Pressure Washing in Charleston, SC

What the Harbor and the Live Oaks Do to Charleston Houses

The peninsula sits between the Ashley and Cooper Rivers with Charleston Harbor at its tip, so salt and moisture ride in on almost every breeze. That damp air feeds green algae and black mildew on shaded walls, especially the north and east sides of single houses built close to their neighbors. On painted wood clapboard and trim, the growth sits on the paint and shortens its life. On stucco it settles into the texture and turns a pale wall gray in a couple of seasons. Windows, shutters and wrought iron pick up a salty haze that dulls them even when the walls look fine.

Live oaks and Spanish moss shade a lot of the city, from Colonial Lake to the streets around Hampton Park and across the river in West Ashley. Shade keeps surfaces wet longer, and the trees drop pollen, leaf litter and sap onto roofs, gutters and piazza floors. The haint-blue porch ceilings that so many downtown homes have collect cobwebs, mildew spots and wasp nests in the corners. Those ceilings and the white railings below them are usually the first thing a visitor notices, and the first thing to look tired. Gutters packed with oak leaves overflow and streak the walls beneath them.

Then there is the water on the ground. King tides and heavy rain push floodwater onto low streets like Lockwood Drive and the blocks around the City Market, and parts of the Crosstown flood often. When it drains it leaves a film of silt and salt on lower walls, brick foundations, steps and sidewalks. Left alone, that film stains and gives mildew a head start. Old brick and soft lime mortar do not tolerate a blast from a pressure wand, so the right fix is a gentle cleaning solution, time for it to work, and a low-pressure rinse that leaves the masonry intact.

Charleston neighborhoods we serve

We work across Charleston (29401, 29403, 29407, 29412, 29414), including:

• South of Broad
• French Quarter
• Ansonborough
• Harleston Village
• Radcliffeborough
• Cannonborough-Elliotborough
• Hampton Park Terrace
• Wagener Terrace
• Moreland
• The Crescent

What We Clean in Charleston

House washing

Downtown houses mix materials: brick foundations, stucco walls, painted wood siding, shutters and piazza railings. We soft wash each at low pressure, so mortar joints, old paint and window glazing stay put. In West Ashley, the brick ranches and vinyl-sided homes get the same gentle method. Algae and mildew are killed at the root, which keeps walls clean longer than spraying alone.

Roof cleaning

Black streaks on asphalt shingles are Gloeocapsa magma, an algae that thrives under Charleston's oaks and humidity. We soft wash shingle and metal roofs without walking a pressure wand across them, which protects granules and seams. Clearing the algae also removes the moss and debris that hold water against the roof under heavy tree cover.

Driveways, sidewalks and brick walks

Concrete is the one surface that gets real pressure, applied with a surface cleaner so it dries even with no stripes. That handles oil spots, tire marks, rust from irrigation and the silt film floodwater leaves behind. Brick and paver walkways get a lighter touch so joints and old pavers are not chewed up, then a careful rinse.

Piazzas and porches

Piazzas are the outdoor living room of a Charleston single house, and they collect pollen, mildew and dirt fast. We clean painted floors, railings, columns and haint-blue ceilings at low pressure, clear the cobwebs and nests in the corners, and protect nearby plantings. Screened porches and wood or composite decks are handled the same careful way.

Pressure Washing Across Charleston

Downtown and the peninsula

South of Broad, the French Quarter, Harleston Village and the boroughs north of Calhoun Street are mostly brick, stucco and painted wood single houses, many of them more than a century old, with piazzas, haint-blue porch ceilings and wrought iron. Nothing here gets high pressure. Walls and piazzas are soft washed, brick walks and steps get a low-pressure surface clean, and the salt and silt left by king tides is rinsed off foundations and sidewalks. On narrow lots we work from the street side and the alley, so we need the gate code and a spigot.

West Ashley

Across the Ashley River the housing changes to brick ranches and two-story homes from the 1950s through the 1990s in neighborhoods like Byrnes Downs, Avondale, Carolina Bay and the subdivisions off Bees Ferry Road, with newer vinyl and fiber cement homes farther out. Live oaks shade most streets, so mildew builds on north walls, roofs and gutters. A house soft wash, roof cleaning and a driveway surface clean are the usual order here. Pressure washing in West Ashley.

James Island

James Island homes sit between the Ashley River, the harbor and the creeks that cut across the island, so marsh air and shade from the oaks along Riverland Drive and Fort Johnson Road keep siding and roofs damp. Raised homes and older cottages near Folly Road and Harbor View get soft washed; driveways and pool decks get a surface clean. We also wash docks and dock-side decks where the water allows. Pressure washing on James Island.

Johns Island

Johns Island is bigger lots, longer driveways and lots of trees, from the live oaks around Angel Oak Road to the farmland and newer neighborhoods along Maybank Highway and River Road. Many homes are on well water, so irrigation leaves orange rust stains on siding and concrete that a normal wash will not move. We treat those during the same visit, and we clean the long driveways and parking pads with a surface cleaner so they come out even. Pressure washing on Johns Island.

Spartan Soft Wash is locally owned, licensed and insured, and has cleaned more than 900 homes and businesses across the Charleston area. Siding and roofs are covered by our soft washing service. We also offer deck cleaning in Charleston and driveway cleaning in Charleston.