Pressure Washing & Exterior Restoration
Exterior cleaning is a low-skill, low-license service with unusually high margins because chemicals are cheap and equipment lasts for years, and it converts into recurring annual contracts once you land HOA and commercial property management accounts instead of one-off homeowner jobs.
A strong side-to-full-time play with real structural demand (HOAs and property managers rebook the same wash every year) and margins in the 45-75% range, but it's weather- and season-dependent in most of the country and the entry barrier is low enough that local competition is moderate.
The unit economics favor softwashing over straight pressure washing for anything painted, roofed, or landscaped, since sodium-hypochlorite softwash avoids the surface damage and liability that comes with high-PSI direct blasting. Commercial flatwork (parking garages, sidewalks, drive-thrus) pays less per square foot than residential but scales faster because a single property manager can hand you 10+ locations at once, while residential jobs are higher-margin per hour but require constant new-lead generation.
Peaks March-September in most US climates; northern markets shift almost entirely to commercial/indoor work or shut down November-February unless softwashing gutters and roofs for fall storm prep.
Suits you if
- ✓You can physically handle a full day of standing/climbing and don't mind working outdoors in heat
- ✓You're comfortable cold-calling property managers and HOA boards rather than only relying on homeowner leads
- ✓You want a business you can start part-time on weekends and scale into full-time within a season
- ✓You're willing to learn softwash chemical ratios carefully before touching a client's roof or landscaping
Skip it if
- ✕You live somewhere with a short outdoor season and no indoor/commercial pivot (e.g. parking garage or dumpster-pad cleaning) to fill winter
- ✕You want a business with no physical labor component
- ✕You can't front $5-8k for a decent rig and insurance before your first paying job
- ✕You're not willing to carry liability insurance for chemical drift or surface damage claims
Skills: No trade license is required in most states, just a general business license, liability insurance, and (for storefront work) sometimes a local vendor registration. The real skill is softwash chemical mixing and surface-specific technique, which is learnable from manufacturer training (e.g. Softwash Systems, Bleach-Rite) in a few days.
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