Wash Rite's tips for removing stains from exterior cladding

keeping your home in great condition requires regular maintenance. This is especially true when it comes to your house's exterior cladding. Stains and mark's occur when dirt or other contaminants come into contact with the house during high wind, or when large bodies of water run down a particular wall. The more exposed a wall is to the elements, the more exterior cladding stains are likely to occur. Stains can also be common in areas where homes are located near factories, quarries, or production facilities or busy road's.

In this article Wash Rite offer's some home maintenance tips on removing exterior cladding stains , depending on the type of cladding your home has:

REMOVING STAINS FROM BRICK

Brick and block exteriors are common across New Zealand. Brick and Block is considered a “low maintenance” option for cladding, as it doesn’t usually require repainting, like weatherboards. But brick does attract stains, and you have to be careful when cleaning it. Many brick surfaces can be easily damaged by harsh cleaning methods.

Stains can be removed by scrubbing with a solution of warm water and dish washing liquid. muriatic acid and Naphtha soap can also work well, and for certain stains ammonia will work, too. Refer to your brick manufacturer’s care instructions for the best products to use.

REMOVING STAINS FROM FIBRE CEMENT

Fibre cement is another common cladding method in New Zealand. These boards are porous, so they retain water and can be susceptible to the growth of algae, moss, mould, and lichen, all of which can produce staining.

To clean, most people use a detergent nozzle on their hose. Look for mild detergents that won’t damage your product or run off into your garden. This will remove most dust, mud, salt, bird, and insect droppings. You can also purchase specialised products for removing and protecting against mould and algae. A simple and easy method is to mix a 10% house hold bleach to water mix up and use that to wash down the walls, Ensure you rinse the soap off the house after washing.

REMOVING STAINS FROM CEDAR AND OTHER WOOD WEATHERBOARDS

Many homes utilize untreated cedar or other wood weatherboards. Wood contains tannins, which will be brought to the surface as untreated timber is frequently exposed to rain. This will cause brown stains on the wood surface, and may also affect brick, concrete or painted wooden surfaces that abut against the cedar.

Tannin stains can be easily removed with warm water, although on harder surfaces like brick they may require vigorous rubbing with soapy water. Don’t use an abrasive cloth, or you may ruin the finish on your weatherboards.

Staining or painting weatherboards will dramatically decrease the instances of tannin stains.

Wood weatherboards are also prone to iron staining where they come into contact with steel or iron (such as nails, strapping, roof or window frames.) These blue-black stains are tough to remove. Prevention is the best cure – by ensuring timber that’s continuously wet with runoff from an iron surface is treated with a stain-resistant finish. Diluted household bleach or oxalic acid (2% solution) can work to remove iron stains on some woods. Otherwise, stains can usually be sanded out.

REMOVING STAINS FROM UPVC WEATHERBOARDS

uPVC weatherboards are extremely low maintenance. A wet cloth and warm soapy water will remove most stains. Hydro-chlorite or chlorine-based cleaners can also be use. DO NOT use solvents or abrasive cleaners on uPVC weatherboards – they can strip away the protective coatings on the product.

For more information on maintaining and cleaning your homes exterior contact Wash Rite House Wash  on 0800101216 or visit www.washrite.co.nz and we will be happy to help .