Hello! I hope you had a Happy 4th of July (for all of my American readers)!! We had some family come into town and enjoyed being with them.
The house we are building is coming along (when it’s not raining that is) and I will be sure to give you an update soon!
Today I wanted to share a solution I found for getting rid of the mildew or mold that you might find growing on your sidewalks, steps, or patio.
It occurs most often on surfaces that face North because this area by the house gets the least amount of sun exposure. When it rains the moisture stays on the surfaces and with time is the perfect breeding ground for mildew, mold, and algae.
Here is a picture of what our patio looked like!
A couple of years ago when this problem started I read that you can pressure wash it away and so I borrowed a neighbors pressure washer and tried it. It was a big fail! The pressure washer only got some of it off and made a bigger mess by kicking the sand between the pavers up and all over the place–Ugh!
After my failed attempt I felt frustrated and basically decided not to look in the direction of the pavers for awhile (if I don’t see it… it’s not there).
Well, this Summer I was finally ready to face it again. I first tried vinegar because I had read it might work and I liked that I already had it in my fridge and was a “natural” product. It helped a little but not enough.
I looked online for a product that would remove mold off of patios and found some expensive products with mixed reviews so I decided instead to take a look at what my local home improvement store had (Home Depot in this case).
I took a chance at this outdoor bleach and I’m so glad I did!
I also bought this hard bristle scrubber.
Want to see the results??
This Before picture was taken after I had already done the other side!
SO much better, right? I love my patio again!:-)
So here’s how to do it!
- With gloves on, spray the affected area (in about 18 x 18 inch sections) with the outdoor bleach using a spray trigger nozzle head from a different spray bottle (I used sprayer wand from a weed killer bottle I had on hand).
- Right after spraying the section use the scrubber to scrub hard and vigorously against the patio.
- Then move on to the next section repeating steps 1 and 2.
Sometimes it’s nice to see the process in action so here is a little video I made for you!
As I mentioned in the video now that the patio is pretty again I plan to spray it with a water repellant spray like THIS ONE (affiliate link) to prevent the mold/mildew from coming back! Gotta protect all of that hard work!:-)
I know not everyone has this problem but I sure hope this helps someone so they don’t have to go through the frustration of other methods that don’t help and so that they can enjoy the beauty of their outdoor spaces again!:-)
Have a wonderful rest of the week/weekend and let me know if you have any questions!
Your pavers look beautiful! Nice job! I completely agree that pressure washing doesn’t always do the trick. Especially, if the stains are stubborn. I recently tried to pressure wash my deck and it didn’t work well. It actually caused some damage to my deck due to the severity of the pressure washer. I was curious why the pressure washer had ruined part of my deck and found this article online – https://housetipster.com/housetips/9095/why-you-should-not-use-a-pressure-washer-on-your-house
It gives some good reasons why to avoid a pressure washer. Your idea about using outdoor bleach is great. I never would have thought of that. Thank you!