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pressure wash my house??

marko55 | Posted in General Discussion on March 27, 2002 10:38am

hi gang….i’m getting bids for painting my house, with solid stains. one bidder wants to pressure wash the house; one doesn’t–he feels that water is driven into joints and wood, and doesn’t dry in a timely manner. that’s not too hard to believe, up here in the great northwest. he wants to simply wash the house with a bleach solution. any help? p.s. one reccomends oil-based stain, the other reccomends acrylic. i need help here too. thanks

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  1. Tejanohombre | Mar 28, 2002 06:51pm | #1

    I'd like to know the answer to this one myself.  My house needs re-staining now and I plan to do it myself.  It definitely needs cleaning first but I'm concerned about doing damage to the existing wood or sheathing w/ a pressure washer.  How 'bout it guys??

  2. canyon25 | Mar 29, 2002 01:32am | #2

    Without a doubt wash the house.

    You must remove all dirt and mildew before applying any new product.

    Does it rain where you live, your house dries after that. Anybody who really knows how to use the machine will not do any damage and will get the house clean. I like to use a bleach solution, and then throughly rinse the house clean. If you don't kill the mildew, etc. It will quickly come back. Painters that don't wash are cutting cornors. Most hate to do it because they have to wait days for it to dry and they usually want the quick buck and scram and washing interfers with that.

    Good luck.

    Jay

    1. User avater
      coonass | Mar 29, 2002 02:08am | #3

      Instead of a pressure washer use a hose end sprayer that you can add bleach and TSP to. Get a long handled scub brush to dip in pail with bleach and TSP. Rinse gently.

      KK

  3. User avater
    BarryE | Mar 29, 2002 02:12am | #4

    This can be one of those "it depends" answers.

    Not using a PW doesn't make you a bad painter. You can also use a bucket,a scrub brush and some TSP and bleach,give it a good scrub and hose it off. It may take longer but is not as invasive.

    Does the painter know how to use a PW? Does he have a good moisture meter? Is your siding a weathered type? Just waiting 2 days and then slapping some paint on doesn't cut it. You better know it's dry enough to paint. Depending on the weather, how much water was used and many other conditions it could take anywhere from 3 days to 2 wks.

    Pressure washing does not take the place of scraping or sanding. The PW can be anther tool in the process or a shortcut.

    It looks like both guys are planning on cleaning, they are using different methods.( assuming the one guy is using a scrubbrush) I wouldn't use that as the deciding factor.

    For the stain, I prefer the 100% acyrilics.

    Barry


    It's not the habitat, it's the inhabitants.

    Won't you be my neighbor


    1. JamesDuHamel | Mar 29, 2002 08:01am | #5

      Pressure washers have their place. Cleaning wooden siding to prep for painting ain't one of them.

      Someone asked the question "Does it rain on your house?"

      Well, yes it does. BUT... it does not rain sideways, at 1100 + PSI onto my house. If it did, my siding, windows, doors, etc... would leak. (I'll give the benefit of the doubt that a VERY small homeonwner type pressure washer is being used, and not a commercial 2200 + PSI unit. The larger commercial units can do some SERIOUS damage in the hands of a NON expert).

      When using a pressure washer, you have to avoid doors, windows, eaves, vents, seams, etc... If you don't, you will force water into areas where water was never intended to be. It can talke a very long time for these areas to dry out. Before painting, they MUST be dry, and sealed.

      Pressure washers, in the hands of someone not professionally trained and experienced, have a bad habit of blowing out sealants, caulking, weatherstripping, etc... and forcing water to penetrate deep behind siding, trim, into attic spaces, into eave spaces, etc... You must be extremly careful when using one, or you can cause a tremendous amount of damage - some you can see, and some you can't.

      Also, when cleaning off mildew and mold with a pressure washer, you are only spreading the mold and mildew, not actually removing it. Mold and mildew spores only get spread out over a larger area when blasted with a pressure washer. You must use something that will kill the spores, THEN clean the siding.

      Nothing beats a garden sprayer with a bleach/water/liquid laundry detergent mixture, a stiff brush on a pole for scrubbing those really dirty areas, and a garden hose for rinsing.  Do the cleaning AFTER the scraping and sanding. That way, you remove all the dirt, grime, mildew and mold, AND the scraping and sanding dust at one time. Otherwise, you'll have to come back and clean it off twice.

      Just a humble opinion...James DuHamel

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