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Common Pressure Washing Mistakes Homeowners Make

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Common Pressure Washing Mistakes Homeowners Make

FlippingHeck.com Staff
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Cleaning a house, especially a large one, can be tedious. For most homeowners, scrubbing surfaces and the like is hard work. This is why handy cleaning gadgets like pressure washers are such a Godsend for most. With a pressure washer, cleaning your home becomes easier. You might even enjoy doing it.

However, pressure washers are quite risky to use. They can cause a lot of trouble if not used correctly. Sadly, most homeowners don’t know how to use a pressure washer properly. Due to that, they tend to make a lot of mistakes when using one. These mistakes can damage home gadgets, cause injury, and even loss of life. It is thus usually advised to hire a pressure washing company to do the task. But, if you are an expert and want to rent or buy a pressure washer, you can try and visit Hotsy Equipment Company.

Still, you need to know what these mistakes are. That way, you can avoid them when you do your house pressure washing. You will also be better able to gauge the quality of the work your hired cleaning company does for you. To that end, we have compiled a list of these common mistakes and how to avoid them.

1. Hiring The Wrong Pressure Washing Company

This mistake is common among homeowners who enlist professional pressure washing services. A lot of homeowners tend to base their choice of a pressure washing company on the cheapness of service.

It’s risky to just hire the cheapest outfit for the job. You need to also look at some other things about any such cleaning outfit before you hire. You need to check for:

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  • Proper license: Before they award a license, the state will usually assess some things about the outfit, including adherence to safety rules. A pressure washing outfit with no license has likely not gone through any such assessment and will be a poor choice.
  • Cleaning methods: This will, among other things, allow you to see how safe their work methods are.
  • Customer reviews: These will help you assess how they perform and check the quality of service before you hire.
  • An insurance policy: This is vital if you must be assured that you will get some redress for any damages they may cause in cleaning.

2. Wrong Pressure, Wrong Surface

Different surfaces have different capacities to withstand pressure. This is why, for instance, roof pressure washing will call for less pressure than, say, washing your driveway. For this reason, pressure washers can be set to give different pressures. Sadly, many users don’t know what pressure to use for what surface. As a result, they use too much pressure on weak surfaces and ruin their stuff.

A good rule of thumb is to use very low pressures for weaker surfaces. High-pressure settings should be for very hard surfaces. Using the correct specs for pressure washers is also very crucial. Pressure washers with pressure specs between 2000-3200psi will be great for pressure washing house walls, sidewalks, and driveways. Pressure specs under 2000psi are great for softer surfaces.

3. Using Water Alone

Most pressure washing jobs call for the use of detergent or chemical cleansers. Sadly, many homeowners tend to think jets of water are all they need for the job. This doesn’t seem right, and it can make your house pressure washing job tedious. In addition, some stains need more than just water jets to come off.

Before using your pressure washer, apply some detergent or chemical cleanser to the relevant surfaces. Then, let it sit for a while to break up the dirt and kill all mold before pressure wash.

4. Pressure Washing The Wrong Surfaces

Not all surfaces should be pressure washed. For instance, pressure washing AC units or other appliances are bad. The pressure could force water into the circuit and cause damage. Weathered walls and surfaces with peeling paint should also not be pressure washed.

5. Failing To Wear Safety Gear

Pressure washers are not toys, and there are so many ways using them puts you at risk of injury. For instance, a rebounding jet of water could hit your eyes and blind you. So when you embark on your cleaning, make sure to use some basic safety gear like goggles, gloves, and boots.

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6. Using Improper Cleaning Techniques

A great pressure washing job calls for the use of the right techniques, of which a lot of homeowners are ignorant. This makes their result poor, especially due to streaks.

Of great importance are sweeping and overlapping techniques. You have one streakless finished product when each sweep properly overlaps with the next and previous one. Otherwise, you end up with patterns of streaks that mark a poor pressure washing job.

7. Pressure Washing In The Wrong Order

Yes, there is a right order for house pressure washing. Unfortunately, homeowners tend to make the mistake of washing in random order. The result is that they sometimes have to do some surfaces twice. For instance, pressure washing windows before the roof may lead to water runoff from the roof, soiling the already-washed windows. Washing in the correct order will save you much time and energy.

In what order then, you may ask, should you wash?

It would be best if you began with the roof, then work your way downwards. This way, you don’t sully previously washed surfaces.

8. Failing To Be Familiar With the Gadget

This one is perhaps the most common of these mistakes. People tend to handle gadgets without knowing the proper way to use them. That is risky behavior that may lead to disaster.

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If you are renting a pressure washer, ask to be shown how to work it. If you have your own but do not know how to use it properly, then take the time to go through the manual or look for video tutorials online and understand it well enough before your next cleaning exercise.

Final Thoughts

Pressure washing is an excellent way to clean if you know how to go about it properly. These mistakes we have just treated turn that convenience into a hazard. Thankfully, you now know what these mistakes are and how to avoid them. We expect that your pressure washing exercises will be safe, enjoyable, and efficient from here on out.

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