Should You Power Wash Your Commercial Building?

Written By Guest Blogger, Betty White

The summertime is approaching – and it’s bringing good news! The insidious influence of the COVID-19 pandemic is slowly dissipating from our personal and professional lives. As a result, many commercial facilities are opening up their doors to employees and the public. Now, company leaders have to make many decisions related to the safety of their staff and clients. As a result, the question of whether you should power wash your commercial building needs to be addressed.

Many companies, retailers and various businesses are coming back to work. Business leaders should be compiling checklists pertaining to all major and minor management tasks they’re in charge of – good facility management included. In other words, successful leadership should rely on efficient facility management. In turn, facility management has to resolve how both the interior and exterior of your commercial building are maintained.

What Is a Power Wash?

A power wash is an efficient and inexpensive way to give your commercial building a “face lift”. Power washing uses jet-powered, high-pressure water cleaning to clean the exterior of any facility. What’s more, unlike pressure cleaning, power cleaning uses hot water to remove the following off of affected surfaces:

• • dirt
  • stains
  • soil
  • salt
  • grease
  • mold
  • mildew
  • cobwebs
  • chewing gum

What distinguishes power washing from similar cleaning methods (e.g., pressure cleaning) is that it uses hot water. It means that you can effectively clean and sanitize heavily soiled surfaces, most notably concrete and cement.

Aside from the walls, façade, floors and other structural elements, you can also clean driveways, sidewalks, parking areas, etc. In some cases, companies even hire power washing services to clean vehicles such as trucks, vans or cars.

The Exterior of Your Commercial Building Gets Dirty Too

Cleaning the exterior walls and elements of your commercial building may seem like a non-issue at first. You might even wonder whether it’s necessary if the interior of your building is spotless.

Although not as apparent, the exterior of your commercial building gets dirty and damaged, just like the interior. Rain, hailstorms, traffic pollution, UV rays, birds, cobwebs – you name it. There is just so much dirt and residue piling up gradually on the walls of your facility. A few months down the road, the building might exude a discolored, dilapidated vibe – without you even noticing it!

So, to make every first impression a good impression, it makes sense to include regular power washing of your commercial building as part of your summertime facility cleaning routine.

A Clean Exterior Creates a Positive Environment for Your Staff

If your company has been affected by the lockdown, your staff’s morale probably has as well. Returning from months of remote working or not working at all is likely to affect the first few weeks or months of your business productivity. After a long lockdown period, power washing the exterior and surroundings of your company’s facilities will surely improve its appearance.

As we all know, working in a clean environment is very important psychologically. Your employees will feel more comfortable spending time in a consistently clean facility, inside and outside. So, if you are looking for ways to improve your employee satisfaction this year, start by cleaning the exterior of the building with a good, comprehensive power wash.

A Clean Exterior Indicates Your Facility is Reliable

The same applies to potential customers’ first impressions. A clean, tidy exterior sends a message that you run your business well and reliably. In other words, you care about the opinion and well-being of people who approach and enter the building.

Say you run a medical or training facility. Your exterior speaks volumes not only about your company’s hygiene policies but also your brand’s practices and reliability. Having a clean interior free of spots, spills and stains is necessary, of course. Yet, it’s not quite enough to maintain a relationship of trust and mutual appreciation with your customers and your staff.

Hence, with a well-maintained building, you will be able to attract customers and instill feelings of reliability and committment.

Power Washing Is An Efficient Way to Improve the Curb Appeal of Your Commercial Building

Essentially, as with residential properties, your curb appeal influences the value of your property. Both in terms of financial value and reputation.

Suppose you ever decide to move your company to another commercial property. In that case, it will be so much easier to sell or lease your current office or premises if the exterior of your building is immaculate and well-maintained. Your company’s relocation will also be much faster if you hire a competent and reliable commercial moving company. And as Strong Movers tell us from their experience, their clients express genuine satisfaction with the state of the premises and the exterior of the building when they deliver their inventory.

You Can Feel Confident That Your Company’s Facility is Healthy and Germ-Free

Keeping the workplace safe should primarily be concerned with maintaining the required hygiene standards. Yes, property value, first impressions, and reputation are important. Yet, health and safety considerations are still the primary reasons to power wash your commercial building.

If fact, leaving your commercial building dirty, surrounded by trash, or covered with mildew or cobwebs counts as neglect and violation of health standers. Grime, grease, and even algae might make the driveway and other surfaces slippery, which can be hazardous. Piled-up mildew and mold affect the health of people in the building and the structural integrity of the exterior.

Also, the mentioned problems might not even be noticeable to you. Therefore, be sure to ask the commercial cleaning company you chose about how to identify whether your facility is showing signs of a hazard.

This is why recognizing the importance of power washing stains and dirt is crucial. System4 specializes in creating customized, cleaning, disinfecting and repair and maintenance solutions for any facility type. In fact, System4’s vast network of experienced service providers is well-prepared to support power washing services for your building. Contact System4 today to learn more about power washing services.