Feel the pressure UK is a professional exterior cleaning service that specialises in all types of Professional pressure washing, Therma-Tech/Doff steam cleaning and soft washing services. For a full list of all of our professional exterior cleaning services including professional patio cleaning, stone cleaning, brick cleaning and roof cleaning services please click on the link to our homepage for a full list of service options. Feel the pressure UK providing the very best in professional cleaning services near you.
What is Algae and how does Algae get on our patios?
Algae is a natural organic buildup that inhabits patios and many/most other exterior surfaces all other the country due to it’s easy form of growth, all its takes is a bit of water/moisture and a bit of heat/sunlight for Algae to start rapidly forming! Algae often forms in damp places as they thrive on moisture and often finds itself on porous stone and brickwork where water penetrates and can’t fully escape. Your often see heavy buildups of Algae on the top of coping stones and seeping over the sides of coping stones where rainwater is easily absorbed or left to sit on the surface, or you might see Algae around gutters and drain pipes where leaking water or overflows penetrates the surrounding brick or stonework keeping it damp and perfect for the Algae to grow. A buildup of Algae on patios is a common thing as patio surfaces of all types including stone, brick and decking absorb a lot of rain water all year round. Different patio surface types and how easily the water can run off your patio and even things like drainage can play a big factor in how much algae will grow on your patio in a space of time, the more porous the stone is the more water it will absorb making the stone harder to fully dry often leaving the stone damp and perfect for breeding Algae and once a heavy buildup of algae has arrived removing algae from a patio without the right patio cleaning equipment or knowledge can become a nightmare for any home owner or even some professional cleaning companies
The best ways to remove Algae from patios
Our team at Feel the pressure UK provide dozens of professional patio cleaning services/Algae removal services on a monthly basis and have extensive knowledge and experience in how to clean patios and how to remove algae from patio surfaces along with all other types of natural organic matter, here in this blog we are going to explain the two methods used to professionally remove Algae from your patio, one being patio steam cleaning and two being removing Algae using sodium hypochlorite.
Professional patio steam cleaning
Professional patio steam cleaning is always our first choice when removing algae from patio surfaces including all types of natural and artificialstone and block paving and allows us to remove Algae without chemicals. Providing the very best and professional Therma-Tech and Doff steam cleaning our team at Feel the pressure UK can effortlessly remove Algae from patio surfaces without having to applying high-pressure or chemicals onto the surface making it an eco-friendly algae removal service. Our Therma-Tech and Doff steam cleaning systems are professional pieces of exterior cleaning equipment that uses a combination of low pressure and superheated steam to delicately clean surfaces and kill and remove biological mater including algae without having to use chemicals the reason this is possible is because of the superheated steam produced by the cleaning systems. Algae, fungi and Lichens just to name a few are all types of biological matter and Bacteria, Bacteria can be killed in many ways there are chemicals that can be used to kill bacteria and in this example bacteria can be killed by heat. Bacterial spores are killed when exposed to temperatures of 120c or above, our Therma-Tech and Doff steam cleaning systems reach temperatures of 150c meaning everything that is passed over when steam cleaning is thoroughly killed, not only does it make light work of gently removing algae from a patio but it also kills all biological spores in the cleaning process leaving the surface 100% sterilised meaning it will stay cleaner for longer and the bacterial spores will have to start life all over again. Our team at Feel the pressure UK always recommend patio steam cleaning for removing algae from patio surfaces the only time we use chemical cleaning for removing algae from patios is if absolutely necessary, using patio cleaning chemicals is not a problem when carried out professionally but for our team at Feel the pressure UK we like to keep our cleaning as eco-friendly as possible but if You can’t get hold of a steam cleaner and want to clean the patio yourself removing algae with chemicals might be your only option so we are going to tell you the best way to remove algae with chemicals in our section below.
Removing algae using sodium hypochlorite
Removing algae from patios using sodium hypochlorite is a reliable cleaning method but caution should always be taken as sodium hypochlorite is a corrosive substance so if this is something you are looking to do at home always make sure to be wearing protective clothing including safety goggles, chemical resistant gloves and old cloths with preferably waterproof overalls on top, try to make sure all of your skin is completely covered, if you do manage to get any Sodium hypochlorite on your skin during the cleaning process use warm water to thoroughly rinse off. Sodium hypochlorite is liquid chlorine and can be bought from most big chemical suppliers or smaller swimming pool cleaning chemical stores and is the main compound in most patio cleaning products you can find on the shelves in your local stores, If you just want to go ahead and use a premade patio cleaning product that’s fine and full instructions should be on the label but be warned you will be spending a lot more money for the same product. When using sodium hypochlorite to remove algae from patio surfaces need to make up a dilution of 4/1 that’s 4 parts water to 1 part sodium hypochlorite Next you need to saturate the surface with freshwater just enough to get the surface wet next you will need to lay down the mixture of sodium hypochlorite and water over the surface, you can do this with Ideally a spray bottle or you can brush it in using a stiff brush, depending on the amount of algae that is on the surface will determine the amount of time that solution will need to be left on but you need to make sure the surface doesn’t dry out so if it looks like it is starting to go dry add a little bit more fresh water on and move it with a stiff brush to agitate the algae, dwell time is roughly 30/45 minuets then thoroughly rinse the surface with freshwater you can also use a cold pressure washer if you have one at home, rinse down the surface or simply rinse with a hose if there is any algae remaining on the surface after the rinse repeat the application and the Algae will soon be removed.
Whatever type of patio surface you have Feel the pressure UK can guarantee 100% spotless finish and full body colour restoration, we provide free quotations and even offer free test cleaning samples to demonstrate the results we can achieve for your patio surface.
If you’re looking for a professional patio cleaning service please visit our main patio cleaning page that provides lots of information on different types of patio cleaning services including patio steam cleaning, high-pressure jet washing and patio blackspot removal if you’re looking for a free quotation call our team any time and one of our experience patio cleaning experts will visit your property free of charge to talk you through the recommended patio cleaning methods, provide you with helpful information about your patio, answer any questions you might have regarding patio cleaning and also provide a free test clean on your own surface. Feel the pressure UK providing the very best professional patio cleaning services near you.
