Cuyahoga County · Cleveland

House Washing in Cleveland, Ohio

A house built in 1904 has old-growth wood siding, layered paint, wood porch decking, spindle railings and lime mortar — every one of which is damaged by pressure and cleaned safely by chemistry and a low-pressure rinse.

On lots this narrow, containment matters as much as method: overspray reaches the neighbor's siding, the fence and the garden, so we work with controlled application rather than volume.

Riverside's Cape Cods and the mid-century west-side streets shift the problem to shingle roofs streaking on the shaded plane and painted or aluminum siding chalking on the exposed one.

The warehouse-conversion lofts downtown are heavy masonry, which means brick-safe cleaning that does not open the joints.

The 1921 Capitol Theatre — the only historic movie theater on the west side — anchors Gordon Square, and Shaker Square is a named historic commercial district.

Public-facing historic buildings like these are judged on how the facade and the sidewalk in front of it look, which is masonry-safe work rather than aggressive cleaning.

On lots this narrow the fence, the siding across the property line and the garden three feet away all sit inside the working area, so access and containment shape the visit as much as the size of the house does.

Detroit-Shoreway's single-family stock has a median build year of about 1904 — neat rows of colorful Victorians with covered front porches on modest lots with wooden fences — alongside pre-1920 frame and brick singles and twenty years of condo and townhouse infill.

How we do it

Forcing water behind siding or into seals and vents causes moisture problems, not a cleaner house. A controlled, low-pressure approach protects those openings while still lifting dirt and organic growth.

  1. Inspect & Protect. We inspect exterior materials and protect applicable plants and fixtures before starting.
  2. Low-Pressure Solution. We apply a surface-appropriate cleaning solution at low pressure.
  3. Gutter Faces, Downspouts, Soffit & Fascia. The outside faces of the gutters and downspouts are cleaned, and soffit and fascia are washed. Clearing debris from inside the trough is a gutter clean-out — a separate service, and one that comes free with roof soft washing.
  4. Careful Rinse. We rinse carefully without forcing water behind siding, seals, vents, or openings.

The method does not change from one town to the next — what changes is what we find when we get there. The full house washing page has the rest of it.

What it costs in Cleveland

The traditional single-family stock on the near west side has a median build year of 1904, and those Victorians are two-story on modest lots: {{price:house-wash:1500}} up to 1,500 square feet of home, {{price:house-wash:2000}} up to 2,000, with no premium for the second story. Layered paint and a close neighbor change the method and the containment rather than the price. The Cape Cods in Riverside and West Park are smaller, at {{price:house-wash:1000}} to {{price:house-wash:1500}}.

Every residential price is published, and the figure you accept is the figure you pay. Find your home’s square footage — it is on your county auditor listing — and you have your price. See the full price list.

Price it yourself in two minutesCall 234-410-9200

Where we work in Cleveland

  • Tremont
  • Ohio City
  • Detroit-Shoreway
  • Gordon Square
  • Kamm's Corners
  • West Park
  • Edgewater
  • Old Brooklyn
  • Riverside
  • Little Italy
  • Duck Island
  • Hingetown
  • Warehouse District

Also in Cleveland

House Washing in other towns we cover

Worth reading first

House Washing in Cleveland — common questions

Do you really travel to the outer cities, or mostly stay near Canton?

We travel. Cleveland, Solon, Youngstown, Mansfield, and Dover are regular work rather than exceptions. Because they are a longer drive, jobs in those directions are scheduled as full days or grouped with other work heading the same way, so there is a little less flexibility on exact dates. Larger and multi-surface scopes are the easiest to fit at that distance. Build the estimate and you have the price; we confirm a realistic window when you accept it. You can get your own number right now: the [instant estimate](/instant-estimate) prices your property from the address in about two minutes, and what you accept is what you pay.

What does a house from around 1904 in Cleveland actually need?

Chemistry and a low-pressure rinse, and nothing more aggressive than that. A house built in 1904 has old-growth wood siding, layered paint, wood porch decking, spindle railings and lime mortar — every one of which is damaged by pressure and cleaned safely by solution with dwell time. Layered paint is the specific risk: pressure finds the weakest layer and takes everything above it. Paint that has already released from the substrate will come off in the wash — press a thumbnail into a chalky or blistered section, and if it flakes, that area needs paint work before it needs cleaning. Porch decking is deck-safe work at lower pressure again.

My Cleveland lot is narrow and my neighbor's house is close. How do you handle overspray?

On lots this narrow, containment matters as much as method, so it is part of the walk-through rather than something we discover on the day. Overspray reaches the neighbor's siding, the fence and the garden, so we work with controlled application rather than volume, direct the rinse deliberately, and cover or wet down plantings that sit in the path. We also raise access constraints early — where the hose runs, where we can stand, whether a gate or a shared drive is involved. Those are the things that change how long a city job takes, and they are priced up front.

Do you take commercial work in Cleveland and east-side suburbs like Solon?

Yes, and commercial is the larger share of what we do in the Cleveland metro: restaurant exteriors, gas station forecourts, retail plaza sidewalks and breezeways, drive-thru pads, and property-management maintenance for apartment and multi-building portfolios. Residential work there is mostly older siding, aluminum, cedar, and mixed-material homes, which get soft washing rather than high pressure. Multi-site and recurring scopes are documented zone by zone with access instructions and service windows so the work stays repeatable.

Can you clean the brick on a warehouse-conversion loft downtown?

Yes, with brick-safe cleaning that does not open the joints. The warehouse-conversion lofts downtown are heavy masonry, and the failure mode on that material is mortar loss rather than a visible mark — pressure works the joints loose and the damage shows up later as water getting in. So it is masonry-appropriate solution, low pressure, controlled rinse, and testing an inconspicuous area when the brick or a prior coating is uncertain. Public-facing historic buildings nearby set the same expectation: the 1921 Capitol Theatre anchors Gordon Square and Shaker Square is a named historic commercial district, and both are judged on facade and sidewalk together.

How do you clean a restaurant patio in a walkable district?

In sections, outside service hours, with containment — because on those blocks the patio slab and the sidewalk in front of it effectively are the storefront. The Gordon Square Arts District went from ten restaurants and bars in 2021 to eighteen in 2025, and Ohio City carries the city's highest concentration of breweries plus the West Side Market. Patio concrete there takes grease, spilled beer and sugar, which feed organic growth rather than just staining the surface. West 25th Street, Detroit Avenue and Lorain Avenue are corridor-scale frontage, and the Warehouse District adds masonry facades and service-alley concrete.

My 1977 colonial needs everything. Where should I start?

Roof first, then siding, then concrete — because each one drains onto the next. A colonial of that era in Solon typically means two full stories of siding, a steep roof with multiple planes, and a driveway poured around the same time. The roof is soft washed at height without touching the shingle. The sun-facing walls are usually chalked and need oxidation treatment rather than a wash. And a drive that has held nearly fifty winters of road salt is surface cleaning with stain treatment. Three different methods, three different outcomes, and most owners take them across two seasons. Why a wash leaves chalky siding chalky-looking, and what actually improves it, is explained in [why a wash will not bring the color back](/learn/why-a-house-wash-will-not-fix-chalky-siding). You can get your own number right now: the [instant estimate](/instant-estimate) prices your property from the address in about two minutes, and what you accept is what you pay.

Learn More what siding oxidation is and why pressure washing won't fix it

What is the difference between gutter cleaning, a gutter clean-out and gutter brightening?

Three different jobs on the same piece of metal. Gutter cleaning is the outside face of the gutter and downspout. It comes with a house wash or a siding cleaning at no extra cost. A gutter clean-out is interior work: removing packed leaves, shingle grit and sediment from inside the trough, then flushing each downspout to confirm water runs through it. It is included free with roof soft washing, because roof work puts debris into the gutters by design. It is also sold on its own, priced per linear foot, with no other service required. Gutter brightening removes the dark vertical striping bonded to the front face, often called tiger striping. That is oxidized aluminum and road film chemically stuck to the finish, so it needs a dedicated product and will not come off with house wash solution. It is never included in a house wash. A quick way to tell what you need: if the inside is full, you need a clean-out. If the outside is streaked dark, you need brightening. If neither, the cleaning that comes with your wash is enough. The gutter clean-out is free with a roof soft wash and 25% off added to a house wash, and the rate is published on the [pricing page](/pricing). More on what the gutters do to a roof in [black streaks, moss and lichen](/learn/roof-moss-lichen-algae-damage). Why a wash leaves chalky siding chalky-looking, and what actually improves it, is explained in [why a wash will not bring the color back](/learn/why-a-house-wash-will-not-fix-chalky-siding). You can get your own number right now: the [instant estimate](/instant-estimate) prices your property from the address in about two minutes, and what you accept is what you pay.

Do you charge more for a two-story house?

No. One price covers the house at that size, whether it is one story or two. A 1,200 square foot home is $299 either way, and a 2,000 square foot home is $349 either way — you read your price off the table without doing arithmetic or wondering which column applies to you. A second story does take longer and needs more reach, and that is already built into the size-based price rather than added on top. Genuine difficulty does carry an add-on: a third story, or an elevation that cannot be worked from the ground. Anything like that is identified while the property is walked and stated before the work starts, never added afterward. You can get your own number right now: the [instant estimate](/instant-estimate) prices your property from the address in about two minutes, and what you accept is what you pay.

Will pressure washing remove that chalky residue or fix oxidized siding?

No. Washing removes dirt, pollen, and organic growth sitting on the siding, but oxidation is the siding's own surface layer breaking down, not something sitting on top of it. On siding that's already chalked unevenly, an aggressive wash can lift some of that loose surface film and not the rest, leaving it looking blotchier than before. Our standard wash uses a controlled, low-pressure approach so it cleans evenly without making existing oxidation worse. Restoring color under the chalk is a separate, optional treatment we offer on request. Why a wash leaves chalky siding chalky-looking, and what actually improves it, is explained in [why a wash will not bring the color back](/learn/why-a-house-wash-will-not-fix-chalky-siding).

Learn More what siding oxidation is and why pressure washing won't fix it