How to Wash Vinyl Siding

An easy way to enhance the look of the exterior of your house is by installing a vinyl siding. However, due to prolonged exposure to various kinds of weather conditions, it gets soiled. Over a period of time, molds and mildew develop on its surface, and thus the vinyl siding loses its original freshness and beauty. The best way to regain the bright, glossy look of the siding is by washing vinyl siding. It is not as tough as you think provided you know the right trick. Actually, vinyl siding is so very popular for home improvements because they are easy to clean.

Preparing the Work Area

A well-prepared work area always helps to make the task hassle free. Move away the patio furniture, barbecue and other such things from the exterior walls of your house. This will help you to move about freely while washing vinyl siding. Cover up the light fixture, outlets and vents with the help of plastic sheets, and then fix them up with painter's tape so that they do not get damaged by water. The plants and shrubs of your garden need protection too. For this reason, cover them with plastic sheets to prevent damage from detergent solution. Check out the siding carefully to find out if there is black mold or mildew on the siding. If mold and mildew has formed on it, you can get rid of them by treating then with oxygen bleach. Prepare a solution with one part of oxygen bleach and 5 parts of water and apply it on the affected area.

How to Wash Vinyl Siding?

There are two popular methods that are used to clean vinyl siding. Here, we have both of them in detail and you should choose the one which you feel is convenient for you.

With a Brush
For this method, you will require a scrub brush with an extension handle attached to it so that it can reach out to the far areas of the siding. Divide the wall into a number of sections of 3 - 5 feet of width. Carry out the cleaning task of each section at a time. Make a cleaning solution by mixing one-third cup of laundry detergent and one gallon of water in a bucket. Start spraying water from the bottom of the siding with the help of your garden hose and move it up to the top. Once the siding is wet, dip the scrubbing brush into the soapy solution and scrub the siding from the bottom to the top using both vertical as well as horizontal motions. After scrubbing off all the dirt and debris from the siding, again spray clean water to rinse off the cleaning solution. This way, you have to wash off all the sections of the siding one by one.

With Pressure Washer
The main reasons to pressure wash vinyl siding is that it can finish off the work quite fast, and you do not have to put much effort on your part except spraying the water all across the siding. Firstly, you have to fill up the tank of the pressure washer with any cleaning products that are available in the market for cleaning the siding. Divide the siding into sections, each having a width of about 3 - 5 feet. Fix the garden hose on the pressure washer and put on the washer. Hold the nozzle at an angle of 45 degrees and spray water on the siding. Here too you need to start the water spraying from the bottom of the wall and move upwards. Around the trim areas of the doors and windows of the siding, you should spray water slightly carefully. Otherwise the water can enter into the surface below the siding and cause damage to the underlying surface. Once you are done with one section of the siding, move on to the next one. In this manner, finish off washing the entire wall with the cleaner. Then rinse off the siding with clean water before the cleaner gets dried up, or else the cleaner can make the side look patchy.

It is advisable to carry out this house cleaning work away from the direct sunlight because the heat tends to dry up the cleaner very quickly which results in patchy marks on the vinyl siding.