power washing brick walls

[Splash1]

has anyone done this ?

i have a home with a white brick exterior. it was built in '95, so it's about 11 yrs old.

some areas have green algae (near where the lawn sprinkler heads overspray it a bit).

i was considering having the exterior power washed with hotwater (vs. cold water), and the necessary cleaning solutions.

problem is, there appear to be a lot of "hacks" out there who i'm worried would do more damage to the brick, than just leaving well enough alone. from google'ing the topic, there's a lot that can go wrong (ie. micro cracks in the brick from the high pressure stream, moisture absorption, etc).

has anyone done this ? and what if any recommendations for what to look out for?

[hallerb]

try bleach and a garden hose...

cant hurt may work fine.

pressure washing brick can do lots of damage.

better to address the reasons like changing sprinkler heads etc, since the problem will just reoccur

[m Ransley]

Mold will come right back , powerwashing can ruin mortar, bleach kills mold, cheap and easy.

[pipedown]

Place a copper strip or some wire or some copper nails so that the overspray washes over the copper before splashing on the brick. The copper ions will kill the algae in a few days to weeks and it won't come back. Might as well start off with bleach.

[RicodJour]

The commercial pressure washers in the hands of a cowboy will drill right through the brick. A more conscientious worker will create no problems. If the situation is as it sounds, just a little clean up from ground level, it's something you could easily do yourself. A 1600 psi pressure washer, like the ones you'd get at a True Value hardware store, isn't likely to damage the brick and they're light and easy to handle. Cheap, too - figure $150 max. Most have an accesory bottle that can be added to the line that holds either soap or a bleach solution.

Pressure washers are very useful around the house. You'll find lots of things to blow clean.

R