Pressure Washing
Sidewalks, entries, dumpster pads — scheduled, not reactive. Stormwater-aware, so the fine doesn't land on the property owner's desk.
What goes wrong when it's half-done.
Most low-bid pressure-washing crews don't realize the wash water can't enter a storm drain in most municipalities west of Chicago. They wash anyway. The fines land on the property owner, not the cleaner. A real pressure-wash program is reclaim-aware, soft-wash where the substrate requires it, and on a schedule rather than a complaint queue.
Four operational principles, written into the route plan.
Hot-water units for grease and gum
Surface cleaners for even results, no zebra striping
Reclaim setup where municipal stormwater rules require it
Scheduled overnight or pre-open
What's included
- Sidewalks and entry pads
- Drive-throughs and trash enclosures
- Building exterior soft-wash (siding, dryvit)
- Gum removal at entries
What's not included
We name the line items we won't quietly run past you.
- Roof cleaning
- Lead paint or asbestos surfaces
- Surfaces that require specialty coatings (separate)
Specific tools. Documented chemistry. Operator credibility through specificity.
Equipment
- Hot-water units up to 200°F for grease and gum (cold water doesn't move either)
- Surface cleaners with floating heads — even cleaning, no zebra striping
- Reclaim mats and vacuum recovery for any job in a stormwater-protected zone
- Soft-wash systems for dryvit, vinyl, and aged sealant where high-pressure would etch
Chemistry & approach
Soil source drives the method. Same square foot, different chemistry, different labor.
- Grease and gum on entry pads
- Hot-water surface cleaner first; residual gum removed with steam at 250°F.
- Algae or organic growth on building exterior
- Soft-wash with sodium hypochlorite at low pressure. No high-pressure on dryvit or aged caulking.
- Trash enclosure / dumpster pad
- Hot water + degreaser; reclaim required in most municipalities. Leachate cannot enter a storm drain.
When to add this to a recurring program
Cadence options we run for Pressure Wash: Quarterly, Semi-annual, Annual, Project. We'll sequence it inside your existing program so the building doesn't see a second crew.
Photo packet, escalation log, monthly report.
The artifact trail your auditor, your tenant, and your CFO can all read.
Date, address, scope completed, eight to twelve annotated photos, tech sign-off — emailed before you walk in.
Anything flagged on a visit gets logged and routed to a named lead. You see the open tickets, not the silence around them.
Photo-verified service, escalation log, scope adherence, consumables — one PDF, every site, every month.
A real number after a 15-minute walk.
We bid pressure wash from a walkthrough, not a square-footage table. Pricing reflects the building's risk profile, the crew tier, and the cadence. We'll quote a real number after a 15-minute site visit and never raise it mid-contract without 60 days written notice.
Annual review, written 60 days in advance, capped at CPI for renewals. No mid-contract surprises.
The questions that don't show up on a procurement form.
Pressure Washing, on a documented program.
Send us your scope and we'll send a real number back. Or book a 15-minute walkthrough — we bring a notepad and a camera, not a sales deck.