House washing soap / for use with water blaster

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timmmay

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#284430 21-Apr-2021 12:48

I need to give me house a bit of a wash. It's painted weatherboards with the paint in good condition as paint is only a year old, single story but a bit taller than average. I have a house washing brush but it's too labor intensive to do the whole house.

I'm thinking a cleaner such as wet and forget house shampoo sprayed on, then water blasting it off. Any thoughts on the method or product? Wet and Forget is moderately expensive $80 for one bottle which is probably enough for us, but compared with $300 - $400 for a professional just for the house wash then $300 for a gutter clean it's a good deal.

Also need to do the guttering. The outsides are easy with the waterblaster, and I can use a ladder, small shovel, and house to finish the insides.

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#2696064 21-Apr-2021 12:56

Try simple green outdoor cleaner with the applicator nosel then rinse with a hose. I wouldn't use a waterblaster on painted weatherboards. High chance of blowing the paint off and damaging the wood.

timmmay

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#2696070 21-Apr-2021 13:10

shrub: Try simple green outdoor cleaner with the applicator nosel then rinse with a hose. I wouldn't use a waterblaster on painted weatherboards. High chance of blowing the paint off and damaging the wood.

That looks more like a moss / mould remover, the weatherboards just have a bit of dust / dirt. Is it suitable to remove that? It'd probably be good for guttering, and it's quite a bit cheaper than Wet and Forget.

I'd probably use the waterblaster at a distance on the painted weatherboards so as not to damage it. Because it has the motor to pull water out of the pipes I think it is more effective than just a hose. The paint is pretty well stuck, only done a year ago, oil based primer and good layers of paint. For the PVC guttering I'd get right up close and give it a good blasting.

martyyn

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#2696087 21-Apr-2021 13:53

I use the snow foam I use on my cars. I buy in bulk so it's quite a bit cheaper than a one off house variant like above.

throbb

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#2696093 21-Apr-2021 14:02

I used the 30sec house wash a couple weeks back. The house was filthy. Pretty much spray on and rinse off, used a standard hose and most of the dirt just washed away.

timmmay

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#2696094 21-Apr-2021 14:03

martyyn: I use the snow foam I use on my cars. I buy in bulk so it's quite a bit cheaper than a one off house variant like above.

What is "snow foam"? When I spot clean the house to remove bird poop I use carwash soap but that won't scale.

I'd like something I can spray on the hose / blast off.

timmmay

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#2696095 21-Apr-2021 14:04

throbb:
I used the 30sec house wash a couple weeks back. The house was filthy. Pretty much spray on and rinse off, used a standard hose and most of the dirt just washed away.

Sounds like a good option thanks 🙂👍

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#2696103 21-Apr-2021 14:19

timmmay: Because it has the motor to pull water out of the pipes I think it is more effective than just a hose.

Your waterblaster doesn't "pull water from the pipes" - otherwise you'd end up collapsing your cheap garden hose that's feeding it, or worse, collapsing the plastic pipes in your walls, which aren't suction hose.

A transformer is a good analogue - your just sacrificing volume to allow higher velocity, which then disperses quite quickly with distance. By the time you've backed off enough to not risk doing any damage to the paint, the velocity has dropped of significantly, and you might as well just hose it and save the cost of electricity usage running the motor.

outdoorsnz

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#2696114 21-Apr-2021 14:39

I just recently used sallys sugar soap and worked very well for me. 1/2 a cup makes a up 5 liters. So goes a long way. I think I used less than one container. I used a window cleaning extendable brush to lightly scrub the building and hosed it off. But I'm sure you could spray it on and wash it off for a good shine! House looks great now.

martyyn

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#2696116 21-Apr-2021 14:45

timmmay:
martyyn: I use the snow foam I use on my cars. I buy in bulk so it's quite a bit cheaper than a one off house variant like above.

What is "snow foam"? When I spot clean the house to remove bird poop I use carwash soap but that won't scale.

I'd like something I can spray on the hose / blast off.

It does exactly what you want but on cars. It's a pre-wash to loosen the dirt and debris before rinsing and washing. But I should have thought about it before suggesting it because you need a foam lance to spray it on.

Your water blaster may have come with one though but it's likely to over dilute the foam which means you end up with it running down the house rather than sticking for five minutes. It will still work but maybe not as well.

timmmay

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#2696130 21-Apr-2021 15:13

Ge0rge:
timmmay: Because it has the motor to pull water out of the pipes I think it is more effective than just a hose.

Your waterblaster doesn't "pull water from the pipes" - otherwise you'd end up collapsing your cheap garden hose that's feeding it, or worse, collapsing the plastic pipes in your walls, which aren't suction hose.

A transformer is a good analogue - your just sacrificing volume to allow higher velocity, which then disperses quite quickly with distance. By the time you've backed off enough to not risk doing any damage to the paint, the velocity has dropped of significantly, and you might as well just hose it and save the cost of electricity usage running the motor.

Interesting, thanks :)

timmmay

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#2696131 21-Apr-2021 15:14

outdoorsnz:

I just recently used sallys sugar soap and worked very well for me. 1/2 a cup makes a up 5 liters. So goes a long way. I think I used less than one container. I used a window cleaning extendable brush to lightly scrub the building and hosed it off. But I'm sure you could spray it on and wash it off for a good shine! House looks great now.

I have an extendable brush but because of a shoulder injury I can't use it for very long. But the water blaster has a tank thingy I can use to spray things on so might be worthwhile. I'd probably go with a house cleaner if I was just spraying on thanks. My extendable brush has a soap dispenser for that simple type of soap that works well with the brush.

martyyn:

It does exactly what you want but on cars. It's a pre-wash to loosen the dirt and debris before rinsing and washing. But I should have thought about it before suggesting it because you need a foam lance to spray it on.

Your water blaster may have come with one though but it's likely to over dilute the foam which means you end up with it running down the house rather than sticking for five minutes. It will still work but maybe not as well.

Sounds like interesting for cars but maybe not for houses thanks.

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#2696139 21-Apr-2021 15:30

Ge0rge:
timmmay: Because it has the motor to pull water out of the pipes I think it is more effective than just a hose.

Your waterblaster doesn't "pull water from the pipes" - otherwise you'd end up collapsing your cheap garden hose that's feeding it, or worse, collapsing the plastic pipes in your walls, which aren't suction hose.

A transformer is a good analogue - your just sacrificing volume to allow higher velocity, which then disperses quite quickly with distance. By the time you've backed off enough to not risk doing any damage to the paint, the velocity has dropped of significantly, and you might as well just hose it and save the cost of electricity usage running the motor.

That depends on the waterblaster. Larger ones use a tank of water to ensure the pump doesn't starve. I knew somebody who fixed his low water pressure with a pump and had the council investigate because when he turned his garden hose on the pressure to the neighbours vanished.

I use the high pressure mist from an ordinary electric water blaster as it rinses the soap off using less water. The yard isn't waterlogged.

mudguard

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#2696140 21-Apr-2021 15:31

martyyn:

It does exactly what you want but on cars. It's a pre-wash to loosen the dirt and debris before rinsing and washing. But I should have thought about it before suggesting it because you need a foam lance to spray it on.

I know it's off topic, but can you link to a lance and the product? I've been wanting one for awhile to clean the car.

outdoorsnz

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#2696146 21-Apr-2021 15:43

timmmay:

I have an extendable brush but because of a shoulder injury I can't use it for very long. But the water blaster has a tank thingy I can use to spray things on so might be worthwhile. I'd probably go with a house cleaner if I was

I also recently used white vinegar / borax (cheap as chips) and dish washing soap for a very effective outdoor / indoor/ multipurpose cleaner...

Fred99

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#2696164 21-Apr-2021 16:20

Dishwashing liquid has got a lot of salt added to it (it's essentially there as a "thickener" for the dilute anionic surfactants used - to make you think that because it's viscous it's "strong" - you can get dirt cheap dishwash liquids that have far less active ingredient but more salt - oldest trick in the book for "cheap" home brands etc).

So, I suggest you don't use dishwash liquid for your car - and probably not your house. It makes stuff rust.

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