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Pressure WashingDriveway Pressure Washing
in Ottawa
Your driveway is the first thing visitors see and the last thing you look at pulling into the garage. A clean driveway makes your entire property look better-maintained — and pressure washing is the fastest, most cost-effective way to get there.
Not every driveway gets the same wash.
Pressure washing a driveway seems simple — point the wand and pull the trigger, right? Wrong. Each surface type needs a specific PSI, nozzle, and technique. Get it wrong and you'll etch the concrete, scour the asphalt, or blow the polymeric sand right out of your interlock joints.
Concrete Driveways
Surface cleaner (rotary head) for uniform results, not a wand tip that leaves stripes. Hot water for oil spots and tire marks. Pre-treatment with degreaser on stubborn stains.
⚠ Wrong way: Too much pressure or too tight a nozzle etches the surface permanently — the marks are visible for years.
✓ Right way: Concrete handles the highest pressure of any driveway surface.
Asphalt Driveways
Lower pressure, wider fan tip. Hot water lifts oil and grime without eating into the binder. No zero-degree nozzle anywhere near asphalt.
⚠ Wrong way: Asphalt is softer than concrete. High pressure or a tight nozzle gouges the surface. A turbo nozzle will strip the top layer in seconds.
✓ Right way: Hot water + correct pressure removes years of tire marks and oil stains without surface damage.
Interlock Driveways
Surface cleaner only, wider fan. We avoid the joints — directing high-pressure water into paver joints strips the polymeric sand and opens gaps for weeds.
⚠ Wrong way: The #1 DIY mistake: blasting polymeric sand out of every joint, then wondering why weeds appear two weeks later. We clean the pavers, not the joints.
✓ Right way: Correctly cleaned interlock looks brand new. Pavers don't absorb stains like concrete — they clean up beautifully.
How we clean a driveway — step by step.
Pre-Treatment
We apply a biodegradable degreaser to oil spots and tire marks. Let it dwell for 5–10 minutes to break down hydrocarbons. This step makes the difference between a surface that looks clean when wet and one that actually stays clean when dry.
Surface Cleaner Pass
We use a rotary surface cleaner — a round head with dual spinning nozzles — not a wand tip. The surface cleaner delivers uniform pressure across the entire driveway. No stripes, no etching, no missed spots. For asphalt, we dial the pressure back and use hot water.
Edge & Detail Work
A wand with a wide fan tip cleans along the edges, against the garage door, and around any obstacles. Lower pressure, wider spray pattern. We don't dig trenches along your lawn edge.
Rinse & Inspect
Final rinse at low pressure to push all the loosened dirt off the surface. We walk the driveway with you to point out any stubborn spots and make sure you're happy before we pack up.
Alta Vista Driveway Wash
A concrete driveway that hadn't been cleaned in years — oil stains, moss growing in the expansion joints, and a layer of embedded road grime that had turned the surface from light grey to near-black. Commercial surface cleaner with hot water, degreaser pre-treatment on the oil spots. One pass restored the original concrete colour without a single etch mark. Standard double driveway, done in under 90 minutes.
Common questions about driveway cleaning.
Will pressure washing damage my interlock driveway?+
Done correctly, no. We use lower pressure (1,200–2,000 PSI) and a surface cleaner head that distributes the water evenly. We avoid directing pressure into the joints, which is what blows out the polymeric sand. If your sand is already failing, we'll tell you before we start — we can wash and resand in the same visit.
Can you remove oil stains from my driveway?+
Fresh oil stains can usually be removed entirely. Old, deep-set stains that have soaked into the concrete over years will lighten significantly — often 80–90% — but may not disappear completely. We use a commercial degreaser and hot water, which works better than cold water for hydrocarbon stains.
How long does driveway cleaning take?+
A standard single driveway (2 cars wide) takes 45–90 minutes from setup to final rinse. A large double driveway or one with heavy staining takes 1.5–2 hours. We'll give you a time estimate during the quote so you can plan around it.
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Ready to see your driveway clean again?
Free quote with surface-specific recommendations. Same-day results, no damage, no mess left behind.