Exterior siding is available in a variety of materials including stucco, vinyl, wood, brick and fiber cement to name just a few. However, no matter what material you have chosen as the siding for your home they all have one thing in common – – the need to be cleaned. Cleaning exterior siding should be a routine home maintenance chore but many homeowners put off cleaning their exterior siding until it is caked with dirt, grime and other materials. By following a few guidelines each year, exterior siding cleaning does not have to be a major pain in the neck (or back, legs, arms, etc.)
According to HowToCleanStuff.net, if you want the siding on your home to be clean you need to be prepared to spend a good deal of time and effort in cleaning your exterior siding. However, there is a very simple way to avoid such a backbreaking chore – – simply clean your exterior siding at least once every year. If you invest a few hours once or twice per year to clean your siding, the dirt and grime build up will not be as heavy and difficult to remove. Therefore, hosing the siding down and then using a soft bristle brush and mild soapy water for particularly dirty areas may be all you need each time you clean your siding. A long-handled brush makes it much easier to reach high spots for cleaning.
Another excellent way to clean exterior siding is power washing with a pressure washer. These machines spray water at an increased pressure to clean exterior siding. Some machines allow you to mix cleaning detergents with the water for extra cleaning power. However, there are some cautions when using pressure washers to clean exterior siding that homeowners should know and follow. Do not use the pressure washer on full power with masonry, stucco or pressed board siding. Blasting masonry can remove bits of mortar around the bricks and stucco and pressed board can both easily be damaged from water sprayed at a high pressure. Test a portion of your siding in an inconspicuous place to make sure that the water pressure will not damage siding. Furthermore, if you have damaged siding or wood siding that has holes or is constructed from soft wood; pressure washing can encourage rot and decay if water is allowed to creep under and around exterior siding.
Also remember, simply spraying water on mold and mildew will not remove either from exterior siding. A solution of bleach and water or a commercial mildew/mold remover should be used to spot treat these problem areas.
Sources:
DoItYourself.com
HowToCleanStuff.com
