Best Ways to Clean Concrete Driveways

Driveways should be kept clean with the appropriate tools using the best available methods. A clean and well maintained driveway is a source of happiness to the owner. They are the first point of contact for visitors. The value of a home with a clean driveway can not be underestimated, hence, another reason why your driveway has to be kept clean at all times.

In this article, we will look at the different driveways and the best ways to keep them clean.

Cleaning A Concrete Driveway

The bumpy surface of a concrete driveway creates a lot of spots for dirt, decaying leaves, oils and other rubbish to settle and stick onto the surface. Frequently washing the surface prevents those things from accumulating in the crack. Concrete is also a nearly porous surface, which means that anything that spills on the driveway can soak into the concrete, causing a deeper stain. Washing your driveway frequently helps to maintain your home’s appearance. When spills occur, especially car leakage, take care of them immediately before the liquid tests into the surface and stains.

Cleaning A Concrete Driveway With A Pressure Washer – Procedural Approach
Materials required are as listed below

Steps

• Sweep surface – clear detritus and excess dirt and dust from the surface you want to clean using a broom.
• Protect The exteriors – protect exterior walls, doors and windows with a plastic sheeting and painter’s tape. This will protect doors and windows from loose detritus as well as any accidental paint or stain removal from the pressure washer.
• Read the safety manual properly – carefully read the right ways pertaining to your particular pressure washer. Every pressure washer is different and may need special preparation and attachment.
• Degrease the surface – make sure that there is a proper cleaning by spraying the concrete driveway with a bottle of degreaser spray, keeping a distance of 6 inches from the surface. Scrub the degreaser into the concrete using a hard brush or pressure washer attachment tool.
• Attached Hoses – connect supplied pressure washer hose and a wand to the pressure washer. After that, attach a 50ft garden hose to the pressure washer’s water supply, then turn on water.
• Attach a spray wand tip for detergent – firstly, select a tip indicating washing, usually labelled as “soap”. Then snap into place at the head of the spray wand.
• Spray Detergent – protect your hands with safety gloves, then apply detergent by holding down the spray handle, keeping a consistent distance of about 8 to 18 inches from the concrete driveway. Spray it to and fro in a smooth, well controlled manner, overlapping each stroke by 6 to 8 inches. Let the sprayed detergent rest on the surface for about 5 minutes
• Pressure-wash the concrete – change the tip labelled as “soap” to the tip labelled as “25 degree”. Pressure-wash the concrete by holding down spray handles, working your way to and fro from one side of the concrete surface to the other, overlapping each stroke by 6-8 inches. Tips; for a stronger stain such as paint, hold tip 3-4 inches from the concrete surface, moving with a slower motion, nearly still strokes to ensure removal.
• Prepare the pressure washer for detergent – place detergent syphon tube, usually supplied with the solution and attached to the pressure washer, directly into the detergent container. Once the pressure washer is started, immediately, the tube will bring into the water stream of the spray wand.
• Seal concrete – pour in waterproof sealer into paint pan, add roller cover to roller handle, attached extender pole. Next, start from the middle area, roll out a waterproof sealer from the middle to all edges of concrete. Allow to dry for a whole day before parking on the surface.

• Dry dish detergent

Procedure

• Sprinkle a layer thick of sawdust or cat litter on any grease or oil stains. Allow the sawdust to stay in place for about 12-24 hours in order to absorb as much grease as possible. After the time must have elapsed, sweep the cat litter up and dispose of it properly.
• Sweep the whole driveway to get rid of any dirty surface. Sweep out any cracks so the dirt does not move down the driveway when it is washed.
• Spray the whole driveway with water using a garden hose sprayer.
• Dissolve 2½ ounces of washing soda in a gallon of hot water. Or instead, sprinkle powdered detergent for dishwashing over the whole driveway.
• Dip a deck brush into the hot washing soda water solution and scrub the driveway, re-soak the brush as often as required. If you make use of dishwashing detergent, dip the brush into the bucket of hot water and scrub the detergent into the surface.
• Rinse the driveway with clean water after the surface must have been scrubbed thoroughly. Avoid rinsing the water into the garden areas as high concentration of the detergent can destroy the plant.

N/B; wash your driveway on cloudy days so the surface does not dry immediately. You can use Trisodium phosphate(tsp) cleaning agent for extremely dirty driveway, but be cautious because that is a harsh chemical that is more damaging to close-by-plants than detergent.