Power washing heats the water; pressure washing does not. Heat breaks down grease, gum, and oil, so it earns its place on dumpster pads and garage decks. On siding and fencing, unheated water with the right solution cleans as well.

Nothing forces you to, but organic growth holds moisture against the wall, and moisture shortens the life of paint and caulk. Metro Mobile Pressure Washing recommends an annual wash for most Fort Washington, MD homes with any real shade.

Skip it at or below freezing, since runoff refreezes into a hazard on walks and steps. Hold off on siding with loose panels, failing caulk, or peeling paint until those are repaired, and never wash into an open soffit vent.

Yes, as long as the surface and the air stay comfortably above freezing through the job and the runoff can drain. Roughly 40 degrees is our working floor. Below that, water lingers in equipment and on pavement instead of drying.

Less than most people expect. A pressure washer moves a modest amount per minute because pressure, not volume, does the cleaning, so an open garden hose left running often uses more. We arrive with our own supply either way.

No. Our trucks carry water, which is the whole point of being a mobile operation. Vacant houses across Fort Washington, MD, properties with the water shut off, and buildings where the only tap is upstairs are all still workable.

Beds get soaked with clean water before any solution goes on, which dilutes anything that drifts, then rinsed again once the wall is done. Fragile plantings get covered with sheeting. Wet foliage is the single best protection there is.

Keep pets inside while we apply and rinse. Once a surface has been rinsed and dried, it is fine for animals to walk on. Let us know where the dog run and the water bowls are before we start.

Not the way we do it. High pressure aimed into a frame can push water past the seals, so glass and trim get washed at low pressure from a distance, with the spray angled down rather than up.

Sound paint survives a low-pressure wash without trouble. Paint that is already failing will come loose, which tells you it was on its way off anyway. If you are repainting soon, say so and we will adjust the approach.

Vinyl has a manufacturer pressure ceiling and a rule against spraying upward, because water driven behind a panel has nowhere to go. Stucco, fiber cement, and older wood do better with a soft wash. The material decides, not the machine.

Carefully. The Brick Industry Association caps cleaning pressure at 400 psi with a wide fan tip held about a foot back, and warns that anything harder etches the face and washes sand out of the mortar joints permanently.

Not for ordinary residential work. Commercial jobs carry a real obligation, though: Maryland allows detergent-free building washdown to reach a storm drain, but anything with soap in it, or any wash water off a vehicle, has to be captured.

Close the windows, move vehicles and patio furniture clear of the work area, and unlock the side gates. Point out anything already loose or leaking so we can work around it rather than discover it with a hose.

We cover them as part of the setup, along with dryer vents, doorbells, and low wall openings. If a fixture is already damaged or an outlet cover is missing, tell us beforehand and we will keep the water off it.

No. Rain does not put algae back on a wall, and clean surfaces shed water better than dirty ones. The exception is soft-wash solution still dwelling, so we watch the Fort Washington, MD forecast before scheduling any job.

A surface cleaner is a rotating head that keeps every inch of concrete the same distance from the same nozzles. A hand wand cannot hold that consistency across a whole driveway, which is where those faint zebra stripes come from.

With extension equipment and low-pressure application from the ground, not by dragging ladders across a flower bed. Reaching a second story with a soft wash is standard work, and it keeps the spray angled correctly against the siding.

It is the cheapest thing you can do before photographs. Buyers read a streaked wall and a green walkway as deferred maintenance, and that impression colors everything they see afterward. Siding, walks, and the driveway make the biggest difference.