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Midwestpro
Site Admin
Joined: 08 Oct 2007
Posts: 862
Location: Indiana
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 Posted: Sat Oct 13, 2007 4:54 pm Post subject: Cleaning Concrete |
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A pressure washer can be used to clean concrete patios, porches, steps, sidewalks and even your driveway. It a great way to increase your home's curb appeal but can be a very tiring and tedious job without the right equipment.
Even with a small consumer grade machine and a wide fan patterned nozzle you can clean a small area of concrete in a reasonable amount of time. Be sure to use the widest fan tip that comes with your machine, this is usually the white colored tip which is a 40 degree fan. The red tip or 0 degree nozzle is a bad choice, the wider the fan the better for this job.
On concrete that is dirt and mold covered or has tannin stains from sticks and leaves you can use a weak solution of house hold bleach and soap. A good mix is 1 part bleach to 2 parts water and a couple of squirts of dish soap for every gallon of mix. For more mold and mildew killing power use 1 part bleach to 1 part water. You can apply this with a garden sprayer or use a brush to apply it. Let it dwell for a few minutes and then wash the concrete with a pressure washer at about 2000-3000 psi holding your tip a couple of inches from the concrete. Tackle each section of concrete one at a time, move back and forth across the concrete keeping your nozzle the same distance away from the surface. Clean at a nice steady pace but move slow enough that you get a good clean even look. Be careful when you are cleaning around the edges of the concrete slab as landscaping debris and dirt can be blown around from the water pressure. Always be sure to wear safety glasses. |
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masterwasher
Joined: 03 Nov 2007
Posts: 2
Location: Tennessee
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| Posted: Sat Nov 03, 2007 6:09 am Post subject: |
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| We wash a lot of driveways that were partially washed by the home owners before giving up. We wash the entire driveway, re-washing what they already cleaned, to get a uniform look. |
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louise31
Joined: 26 Mar 2009
Posts: 8
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| Posted: Thu Mar 26, 2009 12:27 pm Post subject: |
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| Ive got to get my husband to clean the outside of our house and drive as the neighbours have been building a wall and it is really dirty, I hope it will come up nice and clean. What is the best chemical to use on the concrete? |
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Midwestpro
Site Admin
Joined: 08 Oct 2007
Posts: 862
Location: Indiana
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| Posted: Thu Mar 26, 2009 2:19 pm Post subject: |
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For just dirt, a little dish soap and water will work fine. If there is mold and/or mildew present you may also have to use a little bleach with the soap mix. Trying to tell someone how to make their own mix is a little tricky without seeing the concrete or knowing how you plan to apply it.
There are also concrete cleaners sold at hardware stores that might work okay for you.
Another option is to hire a professional so you don't have to mess with it. |
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louise31
Joined: 26 Mar 2009
Posts: 8
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| Posted: Sat Mar 28, 2009 6:31 am Post subject: |
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| Why hire a professional when I have a husband lol Thanks I will see if I can find a product specifically for concrete, thanks for the advise. |
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tongyun
Joined: 16 Mar 2009
Posts: 52
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| Posted: Tue Jul 07, 2009 1:22 pm Post subject: |
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| louise31 wrote: | | Why hire a professional when I have a husband lol Thanks I will see if I can find a product specifically for concrete, thanks for the advise. |
Of course, you could probably do it, too, unless you have the old mindset of certain things are a woman's job and certain things are a man's job. LOL But there are times when it's well worth the money to have a professional do the job so it's done right and in less time than if a non-professional did it. |
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absolutelybrilliant!
Joined: 15 Aug 2009
Posts: 26
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| Posted: Fri Oct 23, 2009 8:59 pm Post subject: Re: Cleaning Concrete |
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| Midwestpro wrote: |
On concrete that is dirt and mold covered or has tannin stains from sticks and leaves you can use a weak solution of house hold bleach and soap. A good mix is 1 part bleach to 2 parts water and a couple of squirts of dish soap for every gallon of mix. For more mold and mildew killing power use 1 part bleach to 1 part water. |
A few questions...
So what exactly does the dish soap do? also, can you run the dish soap (mixed with chlorine) through the chemical injector of your pressure washer, or will it bubble up too much? Oh, and will the chemical injector of the pressure washer dilute the chemical too much (i think mine gives me a dilution of 1 part chemical to 5 parts water)?
My current chemical application technique includes the use liquid chlorine mixed with a chlorine accelerator called jomax. I run this mix through the injector of my pressure washer when applying the chemicals. Any helpful comments you have on my method would be greatly appreciated. Thank you! |
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FCPWLLC
Joined: 15 Sep 2008
Posts: 144
Location: Lexington, KY
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| Posted: Tue Oct 27, 2009 6:38 pm Post subject: Re: Cleaning Concrete |
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| absolutelybrilliant! wrote: | | Midwestpro wrote: |
On concrete that is dirt and mold covered or has tannin stains from sticks and leaves you can use a weak solution of house hold bleach and soap. A good mix is 1 part bleach to 2 parts water and a couple of squirts of dish soap for every gallon of mix. For more mold and mildew killing power use 1 part bleach to 1 part water. |
A few questions...
So what exactly does the dish soap do? also, can you run the dish soap (mixed with chlorine) through the chemical injector of your pressure washer, or will it bubble up too much? Oh, and will the chemical injector of the pressure washer dilute the chemical too much (i think mine gives me a dilution of 1 part chemical to 5 parts water)?
My current chemical application technique includes the use liquid chlorine mixed with a chlorine accelerator called jomax. I run this mix through the injector of my pressure washer when applying the chemicals. Any helpful comments you have on my method would be greatly appreciated. Thank you! |
The dish soap is acting as a surfactant and detergent. The jomax is OK but there are better, less expensive detergents. To use with Down Streamer, you'll need to begin with some 12% and more soap. It is fine to use dish soap with injector.
I use simple cherry though. Better than dish soap and not as costly. |
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absolutelybrilliant!
Joined: 15 Aug 2009
Posts: 26
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| Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2009 12:38 pm Post subject: Chemical vs no chemical |
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About how much longer does a cleaning job last using chemicals (such as chlorine), rather than just blasting the stuff away with a pressure washer? Does it stay cleaner longer? And I'm asking this for any surface (driveways, screen enclosures, houses, fences, etc.).
My thought is that a chemical clean will keep the surface cleaner longer, because the chemical goes deeper than the pressure wash, killing mold rather than leaving some behind to grow back. Is this true? I want to be sure that I'm giving my customers accurate information. THANK YOU! |
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Midwestpro
Site Admin
Joined: 08 Oct 2007
Posts: 862
Location: Indiana
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| Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2009 8:06 pm Post subject: |
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You are correct, it will definitely stay clean longer when you are killing the mold and mildew as opposed to just peeling it off with pressure and leaving some behind to grow back.
We washed a house the other day that was all green on the north side. The guy said he washes it every year and normally it doesn't stay clean for more than 9 months or so. We used cleaners to kill the mold and clean the vinyl properly. It will stay clean for about 2 years now, which is pretty normal for our climate. |
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absolutelybrilliant!
Joined: 15 Aug 2009
Posts: 26
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| Posted: Sat Oct 31, 2009 8:37 pm Post subject: |
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| Midwestpro wrote: | You are correct, it will definitely stay clean longer when you are killing the mold and mildew as opposed to just peeling it off with pressure and leaving some behind to grow back.
We washed a house the other day that was all green on the north side. The guy said he washes it every year and normally it doesn't stay clean for more than 9 months or so. We used cleaners to kill the mold and clean the vinyl properly. It will stay clean for about 2 years now, which is pretty normal for our climate. |
Great, I just wanted to double check.
Also, do you have any idea how long specifically a chemically treated driveway and screen enclosure will last? (I guess "last" is kinda vague, but basically how long before the green is evident or treatment is necessary again). I live in Florida, so yeah, it's humid here. Even a round-about answer would be great. I just want to let my customers know what they can expect and for how long they can expect it. Thank You Midwest Pro! |
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Midwestpro
Site Admin
Joined: 08 Oct 2007
Posts: 862
Location: Indiana
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| Posted: Tue Nov 03, 2009 1:43 am Post subject: |
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| Around here it is about every two years where there are a lot of trees. Down south I would guess probably every year to 18 months. |
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absolutelybrilliant!
Joined: 15 Aug 2009
Posts: 26
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| Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 12:21 am Post subject: Re: Cleaning Concrete |
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| FCPWLLC wrote: | | The jomax is OK but there are better, less expensive detergents. To use with Down Streamer, you'll need to begin with some 12% and more soap. |
Ok, I'm not sure what is meant by "Down Streamer". Is it the chemical to use instead of Jomax? Or is the chemical injector called a "down streamer"? I'm sure I do not sound absolutelybrilliant as my username indicates, but I just don't know what you are referring to. If it is a chemical, where can I get it? If not, what is that chemical and where can I get it?
Also, is the best way to apply the chemical through the regular soap nozzel? I've also heard of something called a ball joint valve. Your thoughts?
One thing to add: when cleaning concrete that looks just dirty (not moldy), is a chemical clean necessary? Would you just pressure wash the dirt off the concrete or would you add some kind of soap / chemical to add further cleaning power? Thank you! |
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Midwestpro
Site Admin
Joined: 08 Oct 2007
Posts: 862
Location: Indiana
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| Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 2:59 pm Post subject: |
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A down streamer is a chemical injector, same thing some people just call them one or the other. Most chemical injectors are connected in line with the pressure hose somewhere after the pressure washing pump or "down stream" of the pump hence the name.
Chemical injectors usually come with your pressure washing unit or can be purchased most anywhere they sell pressure washers and supplies. Here is a picture of some http://www.cmcpwe.com/accessorycheminjectors.html
Most contractors use a soap nozzle in the end of a wand/gun. A ball valve is nothing more than a shut off valve mechanism that some guys use in place of a wand and gun. You would still stick your soap nozzles into the ball valve to clean things. Here is a video of our very own Michael K using a ball valve on a house wash.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HAHW4LDfAw
Dirt, mold, and mildew all get cleaned with the same chemicals and pressure no matter what. We always use cleaners even for just dirt. |
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absolutelybrilliant!
Joined: 15 Aug 2009
Posts: 26
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| Posted: Wed Dec 30, 2009 11:22 am Post subject: Re: Cleaning Concrete |
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| FCPWLLC wrote: | | The jomax is OK but there are better, less expensive detergents. |
Sorry, so what would replace Jomax as a better, less expensive detergent to mix in with my chlorine? |
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