Fence & Deck Cleaning

South Florida Is Brutal on Wood & Vinyl

Wood fences, wood decks, and vinyl fence panels all weather faster in South Florida than almost anywhere else in the country. Year-round humidity feeds the mildew that turns wood gray-black and vinyl dark-streaked. Daily afternoon thunderstorms in summer keep surfaces damp for extended periods, which is exactly what algae needs to colonize. Salt air on coastal homes accelerates oxidation. And full sun on west-facing fence runs bleaches and dries the surface from the front while humidity rots it from the bottom.

Fence and deck cleaning isn't just about appearance — it's about preserving the material. Wood that stays covered in mildew for years rots faster. Vinyl that has dark stripes for years develops a permanent ghost discoloration that doesn't fully come out. Catching the cleaning at year one or two extends material lifespan significantly versus letting it go for five-plus years.

What We Clean

• Wood privacy fences (cedar, pine, treated)
• Vinyl fence panels and gates
• Wood decks and deck boards
• Composite decking (Trex-style)
• Wood and vinyl railings, balusters, and pergolas
• Wood and vinyl gates and gate hardware

Wood: Soft-Wash, Never Pressure Blast

The single biggest mistake on wood is using too much pressure. High-pressure water on wood tears the fibers apart, leaving a fuzzy, splintered surface that looks worse after cleaning than before. It also opens the wood to faster moisture absorption, which accelerates rot. We never pressure-blast wood. Wood gets soft-wash chemistry at low pressure — the chemistry lifts mildew, algae, and the gray oxidation off the wood surface, and a clean-water rinse takes it all away. The result is wood that's clean, smooth, and ready for re-staining if you want to seal in the brightened look.

Vinyl: Tougher But Still Needs Chemistry

Vinyl fences and railings are more durable than wood, but they pick up a particularly stubborn dark mildew film in South Florida humidity that pressure alone won't fully lift. The dark streaks you see at the base of most older vinyl fences are this film. We treat vinyl with a soft-wash chemistry pass first, then a controlled-pressure rinse to take it all off. The result is vinyl back to its original white (or whatever color it was originally manufactured) without any of the bleaching or warping that comes from over-pressuring.

Decks: Surface Restoration, Not Just Cleaning

Decks see more direct foot traffic and sun than fences do. Wood decks especially tend to develop a gray-silver weathering across the entire surface within a couple of years. Cleaning a deck does more than remove dirt — it restores the surface back toward original wood color. For composite decking, the cleaning lifts the algae and mildew that accumulate in the texture without affecting the composite material itself.

Re-Staining or Re-Sealing After Cleaning

Cleaning is the best prep step for re-staining or re-sealing wood. The surface is at its brightest, the pores are open to absorb stain or sealer, and any embedded dirt is gone. We don't apply stain or sealer ourselves — that's a separate trade — but we can recommend trusted local contractors who can come in within a few weeks of our cleaning to seal in the result. If you're planning to seal, the timing matters: do it within a few weeks while the wood is still optimally prepped.

Frequently Asked Questions