Many people get green or black spots on the vinyl or cement board (also called Hardie Plank) siding of their home that needs to be cleaned yearly or bi-yearly.
These spots are typically dirt, mold, mildew, fungus, and/or algae.
You can use pressure washing, scrubbing, or hiring people to remove these stains every year or every few months, however that can be very time consuming and expensive.
There is a much quicker, easier, and cheaper way to clean siding that you can do yourself.
Here are the steps for how to quickly and easily clean siding without any special tools and without scrubbing.
House Wash
The most important step to cleaning your siding is to purchase the correct house wash.
Look at reviews online to see what works.
Typically a house wash that contains bleach works best.
The brand that was used for the photo is Home Armor E-Z House Wash #ad. This brand was selected after several failed attempts to clean the siding using a pressure washer and other products (I was not paid to endorse this product, nor did I receive it for free). This particular house wash was purchased after spending a lot of time looking at online reviews. Luckily, it was very inexpensive.
Spray On
Before using the product, make sure to have on old clothes because the house wash might discolor your clothes since the product is made with bleach.
Make sure to use safety glasses to avoid getting the product in your eyes.
You should also thoroughly wet down your plants that might get sprayed so they are less affected by the bleach solution.
Always use the directions listed on the package of house wash you use, however here are the general directions.
1) Attach the house wash to your garden hose.
2) Before using it on a large area of your home, use it on a test spot to ensure it does not discolor your siding.
3) Turn on the garden hose and spray the house wash onto your home and let it sit for 10 minutes.
You may want to use a step ladder to reach farther, especially if you have a 2 story home (the house wash I used claimed to reach higher than it actually did).
The house wash will drip off your siding and look like it is not doing anything - don't panic!
4) After 10 minutes, turn the nozzle on your house wash bottle to rinse and wash the house wash off.
5) You may want to repeat the process if any mold or mildew remains.
One bottle should clean a small to medium sized one story home one time.
This solution will also clean brick, stucco, fences, and other outdoor materials.
