Exterior Cleaning Services Upper Hutt
Exterior building washing, waterblasting and hard-surface cleaning for commercial premises from the Kāpiti Coast to Upper Hutt and Wellington city.
Exterior washing across Kāpiti and Wellington
Exterior building washing, waterblasting and hard-surface cleaning across the Kāpiti Coast and Wellington. Cladding, roofs, paths, courts, car parks and entranceways on commercial premises.
We are based at 6 Parata Street in Waikanae and have been doing this work since 1987. Exterior cleaning on this coast is not cosmetic maintenance: salt, wind-driven sand and a damp climate mean surfaces degrade if they are left, and the cost of catching that early is a fraction of the cost of dealing with it late.
Local Since 1987
Based at 6 Parata Street, Waikanae, cleaning premises across this region for nearly 40 years
Hours That Suit You
Monday to Friday, 7am to 9pm, so the work happens around your operation rather than through it
Rated 5.0 From 21 Reviews
Consistent quality, checked by regular inspection rather than assumed
What we clean
- Building washing: weatherboard, plaster, brick, cedar, Coloursteel and composite cladding
- Roof washing and moss treatment
- Waterblasting: paths, driveways, courtyards, loading bays and car parks
- Entranceways and paved areas, including slip-hazard removal
- Fences, decks and retaining walls
- Gutters and downpipes, cleared and flushed
- Signage and awnings
- Exterior window and joinery washing. Explore window cleaning
Soft washing and waterblasting are not the same thing
This is the single most useful thing to understand before hiring anyone for exterior work, because using the wrong one causes damage that cannot be undone.
Soft washing uses low pressure and an appropriate treatment to kill and lift organic growth: mould, lichen, algae and moss. It is the correct method for painted cladding, plaster, roofs and anything with a coating. It works chemically rather than mechanically, so it treats the growth at the root instead of just blowing the top layer off.
Waterblasting uses high pressure and is the correct method for hard, unpainted surfaces: concrete paths, driveways, courtyards and paved areas.
High pressure on painted cladding strips paint, drives water behind the boards and can force moisture into the building envelope. High pressure on a roof lifts the granules off decramastic tiles and can void a roof warranty. If someone quotes you waterblasting for a painted or plaster-clad building, that is worth questioning before they start.
Why exterior cleaning matters more on this coast
Salt air holds moisture against surfaces, which is what mould and lichen need to establish. Add the shelter and damp of a Kāpiti winter and organic growth takes hold faster here than in most of the country.
Lichen in particular is not just discolouration. It anchors into the surface it grows on, and on painted cladding or a tiled roof it will eventually break down the coating beneath it. Removing it early is cleaning. Removing it late is often repainting.
How often exterior surfaces need attention
- Commercial building exteriors: annually, or every two years for sheltered sites
- Roofs: every two to three years, sooner where trees overhang
- Entranceways and high-traffic paths: annually, primarily for slip resistance rather than looks
- Car parks and loading areas: annually or as needed
Shaded and south-facing elevations always need it sooner than the sunny side. It is normal for one wall of a building to need doing twice as often as another.
Slip hazards on commercial paths
For a commercial site this is the part that matters beyond appearance. Algae and lichen on a concrete path or a tiled entrance become genuinely slippery when wet, and an entranceway is exactly where people walk in from the rain carrying things.
If you are responsible for a premises the public or your staff walk into, an annual clean of the approach is worth scheduling for that reason alone rather than waiting until it looks green.
What drives the cost
- Surface area and building height, and how much of it is reachable from the ground
- Surface type, which determines the method and the time
- Condition on arrival. Established lichen takes considerably longer than a routine annual wash
- Access. Tight sites, planting against walls and restricted parking all add time
- Water access on site
- Timing, where work must happen outside trading hours
What happens on the day
Exterior work is more disruptive than interior cleaning for a few hours, and nearly all of that is manageable when it is planned rather than discovered on the morning.
- We confirm water access before the day. Most sites are fine on mains pressure from a standard outdoor tap, but a site without usable water access needs that solved in advance rather than on arrival.
- Vehicles and anything stored against the walls need to be moved clear. Tell us if that is difficult and we will sequence the job around it.
- Windows and doors are checked shut, and anything that does not seal well is covered.
- Planting against the building is wet down before the wash and rinsed afterwards. Tell us beforehand about anything particularly precious.
- Outdoor furniture, signage and light fittings are covered or worked around as needed.
- Paths and entranceways are left wet and can be slippery until they dry, so the timing is agreed wherever the public walks through.
On a commercial site we would normally start early, before opening, and do the public-facing approaches first so the entrance is clear and dry by the time customers arrive.
Areas we cover
Waikanae, Paraparaumu, Raumati, Ōtaki, Te Horo, Peka Peka and Pukerua Bay. South through Porirua and Johnsonville to Wellington city, and across to Petone, Lower Hutt and Upper Hutt. Explore our Kāpiti services and areas we cover.
Frequently asked questions
Will waterblasting damage my building?
It will if it is used on the wrong surface. We waterblast hard unpainted surfaces such as concrete, and soft wash anything painted, plastered or roofed. If a quote proposes high pressure on your cladding, ask why.
Will the treatment harm my plants?
Planting against walls is wet down before and after and protected where needed. Tell us about anything particularly precious before we start.
How long before the moss disappears?
Soft washing kills growth rather than instantly removing all of it. Most lifts during the wash; heavier lichen can continue to break down and weather off over following weeks. That is normal and is a sign the treatment worked at the root.
Can you work outside business hours?
Yes. Car parks, entranceways and retail exteriors are usually done before opening. Our hours are Monday to Friday, 7am to 9pm.
How long does an exterior wash take?
A single-storey commercial building is usually a day or less. Larger or multi-storey sites, established lichen, or restricted access can push it to two. We give you the expected duration when we quote, not on the morning.
Do you need power and water from the site?
Water, usually, from a standard outdoor tap on mains pressure. We confirm access when we look at the building, and if the site cannot supply it we will say so at the quote stage rather than turn up and find out.
REQUEST A FREE SITE ASSESSMENT
Call 04 293 5662 or 027 452 1788, email info@waikanaecleaning.co.nz, or use the contact form. We will look at the surfaces, tell you which method they need, and quote against that.