How To Wash Vinyl Siding in 4 Easy Steps

At First American Roofing, we know siding! We can tell you what siding works best for your needs, how to install it, and more importantly, how to maintain it. Maintaining your siding offers longevity and protects your investment for the long haul.

We install a number of different types of siding including vinyl, LP Smartside, Hardie Board, and Everlast Composite. You can read more about the pros and cons of our top 5 sidings here. If you have vinyl installed on your home or are looking to install vinyl siding, stick around for information on how to maintain and prolong the life of your vinyl siding.

Pros and Cons of Vinyl Siding

Vinyl siding is a plastic exterior siding that easily boosts curb appeal and protects your home from things like rain, snow, and high winds. One major pro of vinyl siding is that it can look and act like other, more expensive materials, without sacrificing your home’s style. It can look no different from wood boards, batten, or shakes, while also imitating the more high-end materials like fiber cement.

Vinyl siding is considered very cost-effective compared to it’s more high-end counterparts, which unfortunately can give it a reputation of being cheap amongst certain companies in the industry. However, despite being more affordable, it can last for a very long time when installed properly. Plus, the all-through color means it won’t fade or have to be repainted due to chips or fading.

Some of the cons aside from being viewed as lesser-than to some homeowners include that it must be properly installed in order to reach its full lifespan. Weather can cause it to expand or shrink, and it is also susceptible to hail damage or flying debris during extreme weather. But, with it being more affordable, those rare instances can be easily and quickly rectified.

DIY Vinyl Siding Cleaning

The fact that vinyl siding is said to be durable and the color won’t fade, can sometimes lead homeowners to neglect maintenance on it, thinking it’s good to go. But, this is not the case. All siding regardless of its materials or nature requires some light maintenance and cleaning if you want to maintain its longevity of life. Rain, snow, dust, dirt, and other exterior factors can lead to dingy siding that can over time wear away causing it to look aged and weather.

When it comes to homeowners cleaning their vinyl siding themselves, they likely rent or buy a pressure washer and use that on their house. Pressure washing can actually be incredibly damaging, especially to materials like vinyl siding. So homeowners must make sure to proceed with caution if they clean vinyl siding in this manner. If the water gets up under the siding, it can loosen them, leading to necessary replacement down the road. If water gets up under the soffits or siding near the roof, it can allow water into the attic or walls of the house, leading to mold and mildew. This also damages insulation if it gets wet, causing a multitude of other issues when all you meant to do was clean your vinyl siding.

Cleaning vinyl siding, and other siding materials, should more often than not be handled by a professional. Pressure washing should be avoided and utilizing soft washing gives homeowners clean vinyl siding without the hazards that pressure washing brings.

Soft Washing Vinyl Siding

Soft washing is a much better alternative to pressure washing your home’s exterior. It uses both lower water pressure, and a combination of soaps and bleach to ensure your siding is actually cleaned, not just rinsed off. Our use of soaps and bleach will actually kill the bacteria and algae growth you may notice on your vinyl siding or roof shingles (this method is safe for cleaning any exterior surfaces of your home). Without the use of these cleaning solutions present in the soft washing method, it is likely you’ll find yourself cleaning your siding too often.

Because the outside of your home is exposed to the elements, it becomes susceptible to mold, mildew, and algae that can actually deteriorate your surfaces and vinyl siding. This deterioration can cut down the lifecycle of your materials by many years. A soft wash can take care of any of these problems, plus make your siding look as new as the day it was installed, improving your curb appeal, and protecting your investment.

Our 4 Step Cleaning Process

At First American, we do everything we can to ensure your home is as good as new after our professional soft washing service. We have a clearly defined process that ensures we don’t miss anything!

1. You call for your FREE quote based on the size of your home, and what you need washed.
2. We do a detailed walk-around of your property to determine what needs to be cleaned, and how we will approach it. (Soft washing a roof would require some extra precautions).
3. We bring our top-of-the-line soft washing equipment and cleaning chemicals and do a full wash of your exterior surfaces that need to be washed. We can generally get this done in one day.
4. We can do a post-inspection if you require, and if we washed your roof, we will get you set up with our 5-year roof cleaning warranty. If for whatever reason your roof shows regrowth of algae in the next 5 years, we will come and make it right.

We are here to educate homeowners on all of the options there are to clean your home. We understand homeowners who love to DIY and save a buck, may choose to pressure wash. However, we want to let everyone know that your best bet for a long-lasting, non-damaging clean is going to only happen with professional soft washing. When searching for a professional to handle your soft washing, make sure they are local, have plenty of reviews, and are insured.

If you are interested in transforming your spring cleaning to spring remodel, our team at First American would be excited to work with you to install new siding on your home. Contact our team today for a free estimate!