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Writer's pictureDrew Dykes

Is it safe to soft wash my home or business?




Soft washing is a method used by exterior cleaning businesses to remove mold, algae, mildew, dirt, and grime from your home or businesses exterior or roof. A chemical mixture is "softly" sprayed over the surfaces you wish to clean allowing you to clean these surfaces without using high pressure which could possibly damage some areas around the property.

Most home and business owners have probably heard about the “soft washing” process. Almost all pressure washing businesses are using chemical mixtures to clean your home or business and surrounding exterior surfaces. The question is whether using these chemicals is safe while pressure cleaning your property. The answer? May not be as simple as a quick yes or no.

What I mean by this is, YES using chemicals to aid the cleaning process can be a safe and very effective method. It is important to understand that this is only true when these chemicals are used in the correct mixture. Too heavy of a mix and you will certainly kill or brown plants around the property that the spray touches, but if the mix is too light it will not be able to clean the surface with the same level of satisfaction. Finding the perfect mix is crucial in our business so that we can efficiently and effectively clean your home or business at the highest level of quality while keeping your landscapes safe.


Pressure washing is a service that can vary greatly regarding the quality of equipment, knowledge, and skill level of the business performing the service. If a price seems to good to be true, it probably is! We tell all our customers that we are not the cheapest pressure cleaning service and that is intentional. We want to be an elite service and it takes more time, more expensive equipment and more overhead to be that elite service and produce a result that is better than the cheaper price.


When using high pressure and chemicals, you should make sure you are using a credible business with the proper knowledge and skill set to complete the job correctly and safely. Make sure the business is licensed and insured, check reviews, and check their website if they have one. I highly recommend doing some quick research before making your choice. It doesn’t take long and you could potentially save hundreds or even thousands of dollars by paying slightly more to get it done safely and correctly the first time, while having the peace of mind of knowing you and your property are protected and in the hands of a professional who values your property and its appearance.


One of the most interesting things to me is using “green” products to remove mold, mildew, algae and so on. Many businesses will try to sell you on using these green and environmentally friendly products and this just isn’t logical. If it doesn’t have the potential to kill your plants, then it wouldn’t have the potential to kill the mold and algae. The mixture that we use is in fact biodegradable but is not “green”. Many people don’t know that bleach is biodegradable and is the key ingredient in our mixture of bleach, surfactant (soap), and water. The bleach is the key ingredient, water dilutes the mixture making it safe for use around your property and plants, and then we have the surfactant. Surfactant is just a fancy name for soap. The soap helps the chemical to stick to the surface you are cleaning allowing the chemical to stick and clean instead of running right off the surface. This will not harm your plants or property and will surely produce a clean that will leave you satisfied with the result if you are using the right amounts of these ingredients.


For more blogs, pictures, and videos check out some of our pages listed below!


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