Using a power washer is an excellent way to clean up decking, patios and drives. Power washers are not expensive and can be used also on the external masonry of your house to wash away algae etc, and of course, to clean the car!! Patios and decks will accumulate algae, lichen and moss throughout the course of the year and may become slippery if not cleaned. Decks also need treating and this is dealt with in our project treating timber decking.
Power washer
You will need an external water source, and an RCD protected socket see our installing an outside tap project and click on the image below to go to the toolstore for a safety plug or socket.
RCD plug
Simply plug this into any socket indoors to be certain of being safe. On the same page, there is an RCD plug which can be wired directly to your appliances, making sure you are never without protection.
Our project was to clean the deck shown below.
Power washing the decking
First the water is connected to the power washer and turned on, then the electricity is turned on. Power washers have nozzles which allow adjustment of the spray from a very powerful, concentrated jet, to a wider, less powerful spray.