Essential Exterior Cleaning Tasks for Every Season: A Homeowner’s Guide

Keep your home's exterior looking its best year-round with this seasonal cleaning guide. Learn essential tasks to maintain curb appeal and prevent damage.

As a homeowner, perhaps you’re among those who focus inordinately on the inside, forgetting that the outside needs attention too. This often leads to serious problems, including mold on siding, clogged gutters, and stained driveways. Such issues can lower your home’s value and make it unattractive. Not only that, but also costly repairs and safety hazards. 

The exterior of your house needs proper maintenance to keep these problems at bay. Regular cleaning helps protect your home against damage and boosts curb appeal. Moreover, breaking down the cleaning tasks into seasonal bits is a proactive way of staying ahead of potential issues. This way, every part of your exterior remains safe and in good shape. 

Below is a list of essential exterior cleaning tasks for every season that you’d want to carry out.  

1. Power Washing Siding and Decking in Summer

Summer is characterized by intense heat and humidity, which promote mold, mildew, and algae growth. These end up staining the siding and decking, ruining their look. If you leave it to build up season after season, the said surfaces will get damaged.  

Power washing is an excellent solution to effectively get rid of dirt and harmful growths. It helps give back wood, vinyl, and concrete surfaces their initial lustrous look. Doing this regularly also protects paint, ensuring it doesn’t fade or peel. Thus, the materials last longer, avoiding costly repairs during their lifetime. 

Different surfaces require varying pressure settings. Cranking it too high may end up damaging wood or paint. A good approach is testing a small area to gauge what pressure level is just enough. 

If you aren’t sure how to go about pressure washing or are short on time, consider hiring a Pasco County exterior cleaning company if you live in the area to do the work for you. Proper power washing keeps your home sparkling clean and excellently maintained throughout summer.  

2. Clearing Gutters and Downspouts in Spring

During the spring season, leaves and debris are likely to clog your gutters. Leaving such buildup unattended for a long time blocks the natural flow of water along the gutters and into the downspouts. Water overflows, washing over the walls and siding, and soaking into the foundation.  

Removing this debris restores proper flow of water, ensuring it drains where it’s intended to. Use a gutter scoop to dig out the leaves and soil. Then, use a garden hose with a pressurized outlet to flush the gutters. This removes sticky dirt that escaped the gutter scoop.

You’d also want to inspect downspouts for blockages and test how smoothly water flows down them. You can do this by gently tapping along the length of the downspout with your bare hand or a stick. If it sounds hollow, the downspout is likely clear. But if it sounds dull or solid, it might be blocked at that section. 

To unblock it, place a garden hose into the top of the downspout where it connects to the gutter and turn it on full blast.until water flows freely through the bottom outlet. If water backs up or trickles, it’s likely a blockage. In such a case, you can use a plumber’s snake or flexible rod to break up the clog.

3. Remove Leaves and Debris from Lawns and Roofs in Fall

In fall, leaves and debris pile up pretty quickly on the roof and lawn. And if you don’t take remedial action promptly, it can lead to mold growth and pest infestation. This can damage your lawn and increase the risk of leaks on the roof. 

These are convincing reasons why you should clear up leaves regularly through the autumn season. Apart from preventing lawn damage, it protects garden beds and prevents soil compaction. And on roofs, it also prevents water pooling.

A leaf blower and rake can do the job pretty well. Remember to also clear out the drains and valleys to facilitate smooth water flow. 

4. De-Icing Walkways and Entryways in Winter

Winter brings ice and snow around your home. Such slippery conditions increase the risk of falls and injury. You must keep all walkways and entryways clear to ensure your family, guests, and workers are safe. 

Use the right de-icing products to protect your concrete. Two popular options are ice melt and rock salt. Ice melt is a mix of sodium chloride, magnesium chloride, and calcium chloride. It dissolves faster than regular de-icing salt. It basically lowers the freezing point of water, melting snow and ice much quicker. 

Rock salt, on the other hand, is just regular table salt, thus a cleaner solution. Avoid those with chemicals that cause surface wear and cracks. Also, make sure the products you use don’t inflict any harm on pets and kids. De-ice regularly to keep your exterior surfaces in excellent condition and prevent accidents. 

5. Washing Windows and Screens in Spring

During winter, windows get covered with dust, pollen, and grime. These layers block the sunlight from fully penetrating indoors, making the rooms less bright. Dirtied screens also trap allergens, affecting air quality inside your home.  

So, consider cleaning your windows once the inclement weather abates. A vinegar-water solution plus soft cloths or microfiber towels are enough to achieve a streak-free finish. For the screens, you may want to remove them, rinse with water, and scrub with a soft brush. Air dry them and then reinstall carefully for a perfect fit. 

With the windows sparkling clean, your interiors will be bright and more pleasant. Dirt-free screens improve airflow while keeping insects and debris at bay. Keeping your windows ever clean windows also improves curb appeal and elongates their life, saving you costly repairs and replacements.

Conclusion

Don’t get into the unfortunate habit of leaving your home’s exterior unkempt and only reacting when issues get out of hand. Carrying out exterior cleaning tasks regularly is a sure way to prevent costly damage and preserve your investment in pristine condition for decades. It also keeps the occupants safe against accidents and infections, not forgetting its positive impact on curb appeal. 

Create a year-round routine that gives enough attention to all the essential exterior features, including walkways, entryways, driveways, windows, screens, roofs, and gutters. 

Of course, you can handle most of these cleaning tasks independently. But if you’re short of time or you’d rather leave it to the experts, don’t hesitate to engage professional cleaners. 

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