How to Clean Your Deck

Pressure washing a deck is a great way to spruce up for your upcoming fourth of July party!

Some may say to sand your deck and re-stain it, but sanding is exhausting, messy, and dusty.

Pressure washing your deck is the cleanest, easiest, and most efficient way to get the fresh new look you desire. A pressure washer can be used to not only strip old stain or paint, but also to remove ground-in dirt, mold, and mildew.

I recommend using at least a mid-sized pressure washer, because having that 2400+ PSI of pressure will make blasting grime a lot easier.

Stripping and Cleaning

1. Use a standard spray tip and spray loose dirt and leaves off of your deck.

2. Change to a chemical tip and spray down your deck liberally with deck and fence cleaning solution. Coat it completely and leave it settle on the wood for a few minutes.

3. Switch to a more narrow spray for heavy cleaning. Move your wand in a stroking motion to loosen the filth. Be sure however not to use the most narrow spray. The zero-degree spray is so powerful you could end up shaving lines into the wood, so steer clear unless you want your deck looking like a zebra.

4. Rinse your deck with a water spray and let it air dry for 48 hours.

Staining Your Deck

1. Protect yourself from looking like a deck. Wear protective clothing over your arms and legs. It may be a good idea to wear clothing over the rest of you as well so the neighbors don't dial the police.

2. Wear protective goggles. And if you're using a solvent-based stain, be sure to wear a mask as well to protect against inhalation of toxic fumes.

3. Use stain that doubles as a sealer. This way it'll stay looking nice longer, and it'll keep the wood protected and help prevent warping. Test it on a small area to be sure it looks the way you want.

4. Pour four gallons of stain into a five-gallon bucket. Mix the stain thoroughly with a long paddle. Then pour some stain into a smaller bucket to use with a paint brush for more detailed areas like the rails and benches. Use the larger bucket for your roller as you stain the deck flooring.

5. Fully saturate the wood with the stain. Any exposed ends need to be coated multiple times until all of the pores are saturated.

Spring Cleaning With a Pressure Washer

Warmer weather is creeping in, and soon you'll be faced with spring cleaning. Luckily, you have a pressure washer, right? If not, then you're missing out! Pressure washers make spring cleaning fun and effective.

So what kinds of pressure washing tasks should you be concerned about at the start of spring?

Surface Cleaning

Start by taking a look at what areas have gotten the dirtiest over the winter. walkway and driveway areas can stand to be cleaned of salt, gravel, and dirt accumulated from car tires and snow clearing. You could also use a surface cleaner to get an even, streak-free clean over larger surfaces.

Your house may begin to look a bit weathered and require some pressure washing too. Use a wider tip on siding than you would on your driveway. 

Pressure Washing Decking

Decking is likely dirty from coming in and out. Power wash your deck so you're the first to be prepared for spring and summer barbecues.

A big area you may not be thinking of is your garage. Back your cars out onto the street, clear storage away from the walls so the floor is empty, and take a look at what Old Man Winter has dragged in! Mud, oil, grease, dirt, gravel, salt, and who knows what else. The crud that falls from your tires and undercarriage each night when you get home has made your garage floor into a filthy sand box.

Switch to an angled tip and spray this gritty sludge outside. While you're out there, you might as well switch to a wider, softer spray nozzle and clean your cars. Now that your garage is clean, it doesn't make much sense to pull a dirty car back in, does it?

As you can see, there are plenty of spring cleaning jobs to do that can be made easier and much more fun with a pressure washer!