By now, you’ve probably heard about soft washing. Essentially, soft washing eliminates dirt, grime, algae, mold, mildew, and other contaminants on surfaces like decks, fences, roofs, and exterior walls using a low-pressure water delivery system and special cleaning solutions. However, there’s more to it than that. There’s a certain science behind the soft washing method that makes it our go-to choice for your exterior spaces.
- Understanding the Basics: Understanding the properties of the cleaning products used and how they react with different kinds of dirt is part of the science behind soft washing. The main ingredients in soft wash cleaning solutions are water, surfactants, detergents, solvents, and other active substances. These chemicals break the links between dirt and the surface it’s stuck to, which makes it easier to get rid of dirt without hurting the surface.
- What Are Surfactants? Surfactants are an important part of soft washing products. These chemicals are both hydrophilic, which means they attract water, and hydrophobic, which means they resist water. This means they can get into the dirt and grime and loosen them up while also helping to keep the dirt and grime suspended in the cleaning solution, so they are easy to rinse off.
- Delivery Is Key: The low-pressure water delivery method is just as important to the soft washing process as the chemicals. Soft washing protects delicate surfaces like shingles, wood, and vinyl siding from damage by using low-pressure water. And while many companies use pressure between 100 and 400 psi (pounds per square inch), we go as low as 60 psi, which protects your surfaces.