How to Clean Your Home’s Exterior

Home exterior replacements make up over 20% of home improvements. If you want to avoid replacing parts of your home’s exterior, then you need to keep up with routine cleaning and maintenance.

Each year, you spend a good portion of your time cleaning the interior of your home: vacuuming and mopping the floors regularly, dusting the hard and reachable surfaces, and wiping off the kitchen countertops, to name a few.

Compared to the usual routine, cleaning the exterior of your home may not have crossed your mind. Out of sight, out of mind, especially in the colder months when you’re more focused on staying safe, warm, and dry rather than keeping things clean. However, it is important not to neglect your exterior cleaning.

Not only will it improve the looks of your home, but it can also improve the overall health of your home. Let’s talk about how to clean the exterior of your home and the benefits of doing so.

Driveway 

Your driveway can easily become dirty from cars driving over it, children playing, and the natural wear and tear of weather. Washing your driveway is fairly simple and does not take much time or effort. 

To begin, you will want to remove any dirt and debris from the surface of your driveway. This will allow you to get a more thorough clean from top to bottom with nothing in the way.

If you have any oil stains from your vehicles, then start by soaking them with a degreaser. Leave the degreaser on for a few hours, and then use a wire brush to scrub it off.

Then, you can either call a professional or DIY your cleaning. You can find driveway cleaner at the grocery store and do it yourself, or you can hire a local landscaping company to use their own tools to get your driveway looking great.

Siding

Your siding is one of the most important parts of your home’s exterior. Because most siding has small grooves in it, this is the perfect place for dirt, debris, and cobwebs to collect.

To clean your siding, it is usually safe to use any mild bleach-based cleaner mixed with water.

One common solution for cleaning your siding is to hire a pressure washing service. Pressure washing is a great way to blast off any unsightly dirt on your siding. Hiring a professional is always a great choice, as they know exactly how to wash your siding without being too harsh on it.

Gutters

Gutters can easily become clogged all-year round with dirt, leaves, and other debris. If you neglect gutter cleaning, you may experience issues such as roof leaks or flooding around your foundation.

To clean your gutters, you’ll want to hop up on a ladder, so you have a good view of your workspace. Put some gloves on, pick up the debris, and place them in a plastic garbage bag. If there is hard mud or rocks in your gutter, you may need a small shovel to get them out.

Once you are done removing the debris, take a hose and spray off your gutters.

If you are nervous about climbing a ladder yourself, then you can always hire a professional to do it for you. It is recommended that you clean your gutters twice a year.

Windows

If you are going to clean your home, then you can’t ignore the windows. To begin, spray your windows off with a garden hose to get rid of or loosen up any stuck-on dirt. Then, take a few drops of liquid dish soap and mix it with a bucket of water.

You can then take a microfiber cloth and use it to wipe down the surface of your windows. After this dries, you can make your glass sparkle by spraying it down with a glass cleaner and wiping it with a paper towel.

If you have screens on your windows, then carefully remove them and spray them with a vinegar and water solution. This will help to get rid of any dust or dirt that may be sitting inside of the small openings in the screen.

Roof

You can’t clean your house without hitting the roof. It is important to make sure you know how to clean your particular roofing material, but you can generally use the same cleaning tips for all roofs.

Cleaning the roof also requires you to get on a ladder, so make sure you hire a professional if you don’t feel safe doing this.

First, inspect your roof and make sure there are no holes, cracks, or missing shingles. If you notice any of these problems, then they need to be taken care of first. 

Once you have given it a thorough inspection, you can use a leaf blower to remove any leaves or loose dirt. Then, you can use water on a low pressure setting to clean your roof. Don’t use high pressure, as this can cause shingles to become loose.

Porch

Lastly, you will want to clean off your porch. Use your hands to pick up any large debris that may get in the way of your cleaning. You can then use a leaf blower to get rid of anything that you didn’t pick up yourself.

You can then wet down your porch with water and the appropriate cleaner. Once the water and cleaner have begun to soak in, you can take a long-handled brush and scrub the surface down before rinsing it off one more time with water.

Take Care of Your Exterior Cleaning Needs Today

Now that you know all of the best exterior cleaning advice, it is time to get started. Make sure you used all of these tips and tricks to get the outside of your home looking great.

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