A guide to washing your house
There's something satisfying about a perfectly manicured home, you walk past a house around the corner on your morning stroll, and you wonder how they get it looking so damn perfect! Chances are, they spend endless hours maintaining it so their investment has kerb appeal.
If you want to give your home more kerb appeal, an important place to start is by washing it. Think how good a car looks when you wash it, a house is much the same. I've recently got a Ryobi pressure washer so thought where best to try it out than washing our house on a 30 degree summers day. Before I proceeded, I researched if the pressure washer was the right choice for our house (an early 1900's villa check it out on our Instagram).
Not all surfaces can handle the powerful jet of a pressure washer; plaster and brick can be damaged when using one. Below I've outlined tips on how to get the job done right and your house shining for the warmer months.
Get prepared to pressure wash.
Always assess the walls, windows, and paintwork on your house, it's easy to get under this and lift paint and any loose debris.
Cleaning solution Water alone is enough to get most exteriors clean if it's road dust you're removing. If you have mold or mildew, use a specialty house cleaner designed to kill mold in the pressure washer’s detergent compartment. We used Dulux's exterior house cleaner and it worked a treat.
Choose the right nozzle Today it was obvious that this is really important. Your pressure washer will probably have x2 nozzles, one will work in a circular motion and the other will fan based on your requirement. The fan nozzle was the best for the job because you can slow it down to use the cleaning solution and then speed up the jet to remove the mold off spouting and fan it for no damage on the walls.
Secure windows, doors, and pets. We put Frankie inside to stop her drinking the water because of the cleaning solution. Close all the windows and doors before getting started so you don't overspray inside. Also, put on a pair of safety glasses or sunglasses to protect your eyes from dirt and debris.
How to pressure wash your house:
Apply the cleaning solution Our pressure washer has a detergent mixer at the back of the machine. We poured the solution into the container and put the nozzle on slow and coated the house and gutters before we blasted it off.
Spray at a downward angle. Work with your home's features and direct your sprayer downward. Never spray into seams or cracks where water can become trapped and damage your house.
Keep the hose moving. Use a steady side-to-side sweeping motion as you spray your house — lingering too long on one spot can cause damage. If you are using a cleanser, work from the bottom of your house to the top, then rinse from top to bottom.
Once the solution is washed off the house and the house is clean, I would recommend going around with a hose and saturate the plants and grass with water to dilute any harsh side effects. You won't have to do anything but admire once this is done.For all things Ryobi, you're at home at bunnings. We have one just around the corner from our place for all those handy jobs.This blog post is a Collaboration with Ryobi, all words and direction are our own.