Power Washing in Arlington, VA

The difference is force against chemistry. Soft washing lays a solution on the surface, lets it act, and rinses gently, so growth is killed rather than abraded off.

On brick, mortar, painted trim and timber, soft washing is the right method. Gentler on the fabric, and it lasts, because the growth was killed. Concrete is the exception: driveways get pre-treated and then washed at genuine pressure. There is a good general overview of pressure washing, and this power washer vs pressure washer comparison covers the terminology.

That is why the material decides the setting and never the other way about. Brick and siding are soft washed. Timber gets products made for wood at low pressure. Only concrete gets a stronger wash, and only after pre-treatment.

If any part of the exterior is already going, open mortar, blistering paint, a rotten sill, tell us on the walkthrough. Changing the method costs nothing. Hand you a repair.

Most jobs run two to four hours. Combine siding, deck and driveway into one visit and it goes beyond that. You get a realistic figure at the walkthrough, not after we have started.

It comes down to surfaces, size and access, and on Arlington lots access is often the deciding one. So we look in person, free, and quote your house specifically rather than a number over the phone.

The walkthrough is free and there is nothing to sign.

Confirm with Ryan before publishing
The “licensed, registered and bonded” wording used on the Maryland pages has been removed from this Virginia page and replaced with the insurance claim alone, since Maryland licensing does not cross the state line. Routine exterior cleaning is generally not contracting under Virginia law, so a DPOR contractor licence is unlikely to apply. The likelier requirements are an Arlington County business licence (BPOL) and State Corporation Commission registration to transact business in Virginia. Confirm what is held and the fuller claim can go back in.

We hold $2,000,000 of liability cover and the certificate is yours to inspect. Ask when we turn up. It is a reasonable thing to ask of anyone who brings equipment onto your property.

No. Cleaning is not an alteration, so it does not trigger a Certificate of Appropriateness. Arlington County requires a CoA for exterior alterations, new construction and demolition inside a local historic district, and Maywood Neighborhood Historic District is the county’s designated one. The county is explicit that routine maintenance, repairs and replacements using the same materials, interior work and paint colours all fall outside the requirement.

Where it gets awkward is what high pressure actually does. Blow the mortar out of a joint or strip paint off original trim and you have stopped doing maintenance and started needing a repair, on a property where the Historical Affairs and Landmark Review Board has a say in how that repair is carried out. A wash that stays a wash keeps you out of that process entirely.

That is the argument for soft washing generally, and it applies with more force in Maywood than anywhere else in Arlington.

Every Arlington neighbourhood, north and south, across the 22201, 22205, 22207 and 22213 ZIPs. That takes in Maywood, Cherrydale, Lyon Village, Lyon Park, Ashton Heights, Arlington Ridge, Bellevue Forest, Donaldson Run, Rock Spring, Waverly Hills, Westover Village and Yorktown. We also cross into McLean, Falls Church and Washington, D.C.

Not certain we reach your block? Call 301-265-5946 and you will know immediately, or follow the radius on the map for our local power washing company listing.

Confirm with Ryan before publishing
Standard answers are “no, you don’t need to be home once the walkthrough is done” and “yes, we use an outdoor spigot”, but both are operational facts we shouldn’t guess at. This question stays in: it’s one of the most common objections and answering it lifts form fills.

Spring is the crush, once pollen has dropped and the winter growth is showing on the north walls. Growth barely pauses in this climate, so autumn gets the same result with far more choice of dates.