Pressure washing and soft washing in South Florida
Atrium pressure-cleans stucco walls, roofs, pavers, driveways and commercial buildings across Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties. Walls are pre-treated to loosen mold and algae, pressure-washed, and rinsed with the runoff managed; roofs are soft-washed so the tile or membrane is not damaged. On a January 2026 hospital proposal the company priced 5,070 square feet of side walls and roof at $0.81 per square foot. Pressure cleaning is included at no charge in every Atrium exterior repaint.
Typical project range: $750 – $18,500 from a single house to an 18,500-dollar hospital building proposal that combined pressure cleaning with laser paint removal and metal refinishing.
What is in a cleaning scope
The scope below is taken from a January 2026 proposal to clean and restore the exterior of a hospital building in West Palm Beach. The steps are the same on a house.
| Step | What is done |
|---|---|
| Protect | Landscaping, windows and walkways covered or masked |
| Pre-treat | Cleaning solution applied to walls and roof to loosen mold, algae and debris |
| Pressure clean walls | Dirt, algae and loose paint removed |
| Soft wash roof | Low-pressure cleaning suited to the roof material |
| Rinse and manage runoff | All surfaces rinsed; runoff directed away from landscaping and drains |
On that project the walls and roof came to 5,070 square feet at $0.81 per square foot — $4,106. The rest of the $18,500 was laser paint removal from metal window grilles, minor welding repairs on four of them, and priming and refinishing the grilles with a high-performance metal enamel: work that shows what “cleaning and restoration” means on an institutional building rather than a house.
What moves the price
| What varies | Effect |
|---|---|
| Wall and roof area | Proportional — the rate is per square foot |
| Growth and staining | Heavy algae or rust staining needs a second treatment |
| Height | Two-story walls and roofs need ladders or a lift |
| Access | A water supply and 110 V power on site are assumed; a tank and generator are extra |
| Add-ons | Driveways, pool decks, paver re-sanding and sealing are separate lines |
Included with every repaint
Every Atrium exterior repaint begins with pressure cleaning of every surface to be painted. It is line one of the scope, it is not an extra, and it is the reason the primer sticks.
Sources
- Atrium proposal, exterior pressure washing and metal refinishing, January 2026 — 5,070 ft² of walls and roof at $0.81/ft²; laser paint removal and refinishing of metal window grilles; $18,500 total
- Atrium exterior repaint scope statement — pressure cleaning of all surfaces to be painted is the first line of every exterior proposal
Related questions
- What does pressure washing cost?
- For walls and roofs on a building, Atrium's January 2026 proposal rate was $0.81 per square foot, which covered pre-treatment, pressure cleaning, soft washing the roof, rinsing and managing the runoff. A house is priced the same way from its wall and roof area. If the cleaning is part of a repaint it costs nothing extra — it is the first line of the exterior scope.
- Do you pressure-wash roofs?
- Roofs are soft-washed: a low-pressure application of cleaning solution that kills the biological growth, then a rinse. High pressure on a barrel-tile or flat roof loosens tiles, drives water under the membrane and voids roof warranties, so it is not used there.
- Is pressure washing enough, or does my house need painting?
- If the paint is intact and only dirty, cleaning brings it back. If cleaning takes paint off with the dirt, or the surface chalks onto your hand, the coating has failed and washing is prep for a repaint rather than a substitute for it. We tell you which one you are looking at.
- Do you clean pavers and driveways?
- Yes — driveways, pool decks and paver walkways. Pavers are cleaned and can be re-sanded and sealed afterwards. Driveways are quoted as their own line, separate from house walls.