Soft washingin Parkland, FL.

Parkland Isles went up between 1999 and 2002 and Heron Bay from 1996 into the early 2000s, and both were laid out around water. On a lake lot the cage sits between the house and the bank, so it takes the morning dew, the afternoon storms and the humidity off the water, and it rarely dries before the next round. That is why the frame corners and the kick plates go black before the walls do.

Cage screen is thin and tears if it is sprayed hard, so the solution goes on light and the rinse runs from the roof panels down, so dirty water never lands on a panel that is already clean. The aluminum frame gets the same wash. On a cage that has gone a few years, a second application on the corners is planned in the quote rather than found on the day.

Heron Bay is about 3,000 homes on roughly 1,100 acres, and all three of its gates are staffed around the clock. Vendors get in by being on your guest list, so the easiest thing is to add Pure Clean before the day. If the association keeps a vendor insurance file, send that request with the quote and it gets sorted in advance.

Big communities like this tend to write their exterior standards down, and a mildew letter usually names the problem: a green north wall, black soffits, a grey cage. The wash covers exactly what the letter names, so it is worth forwarding it. Heron Bay also crosses the Coral Springs city line, so part of it sits a few minutes from where the truck starts the day.

Pine Tree Estates is one to three acre lots on private wells and septic, with no association. Wells in this part of Broward often carry iron, and a sprinkler that hits the house every watering day leaves an orange band low on the stucco. It builds slowly, which is why people notice it the year they sell.

A soft wash does not take iron out. Iron needs its own rust remover, applied to the band and rinsed, and it goes on after the algae is gone so the remover is not wasted on growth. The county's watering rule covers wells too, so the heads only run two set days a week, and aiming them off the wall is what stops the next band.