Pressure Washing in North Sydney

This is a suburb of levels. Mount Street was named for its steepness, Euroka Street was once a favourite billycart run, and council's character statement describes steep falls from Walker Street down to the Warringah Expressway, with steps and pathways it wants retained along Walker and Hampden Streets. Those stairs and paths often sit in the shadow of a retaining wall or a mature garden, so they can stay damp long enough for algae to take hold.

Sandstone turns up everywhere around the older homes: retaining walls, fence plinths and piers, foundations, and the kerbs in the Walker/Ridge area. It suits a gentler setting than a concrete driveway, and any old brick paving behind a terrace needs the same care.

Hard surfaces at apartment and office buildings present a different problem. Council's statement calls for wide paved footpaths and heavy pedestrian use in the CBD, and for parking below ground at residential flat buildings, so entries and driveways take tyre marks, oil and grime in a concentrated strip. Tall buildings then limit how much sun reaches the ground.

Getting equipment in can take some thought. On-street parking is often short-term and metered, some properties are reached by rear lanes, and council wants sandstone street walls left intact, so tell us how the site is accessed.

Grip is the outcome most people notice first. A green film on an entry ramp, a shaded stair or a courtyard becomes slippery in the wet, and on common property that is the whole owners corporation's concern. Lifting the growth returns the surface to something residents and visitors can walk on with more confidence.

For commercial premises the doorway is part of the business. Lobby forecourts, cafe frontages and shop thresholds are the first thing a customer or client crosses, and gum, grime and tyre marks wear down a good impression before anyone gets inside. Pressure washing makes that ground look looked after again.

Older stone rewards careful cleaning. Removing moss and grime from sandstone steps and plinths brings back its colour and banding, and damp growth left in place does the stone no favours. Controlled pressure means the aim stays on the dirt and not the stone.

Anyone planning to seal pavers or stone should clean first, because a sealer locks in whatever is left on the surface. UEC does not seal, but it leaves the surface ready for whoever does.

Quotes depend on area, surface and build-up, so a small rear courtyard is not priced like a basement ramp. Before-and-after photos with every job give strata managers and landlords a clear record.