Tips & Tricks to Pressure Washing Your Garage
Determining the Type of Pressure Washer:
- How big is your garage? A larger garage will need a more powerful pressure washer with a wide-angle nozzle. A smaller garage will need lower pressure with a narrow-angle nozzle.
- How dirty is your floor? A gas powered pressure washer would be more ideal for a dirtier garage. You can use an electric powered machine if there is an outlet and if your garage floor isn’t too dirty or stained.
- Do you have proper ventilation in your garage? If you do not have the capability to open the garage doors and/or windows while cleaning then you do NOT want to use a gas powered machine.
Steps to Pressure Washing Your Garage
- Sweep: Make sure to use a broom or a vacuum to get rid of any excess leaves, sticks, dirt, etc.
- Rinse: Before you begin pressure washing, you will want to use a garden hose to quickly rinse the garage floors.
- Use a Degreaser: If your floor is covered in oil stains or grease, then you will want to use a degreaser before pressure washing. You can purchase these or make your own (dish soap and water). You can put this degreaser directly in the pressure washer soap tank or you can pour it directly on the floor. Let this sit for 10-15 minutes before doing anything else.
- Protect the Goods: Cover up anything that you don’t want getting wet or damaged in this process (furniture, bikes, boxes, outlets, etc).
- Start Pressure Washing: Start spraying the floors by moving indoors towards the outside of the garage (holding the wand about 20 inches from the ground). This is to ensure the dirty water will make it outside rather than get piled up and stuck in the corner of your garage or leak into your home. You will want to start with a low pressure and only increase pressure if needed for those harsh stains.
- Rinse: Rinse away any remaining water or degreaser from the floor.
- Dry: Let the floors completely dry before walking on it or moving anything back into the garage. You can also place fans around the room to speed the drying process up if necessary.
Other Tips:
- Do not hold the pressure washer in one spot for too long because it can damage the concrete floor.
- A gas powered pressure washer with a PSI of 3,000 and a water flow rate of 3 GPM will be your best option as long as you have proper ventilation in your garage.
- Always wear proper clothing (gloves, closed toed shoes, long pants, goggles and earplugs/headphones).
- Never use your hand to check the pressure of your machine.
- Always remember to shut the water off to change a nozzle, add accessories or when you are finished.
- Use a yellow 15 degree spray nozzle for heavy cleaning (lots of dirt, debris and stains). If the floor is not too dirty you can use a green 25 degree nozzle.
- Hold the wand 6”-12” from the ground while pressure washing.
- Hose down your driveway before you start so the excess dirty water does not stain your driveway.
If you currently live in Utah and are needing mobile detailing services, contact our sister company, AJET Services (801-330-0398 or contact@ajetservices.com).
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