When Cleaning your driveway pavers it is best to use a power washer and the correct cleaning chemicals to get the job done right. The power washer recommended is a 1200-1800 PSI that shoots 2.8 GPM of water volume and up. The cleaning solution used to kill and lift up organic growth such as mold and mildew can be found at your nearest pool supply store. You want to use chlorine or sometimes referred to as pool shock, this chemical will systematically kill the growth at the root. We also recommend you use a chlorine stable surfactant to mix with your cleaning solution, this will allow the chemical to stick to its intended surface and work longer. Allow the surface to soak up the solution and allow about 10 minutes to dwell. Although you can use a pressure cleaning gun to remove the grime off the driveway, we also recommend you use a surface clean to save on time and back breaking labor. With a surface cleaner you can cover more square footage with minimal effort. Once the growth has been lifted off the pavers, you will use your pressure washing gun to hit the edges and details such as gum and paint spots. Lastly rinse away the grime with your pressure washing gun off the paver surface. Depending on how badly the area was dirty you may want to post treat with the same cleaning solution incase any more organic growth was left over.

Now that the surface has been cleared up you might notice oil spots from cars or rust stains along your landscaped edges from sprinklers. The oil stains can be tricky to remove as they embed deep into the porous surface as days have passed but heavy duty degreaser will be the next chemical to reach for and apply. Let it dwell for 15 minutes and power wash away. Your rust stains are typically not as stubborn and can be removed with an acid such as muriatic or oxalic.

We advise you to use caution when handling these chemical. Be sure to use gloves, wear protection and a respirator. If these chemicals come into contact with your skin or eyes, rinse off with water immediately until burning as gone away. 

After the process has completed allow time to dry before parking your vehicle to ensure all areas have been cleaned and not spots were missed. This method of cleaning can also be done on concrete driveways for similiar results. 

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PSI stands for pounds per square inch. This in short is the pressure washers cleaning power. It is the force created by the pressure washing pump. The number of PSI marked on the equipment will tell you how much force the pressurized water comes out to. Although the PSI is important when getting your surfaces clean, we also want to see the GPM on the machine. GPM stands for gallons per minute. This tells us the volume of water that is coming through the pressure washing machine. The number of GPM will help in speeding up the cleaning and rinsing process leaving behind a clean finish. When picking out the correct pressure washer to buy or rent it is crucial to know what it will be used for. There are different catagories of pressure washing machines that break into residential and commercial grades both in gas and electric form.


For example if washing your car the light duty lower tier psi, electric grade set up is a great fit. A machine of this size can tackle car washing and other smaller infrequent projects such as grill cleaning, patio furniture and residential garbage bins. These pressure washers are in the 1,200 to 1.800 psi range and deliver 1.5 GPM of water volume. Up next we have 2,000 to 3,000 psi gas powered machines that are considered more heavy duty and shoot out around 2.8 GPM of water volume, these models are most common for residential scenarios such as driveways, sidewalks and pool patio surfaces. Lastly we have the 3,000 to 4,000 psi rated power washers that are commercial grade in nature and are to be used in large cleaning projects such as commercial plazas, banks, parking garages and other large concrete cleaning operations. These machines throw out 4-8 GPM of waterflow when paired with a buffer tank. 

In conclusion we recommend you pick out the pressure washer and equipment needed to complete the task at hand with efficiency and quality in mind.

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