Pressure Washing Before and After Photos You Can Clean Yourself
Every pressure washing before and after on this page is a real Middle Tennessee job, shot by our own crew on site. Swipe sideways across any of them and take the dirt off yourself. No filters, no stock photography, no staging, and no borrowed images from a supplier catalog. What you wipe away is the actual before photo, and what appears underneath is the actual after photo of that same surface. There are twenty one of them on this page, and there is a counter in the corner keeping score once you start.
Before
After
Pressure Washing Before and After: Quick Answers
- Every pressure washing before and after photo on this page is a real Southern Solution job in Middle Tennessee.
- Twenty one of them are interactive. Drag across the photo and you remove the dirt yourself.
- Projects shown include roofs, siding, brick, stucco, historic stone, concrete, pool decks, porches, retaining walls, stadium seating, wood decks and commercial parking structures.
- Roofs and siding are always soft washed at low pressure, never high-pressure washed.
- Concrete is cleaned with commercial surface cleaners for an even, stripe-free finish.
- Locations shown include Nashville, Franklin, Brentwood, Oak Grove, McEwen, and Dickson.
- House washing typically runs $250 to $600 and concrete cleaning starts at $200 to $700.
- Roof cleaning runs $0.15 to $0.35 per square foot of roof area.
- Wood decks split two ways: a maintenance clean at $0.30 to $0.35 per square foot, or a full strip and restoration at $6 to $9 per square foot.
- Every job is documented with before and after photos for the customer.
Featured Job: Commercial Staircase and Retaining Walls
This is the most dramatic pressure washing before and after we have on file. Poured concrete stairs and the retaining walls flanking them, on a commercial property in Nashville, carrying years of algae, traffic film and organic staining. Same camera position, same framing, top half dirty and bottom half clean. Swipe sideways and take it off yourself.
Before
After
Why stairs are the hard part
A surface cleaner cannot ride a stair tread. Every step, nosing and riser is detailed by hand with a wand, which is why stairs take longer per square foot than any flat slab on a property.
Why it matters beyond looks
Algae on a concrete stair tread is slick the moment it gets wet. On a commercial property that is a liability item, not a cosmetic one, and it is usually the reason the call comes in.
How the walls were handled
The retaining walls run at low pressure with detergent doing the work, so the concrete face is not etched. Pressure is for rinsing, chemistry is for cleaning. That order matters on vertical concrete.
Pressure Washing Before and After Projects
Filter these pressure washing before and after projects by service, or just start swiping. Each tile is a real job with the surface and the location listed underneath. If you are on a keyboard, or you would rather just watch, every tile has an Auto Wash button.
BeforeAfter
Black Streak Roof Cleaning
Gloeocapsa magma algae removed at the root with the low-pressure soft wash method recommended by shingle manufacturers and by ARMA. No granule loss, no pressure on the shingle.
BeforeAfter
Football Stadium Cleaning
Stadium concrete and seating that sits open to the weather all year, then hosts a full crowd on a Friday night. Cleaned in the off weeks so every row is ready before the first home game.
BeforeAfter
Brick, Stucco and Historic Stone
Three different materials on one elevation, each with its own tolerance. All of it soft washed at low pressure, because pressure on aged mortar and historic stone does damage you cannot undo.
BeforeAfter
Paver Moss Removal & Sealing
Moss lifted out of the joints, the pavers restored, then sealed to slow regrowth. Shaded paver patios in Nashville green up faster than anything else on a property.
BeforeAfter
Commercial Building Washing
A full elevation cleaned from the ground up, working around signage, lighting, entry doors and windows. Storefront glass gets protected before the wall is ever touched.
BeforeAfter
Front Entry Staircase
The first surface a guest actually stands on, and the one homeowners stop noticing because it darkens a little every year. Treads and risers detailed by hand rather than run with a surface cleaner.
BeforeAfter
Sidewalk Concrete Cleaning
Years of embedded grime and algae removed with a commercial surface cleaner, which distributes pressure evenly and leaves no wand stripes.
BeforeAfter
Commercial Facility Exterior
An occupied facility cleaned around its operating hours, with entrances kept usable throughout. Scheduling is half the job on any building the public walks into every day.
BeforeAfter
Pool Patio Cleaning
Algae on a wet pool deck is a genuine slip hazard, not just an eyesore. Controlled pressure and care around coping and landscaping.
BeforeAfter
Retaining Wall Cleaning
A retaining wall holds soil moisture against its own face, so it grows algae faster than anything around it. Chemistry does the work here and pressure only rinses, which keeps the wall from etching.
BeforeAfter
HOA Monument Signage Cleaning
A community entrance sets expectations before anyone sees a unit. Cleaned without damaging lettering, lighting, or the masonry surround.
BeforeAfter
Front Porch Concrete
Covered porches get overlooked because they stay dry, but they collect a fine film of pollen, dust and spider debris that dulls the slab. Cleaned right up to the threshold and the siding line.
BeforeAfter
Patio Pressure Washing
Shaded patio concrete holds moisture long after a rain, which is exactly the condition algae needs. Treated at the source rather than blasted off.
BeforeAfter
Apartment Concrete Restoration
Common-area concrete across an occupied community, sequenced by section so residents kept access and parking throughout.
BeforeAfter
Driveway Transformation
A driveway is the largest single surface most people see from the street, and the fastest curb appeal win on any property.
BeforeAfter
Commercial Parking Lot
Oil buildup, tire marks, and traffic film pulled off a working lot with surface scrubbers, section by section so the business stayed open.
BeforeAfter
Concrete Deep Clean
Embedded dirt and organic film removed evenly across the whole slab. The even finish is the surface cleaner doing its job.
BeforeAfter
Residential Patio Clean
Backyard patio brought back for entertaining season. Method matched to the surface so nothing gets etched or striped.
Wash It, Then Stain It: A Deck Restoration in Three Stages
Most before and after pairs stop at two frames. Wood does not work that way. This deck came to us with a failed stain sitting on top of grey, weathered board. Stage one strips it back to raw wood. Stage two puts an oil based stain on it. Swipe the first stage off, then the button appears and you can stain it yourself.
Failed stain
Stripped
Why this deck needed a strip and not a wash. There is a water test that settles it in about ten seconds. Splash a cup of water on the boards. If it beads up, the finish is still doing its job and the deck only needs a maintenance clean. If it soaks straight in and darkens the board, the finish has failed and it has to come off before anything new goes on. This one soaked in.
What the price difference actually is. A maintenance clean on wood runs $0.30 to $0.35 per square foot. A strip and brighten runs around $1.00 per square foot. A full restoration, meaning strip, brighten, sand where needed and stain, runs $6 to $9 per square foot. That is a three times swing or more, and it is decided entirely by whether the old finish is still bonded. Anyone who quotes wood without asking that question has not looked at your deck.
Why oil based on this one. Oil penetrates into the wood fiber rather than forming a film on top of it. Film finishes look excellent for a season and then peel in sheets, which is exactly the failure you are looking at in stage one. A penetrating oil wears thin instead of peeling, so the next maintenance is a clean and a recoat rather than another full strip.
Mid-Job: The Most Honest Pressure Washing Before and After There Is
A progress shot is the one pressure washing before and after that cannot be faked. There is no editing a hard line between dirty and clean. Tap any photo to enlarge it.
How to Read a Pressure Washing Before and After Photo
Anyone can post a dramatic pair of photos. Very few of them are an honest comparison. Here is exactly what we look for, including in our own work, so you can judge any contractor's gallery instead of taking their word for it.
The five tricks that make a mediocre job look incredible
- Different lighting. A before shot in flat overcast light and an after shot in bright afternoon sun will look like two different surfaces even if nothing was cleaned. Check the shadows in both frames.
- Different angle or distance. If the camera moved, you cannot actually compare the two. An honest pair is shot from the same spot, which is why the interactive tiles on this page line up when you wipe them.
- Wet versus dry. Wet concrete always looks darker and richer. A wet after photo hides staining that reappears the moment it dries. Ask whether the after shot was taken dry.
- Selective cropping. A tight crop on the one section that cleaned up well tells you nothing about the rest of the driveway.
- Filters and saturation. Boosting contrast and warmth makes any after shot pop. If the greens in the surrounding grass shifted between photos, so did everything else.
What an honest pressure washing before and after actually shows
- The same framing in both shots. Same spot, same distance, ideally the same time of day.
- A visible transition line. Progress photos with a hard edge between cleaned and uncleaned are nearly impossible to fake, which is why the mid-job section matters more than the polished pairs.
- Context left in frame. Landscaping, siding, and neighboring surfaces still visible, so you can see nothing was damaged getting there.
- The imperfect parts left in. A soft-washed roof is only about 80 percent visibly clean on the day, and rain finishes it. Any roofing gallery where every shingle is perfect on day one is worth a question.
- Named surfaces and locations. Vague photos with no service, no material, and no city are usually stock or borrowed.
- Photos that get pulled when they do not hold up. We removed a breezeway pair from this page because the two frames did not line up well enough to compare honestly. A gallery that only ever grows is a gallery nobody is auditing.
The same logic applies to reviews and credential claims. The FTC's guidance on hiring a contractor is worth five minutes before you hire anyone in this trade, including us.
What You Are Looking At, and What It Costs
Every surface in this gallery, the method behind the after photo, and the real price range for that work in Middle Tennessee. Commercial and large facility work is quoted per property after a walkthrough.
| Surface | Method behind the after photo | Typical range |
|---|---|---|
| Roof | Low-pressure soft wash, algae killed at the root, rain finishes the rinse | $0.15 to $0.35 per sq ft |
| House siding | Soft wash with biodegradable detergents, landscaping protected and rinsed | $250 to $600 |
| Concrete | Commercial surface cleaner for an even finish, edges detailed by hand | $200 to $700 |
| Driveway | Surface cleaner plus pre-treatment on organic staining | $200 to $700 |
| Steps & porches | Hand wand on every tread, riser and nosing, no surface cleaner | Quoted with the concrete |
| Pavers | Joints cleared without stripping the sand, optional seal to slow regrowth | Quoted per area |
| Brick, stucco, stone | Soft wash only, pressure never used on aged mortar or historic stone | Quoted per elevation |
| Retaining walls | Chemistry does the cleaning, pressure only rinses, so the face is not etched | Quoted per linear ft |
| Gutters (exterior) | Brightened to remove tiger striping, which does not come off with pressure | $1.00 to $1.50 per linear ft |
| Wood maintenance clean | For a finish that still beads water, cleaned and left ready to recoat | $0.30 to $0.35 per sq ft |
| Wood strip & brighten | For a failed finish, taken back to raw wood and pH balanced | Around $1.00 per sq ft |
| Wood full restoration | Strip, brighten, sand where needed, then stain | $6 to $9 per sq ft |
| Fence staining | Applied after the wood is cleaned and dry | From $3.00 per linear ft |
| Oxidation removal | For chalky, faded siding that a normal wash will not correct | $1.00 to $1.35 per sq ft |
Ranges are honest starting points, not quotes. Access, height, stain severity and square footage all move the number, and larger scopes price above the ranges shown. Booking several services in one visit costs less than booking them separately, because one trip covers all of them.
Pressure Washing Before and After Work Across Middle Tennessee
Every photo above came from a real property in one of these communities. Different neighborhoods bring different problems, and the method changes with them.
Why Middle Tennessee properties get dirty faster
- Summer humidity here keeps organic growth active nearly year round, so algae never fully stops.
- North-facing walls and shaded slopes hold moisture longest and green up before anything else on a property.
- Heavy tree canopy drops leaf debris and pollen, which is the food source algae grows on.
- Regional red clay splashes onto siding and stains concrete in a way city dust never does.
- Spring pollen coats every horizontal surface for weeks and is the most common first call of the year.
- Irrigation systems that hit siding leave mineral tracks that need chemistry, not pressure.
Nashville & Davidson County
Commercial buildings, parking structures, stairwells and multi-family concrete. Dense, occupied properties where sequencing the work matters as much as the cleaning.
Franklin & Brentwood
HOA communities and custom estate homes, often with Hardie board, stucco, or natural stone that needs a gentler approach than standard vinyl.
Dickson & Hickman County
A mix of historic homes and new construction. Well water leaves mineral staining here that city-water properties never deal with.
Oak Grove & McEwen
Pool patios and shaded backyard concrete, where heavy tree canopy keeps surfaces damp and algae comes back faster.
Bellevue & Mount Juliet
Suburban roofs and siding under mature canopy. North-facing elevations green up first and often need attention before the rest of the house.
Spring Hill & Columbia
Newer construction with red clay splash and irrigation staining, both of which need targeted chemistry rather than raw pressure.
What Each Surface Should Look Like in a Pressure Washing Before and After
Every surface has its own tell. These are the specific things we check on our own work before a job is called finished, and the same things you should look for in anyone's gallery.
Roofs
Streaks gone or clearly fading, granules still intact, and no bright stripes where a wand traveled. About 80 percent visibly clean on the day is correct for a soft wash. A roof that is spotless on day one usually means pressure was used, and pressure costs you granules.
Siding
Even color across the whole wall with no lap marks or clean stripes, and no chalky residue left on the surface. Corners, soffits, and the shaded side should match the sunny side. Landscaping underneath should look untouched.
Concrete
A uniform finish with no zebra striping, which is the signature of a hand wand instead of a surface cleaner. Edges and borders detailed to match the field. Oil shadows may remain on very old stains, and an honest contractor tells you that beforehand.
Steps, Stairs & Landings
The vertical face of every riser cleaned to match the tread, and the nosing not left as a dark stripe. Stairs are the fastest place to spot a rushed job, because a surface cleaner cannot reach any of it and shortcuts show immediately.
Pavers & Natural Stone
Joints clear of moss without the sand blown out of them, and no etching or dulling on travertine, bluestone, or limestone. The stone should read as its natural color, not bleached.
Brick, Stucco & Historic Stone
Mortar joints intact with no pitting or washout, stucco free of streaks and shadow lines, and stone left with its natural variation rather than scoured to a flat, uniform tone. If a wall looks blasted rather than washed, it was.
Decks & Fencing
Grain still smooth rather than fuzzy and raised, which is what high pressure does to wood fiber. Color even across boards, and composite decking free of the swirl marks that come from too much pressure.
Commercial & Multi-Family
Consistency building to building, not just on the one elevation that got photographed. Stair treads, dumpster pads and back-of-house corners handled rather than skipped, because those are the areas residents actually complain about.
Stadiums & Large Facilities
Every row finished to the same standard, not just the ones facing the camera. Drains kept clear so runoff has somewhere to go, and the schedule built around the venue calendar rather than the crew's convenience.
About These Pressure Washing Before and After Photos
Yes. Every photo on this page is from an actual Southern Solution job in Middle Tennessee, shot by our crew on site. Nothing is stock photography, nothing is filtered, and nothing is staged. The interactive tiles use the real before photo and the real after photo of the same surface, which is why you can wipe one to reveal the other.
Yes. Before and after photos come with every service we perform, sent to you when the work is finished. For HOAs, property managers, and commercial clients that documentation also serves as proof to ownership or a board that the work happened as scoped.
A soft-washed roof is roughly 80 percent visibly clean on the day. Rain finishes the rest over the following weeks by rinsing away the dead organic matter, and any remaining moss dries out and falls off within one to three months. That is normal and expected, not a sign anything was missed.
House washing typically runs $250 to $600, concrete cleaning $200 to $700, and roof cleaning $0.15 to $0.35 per square foot of roof area. Wood is priced separately depending on whether it needs a clean or a strip. Commercial work is quoted per property after a walkthrough. Booking several services in one visit costs less than booking them separately, because one trip covers all of them.
There is a ten second test that answers it. Pour a cup of water on the boards. If it beads up, the finish is still bonded and the deck needs a maintenance clean, which runs $0.30 to $0.35 per square foot. If the water soaks in and darkens the wood, the finish has failed and it has to come off first. A strip and brighten runs around $1.00 per square foot, and a full restoration with sanding and stain runs $6 to $9 per square foot. The deck in the three stage module on this page failed the test, which is why it was stripped and refinished with an oil based stain.
In most cases, yes. The honest exception is a surface that has been damaged rather than dirtied. Permanently discolored vinyl, etched concrete from a previous high-pressure cleaning, and shingles that have already lost their granules cannot be restored by washing. We will tell you that before you spend a dollar rather than after.
It depends on the surface and how much sun it gets. Soft-washed siding typically stays clean one to two years and carries our 2-Year Green-Free Warranty. Roof cleaning lasts three to five years, with a 5 year warranty on most roofs and 3 years where heavy tree coverage speeds regrowth. Concrete generally looks fresh one to two years depending on traffic and shade. North-facing and heavily shaded surfaces always regrow faster than sun-exposed ones, which is why two walls of the same house can be on different schedules.
Those are progress shots, taken partway through the job with the crew still working. We include them deliberately because they are the single hardest photo to fake. A polished pair of before and after images can be staged with lighting, angles, and cropping. A hard transition line between filthy and clean, in one frame, with the same light on both sides, cannot. If a contractor has no mid-job photos anywhere in their gallery, that is worth asking about.
Yes, and several are in this gallery, including a stadium, a parking structure, multi-family communities and commercial buildings in brick, stucco and historic stone. We are Aerial Lift Certified for the height work those properties require, and we are insured with a certificate of insurance available on request. Large facility work is quoted per property after a walkthrough, and it is scheduled around your operating hours rather than ours.
Very likely. We work across Nashville, Franklin, Brentwood, Bellevue, Mount Juliet, Hendersonville, Nolensville, Spring Hill, Columbia, Oak Grove, McEwen, and Dickson, plus the surrounding counties. If you want to see work on a property similar to yours, or on your specific siding or roof material, ask and we will send relevant examples directly. We have far more photos than fit on one page.
Absolutely, and it is often the fastest route. Email a few photos of what needs cleaning to office@southernsolutiontn.com with your property address and we will size it and send a quote back. No visit needed for most residential work.
Your Property in the Next Pressure Washing Before and After
You just cleaned a few of these yourself. Getting a real quote takes about the same effort, and it is free either way.
Want to see work on a property like yours? Tell us your siding material, roof type, or the surface giving you trouble, and we will send relevant examples from the same category before you commit to anything.
Southern Solution • Veteran-Owned Exterior Cleaning • Insured, COI on request • Aerial Lift Certified • Based in Middle Tennessee and proudly serving Nashville, Franklin, Brentwood, Bellevue, Mount Juliet, Spring Hill, Oak Grove, McEwen, and Dickson