Locating a Power Washing Company

Power washing hasn’t always been looked at by the public as a serious profession. Spoiled by fly-by-night companies due to potentially low start up costs, the industry has always battled an uphill struggle to be a professional service industry that can stand tough on its own. Being a contractor I have heard shocking stories of people being taken advantage of or having their property damaged by dishonorable contractors that thought they knew what they were doing.

The good news is there are professional power washing contractors out there that do have knowledge of equipment, cleaners, methods, business and customer satisfaction. While searching for a highly regarded contractor in your area keep some things in mind; always ask the contractor questions to test their knowledge, ask how long they’ve been in business, make sure they power wash full time, and that they specialize in power washing only.

Stay away from contractors or handymen that offer every service under the sun like hauling trash, mowing, painting, power washing and so on. Find a contractor that makes his living serving others not one that just does it on the weekends for some extra beer money. Don’t buy into an incredibly low price, if it sounds too good to be true it probably is, remember you get what you pay for. Lastly, you should always ask the contractor for a written guarantee, references and testimonials. If they cannot stand behind their work or their customers aren’t saying first-rate things about them then you can’t anticipate them giving you the professional results you expect.

What a Deck Cleaning Company Can Do

Having your wood deck properly maintained every couple of years is a great way to protect its beauty and value but some home owners neglect their wood deck so long that it becomes an eye sore to them and their neighbors. A deck that is cleaned and sealed correctly, with the right cleaners, sealers and methods, will remain in good condition for several years. To have your deck looking good all the time, maintenance is required every other year. Maintenance methods will differ with every deck cleaning company but usually it will include a light washing and a re-seal of all the horizontal surfaces like the deck floor, steps and top hand rails. Every second maintenance coat, or every forth year, the entire deck needs to be washed and re-coated including the rim boards and spindles. Being on a deck cleaning maintenance schedule like this with a quality deck cleaning company will mean your deck will never look neglected and can be enjoyed for many years.

Power Washing Tips for DIYers

Many home owners around the country prefer to take on their own exterior cleaning projects. Some may have had a bad experience with an unethical contractor in the past or they may just enjoy the satisfaction of being a do-it-yourselfer. Whatever the case; attempting a project like cleaning your homes exterior can be a frightening task. Most accidents resulting in personal injury or property damage are caused from a lack of knowledge. You can help this situation by doing your homework and researching cleaning methods and techniques. For instance, the Vinyl Siding Institute has guidelines and suggestions for cleaning siding as do most of the major shingle manufacturers for cleaning shingle roofs. Knowing these guidelines and other power washing tips can make your exterior cleaning task a little easier and safer. It can also help to reduce the risk of damaging your siding, roof, deck, or other surfaces around your property.

Your Property and Power Washing

Your home is probably your largest investment and you know it is well worth the time and effort to take care of it. Power washing can increase your homes curb appeal which reflects on your image. Cleaning the exterior of your home and property can also increase its value, but it can be a daunting task. Finding a professional contractor that offers power washing services can be well worth the effort and cost. A reputable contractor will have the proper knowledge, equipment, and cleaners necessary to do the job properly and in a timely fashion. The end result for you is a well maintained home, free of dirt, mold, and mildew which will cause rot and decay. Having these services done eliminates the risk of future repairs, renovations, and replacements of the building materials that make up your home. Whether you’re a do-it-yourselfer or looking to hire a contractor, taking care of your homes exterior helps to protect your largest investment.

Wood Decks and Wood Deck Cleaning

Restoring a wood deck is not something the average home owner should tackle unless they have some prior experience working with sealers along with using a pressure washer. Decks can be severely damaged by power washers so if you are going to attempt this yourself, test your water pressure on a scrap piece of wood first. As with any other type of power washing job, you need to make sure you have a good pressure washer and use only professional grade deck cleaning products and wood sealers / stains. Once you have the proper cleaning equipment, deck cleaner and wood sealer, it is time to get to work.

Start by applying the deck cleaning solution as directed in the instructions. The instructions for the cleaner should give you an approximate time to wait before washing. Once it's time to wash, start at one end of the deck and work your way across and remember not to get too close to the wood with the tip of the wand. Use a wide fan tip and no more than 1000 psi. Keep the wand in front of you working from side to side in a half moon type swinging action. This pulls the wand away from the wood at the end of each pass before swinging back the other way and helps to feather out the entire deck floor. This type of motion will eliminate unsightly wand marks that occur from abrupt stopping and starting.

Rinse the deck thoroughly and apply a contractor grade brightener to the wood following the directions and then rinse thoroughly once more. It is very important for you to read and follow the instructions for the wood sealer you purchase. Failure to apply the sealer as directed could lead to disaster and ruin the deck permanently! You may want to consider hiring a Wood Deck Cleaning Contractor

Low Pressure Tactics

What does it mean when a contractor says he uses low pressure washing methods? Low pressure washing is using very low pounds per square inch (psi) of water pressure to clean with. Contractors using low pressure rely on their cleaners to do the work and the gallons per minute (gpm) to do the washing and rinsing. This method of low pressure, quality cleaners, and high gallons per minute is very effective in cleaning most anything on your property. This method also eliminates risk of damaging your property like forcing water behind your home’s siding or shredding the wood fibers on your deck.

Contractors not using the low pressure method will be using high water pressure to blast the surface clean instead of depending on quality cleaners to do the work. High pressure can no doubt damage vinyl siding, decks, roofs, and even certain types of cement and brick. Make sure you, or the contractor you hire, use the low pressure washing method.

Wood Deck Cleaning

Deck cleaning and sealing maintenance are very popular services among home owners whom know how important it can be to the life of their deck. With cleaning and sealing the biggest factor in doing the job properly is choosing the right cleaners and sealers. Preparing the wood properly is just as important as the quality of sealer that will be used. The number one reason a sealer fails is because the wood was not prepared properly, it doesn’t matter if the sealer being used is very expensive if the wood is not prepped properly the sealer will fail prematurely.

Another fact to note is that wood is actually very soft and can be severely damaged and scared from a high pressure washer. It is best to practice washing on a scrap piece of the same kind of wood your deck was built with. If you don’t have a scrap piece of wood, practice on an inconspicuous spot on your deck that is more or less hidden from view.

If you are not experienced with operating a power washer or if you don't have experience with staining wood, you may not want to tackle a deck restoration project yourself. The best solution is to hire a professional deck cleaning contractor to do the job for you.

Deck Cleaning Contractor

Welcome to the deck cleaning blog of Midwest Pro Wash. We are a deck restoration contractor providing deck restoration services to residents in Indiana. We do something that is unique to the industry, we provide free information about deck cleaning and restoration to help educate home owners so they can make a more informed and intelligent decision when looking for deck cleaning services. Stay tuned and check in often for deck cleaning tips, information, and advise. Thanks again for visiting the deck cleaning blog of Midwest Pro Wash.