What Is the Difference Between Power Washing and Pressure Washing?

What Is the Difference Between Power Washing and Pressure Washing?

You may have heard the terms power washing and pressure washing used interchangeably. Is there a difference between the two? If so, which one is better?

Turns out, there is a difference between power washing and pressure washing. Actually, there are a couple of differences between the two approaches. The main difference is the temperature of the water used. The second difference is the water pressure. While those differences may seem subtle, they can impact how effective the service is and whether it can safely be used on various surfaces.

What Is Pressure Washing?

Like its name suggest, pressure washing relies on pressure to do the dirty work. It uses a machine to create high pressure water streams that can remove dirt, grime, molds, and algae from various exterior surfaces. The pressure ranges and can go to 2,800 psi or higher. Pressure washers can be gas or electric.

Pressure washing may use water or a combination of water and detergent to clean surfaces. The detergents may be designed for specific surfaces or to accomplish specific goals, like killing mold.

Pressure washing is very effective, but it has a major downside. The high pressure means that it is easy to damage surfaces when using pressure washing. That does not mean that pressure washing is bad; it can be the fastest and most efficient way to clean many outdoor surfaces. It just means that pressure washing is not right for all surfaces.

What Is Power Washing?

Power washing uses hot water to clean exterior surfaces. The water pressure can vary, from normal pressure like you would get from an attachment on a garden hose to higher pressure. However, because it uses hot water it does not need the same pressure to get the same results.

Power washing is great for a few reasons. First, because hot water lets us use lower pressure and get the same results, you can power wash things that are too delicate to pressure wash.

Second, power washing is more environmentally friendly. The hot water can kill molds and algae without the need for detergents or bleaches. This allows us to get a sparkling clean exterior without using anything that is harmful for your environment. The heat is also particularly effective on sticky dirt and residue like gum or tree saps.

Which One Is Right for You?

If you are tackling a DIY exterior cleaning project, then you are probably using a pressure washer. They are more widely available in the retail market. If you are hiring a professional, then you want to hire a company like Absolute Solutions, which has the flexibility to use power washing when pressure washing is not an option.