On the advice of a friend, I checked out a product called Spray & Forget. The product removes moss and mildew from the external surfaces of your house. It is a biodegradable product that uses the same chemical as is used in your Lysol disinfecting wipes under your sink. It does not contain acids or bleach. The product stays on the surface and Mother Nature activates it when she rains.
Anyway, I used it on the side of my house and the results were impressive. Within days, the mold and mildew disappeared and has stayed gone all summer. On a whim, I sprayed a block of my driveway (see picture inset) and within about a month, I saw a noticeable difference and snapped this picture.
Benefits
If used according to the label and you take precautions, this product, or similar products like Wet and Forget, can be a preferable solution to cleaning the outside of your house with a power washer for the following reasons:
- Money: A gallon will cost you less than $40, which is less than the cost of renting a power washer, buying and maintaining one and certainly less than hiring someone to do it for you. The only equipment you need is a tank sprayer, goggles and a mask for your nose and mouth.
- Time: I sprayed my whole driveway in less than an hour. It will take time to see results, but the product will keep cleaning for up to a year. Power washing does not offer the same benefit. In addition, I can manage my own time and I would not need to depend on someone else’s schedule, either via renting or borrowing a machine or going through the process of hiring someone to do the work.
- Damage: Power washing can push water into joints and damage interior construction or be hard on surfaces due to the pressure.
- Environment: This probably does not create
a huge resource savings , but usingrain water over municipal water conserves this precious resource. The runoff from the power washer could prove more concentrated also.
Power washing does a great job on your property, but it has significant costs, whether you do it yourself or hire a contractor. I pursued this as a less expensive and time-saving option for me. I buy the supplies and fit it in when my schedule allows.
I treated the rest of my driveway on October 1st. Updates will be provided with pictures as it works to clean my driveway.
Update
After a couple of months, my driveway has really cleaned itself up. I did not notice it right away, but after a couple of snowfalls, I was walking out to my car and it really caught my eye. The product has really done its job and really improved the look of my driveway.
The pictures clearly show the difference. Believe it or not, in person, the change is even more dramatic. When I compare the look of my driveway compared to other driveways in the neighborhood, I am very pleased with the results. Consider treating your concrete or siding with this biodegradable product.