.... to object to people pressure washing garden paving?

[JennieLee]

It just seems very noisy and goes on for hours. I have neighbours on either side who like to do this.

Is it a clean freak thing to do like bleaching door frames? I've heard it's not actually very good for the stones.

I just sweep the paved areas of the garden with an old-fashioned broom from time to time.

(Naturally I tolerate this in the way you have to tolerate neighbours' eccentricities. But this seems to be some new fashion. I can't remember it happening when I was younger.)

I have looked at the photo of your "unwashed" patio and frankly if that was mine I wouldn't be that bothered either. However over the course of a winter mine turns almost black.

I used to scrub it with Jeyes fluid but was so tired by the end I could hardly stand. Three years ago we got an outside tap and I bought a Karcher and it is BRILLIANT. I use it once a year and it takes about one hour. Frankly I would not be terribly sympathetic at someone objecting to that.

Totally missing point of thread - those who pressure wash, which pressure washer would you recommend? Can you do paving and cars with the same one?

Your neighbour might do hers as she's clean freak but that would be very unusual, people do them generally because they get dirty.

Mine doesn't get slippy or dangerous, but mine does go black.

When we moved into this house four years ago I did thr patio, I was genuinely very surprised indeed to find the patio was made up of creams, greys and reds. I genuinely thought it was all one dark colour. It was black basically and clearly had never been done. And yes it looks lovely when done.

As said, I've not done it this year yet as only one dark patch and I can't be arsed. But I will do it at some point, possibly not till next spring, but it will be just for the aesthetics.

I suppose I think of garden dirt - esp blossom, bits of plants, fallen leaves etc - as 'clean dirt'. Clean dirt probably is not a concept that exists on Mumsnet. Clean dirt outside is not something that would bother me. (Though I take the point about hazards in terms of slipping and do limited cleaning - scrubbing and use of bleach -of one area to minimise the risk.Also I'd acknowlege that there's just general manmade airborne grit which isn't organically 'clean.)

I also get the point that with some kinds of stone slab there might be a pleasing natural colour so that you'd clean them up rather in the way that old stone buildings are cleaned up to undo the effects of air pollution.

But I don't think all slabs used for garden paving are that lovely. It's not as if grey concrete is really beautiful.

Anyway you've all helped me to sort out my thoughts....

Haven’t RTFT so apologies if this has been mentioned before but you can buy a patio cleaner that you mix with water and pour over the patio with a watering can. Leave it dry and after a few days all the moss and green stuff disappears. I think it has something like weed killer in it that also keeps the weeds Ann’s moss at bay for a few months- magic stuff.

Ann’s moss *and

It's really like regarding the outside of your house as more like a bit of the inside, if you see what I mean.

I think you’re onto something here, OP.

Our (lovely) NDNs have garden furniture that is posher than our living room furniture!

I'd agree on the grey concrete. What you have is called council slabs, and they aren't particularly attractive, more functional. Our garden path was laid with them when we bought the house, and we had it replaced. Before that power washing made minimal difference to be honest, although it did make them brighter. It was what it was.

You yourself though brush the plant debris off your patio, so I'm not sure why you've developed an issue with that too, power washing isn't to get rid of plant debris, you brush that off.

Our last house had a concrete back yard, as many terraced houses do, and walking to the bins 20' away from the back door could be pretty risky after a long winter.

We did ours last week. It was a grim grey and is now its proper sandy colour. It's just so satisfying seeing the colour come back.

Ours is only a yearly job, done midweek in the day and we have a patio head thing so the water doesn't spray across several gardens making the neighbours washing wet annoying people.

Totally missing point of thread - those who pressure wash, which pressure washer would you recommend? Can you do paving and cars with the same one?

Karcher. Yes and Yes.

My husband does this but usually just once a season and not to early or late in the day. I go out as I can't stand the noise and I would not be happy if he did more often.

Ours gets pressure washed, brings the slabs back from grotty green moss coloured to lovely sand colour. Couple of times a year.

We pressure wash our stone terraces just once a year, not much more noisy than an electric mower imo. Apart from this we have flower beds with gravel paths between them (no grass) so our once a year power wash is much less disturbing than all our neighbours cutting their grass every week.

My patio goes green and filthy over the winter so I try to do it once a year. I choose a week day so as not to disturb the neighbours and ensure I have got it done when it is still cold so I don’t mess up nice days for others with noise.

My patio goes from green and grey to sandy coloured and it seems larger when it is clean. It looks ‘spring ready’ and almost festive. I love it when the job is finished and I can put the (scrubbed) furniture back and start planting up the pots.

However, I spent all of last Sunday outside listening to garden power tools from morning till night.

Never jet washed mine. Just sweep. It's outside and the stones aren't the slippery kind. I don't recall everyone having this slipping problem before we had jet washers. I make sure I get my washing in if my neighbour does theirs.

We do it once a year or two, it really makes a difference.

I’ve never cleaned a patio. I think stone/concrete slabs generally look better with a natural patina on them, personally. Concrete especially can look very stark and unattractive if it’s been power washed - especially the multi coloured chequer board tile type affairs.

I have been known to cut lawns with scissors on occasion though.

I know someone who does this every year, without fail. They would certainly be called clean freaks. The rest of the garden has not a blade of grass out of place.

They would be disgusted with me. I have never cleaned my patio, beyond a regular sweep with a broom. I can see that it needs it though, so I'll have to use some hot water with biological washing powder and a stiff brush as I don't possess the high-tech stuff.

My stepmother bleaches her patio once a week. That's a whole other level of cleaning I just never imagined.

This is taking the term 'lady garden' to a whole new level......

People used to use Jeyes fluid and a stiff brush, that's why no one remembers people slipping. My grandmother used to scrub down her steps and the pavement in front of the house back in the 50s and 60s. But Jeyes is pretty hellish for the environment.

I think it also depends where you live. Stone doesn't get so slimy in certain urban areas where the air quality isn't very pure. Where we are in the semi rural North, pathways, steps, and patios can become lethal and debris piles up very quickly. It's only taken ten years for my neighbour's side path to be completely lost: from paving slab to earth about seven inches deep and covered in brambles.

Temporary that fucking insane. Who the hell bleaches their patio 😱

As said above I like a once a year clean to get rid of any slippery surfaces but I do have some mobility issues and the clean sandy colour makes things easier for me to see. But a once a week bleaching is just ridiculous.

Sorry, YA definitely BU. Irritating as I appreciate the noise is, our paving is in the shade, on an incline and under trees, so without jet washing it thoroughly once per year, it becomes like an ice rink after just the smallest amount of rain! Can't even go near it in the actual ice!!

I absolutely hate the droning noise of those jet washers. It’s like a fly buzzing in your head. Environmentally unsound too. Get some soda crystals, hot water and a hard brush. Harder work, but good exercise.