The building code did not require the use of house wrap under vinyl siding until the 2004 version, which may not have been adopted by local communities until as late as 2010.
The building code did not require the use of house wrap under vinyl siding until the 2004 version, which may not have been adopted by local communities until as late as 2010.
SVreX wrote: In reply to tuna55: So, it's a pressure washer, right? No such thing as a "soft washer".
In the sense that it moves water, sure. The videos I have seen make it look no different than a garden hose, just a much better stream with soapy bits and different nozzles and stuff.
Vinyl siding that shows damage after pressure washing was probably not technically damaged by the water or the pressure washer.
It had experienced UV degradation, and the pressure washer exposed the issue.
I realize it's kind of the same to the homeowner with a hole in his siding.
tuna55 wrote:SVreX wrote: In reply to tuna55: So, it's a pressure washer, right? No such thing as a "soft washer".In the sense that it moves water, sure. The videos I have seen make it look no different than a garden hose, just a much better stream with soapy bits and different nozzles and stuff.
Your note from "Mr Contractor Guy" says its the same tool.
bravenrace wrote: In reply to HiTempguy: Well you are right, I don't agree, because pressure washing does in fact get my white house clean.
And thats why I said its my opinion 
Fact is, around here, just pressure washing leaves a messy house with streaks of muddy stickiness. Thats all
Having played with washing my house (which I need to do again) I found that a brush on a pole got the house cleaner and in less time. Yes, my spindly little arms got sore. Maybe I just needed a better pressure washer or warm water or good chemicals or something, but a brush on a stick took care of all the guesswork. I did rinse it with the pressure washer though.
One more vote for using a car wash brush rather than a pressure washer. The brush was much more effective and easier. I used car wash soap because that's what I had. Rinse with a garden hose.
In reply to bravenrace:
Diluted bleach, no issues. Don't have much to hurt close to the house anyway. Doesn't hurt the grass or bushes.
Pressure washer just because the pressure will reach higher to rinse than hose pressure.
i blew a hole in some old vinyl siding with a pressure washer once.
i have corrected the issue by not bothering to wash my house. or my cars.
I don't think I've ever washed any of my houses.
I've pressure washed all of my houses, I use a wide pattern nozzle (cuts down on pressure) with a gin-you wine house wash. A little bleach helps get the green crap off the north side. My brother is a contractor and specializes in window replacement, he says many of them are replaced due to moisture between the panes and he says that's generally from hitting them with a high pressure nozzle.
chez Curmudgeon is vinyl siding over the original painted cedar siding, it has Tyvek under the vinyl siding.
patgizz wrote: i blew a hole in some old vinyl siding with a pressure washer once. i have corrected the issue by not bothering to wash my house. or my cars.
Do you also rip the paper when trying ti write with a pen, and break the lead when you write with a pencil??
In reply to HiTempguy:
I suppose what kind of grime is on the house does make a difference in how and what to clean it with. Pressure washing without soap generally does a good job on my house.
I have cleaned houses and roofs professionally using a "soft wash" system. The system we used was low pressure, but high volume relative to a traditional pressure washer. We used diluted bleach and detergent in trailer mounted tanks.
I don't remember the ratios or the brand of detergent, but it was enough that we couldn't get enough of the cleaning mixture into a pressure washing setup. It just ended up too diluted for our use. The profit margin was quite large, but I absolutely think it would make sense from a homeowner's perspective IF you are dealing with mold/moss/algae/etc, particularly on a porous surface. If it's just dirt, a pressure washer or brush will work fine on vinyl.
If you want to achieve the effect of a professional softwash without paying a pro, a pump sprayer will do a decent job of dispersing the bleach and chemicals. We killed a few plants here and there, but far less than I would have imagined. We watered plants heavily before and after the wash. That seemed to help quite a bit.
Zombie thread, canoe removed
In reply to EastCoastMojo :
But resurrected at a good time, anyhow. I need to wash my house.
This is good timing for a canoer to resurrect this thread. The past few days I've been on a ladder wondering if I'm a shmuck for scrubbing the vinyl-clad double wide (that we bought) next door with a brush and Super-Clean. Now I feel like I need to shop for a long-handled brush and ditch the ladder. But the mildew and other growth takes some good scrubbing to get off...so I guess I'm on the right track.
I use the long handled brush and a bucket of diluted Simple Green. Works pretty well for me.
maschinenbau said:I use the long handled brush and a bucket of diluted Simple Green. Works pretty well for me.
+1. Worked well on painted wood siding.
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