House washing in Palm Beach

Houses here get a coating of salt on every exposed face, and on the ocean side it arrives with sand. Render on the newer ridge-top homes chalks and streaks below window sills, painted weatherboard on the older weekenders goes grey-green on the south side, and the sandstone of the 1916-era cottages wants nothing stronger than a gentle rinse. Roofs collect fronds from the cabbage tree palms and gum leaves that pack gutters hard by autumn, and lichen spreads across terracotta tiles on the shady slopes above Snapperman Beach. Solar arrays on rebuilt homes lose output under salt film and bird droppings. Holiday houses often need a full outside clean before the summer season or a sale.

A vetted tradie starts with a walk around, noting which surfaces take pressure and which do not. Sandstone, old mortar, lead paint and any fibro from before 1990 are soft washed or left alone; asbestos cement is never pressure cleaned, and the tradie will say so if they suspect it. Detergent run-off is directed to lawn or garden rather than the kerb, because the drains on these streets discharge to the beach and Pittwater and NSW pollution law makes fouling them an offence. On the steep blocks, roof and gutter work means harness anchors, edge rails or a long pole from ground level, which is what the WHS Regulation expects. Panels get soft brushes and pure water, never a pressure lance.

Tell us what needs washing, roughly how big the house is and how it is reached, with a photo or two if you can. Vetted, independent tradies already washing houses between Avalon and the lighthouse are the ones who see it, and whoever takes it contacts you, looks at the house and quotes in writing. That quote should set out each surface and method, where the wash water will go, and whether gutters, roof and solar are part of it. If you are away, the tradie can often quote from photos and a visit, then do the work before you arrive. Free for homeowners, and no obligation to hire.