A Decade of Algae Off a Two-Storey Home
A two-storey house wash on siding that has gone green over years without a wash usually takes one morning. This walks through a typical job of that kind, with video from one of our washes. A typical house wash is $550 before GST.
The starting point
A home like this usually has not been washed in years. The shaded and north-facing walls carry a heavy green algae film, the sunnier sides are lighter but still dull, and there is the usual grime around the gutters, cobwebs in the eaves, and streaking below the windows. From the street it reads as a tired, older home, even when the siding underneath is in good shape.
Owners are often surprised how far it has drifted, because the change happens so gradually that you stop seeing it day to day.
The method
The whole exterior is soft washed: a biodegradable detergent is applied at low pressure, left to break down the algae and grime, and rinsed gently, working top to bottom so nothing streaks. On a two-storey home the upper walls are reached with soft-wash equipment from the ground, which is safer and gives an even result. Landscaping is pre-wetted and rinsed throughout.
The soffits, eaves and around the windows get attention too, since a wall wash that skips the trim looks half-finished.
The result
By late morning the home looks years newer, the siding back to its real colour, the trim clean, the whole facade bright. Because the algae is killed at the root rather than blasted off, it stays clean far longer than a pressure-only wash would, with the shaded walls the first to eventually need attention again.
This is the kind of job that makes the biggest visible difference for the money, which is why a house wash is usually the first thing we suggest for curb appeal or before a sale. Most single-family homes like this are done in a single visit.