Keep the Soffit Clean to Avoid a Replacement Siding Cost Surprise

Cleaning your house siding on a regular basis is an important part of keeping your home looking its best and avoiding expensive repair surprises. A cleaning once-over gets rid of mold, moss, stains, dirt, bird droppings and spider webs and gives you an opportunity to inspect this often overlooked part of your home. Avoid unexpected siding cost surprises by keeping your home's exterior clean and in good repair.

The Humble Soffit

When it's time to clean your exterior siding the most overlooked section is the soffit. The reasons make sense:

Soffit is hard to reach
Cleaning something facing downward isn't easy
Soffit is relatively obscure to the casual observer

What you don't want to do is ignore the soffitt. Failing to clean this part of your home's exterior can lead to a poor overall appearance and money sunk into repairs.

Tips on How to Clean the Soffit

Here are a few cleaning tips to make your soffit cleaning job easier.

Power washing on a medium spray setting is the easiest way to clean high soffit

Use dish soap on a soft cloth and a bristle brush on tough stains

A rain hat and goggles keep the soapy water off

Add a little bleach to your water to wash white soffit

Keep your ladder solidly anchored--it's safety first

Remember that looking up for periods of time while you're cleaning soffit can affect your balance. This is critical when you're on a ladder.

Advantages of Soffit Cleaning

Cleaning the soffit forces you to look up. Not only will your home look better without dirty soffit but you'll notice loose or missing panels, stains from a leaking roof, and minor repairs that need to be made.

The value and enjoyment of your home depend to a great extent on how good it appears. A little elbow grease can not only make you feel better about where you live but increase its resale value as well.

Keep the Soffit Clean to Avoid a Replacement Siding Cost Surprise

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