When it comes to keeping up with the exterior of your home, you want to be sure to keep your home looking its best while also being cautious to not damage your siding, windows, and porch with chemicals or mistreatment. The main focal point of the exterior is your siding. No matter what type of siding your home has, cleaning your siding and keeping it up to date with maintenance to extend its overall life. Every type of siding has their own cleaning and maintenance needs that is dependent on the product. However, regardless of the siding type you want to keep the surface clean no matter what.
Cleaning Your Siding’s Surface
Cleaning the surface of your siding is important for keeping mold, dirt, debris, and insects from causing damage to the siding and causing the need for it to be replaced. Every so often, you want to just do a once over on your home and make sure there are no major defects on the exterior such as chips, cracks, or warps in the siding that require your attention. Once you do a once over, you can wash the surface with either a hose or a pressure washer. If you notice that your siding isn’t as dirty, you can lightly spray the hose across the exterior of your house to get off the surface layer of debris, dust, and insects.
If you think your surface needs more cleaning than the hose, you can pressure wash the siding but there are a few things you want to be cautious of so you don’t damage your siding. Also, if you don’t feel comfortable taking on the task of pressure washing your home, there are companies that specialize in this and will do it for you.
Before you pressure wash the siding, make sure you don’t have damage on any boards of your siding. If you do have damage, repair them before you pressure wash. If you don’t repair the damage, the high pressure from the pressure washer could cause more damage than before.
What to do when Power Cleaning Your Siding
When you are ready to start power washing, you need to make sure you know the difference between the powers and which one you need for cleaning your siding. If you use too much power, you can cause the boards to crack or chip as well as stripping paint or stain from the surface. However, if you use too little power, the water can seep behind the boards and can cause water damage. Do you research and ask professionals if you have any questions in regards to what kind of power you should use. You want to find the perfect amount between too much and too little.
There are a few things that you want to watch out for when power washing your siding so you don’t cause any damage to other components of your home. Remove screens from windows and try to stay away from power washing the windows to avoid cracks from the pressure. Also try and keep a distance from outdoor lights and freshly painted surfaces. Also, make sure you are using a cleaner that is specific to landscaping, siding, landscaping, and the exterior of your home. Some cleaners may have chemicals in them that can harm your siding.
What Order Should Your Siding be Cleaned?
Once you take all the proper precautions you can start washing your siding. When pressure washing, you should start from the top of your house and work your down so all the dirt runs down the side of the house and doesn’t run over areas that are already clean. Take caution and make sure you keep an eye on the surface you’re washing to make sure you don’t need to adjust the power of water pressure.
Now that your siding is clean, it is vital that you keep on the maintenance regularly and keep an eye on the exterior of your home to catch any damage that occurs before it gets any worse. With the proper upkeep on your siding, you can potentially extend the overall life of the product and keep it looking so great that your home’s curb appeal will increase the overall value of your home. Here at Rocky Mountain Forest Products, we proudly offer a wide variety of siding options. Give us a call to learn all about what we can provide!
