Cleaning Wood and Restoring Natural Color
http://procleantampa.com/how-to-clean-wood-fencing-and-restore-the-original-color/
One of the most challenging things to clean is Wood Fencing. It is really easy to leave pressure cleaning lines on the wood itself and depending on the amount of mold and plant life growing on the surface of the wood it can be almost impossible to avoid making marks on the wood. We decided to give you some helpful tips to make this project easier and turn out better.
Depending on the type of fence you are cleaning will determine the best motion to use when cleaning the wood. The proper motion is a sweeping pattern that makes sure the pressure is engaged away from the surface at first and “fanning In And Out” over the wood as you cleans and also making sure to disengage the pressure away from the wood surface. What causes lines in the wood is too much pressure and that happens mostly when the the pressure is either released or engaged with the cleaning tip directly pointing at the wood surface. In general maintain this “Sweeping or Fanning” motion throughout the cleaning project for best results.
First thing aside from having some basic power washing equipment, observing safety precautions and proper cleaning technique is having a great soap to help clean the mold. A little chlorine with dish detergent and water can go a long way as far as power washing cleaners go. Once the pressure cleaner is running let’s start by soaping down the entire fence. Only soap the first side and work from left to right or vice versa to be efficient. Once we have soaped up one side let’s cleanse the line by purging the soap from the system. Change the soap tip out for a high pressure tip.
Start at the bottom and clean the fence a foot up from the ground. Now you will want to clean following the grain of the wood. (The direction the wood planks are running in.) For example a stockade fence has vertical slats and horizontal runners that hold each fence section together. After you clean one Section move on to the next section. Clean a couple sections in a row then step back and rinse of the last few you just cleaned. Does it look good? Great! If not feel free to touch it up now! Continue cleaning in this manner all the way down the fence until you reach the end. Now my be a great time to move or adjust your power washer and hoses to the other side of the fence. Repeat the same approach on this side. Once we have cleaned both sides you will want to go back and lightly rinse off the first side you cleaned as often debris will be all over it. At this point the cleaning project is handled. Thanks again and stay tuned for more Expert Advice in our How To Clean in Tampa Fl series.
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