Wash the house — gently
Annual · typically June
Why it matters
Siding isn't decorative — it's the raincoat. Dirt, mildew, and algae hold moisture against it, and held moisture is how paint fails early, caulk lines rot out, and hairline gaps become water paths.
The wash is also the closest look you'll get at every square foot of your siding all year — half its value is what you notice while doing it.
What skipping it costs
$500–$8,000
Mildew and algae hold moisture against siding and quietly eat paint years early. A $250 wash every year or two versus a $5,000–$8,000 repaint cycle showing up half a decade ahead of schedule — plus the trim rot that rides along with chronically damp siding.
Two ways to get it done
Do it yourself
You'll need: Garden hose with spray nozzle, Pump sprayer for cleaner, Soft-bristle brush on a pole, Ladder only if you're comfortable — ground-reachable is 80% of the value, House-wash cleaner or 1:10 outdoor bleach solution (~$15), Plastic sheeting for plants.
- Water plants at the foundation and drape the delicate ones — cleaner runoff is hard on them.
- Work one wall at a time, shade over sun (cleaner dries too fast on hot siding). Wet the wall, apply cleaner with the pump sprayer bottom-to-top, let it sit 5–10 minutes, brush the stubborn spots, rinse top-to-bottom with the plain hose.
- Keep water OUT of soffit vents, light fixtures, and outlets, and spray away from — never up under — lap siding edges.
- Skip the ladder acrobatics: clean what you can reach from the ground and note the rest for a pro. The second story being dusty never hurt anyone; falling off a ladder has.
- While you're nose-to-siding, flag what you find — soft trim, failed caulk, paint bubbling — for your siding-and-paint walk. This wash is that task's reconnaissance.
Hire it out
$250–$600National fair range — local labor moves this number.
A professional soft wash runs $250–$600 for a typical two-story house — legitimate value for height, speed, and equipment. The one qualifying question that sorts pros from damage-vendors: "soft wash or pressure?" The right crew cleans with low pressure and chemistry. The wrong crew shows up with a rented pressure washer and enthusiasm, and the damage they do — water behind siding, blown window seals, stripped shingles — is invisible until it isn't.
Ask the tech
- Soft wash or pressure wash — and at what PSI? (For siding, the answer should be soft wash / low pressure with cleaner doing the work.)
- How do you protect windows seals, outlets, and plants?
- Is the roof included, and if so — chemical treatment only, right? Pressure-washing shingles strips the granules off.
Red flags you're being upsold
- Anyone pointing a pressure washer at siding, window seals, soffit vents, or shingles. High pressure drives water BEHIND the siding, blows out window seals, and shreds asphalt roofs — you're paying to cause the damage this task prevents.
- A wash visit that 'discovers' rot or mold requiring thousands in remediation, no photos offered. Surface mildew washes off; get evidence before believing in the expensive kind.
Second opinion time: Any wash-visit finding that turns into a four-figure repair quote.
The call
DIY the ground-reachable wash with a hose and cleaner; hire the two-story version. Either way: the pressure washer stays in the garage — this is a chemistry job, not a pressure job.