Pavement is a pretty common component of any property. It provides a safe place for people to walk in the area and generally makes a community more inviting. Unfortunately, dirty pavement is common because exterior cement is exposed to everything the elements have to offer. Soiled concrete can affect health, safety, curb appeal, and business if it is not taken care of in a timely and professional manner.

The Dangers of Soiled Concrete

Concrete is one of the first things customers and visitors notice when they approach a property. If your pavements don’t look clean, they can seriously hurt your curb appeal in a number of ways. Dirty pavements can lead your guests or potential customers to think that the rest of the property is in ill repair as well, causing you to lose business or potential tenants.

Unsightly concrete can also hurt the moral and work quality of your employees. It has been proven that people work better in places where they feel the working environment is good. Clean pavements directly affect employee morale for the better. 

Even if you don’t own a business, your pavements are speaking for you. Dirty pavements are unsafe in a number of ways, leading to mold growth and perpetuating the presence of other allergens. These can make breathing unsafe and make concrete slippery to walk on. 

Dirty concrete is more susceptible to both staining and other deterioration, including water damage and cracking. Contaminants spread across the pavement’s surface, working their way into the pores and prying them open further. Soiled and stained pavements are significantly more likely to crack or chip.

In this way, dirty pavements can lower the value of the whole property. On the other hand, cleaning your concrete regularly is a great way to extend its lifespan, so making cleaning your pavement a priority is actually the more cost-effective option since you save the expense and inconvenience of repairs.

How Do You Clean Pavement With a Hose?

One way to clean dirty pavements is with a common garden hose. All you need is a bucket with a cleaning agent like baking soda or quality liquid detergent and some warm water. You can mix these together well and apply them to your dirty concrete with a scrub brush and some elbow grease, rinsing the concoction off with the hose.

This method is initially appealing because most people have all the necessary tools already at hand. However, cleaning pavement by hand is both time- and energy-consuming. It is also not the most effective method. To really give your pavements a thorough clean, pressure washing is the way to go.

Pressure Washing Dirty Concrete

If your pavement is simply a little dusty, cleaning with household cleaners and a hose may be enough. On the other hand, the power behind a professional pressure wash provides more thorough and lasting results for pavements. Some contamination cannot be seen clearly until the surface is cleaned, so you may not even know just how dirty your pavement is until it is washed. 

Pressure washing, when performed properly, is a powerful way to clear away dirt, debris, stains, algae, and mold without damaging the concrete itself. The way it can wash a slate clean is almost magical, tackling even the most stubborn stains. Dirty pavements are no match for a pressure washing machine in the right hands.

Can Pressure Washing Damage Dirty Pavement?

Often people’s biggest concern about pressure washing is that it will damage their property. This is a valid concern. The wrong pressure settings or nozzle can chip away at delicate components like roofing tiles and siding and even more hardy materials like concrete. In inexperienced hands, the risk of damaging your property irreversibly with a pressure washer is ever-present. 

That risk is compounded if damage to the concrete is already present. Applying pressure to cracked concrete is a sure way to exacerbate the problem, propagating cracking or chipping. Before you or a professional team begins the cleaning process, cracks should be addressed and repaired. A professional can also help you identify areas that need attention beforehand to minimize damage.

Professional Pavement Cleaning Services

When you let a professional manage your pavement cleaning, you can be sure that the risk of damage is neutralized. An experienced team knows precisely which pressure settings, nozzles, and cleaning solutions to guarantee powerful cleaning results for the concrete on your property. These will last longer than other cleaning treatments, ensuring that your pavements look brighter and cleaner for longer.

Graffiti refers to any drawings or writing applied to public surfaces, usually with spray paint. Commonly the result of vandalism, graffiti is unsightly and significantly hurts curb appeal. Even worse, the application of spray paint can seriously damage some surfaces like brick and stucco. Removing graffiti has its own set of challenges, but it has to be done (and done well) if you want to restore your property to its original glory. 

How to Get Rid of Graffiti

Removing graffiti requires an impressive amount of finesse. An inexperienced hand will leave bits of paint or a “shadow” of where the graffiti used to be. Without experience to temper pressure settings, DIY attempts to clean away graffiti can also damage the material underneath, leaving scoring or causing it to chip. Entrusting the task to the professionals is the best way to make sure the graffiti is removed completely and satisfactorily.

Removing graffiti is usually a two-part process, applying the right blend of chemicals to wear down the spray paint and then rinsing the surface clean with a good pressure or power wash. A professional pressure washing team will know which solutions and methods are best for your specific situation. 

The Correct Chemicals

While sometimes it is possible to use pressure washing alone to remove graffiti—especially if the paint hasn’t had long to sink into the surface—usually treating the stain with chemicals is the most important step. The right cocktail of chemicals is effective at removing graffiti for one of two reasons: either it will wear down the paint’s color or, even better, it will destroy the glue within the paint. 

If you don’t want to damage your painted surface further, it is vital that you use the right chemical solution to clean away graffiti. This often includes trisodium phosphate (TSP), but the mixture should reflect the kind of surface being cleaned and how long the paint has been there. How the cleaners are applied is also important since you don’t want to drive the chemicals into the surface.

It is common to apply the chemical cleaning solution with a pressure washer on a low setting: 80 psi is a safe choice. This will coat the surface of the spray paint with the chemicals without forcing the cleaners into the material’s pores. Once the mixture has had a little time to work on the graffiti, it can be rinsed off with a higher pressure. 

Removing Graffiti with Pressure Washing

A pressure washer will be your best friend when removing graffiti. In some cases, it is all that is needed to strip away the unwanted art. In others, pressure washers can be used to apply chemicals and to rinse them and the paint away. Sometimes, however, you need a little more power to clean away graffiti. Sometimes this can be achieved by using a turbo nozzle, which focuses a pressure washer’s spray even more. In other instances, you will need to add heat.

Heat is the biggest difference between pressure washing and power washing. Power washers incorporate a heating element, allowing them to utilize rinsing power 100-times that of cold water. Hot water gives home- and business owners 100% success in removing graffiti 98% of the time. We recommend using hot water at low pressure to layer the chemicals onto the spray paint’s surface, then rinsing at higher pressures to completely erase the stain. 

Is It Possible to Power Wash Graffiti Off of Brick?

Getting graffiti off of brick can be troublesome for a number of reasons. Because brick is so obviously porous, the wrong pressure can chip pieces of it off or embed the spray paint further into the material. Use gentler chemicals and pressure settings to apply them. Consult with your local pressure washing company for recommendations or let them manage the job for best results. 

Will Pressure Washing Remove Spray Paint from Metal Surfaces? 

If you discover graffiti on your vehicle, it can be tempting to reach for the pressure washer. We recommend you pause and consider professional assistance. Metal, especially when it is used to shape vehicles, doesn’t always hold up well under a stream of pressurized water. While a pressure washer can usually strip away spray paint from metal, the results aren’t always improved. 

The success of pressure washing metal depends very much on the type of nozzle used, how the paint was applied, and how long it has been there. Interestingly enough, unlike other surfaces, paint added more recently can be more difficult to remove from metal surfaces. Get a professional opinion before moving forward.

Rot is one of the necessary evils in the world. It is a natural component of the decomposition process that makes our world self-sustaining, but for all its necessity, it can be a real thorn in homeowners’ sides. If you’re worried about wood rot on your fence or home, here are some things you should know.

The Rot Problem

Wood rot is a form of decay triggered by moisture, and places where the moisture content is high (fence panels touching the ground, shady areas, and spots near gutters or around plant life) are trouble spots you should keep your eye on. When rot is left on its own, it spreads rapidly, eating away at wood and compromising its structural integrity. 

When wood is slated to be used in construction, it is first treated. However, this is not always a failsafe to prevent rot from taking hold. No amount of painting over rot will remove it, and this is one of the reasons why you should pressure wash wooden surfaces before painting them. Otherwise, trapped rot can cause the paint on your fence, deck, or exterior walls to peel, letting in even more moisture.

Catching Wood Rot Early On

Wood rot looks different depending on the stage of its growth and medium on which it grows. Homeowners should learn to recognize rot at any stage to catch and get rid of it before it can spread. Again, be especially careful of wooden areas that can soak up a lot of moisture, places like deck posts and the base of fences.

• Early-stage rot often looks like cotton wool. It is also common to see mushrooms sprout. If you see mushrooms growing near your wood, take action at once. 
• Discoloration may also be an indicator for rot. If the discolored area is soft or spongy to the touch (we recommend checking with a screwdriver or the handle of a fork), rot is clearly indicated.
• Visible dampness is also a red flag. Keep an eye out for beading water droplets or other condensation. If you don’t have rot development in these areas yet, the likelihood that you will is high if you don’t make a change to prevent it.

Can Rot Damage Be Repaired?

Unfortunately, rot damage cannot be reversed. Doing so would require regrowing the cellulose that the rot consumed. If your deck or fence does sustain rot damage, the first step in addressing it is eradicating the wood rot. This can be done with antifreeze which is toxic. If the damage is minimal, you can also fill in any channels or holes with epoxy, strengthening the planks. If, however, the damage is extensive, the best course of action is to replace the compromised wood.

The Importance of Addressing Wood Rot

When wood is rotten, its structural integrity takes a hit. A fence cannot adequately protect your property if the wood is soft in the same way a rotten deck cannot support the weight of gathered parties. If you have plans to clean or paint your wood, pressure washing rotten areas will only exacerbate the damage. If you plan to pressure wash your deck or fence, checking for rot is an essential prerequisite. 

Preventing Rot

Homeowners have several tools at their disposal for preventing rot development on their property. East coast homeowners especially should make these checks and precautions a priority to protect their properties despite humid conditions.

• Watch your plants—Dripping trees, tall grass, and closely growing shrubs all run the risk of wetting wood enough for rot to develop. Be mindful of your foliage, and do what you can to keep your wood dry.
• Block out the moisture—You can’t keep your wood dry all the time on the New York coast. Preparing your wood by staining or painting it is a good way to prevent moisture from soaking into your wood and creating a climate for wood rot growth.
• Consider pressure-treated wood—This precaution also helps keep moisture out. The pressure-treating process combines chemical treatment and pressure to make wood even hardier.
• Caulk exposed gaps—If you notice gaps or cracks in your wood (especially around exterior doors and windows), a fresh coat of a latex exterior caulk can keep rot at bay.

Alternatives to a Wooden Fence

If you are still very concerned about rot growth on your property, you can eliminate the risk for your fence at least with a structure made of a material other than wood. Some materials like Trex mirror the appearance of wood without having the same susceptibility to rot. Others like vinyl, stone, or ornamental metal lend a different look but the same kind of protection.