent dirt marks will be greater.
Spring is the best time to pressure wash since pressure washing in the winter can lead to more ice on the property and pressure washing in the fall can lead to the leaves falling right back into your property and creating new deposits from decomposition.
Vinyl siding can withstand a powerful gas pressure washer (2,500-3,000 psi). Aluminum, stucco or soft-grain wood homes will do better with a less powerful washer (about 1,200-1,500 psi). Determine whether you will rent or buy your machine.
It's not the best idea to power wash when the outside temperature is below 40 degrees.
Pressure washing a house, on average, costs about $0.15 to $0.75 per square foot. That means you should expect to pay about $150 to $750 to have your entire house pressure washed by a professional. It is worth noting that larger projects will usually cost less.
Winter: Although power washing in winter is possible, we don't recommend it in extreme cold or snow. However, we can power wash on warmer days or during breaks in the weather.
Cons: Potential damage: In inexperienced hands, a pressure washer can cause damage to your car's paint, trim, or delicate parts. High-pressure water can strip away protective coatings and even force water into vulnerable areas, leading to rust or electrical issues.
Preparing to Pressure Wash
It's not a good idea to stand on a ladder while pressure washing, so be sure to get an extension wand if you have a multi-story home. You'll also need to prepare your home to be pressure washed by removing or covering your light fixtures, AC compressor, shrubs, and outlets.
This process could be harmful to your water supply or pump. When considering a power washing company, we always recommend that you ask if they will need access to your water supply. The answer is almost always yes.
Instead of relying on high pressure to blast away dirt and grime, soft washing uses a combination of low-pressure power washing and cleaning solutions to clean surfaces. These solutions settle in the layers of dirt, eating them away from the inside. The cleaners then use low-pressure power washers to rinse the surface.
If you choose a more powerful pressure washer, it'll cost you more. However, you may find that you don't need to spend as long on the job. But as an example, a 2100W pressure washer will use 2.1kWh, which will cost you 51p per hour.
Consider a light- to medium-duty pressure washer. As with stucco, use a wider-pattern 40-degree tip for painted brick. If you have vinyl siding, look for pressure ratings between 1900 and 2800 PSI — a medium- or heavy-duty pressure washer — and a pressure tip with a 40-degree pattern.