how to care for your carpeting between cleanings

Vinyl siding is among the easiest materials to keep looking nice on your home. If you take the time to clean the siding each year and tend to the trouble spots when they occur, your vinyl siding will look superb for many, many years before you even need to consider replacing it. One problem that occurs is mold spore specks shot out of artillery fungus.

Artillery fungus grows in natural mulch. When the sun heats the fungus, small spores are shot out of it and land on whatever surface is near. These black specks can seem impossible to remove once they set on the surface, but you can get it off with a little bit of work.

Pressure Washing

Pressure wash the surfaces that have been affected by the fungus spores. Be sure to use caution on the siding where one panel is connected to another and never spray upwards. Spray at a downward or direct angle to avoid popping the siding out of place as you spray the high-pressure water.

Tip: If you have plants in the ground below the siding, cover them to prevent accidental damage from occurring. Use buckets, totes and trash cans to protect the plants from the high-pressure water.

Bleach and Water Scrubbing

Create a mixture of 50 percent bleach to 50 percent water in a bucket. Use a scrub brush to scrub the surface that has been affected by the fungus. This will kill the spores, remove any moss and dirt that may be present and leave the siding looking great. Just be careful with the mixture if you are working around plants as it could cause them damage.

Zit Cream Treatment

For those spots that won't come clean by pressure washing or bleaching the surface, a little zit cream could do the trick. Simply apply the cream to each spot and let the sun do the rest of the work. Believe it or not, zit cream is very effective in removing stains from siding and many other materials. A couple of days of sun exposure is all that is needed to bleach out the stains and restore the perfect appearance of your siding.

Tip: Perform a test on an area that isn't easily seen to be sure that the color in the siding isn't stripped by the cream.

If you don't have the time or energy to get this job done on your own, talk with your local power washing company for assistance.