FAQs About Pressure Washing in Columbia, SC
Driveway pressure washing pavers with a before and after view.
So you’re thinking about doing some cleaning up around the outside of your home. It’s looking a bit dingy lately and all that mold and mildew is rather depressing. You want to find the best way to clean concrete, your patio, brick, wood, and siding to bring back the “Wow!”
One of the fastest, most environmentally friendly, and most effective ways to clean grime, mold, and dirt outside is often pressure washing.
What is pressure washing?
Pressure washing involves a water hose with a specialized nozzle that forces the water through at a much higher pressure than you’d have for a garden hose. That high-pressure water spray is quite powerful and able to blast debris from the surfaces of many materials.
It’s a great way to deep-clean exterior hardscaping and other hard surfaces quickly and with minimum elbow grease.
In this post, we’ll talk about some of your most pressing questions about pressure washing like…
Why pressure wash?
When is the best time of year to pressure wash?
What are the downsides of pressure washing?
What to do after pressure washing
How much does pressure washing cost?
Pressure washing service cleaning a concrete driveway.
Ready for pressure washing services near you in the Columbia SC area?
At Boots On Enterprises, we are a commercial pressure washer offering a full array of pressure wash services in Columbia, SC and the Central Midlands.
Contact us today for a FREE quote for your pressure washing needs.
Phone: 803-521-4978
Email: bootsonenterprises@gmail.com
While you’re thinking about sprucing up your home and property, don’t forget to ask about any tree services, landscaping, hardscaping, or paving installation or repair needs you may have, as well.
Pressure washing patio paver tile — after writing “clean” in cursive with the pressure washer.
Why pressure wash?
You could just try to wash things off with your garden hose, but you’ll find that most of the dirt won’t come off without an incredible amount of scrubbing and effort and harsh chemicals.
There are a lot of great reasons to pressure wash the surfaces outside of your home. Here are some of our favorites.
3 great benefits of pressure washing
Saves a LOT of time, energy, and effort compared to other cleaning methods.
Improves your curb appeal dramatically (and inexpensively).
Prepares surfaces for new sealant, paint, stain, or other liquids to be applied.
When is the best time of year to pressure wash?
Here in South Carolina, the best time for pressure washing is in the spring — after the pine pollen has finished coating everything — and in the fall.
It’s also a good idea not to do pressure washing if your area is expecting freezing temperatures in the next few days.
What are the downsides of pressure washing
Important things to know before pressure washing include the following pressure washing tips:
Avoid damaging surfaces
If you are inexperienced with using a pressure washer, you can actually damage some softer surfaces if you use too much pressure. The whole point is to make things cleaner and more beautiful, not create more damage and work for yourself.
Painted surfaces and softer materials shouldn’t be pressure washed. This is why it’s often best to leave pressure washing to the pros.
Avoid injuries
Pressure washers produce a very high-powered stream of water that should never be pointed at a person or pet. Other people should not be near the pressure washer. And the operator should have on safety glasses and avoid aiming the stream of water at the skin or body.
The possibility of injuries — from the pressure washer, itself, or from someone climbing on a ladder and falling — are why we recommend allowing a trusted pressure washing service near you to do the work for you. A commercial pressure washing company knows how to handle the equipment so that you get the deep clean you want while you can stay safe and injury-free.
Sealant is applied to bring out a gorgeous shine on this paver patio.
What to do after pressure washing
After pressure washing is the perfect time to waterproof your surfaces.
Concrete driveways
A day or two after after you use pressure washing services for a driveway, it’s a good idea to apply a waterproof concrete sealer. This will give the concrete time to completely dry.
Another option is to use pressure washing to prepare for driveway repair and plan the repairs after a good cleaning.
Patios
After having everything cleaned up, once the stone, concrete, bricks, or pavers are dry, it’s the ideal time to seal or stain your patio to weatherproof it.
Decks and fences
Once the wood is totally dry, the deck can undergo maintenance like light sanding and then an application of wood sealant, stain/sealant, or paint.
A driveway pressure washer job: concrete pressure washing dramatically changes the black, dirty concrete back to its proper light gray color.
How much does pressure washing cost?
A pressure washing business will charge different prices depending on the type of surface being cleaned.
Let’s look at some of the most common surfaces and the general price ranges below.
Note: Using a commercial pressure wash company is a great way to go because if you choose a company that is insured, licensed, and bonded, they will make sure that they don’t cause any damage or that any issues are fixed if there are problems. And that can end up saving you a lot of money in the end.
Cost to pressure wash a driveway
Driveway cleaning is important to do now and then to get the oil, dirt, and mildew off of your concrete or asphalt paving. Pressure washer service for a driveway tends to range in cost from $100 to $260.
Concrete pressure washer generally costs an average of $0.40 per square foot with a range of $0.35 to $0.77 nationally. Pressure washing can be used on houses, siding, fences, and paving materials.
You can expect a pressure washer for concrete to charge about $50 to $160 per hour but it can go as high as $200 per hour depending on the job and tools used.
Factors affecting the cost of driveway pressure washing include:
The size of the area being pressure washed.
The type of area being cleaned.
The type of pavement being washed.
How many areas you are having cleaned at that time.
How dirty the surface is.
Any prep work or special cleaning supplies needed.
What other services you need.
How easily accessible the area is/how dangerous it is for a worker.
Where you live.
The company you use may decide to use pressure washer detergent to help with the cleaning process for very dirty driveways. And that could impact the cost just a bit, as well.
Pressure washing vinyl siding removing all the mold and mildew from the side of a house.
Cost to pressure wash a house
House pressure washing near you is a wonderful way to almost instantly boost your home’s curb appeal. Getting rid of mildew, dirt, and pollen makes your home look like new again.
The cost of house pressure washing varies depending on a lot of issues. In general, nationwide, the cost to pressure wash a house ranges from $0.10 to $0.50 per square foot. So most houses cost between $100 to $650.
Brick can be pressure washed if it is in good shape and not too weathered. But old or damaged brick might not be able to withstand pressure washing. So it’s good to let a pressure washing pro evaluate your brick.
To figure out the cost of a pressure wash near you, a local pressure washer business can give you a quote. Many times, the quote is free.
Factors affecting the cost of pressure washing a house include:
The size of the home.
The surface materials being washed.
How dirty the home is.
Additional supplies or cleaning solutions needed.
Any prep work or repairs that need to be done.
Other services you have done at the same time.
How difficult the accessibility is.
Where you live.
Close-up view of pressure washing a deck to remove mold, mildew, and dirt, making the wood boards look like new with landscaped bushes and rocks in the background.
Cost to pressure wash a deck or patio
When you pressure wash a deck or patio , you give it new life. You may be shocked just how great your deck/patio looks once the mildew is gone. It’ll put a pep in your step to see how beautiful it is again.
Pressure washing a patio or deck often costs about $0.30 to $0.40 cents per square foot. The average cost is around $150 but the range can go as low as $90 for a really small, easy job to $770 or more for something more involved.
Factors affecting the cost of pressure washing a deck or patio include:
The size of the space.
The condition of the space.
Any prep work that needs to be done.
Repair work needed.
Accessibility.
How dirty the deck or patio is.
Whether you want to seal the wood or stone afterward or have painting done.
Any other services you desire.
Where you live.
Pressure washing before and after on a wood fence. The left side is covered with mold and algae and the right side looks brand new after being washed.
Cost to pressure wash a fence
Pressure washing a fence can really rejuvenate it and make it look new again, as you can see in the image above. To pressure wash a wood fence or vinyl fence can make your home look so much better and make it a joy to come home after being away.
A pressure washer near you can give you an exact quote for the cost. In general, nationally, using a pressure washer that’s commerical costs on average about $225 for a 500 square foot fence. The range is generally between $100 and $350 for that size fence.
Factors involved with pressure washing a fence include:
The material and how much pressure is needed.
Whether cleaning agents are necessary.
How dirty the fence is with mold, mildew, or algae.
Whether you want sealant.
If you need repairs or other services.
How accessible the fence is.
Where you live.
A worker pressure washing a brick house with yellow scaffolding near the home.
Ready for pressure washing services near you in the Columbia SC area?
We can weatherproof and seal your concrete, asphalt, pavers, decking, and wood fences after we pressure wash for you. Just let us know you'd like those services, as well. Whether you need business pressure washing or residential pressure washing, we can help you at Boots On Enterprises.
We handle:
Fence pressure washing
House pressure washing
Siding pressure washing
Brick pressure washing
Driveway pressure washing
Stone pressure washing
Patio pressure washing
And more
Not only do we do pressure washing in Lexington, SC and the Columbia area, but we can also provide tree and landscaping services, fence building and repair, as well as paving and hardscaping services.
Please contact us today for a FREE estimate…
Phone: 803-521-4978
Email: bootsonenterprises@gmail.com
