The outdoor areas around one’s home usually tend to be the most neglected part of the property. Yet, what many fail to realize is that a tidy exterior is just as important as a tidy interior. Having a freshly washed patio and driveway is not only aesthetic to look at but also practical. Cleaned surfaces are less likely to have moss and be slippery and their appearance can raise your property’s value on the market.
So in this extensive post, Desiree Thomson will share with you some tips on how to make your outdoor spaces immaculate.
Why it’s never too late to clean the outside of your home
Cleaning your home’s exterior is kind of the same as cleaning the interior. If you have time to clean the inside you, you probably have time to spare for the outside as well.
It’s never too late to transform a neglected garden into a well maintained one. The same goes for having all the algae and mould removed from your driveway with some good old pressure washing.
According to Homelight, the beginning of summer is one of the best times of the year to put your property on the market in the U.S. (if you’re looking to sell of course). And a well maintained outdoor space can help make it more sellable.
Why continuous maintenance of exterior spaces is important
The benefits of maintaining your garden and the rest of your home’s exterior.
A well-maintained exterior makes your property more appealing. Not only will having great-looking outdoor spaces boost your property’s curb appeal, they will also make it more inviting for your friends and family. Regularly pressure washing all the hard surfaces like patios and driveways will help keep them look their best. And this is very important if you’re thinking about selling your house. A welcoming and pretty look at the exterior will help you sell your home quicker and for more money on the open market.
Keep your property safe by regularly maintaining your garden. Clearing an overgrown garden helps reduce the volume of small pests that use your greenery as a refuge. Also removing dead leaves, branches and twigs from shrubs and trees in your garden can help prevent an accidental fire from spreading on to your house.
Outdoor areas are a great place to relax. Science has proven that being surrounded by nature helps with stress and anxiety. Therefore, by continually working on your garden space, you are ensuring that you will enjoy the serene peace that a beautiful well-maintained backyard can provide.
Give back to the environment by maintaining a proper landscape. Since trees, bushes and other smaller plants play an important role in our ecosystem it’s only normal we’d like to keep them well-maintained and healthy. Another benefit of a well looked after the yard is that it can act as a natural filtration system for watersheds located close by.
Steps you can take to tidy up your outdoor spaces
A great place to start with your cleaning is the often overlooked garage space. Garages don’t require regular maintenance and need to be cleaned around once a year
Before you start cleaning, move everything off the floor of the garage. This included everything that isn’t nailed to the ground or wall.
Cover everything you want to avoid getting wet with a plastic drop cloth and then apply tape. Things you’d want to cover are shelves, electrical outlets and drywall. Before you start with the cleaning, don your rubber boots and gloves.
Then, begin by sweeping the floor with a broom. Now depending on the type of floor, you have in your garage, the cleaning methods may vary by a bit. Garage floors usually fall into 2 categories - concrete and epoxy.
Concrete floors tend to be a bit trickier to clean. Start the procedure off by filling a big bucket up with warm water. Then add around ⅓ a cup of laundry detergent per every gallon of water. Mix well. Spread the cleaning mixture all over the concrete floor and leave it for about 20 mins. This will help it absorb light dirt and oil. In the meantime open the garage doors. Once the time has passed, turn on your pressure washer (if you don’t own one, you can rent from a hardware store) and start spraying the floor down. Move the nozzle using broad strokes to cover as much space as possible and avoid keeping it one place (to not scratch the floor). It’s preferable to start cleaning as far away from the gate as you can and slowly move toward it while pressure washing. Leave the garage door open during the day so that it can dry naturally.
Epoxy floors, on the other hand, are very easy to clean. Maintenance on these is also quite simple, all you have to do is mop them once a week.
Breathe some life into your driveway by giving it a good clean
A clean driveway comes with many benefits. Firstly, your home’s curb appeal will jump up without you investing hundreds of dollars. Secondly, you won’t feel jealous every time you see your neighbour’s brand new driveway and compare it with your worn and dirty one.
Begin by preparing the driveway for the clean. Use a broom to sweep any debris or dirt off it as these can start flying around once you begin pressure washing. Next spread degreaser over the concrete’s surface with the help of a stiff brush to break up the more stubborn stains.
Now fill up your pressure washer with the appropriate detergents(check instructions) and attach the soaping nozzle to it. After the jet washer is loaded, put it into the appropriate gear. Put on your rubber gloves, rubber boots and even some sort of eye protection.
Begin spreading the detergent from the highest point of your driveway to the lowest. Set the sprayer wand to its lowest setting and sweep the soapy solution from one side to the other. Once you’ve covered the entire area let the detergent sit there for around 25 minutes.
Change your sprayer wand tip with a high-pressure one. Choose its rinse mode and clean up all of the solution off of the driveway.
Once the driveway has dried up, it’s time to seal it to prevent it from future staining. Before you apply the sealer, check if there are any instructions on it. It’s usually pretty straight forward, you just need an extended paint roller to apply it to the concrete. When you apply the sealer let it sit for 24 hours and don’t use the driveway during this time.
Be sure to clear and tidy up your backyard
A well maintained and tidy backyard can be a wonderful thing to have. It can act as your safe haven, a place where you can fully relax after a long day at work. You can also use it to show off to all your friends and family by throwing some mean barbecues over the weekends. To top it all of, a well looked after garden can have a very positive effect on your physical and mental health.
Remove dead plants and weeds. The first task to take care of is removing any dead plants or leaves that remained over winter. Dead annuals should also be pulled out as they only live for a short period of time and won’t grow back after winter. Also, remember to remove all the pesky weeds plaguing your garden.
Prune your plants. Pruning during the spring/summer season is done to stimulate healthier growth as the plant is allowed more room to breathe and absorb light. It’s important to note, that you should only prune plants that bloom during the spring before mid-June. And plants which flower after summer should be pruned in winter.
Mow that lawn. This one should be quite obvious. In order to have a neat looking garden, you will have to do some lawn mowing. If you don’t have a mower, know that you can always call a professional gardening company or rent one somewhere near to where you live. And if you’re planning on buying one, the GTech Cordless Lawnmower 2.0 is a great model for beginners.
Give your garden furniture a good pressure washing
If you have a garden, you most probably have furniture to go with it. Such furniture is notorious for gathering high quantities of dirt, grime and mildew stains. Yet, most people don’t even bother to clean theirs and leave them in a foul state. Cleaning your garden furniture decor has benefits, besides just looking more aesthetic. Dirty chairs and tables are carriers of many bacteria and most of your guests wouldn’t think twice about declining a seat in your back garden.
Before starting the cleaning, prepare your pressure washer and put on your rubber boots. Then make sure to put the furniture you will be cleaning on a solid and flat surface away from you properties doors and windows.
Attach a low-pressure spray nozzle (25-40 degrees) to your pressure washer wand.
Begin pressure washing from top to bottom.
Use detergent only when dealing with more stubborn stains or Vinyl/Fabric chairs. Usually cleaning without detergents does the job.
You can change to a higher pressure nozzle for heavier furniture, like a table or iron chairs.
When you’re not using your garden furniture, be sure to have them covered.
Which outdoor areas have a higher cleaning priority and why?
The areas that deserve the most attention are usually your yard and your driveway as those are the first things people notice about your house. An exception here is the gutter, as although it’s something that nobody even notices, it’s extremely important to clean on a regular basis. On the other hand, cleaning your garage can always take the back seat as it's not as crucial as the other outdoor areas.
Conclusion
Maintenance of the outdoor areas should be a continuous task and not something just performed once a year. In the end, it’s better to clean often but for a shorter period of time than to have to clean everything for days on end.
Author Bio: Desiree Thomson is a gardening and landscaping expert working at Alyssa’s garden maintenance company and writing for the home improvement company, Fantastic Services. When she’s not running around in her back garden, she can be seen blogging for various online outlets or fixated on decluttering her house.
