How to bid pressure washing jobs
What a pressure washing bid has to say, a worked house wash price, the stains line that prevents the complaint, and why pressure washing is priced by the surface and paid on completion.
Pressure washing is a fast trade with one slow complaint: the stain that did not come out. Rust, oil, battery acid, the tannin line under the gutter. The customer expected it gone because the bid said "clean." The bid that says what lifts and what does not, in one sentence, gets the review instead of the call.
What a pressure washing bid has to answer
- Each surface as a line: house siding by the square foot or the story, driveway by the square foot, deck and fence by the square foot, roof by the square.
- The method: soft wash with a cleaning solution for siding and roofs, pressure for concrete, and that the method is chosen to avoid damage.
- What to expect: mold, algae, dirt, and most organic stains lift. Rust, oil, paint, and etched stains may lighten but do not come out, and the bid says so.
- What the customer does first: close the windows, move cars and furniture, cover delicate plants, and that you rinse plants before and after.
- Water source: the customer's spigot, and that you need it on.
How to price it
Example numbers for a soft wash of a 2,200-square-foot two-story house with vinyl siding, in a typical market. Yours will differ.
- Measure: about 2,600 square feet of wall surface on a house that size, or price it by the story and the size.
- Soft wash labor and solution: $0.15 to $0.30 a square foot of wall. At $0.20, $520.
- Two-story surcharge where the back needs the long wand: $75.
- Gutters outside, brightened: $1 a foot as an option, 140 feet, $140.
- Total: about $525 for the house wash alone, $735 with the gutter faces. A driveway at $0.15 to $0.25 a foot and a deck at $0.50 to $1 a foot go on the same bid as options.
Decks and fences price higher per foot because they need a cleaner, a rinse, and sometimes a brightener, and the bid should say whether sealing is included or a separate visit.
Where pressure washing bids go wrong
- The bid said "clean the driveway," and the customer expected the oil spot gone.
- Pressure was used on soft siding because the bid did not commit to a method, and a panel was damaged.
- The plants were not mentioned, and the solution burned a hedge nobody covered.
- The deck was quoted without sealing, and the customer assumed it was included.
A finished pressure washing bid, line by line
Three sample pressure washing estimates: house wash, driveway and concrete cleaning, and deck and fence wash. The pressure washing proposal template is the blank version with the stains sentence on it.
Deposit and payment terms
Pressure washing is paid on completion. The job is a few hours, the material is a jug of solution, and a deposit only slows down the yes. Say on the bid that payment is due the day of the service and take it by card on the spot. For a recurring customer, a seasonal plan on the bid with a price per visit is the easiest repeat business in the trades.
Getting more pressure washing jobs
This is a before-and-after trade, and the photos sell the next job. Put a half-cleaned driveway photo on the bid. Send it the same day; most customers book the first clear price they get. Offer the house, the driveway, and the deck as three lines so they add the second one themselves. Follow up at three days. Ask for the review with the after photo, and ask the neighbor while the trailer is still in the street.
BidWriter Pro writes the bid from your notes with each surface as a line, photos on it, and card payment on completion from the customer's phone. $29 a month, 30 days free.
Questions contractors ask
How much should I charge to pressure wash a house?
By the square foot of wall or by the story and size. Many markets land between $300 and $700 for a soft wash of a two-story house, with the driveway, deck, and gutter faces as separate lines.
What do I say about stains on a pressure washing bid?
That organic staining lifts and that rust, oil, paint, and etched stains may lighten but do not come out. One sentence, every bid.
Should I take a deposit for pressure washing?
No. Pay on completion, by card, the day of the service. A seasonal plan on the bid is the better way to lock in the customer.
Write a pressure washing bid from your notes
Type the job the way you would text it. It comes back as a finished estimate in about five seconds, in your words. No account.
30 days free, then $29 a month. No card to start.
Free, no account: estimate checker, job price calculator, markup vs margin, hourly rate, and 84 sample estimates.
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