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What’s the Difference Between Power Washing, Pressure Washing, and Soft Washing?

a before and after image of a home's siding being pressure washed

If you’ve looked into getting your roof or other areas of your home’s exterior cleaned by a professional, then you may have heard the terms “power washing,” “pressure washing,” and “soft washing” tossed around. While they may all sound fairly similar, they aren’t all the same thing. Each of these is used to describe a specific type of power cleaning technique useful in different situations — each with its own distinct advantages.

What Is Power Washing?

Power washing is not the same as pressure washing, although the wash equipment used for each looks very alike. The most significant difference between power washing and pressure washing is heat; power washing requires heated water — usually warm but sometimes hot. Power washing equipment allows the cleaning professional to change water temps as they work. A power washing machine includes pumps for pressurizing and heating the water used for cleaning. As you might imagine, hot water can be a more effective cleaning medium than cold, but it can also damage vinyl siding and some other exterior surfaces.

Power washing is best for:

  • Stubborn stains, such as from oil and grease
  • Removing gum from surfaces
  • Removing mold and mildew when heat is required
  • Cleaning durable surfaces
  • Getting rid of stuck-on grime and debris

What Is Pressure Washing?

Like power washing, pressure washing relies on high-pressure water to remove dirt, grime, and other gunk from surfaces — save for the heat. Pressure washing is an excellent option for many home exteriors, but pressure can be too much for some of the more delicate surfaces you may need cleaned. This includes those that are fragile or porous, such as wicker or bamboo. Professional pressure washers are more powerful than their hardware-store counterparts.

Pressure washing is best for:

  • Hard, solid surfaces
  • Stone, tile, fencing, and concrete
  • Some types of roof cleaning

What Is Soft Washing?

Soft washing is a type of cleaning method that uses a soft spray with a low PSI and a soft washing nozzle that reduces the force of typical pressure washing. Additionally, soft washing involves using special chemical agents in the water to help provide a thorough clean by breaking down biological materials such as moss, algae, and mold. Soft washing methods are usually recommended for delicate surfaces, including asphalt roofs where black streaks resulting from algae develop. The lowered pressure (and special cleaning agents) remove these invasive algae without damaging the granular surface of the shingles or causing harm to plants in the yard, masonry, and painted surfaces.

Soft washing is best for:

  • Painted, aluminum, and vinyl sidings
  • Brick, stone, masonry, or stucco
  • Fiberboard
  • Glass and windows

Contact Us for Professional Power Washing, Pressure Washing, and Soft Washing

Ready for professional cleaning solutions for your home’s exterior? Count on EcoTek Power Wash for all of your pressure, soft, and power washing needs. For more information about our services or the best time of the year to power wash a house, reach out to us today!

Why Choose Professional Power Washing Arlington Virginia

Why Choose Professional Power Washing in Arlington Virginia:

When it comes to house projects we all just initially want to do them ourselves. Time after time though, we may start to realize that we need the professionals help.

What is Power Washing and Soft Washing?:

We use an upscale, professional grade power washer to pressurize water, using it on just about any surface. Some places really need or can handle more pressure so we make sure to adjust the needed pressure for the task. We also use a variety of different sized nozzles to ensure that we are being as efficient and safe as possible. But vinyl siding and near windows needs a more gentle approach, so using the same powerful machines, we spread out the power over many feet, so we can be done your home fast, while barely hitting your house with any psi from the pressure washing wand.

When misused you can really do some damage to your home and it’s surroundings, which is why we recommend leaving this task to those who are trained and insured in this profession.

pressure cleaning services in nova

The Benefits:

Everyone has their own opinion about power washing. We have found that the majority of people love it and the other small percentile of people are just the ones who haven’t tried it yet. We are confident you will not be disappointed in the results. With the right equipment and knowledge of using a power washer, even the most difficult stains can and will be removed from your siding or roof cleaning.

We all know when it comes to spring cleaning you tend to notice some areas that over the years have collected quite the amount of dirt. But, when you choose to power wash, those small crevices that cannot be reached by tool or hand will be blasted out by the right amount of pressure! Also what many people think is dirt, may actually be mold and algae, especially if it forms on the north side, or less sunny side of your house or roof. This mold will prematurely age your roof, and just makes the siding look bad and may pose a allergen response, especially in children who play outside near the home.

Hiring the Professionals:

There is a few benefits of handling the power washer yourself and trying to accomplish the job on your own. Then, when we start to think of safety, time, and quality- we realize just how much easier it would be to leave this project for the professionals to take care of.

When you use a power washer, the pressure that fires out is so powerful, if used improperly and misdirected it could actually damage the skin in an instant. Bruises and eye injuries are also very common.

Power washers really are not the hardest thing to figure out how to use, but the time invested in researching a good quality one, and effectively using it can be very time consuming.

If you happen to be in this predicament, give us a call. Our company, EcoTek Power Washing of Arlington Virginia is reliable, quick, and extremely efficient. Our goal is to provide high quality professional service at an affordable rate. We want to make it possible so everyone can receive the much needed “TLC” for their homes. Call us for a free estimate, you won’t be disappointed!

Your clean is our reputation!

7 Things To Remember When Hiring a Power Washing Company:

7 Things To Remember When Hiring a Power Washing Company in Arlington

It’s getting to that time of year and you know you want to spruce up the exterior of your house. The thought of possibly having to go outside and scrub your siding and/or deck and doing it by yourself seems daunting. What better way to solve the problem and a hire a trustworthy power washing company to come and get the grunt work done for you. But first, there’s a few things we all need to remember before hiring the first company we see advertised. 
1. Insured

This is crucial! Make sure the company has their own insurance that will cover any damage done while they are on the job. You do not want to be in a situation where you have to pay out of your pocket for all the damages caused by the power washing workers or products that they use to clean your siding, sidewalks, or deck cleaning.

2. Efficiency

A good power washing company should naturally be efficient and work at a good speed. You do not want to have to call back the company to set up another appointment because they missed something, or call them back because they damaged something.

3. Quality

How is their quality? Have you seen photos of their work? How long will it last? Have you read reviews from local users specific to Arlington Virginia? It would be absolutely terrible to have to call the company again for another appointment because the work they did, didn’t stay clean long.

4. Equipment

Talk or even ask to take a look at their supplies and power washer that they will be using. Is it just a cheap one that you can pick up from your local home improvement store or does it look like they actually invested in nice machinery.

5. Reputation

How long have they been in business? Have you heard good things about this company? How reliable do they seem? You really want to see what others say about the company and overall make sure you get good feedback and awesome reviews.
6. Communication

Talk about the “just in case” situations. Verbally communicate and see what exactly will be done, what products will be used for pressure cleaning services, and if anything happens to your surrounding plants will they take responsibility and replace them. If anything were to happen on their time clock, you would want to know that the company would take full responsibility.

7. Enjoy

Now, we are talking about one of the best possible ways to clean the exterior of your home, decks, sidewalks, and driveway. This service is bound to bring satisfaction to its customers, of course when hiring the right company. Your house will look absolutely astounding afterwards and hiring a power washer is 100% recommended to keeping a beautiful exterior for your Arlington home.
Keeping these 7 useful tips in mind will help you tremendously when thinking of hiring a power washing company. When you come across one, trust your instincts if you get a good feeling about them.
Remember as well, we are always ready to help any current customer and new potential customers with any further questions you might have! Especially when it comes to power washing.

How to clean your roof safely in Arlington Va

How to clean your roof safely in Arlington Va

You walk outside on a beautiful sunny day, your enjoying the weather, looking around at your yard and everything looks pristine…. but then…. you look back up at your house and see streaks on your roof that have progressively gotten worst and mold that has begun to grow. You know at this moment action needs to take place.

If your thinking of grabbing your ladder and you want to try to clean it all off yourself, please keep in mind that safety is very important. You have to make sure that your ladder is stable, the ground below it is level, and your supplies are easy to access, perhaps on a hip belt like construction guys use for their hammer. Most important, wear boots to have good traction when doing the roof cleaning. Another thing, is to find the correct products for the problem you have, mold and mildew require stronger, more potentially dangerous chemicals than simple dust, pollen, or dirt build up.  Research what these chemicals will do to your plants and to your own health. When researching products think about how long this job will actually last. Unfortunately, with most products and diy roof cleaning, you will find at first they work great, and everything looks good, but then with time- the mold is back again and the whole process starts again. This is where the experience of a licensed power washing company in Arlington Va would come in handy

When keeping these tips in mind and the possibilities of what could eventually happen, you will be prepared to make the decision to either do it yourself or to leave it to the professionals. If you decide that you don’t want to do it yourself, call us! You will be guaranteed a safe, professional service that we promise will keep your roof clean, and in the long run a time and money saver.

A day in the life of a power washing company in Arlington

A day in the life of a power washing company in Arlington Virginia

First things first, with any successful power washing business, every person who owns a company wants to make sure that the quality is 110% on every job, whether you live in Arlington Virginia or not. The way to do this is to take time and train your employees. It may be very difficult to take the time to do this, but well needed and very necessary. By doing this, we all can be assured that there will be less problems and more satisfaction guaranteed.

Power Washing Company Arlington VA

Everyday of work is different. Different customers, different homes, but we always make sure we as a business stay the same, the same great quality. If we break down our day to day concerns and routine it looks like the following.

It all starts when we begin our day, not only do we want to have a good successful day of business but we daily communicate with our employees about our pressure cleaning customers being satisfied. We also talk with the employees because they have to be satisfied with their job as well. We verify that the employees are well trained, and we know our employees will give this job their best. I think it’s best to say :
Happy employees = Happy customers.

When arriving at the job, we want to make sure that with everything we do, we do it efficiently. Time is precious to us and in no way would we ever want to take unnecessary time to unload the supplies, get set up, and start the job. It takes time away from our customers and the job, and being an owner you know that time is precious. Our employees are very prompt and move quickly but very efficiently.

When our crew gets all set up and is ready to begin washing, safety is very important to us. Therefore, our workers will always come well dressed, and ready for the job to ensure safety and protection.

Finally, when finishing the job we guarantee customer satisfaction. We love to see the homeowners reaction when they first see the work, and how clean their siding or roof is, because they are always impressed. Again, we always make sure that the quality of our power washing or roof cleaning work is up to par for the homeowner and we will never leave with an unhappy customer. We love to make your home look 100x better than we came, and no worrying about your surrounding plants or your outdoor decor being damaged. We are very cautious and thorough with our work.

Being a business owner comes with a lot of responsibilities and tasks but at the end of the day when you know your employees and customers are happy, you are confident that you can and will have a successful business.