Your home · 10 guides
Power Washing: problems and fixes, explained by Doug
Doug Steel is the only power washing member of BNI Preston Center. These guides are written for a Dallas–Fort Worth reader who has the problem right now: what is happening, what to check, when to call, and what it costs.
- What a house wash costs in Dallas, and the five things that move the price A house wash is priced on the house in front of the technician, not a flat rate. Here is the range we publish, the five factors behind every quote, and how to compare bids fairly. The range we publish, and why yours lands where it doesFive factors behind every house wash quoteRoof, gutters and windows: what each addsWhy one bid is half the price of another
- Storefronts, garages and HOA common areas: how often to wash and how to do it after hours A commercial property cannot close for a day so someone can clean it. Here is how to set a washing schedule by traffic, how night and weekend work runs, and what to ask about wash water. Frequency follows traffic, and timing follows your hoursSetting a schedule by what your customers seeHow after-hours work actually runsGarages and parking lots: oil, gum and reopening times
- Soft washing or pressure washing: the right method for every surface around your home Soft washing and pressure washing are not two names for the same thing. One relies on force, the other on a cleaning solution, and each surface of your home needs the right one. The one-paragraph answerTwo methods, two different ideas of cleanWalls and siding, material by materialRoofs get soft washed, no exceptions
- Rust, oil and orange tree stains on the driveway: what causes them and what removes them Orange spots by the sprinklers, a dark patch where the car leaks, brown shadows under the pecan tree. Each stain has a different cause and needs a different treatment, and more pressure is rarely the answer. Each stain needs its own chemistryIdentifying what is on your concreteRust: why it keeps coming backOil and transmission fluid: set realistic expectations
- Renting a pressure washer for the house: what you can do yourself and where to stop A sturdy concrete driveway is a reasonable weekend project. Stone, stucco, painted siding and the roof are where rented machines do permanent damage. Here is where I draw the line. Yes for plain concrete, no for the house itselfWhat a rented machine is actually putting outJobs a careful homeowner can handleSurfaces where DIY does lasting harm
- How often to wash the house, roof, gutters and windows in North Texas Most homes here need a house wash about once a year, gutters twice, and the roof only every few years. Here is a calendar that fits shade, trees and North Texas weather, and the order that keeps one job from undoing another. A calendar that fits most homes hereThe house: once a year, twice under heavy shadeGutters: spring and fall, or every season under big treesThe roof: every few years, not every spring
- House washing day: how to prepare and what happens from arrival to final walkthrough A house wash takes a few hours and very little of your time, if the prep is done. Here is the checklist we send, what happens at each step, and what to look for when the crew finishes. What the day looks like, in briefBefore you book: what to tell the companyYour prep checklist for the night beforeArrival and the walk-around
- Black streaks on the roof: what they are, whether they matter, and how they come off Those dark stripes running down the shingles are almost always algae. They will not collapse your roof, but they are worth dealing with the right way, and the wrong way can cost you the roof. Short answer: it is algae, and it is fixableWhat is actually growing on the shinglesAlgae, hail or wear? Telling them apart from the groundDoes it hurt the roof, or only the look?
- Before you hire a pressure washing company: the questions that sort pros from sprayers Anyone can buy a pressure washer and print a yard sign. These are the questions that reveal whether a company will protect your house or damage it, and the answers to listen for. Ten minutes of questions that protect the houseStart with method: how will you clean my walls and roof?Ask about the solution, and what keeps it off your plantsInsurance is a question, and proof is the answer
- Your stone has turned green and black: what is growing on your house and how to remove it The limestone that made you buy the house has gone dark on the shady side and the patio is slick after rain. Here is what is actually growing there, why a rented pressure washer can ruin the surface, and how a soft wash removes it without damage. The house looked white when you bought itWhat is growing on your house and why it likes North TexasWhat you can safely check and do yourselfWhen it can wait, and when it should not