Let’s go ahead and end the debate – there is a HUGE difference between pressure washing vs soft washing

Oftentimes, when a homeowner is in search of exterior home cleaning, they search for a “Pressure or Power Washing” company, which is a standard term to use for the home washing industry.

However, what many homeowners typically don’t even know is, that most of the time what you’re really looking for is a “Soft Wash” or a soft washing company. If you want your home’s roof and siding cleaned – the process is actually soft washing – not pressure washing.

But, we understand how this can be a bit confusing. That is why today, we are going to cover the key difference between pressure washing vs soft washing and when it’s best to use one or the other.

Pressure Watching Vs Soft Washing

First, let’s start with a quick summary of this pressure washing vs soft washing infographic showing the key difference between the two:

What is the difference between pressure washing and soft washing?

When it comes to getting your home’s exterior cleaned, or commercial property for that matter, it’s important to know the difference in what best suits your project.

While pressure washing is a term that is typically used unanimously, the first key difference to recognize is that:

• Pressure Washing: Uses highly pressurized water
• Soft Washing: Uses the aide of soap, surfactants, and soft washes

Upon further examination, it’s actually really simple to see the difference between PRESSURE washing and SOFT washing, with an emphasis on the words pressure and soft!

Pressure and power washing, using highly pressurized water, forcefully removes dirt, grime, stains, build-up, and anything it comes in contact with. This is very effective for cleaning hard surfaces, however their risks involved if you pressure wash the wrong surface.

On the other hand, soft washing is great for siding and roofs because it uses a combination of safe soaps, chemicals, and surfactants to help break down and clean grime/build-up.

So now that you know the key differences between pressure washing and soft washing (Pressure vs Soft Soap) let’s see when it’s best to use each!

When to use pressure washing:

Pressure washing which uses the aid of pressurized water to really break down tough to get to stains, streaks, and build-up is ideal for hard surfaces.

In fact, we were even able to contribute to Market Watch on the subject of where to pressure wash!

Here are some areas where pressure washing is ideal:

• Patios
• Walkways & Sidewalks
• Driveways
• Dumpster Pads
• Restaurant Pads
• Brick, Concrete
• Any durable surface
• Pool Decks (Be careful with stained concrete)

Certain surfaces require specific needs In case you were wondering, there is a difference between pressure washing and power washing too, you can read about that here: Power Washing (Heated) vs Pressure Washing.

When to use a soft wash:

Your home is dirty and you need cleaning solutions and you’re not sure about what cleaning solutions you need or where to start.

While pressure washers crush hard to get stains, soft washing is the silent destroyer of algae, mold, and other organic build-ups/stains you might see on your roof or siding. Soft washing is the beneficiary of combining cleaning chemicals and lightly spraying the surface after the surfactants do their job.

That being said, soft washing is great for the following surfaces at your home:

• Roofs
• Siding
• Stucco
• Cedar Shake
• Some wood panel siding
• Screens and Screened in Porches

When you get a soft wash, your homes are sprayed, but never with a PSI over 1,000.

This is less than half of the PSI used for pressure washing. Making use of dwell time and letting the surfactants sit for the proper time, soft washes don’t rely on pressure, but instead on soaps and detergents!

Keep in mind, that soft washing makes use of soaps and chemicals that are safe for both your home and the environment, this is key when selecting a company. You can see a complete Soft House Wash here:

When to avoid using pressure/power washing:

So you know the difference between pressure washing vs soft washing, and you know when to use each, so the only thing left to answer is simple:

When should you NOT use high-pressure washing?

The answer is actually really simple. What you soft wash never pressure wash, and what your pressure wash never soft wash. Most professional power washers know when to make use of soft washing systems vs using a power wash method.

Pressure washing does make use of pressurized water at a certain PSI depending on the surface, thus background knowledge is recommended. Simply renting a pressure washer and going to town on your house is not always a good idea.

Incorrect pressure washing can actually damage surfaces! This means you should be careful with pressure washing decks and wood surfaces, and never pressure wash the following:

• Never pressure wash your roof
• Never pressure wash your siding
• Be careful pressure washing your car

Contrary to what you might think, pressure washing your roof especially can be very damaging to asphalt shingles. Pressure washing your roof can break and weaken shingles, leading to bigger issues.

Not to mention – lugging around a pressure washer on your roof isn’t too safe!

Get a Roof Soft Wash Quote: You can get a free estimate here! and learn more about soft roof washing!

When to avoid using soft washing:

As mentioned above, “If you pressure wash it, don’t soft wash it,” the list for what to NOT soft wash is pretty straightforward:

• Anything that can withstand pressure washing, can be pressure washed
• Don’t soft wash stained concrete
• Don’t soft wash hard surfaces

Similar to an hour if you pressure wash the wrong surface there can be issues, the same goes for soft washing the wrong surfaces.

It’s best to always consult a pro for soft home washing simply because of the aid of soaps, chemicals, and detergents. Just like how you don’t want to apply too much pressure, there are specific amounts to apply when cleaning your siding or roof with a soft wash!

Final Word:

Soft washing and pressure washing are both safe when applied and done correctly! To help you in case you are ever confused again, remember it is all in the name!

• Both pressure washing and power washing use highly pressurized water whereas the soft washing method uses soft washing equipment and is softer for your home maintenance cleaning

Now you know the difference between soft washing and pressure washing, it’s important to finally point out one last thing:

When done correctly, the results should last longer too!

This is good to know for those homeowners who are into “doing things themselves.” Sometimes DIY is not so good when you consider all the factors like what can go wrong.

For example, you wouldn’t replace your roof on your own, so the same goes for cleaning it! While we are certainly a little biased (I mean we do clean houses for a living), it is important to always keep in mind personal safety and surface safety whenever you pressure wash or soft wash ANYTHING!

That being said we hope this article helped you understand the difference between pressure washing and soft washing, and if you have any questions or cleaning needs, simply use the form below!

Frequently Asked Questions:

Q: Is soft wash better than pressure washing?

The debate over whether it is better to use a soft washing method over a high-pressure wash method really isn’t a debate. It is not that one is better than the other, it is more about which is the better fit for the surfaces that require cleaning.

For example, a concrete driveway can withstand the high-pressure water from a pressure/power washer. However, your home’s siding can’t withstand the high-pressure cleaning and instead requires the soft washing method to protect it and clean it.

Q: Can you use a pressure washer for a soft wash?

A soft washing method simply uses surfactants to do most of the work that then rinses the soaps off the surfaces. A pressure washer can scale back the PSI and use less pressure to then lightly rinse off the surface. Soft washing runs water over these surfaces lightly to prevent damaging the surface.

Q: What does soft wash mean in power washing?

Soft washing literally means exactly what you think, to lightly clean a surface. Things like roofs and siding can’t withstand high-pressure water as they can be damaged, therefore the preferred method is to use soft washing.

Often, a chemical mixture is applied to vinyl siding or an asphalt shingle roof (any delicate surfaces for that matter) to effectively clean surfaces. Very little pressurization is needed in order to clean these surfaces.

See more: Power Washing vs Pressure Washing