Stucco homes and pressure washing
 

I know vinyl sided patio villas have to be pressure washing every six months or so. Do block and stucco homes have to be pressured washed every six months as well?

Short answer: yes. Not necessarily every six months but as needed. Beware of too much pressure. It can damaged the siding, stucco and vinyl, and can break the seal between double pane glazing. I have owned both and only used the house pressure straight from the sill cock.
High pressure is ok as long as the nozzle is kept well away from the surface.
Hope this helps.

why is the pressure washing of the outside of one's home so popular here?

I don't think I know of anybody who ever had it done up North.

I can speculate here about the climate and many other things but prefer not to do that.

I had ours done onece in the last 10 years and see little evidence of it needing to be done.

I do my own pressure washing of the pool decks, bird cage and walls facing the pool once and sometimes twice per year.

I do acknowledge there is more dirt and dust in the air here and on the outdoor furniture than any place we have evr lived.

Just curious.

Its not so much the stucco you are cleaning but the gutters and the aluminum braces holding the bird cage. Dirt and mildew can easily accumulate in these locations. The stucco is barely washed down....but when completed is definintely does look better.

Thank you. It is definitely wetter here than anywhere else we have lived including the beach. Maybe that's the reason.

I have mine done every year which isn't really often enough because I get a build-up of green algie. It seems like it only appears on the north side of my house and my neighbors.

I've wondered the same thing. When we were looking for homes down here, I got hold of a copy of the deed restrictions for Spruce Creek South & Spruce Creek Golf Club and they actually REQUIRE you to have it done once every 2 years and provide proof of the work being done to their HOA!

I've rinsed down some spots on our home with the hose, but I see no reason to have the place pressure washed on a regular basis.

Because the north facing sides do not get enough direct sun / UV to keep the green mold under control.

I'm new down here but this is what I've been told. My son lives in Houston, they have to pressure wash once-twice a year as well. High heat + High humidity, mostly northern exposed areas that don't get enough sunlight to dry off. Trees and stubs planted close to walls or homes also block the sunlight and add to the problem.

Try a product called "Spray and Forget" look it up on the web. prevents the green algie for up to two years, also prevents the dark spots on roofs a common problem up north.

We do our stucco once a year, and they get the rain stains off of the gutters and other white aluminum surfaces up by the roof (don't know what that stuff is called). It's so inexpensive I would rather have someone do it than my husband and a hose or having to rent a pressure washer.

There are spots where bushes are close to or touching the stucco that get black spots (mold?) that comes off when they wash. They use a mild bleach solution that doesn't damage the plants.

We've been told to do stucco once a year.

it is called .... fascia (face-sha)

Thanks. I get that and soffit mixed up.

From Websters:

a horizontal piece (as a board) covering the joint between the top of a wall and the projecting eaves —called also fascia board

sof•fit
noun \ˈsä-fət\
: the underside of a part or member of a building (as of an overhang or staircase)


Sounds like the fascia is only a board at the wall intersection and the soffit is the entire underside of the overhang.

Easy to be confused.

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