Can You Pressure Wash Vinyl Siding?
Vinyl siding can be washed with a pressure washer, but only with care, and some siding makers say not to. The trade group's rules, the common mistakes, and the gentler way.
The short answer
Yes, with caution. The vinyl siding industry's trade group says a pressure washer can be used if it is held level and never aimed upward, because spraying up drives water behind the panels. Some siding makers do not recommend pressure washing at all. Routine dirt comes off with a hose and a soft brush.
Who sets the rules for vinyl
The Polymeric Exterior Products Association is the trade group for vinyl siding makers. Its consumer cleaning guide is the closest thing to an industry standard (PEPA cleaning and maintenance). Individual siding makers can add their own rules on top.
What the trade group says
- Routine dirt: a garden hose rinse is often enough. For a deeper clean, use a soft brush and work from the bottom of the wall up, then rinse.
- Pressure washers: allowed with caution. Hold the stream level, at eye level, and never aim it upward, because that can force water behind the panels.
- Siding makers differ: some do not recommend pressure washing, and others set pressure limits. Check both your siding’s and your washer’s instructions.
- Around the house: take care near windows, doors, wiring and plumbing.
- Small spots of mold or mildew: a common household spray cleaner. Larger areas: 30% vinegar and 70% water.
- Avoid: undiluted chlorine bleach, which can damage the surface.
- Always: test a cleaner on a hidden spot first, and rinse well.
The two common mistakes
Most damage to vinyl comes from technique, not from the siding itself:
- Spraying up under the laps. Each panel overlaps the one below it to shed water downward. A stream pointed up drives water into the wall, which the trade group warns about directly.
- Straight bleach out of the jug. The trade group lists undiluted chlorine bleach among products to avoid.
How we wash vinyl
We do not blast siding. Our house wash is a soft wash: low pressure and a professional grade sodium hypochlorite (SH) cleaning solution, mixed for the surface, given time to work, then rinsed. Because the solution does the cleaning, there is no need for a high pressure stream near the laps, windows or light fixtures. Vinyl and aluminum siding, brick, stucco, wood and fiber cement all get the same low pressure approach.
The green film
If the problem is the green or gray-green coat on the shady side of the house, that is algae, and it has its own page: green film on vinyl siding.
What cleaning will not fix
Cleaning will not fix cracked, warped, loose or sun faded panels, and it will not stop water that is already getting behind the siding. Check your siding maker's instructions too, because some set their own pressure limits or advise against pressure washing.
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