SWMBO has decided she wants the house power washed.... I really can't disagree....
So it is either buying a power washer and ME doing the job I really don't have an idea of how to do or hiring someone to do the job...
I have received one estimate of $485 to power wash the house siding, the brick front and the front and rear concrete porches....

I have called two other outfits who obviously have so much work they feel they don't need to respond... guess what will happen if they do... LOL

Does anyone have a suggestion for a good contractor to do this work... preferably first hand knowledge....

I'll loan you mine if you want. It's pretty easy to do, however it does take a little practice. The only thing you have to worry about is having it set too strong or it can do some damage. Once you have that set it's just point and wash. My house (1 story, 1,600 sf) was covered with smashed acorns, leaves and other debris after the last hurricane and I washed the whole thing in about 2 hours.

Borrow one or buy your own for about $200 less than that estimate. Just don't use the highest pressure tip and you'll be fine, unless you are cutting diamonds or something. It's really super easy.

I just had to talk my bro-in-law out of buying one. It just didn't make sense when he could use mine anytime. It's one of those thing I only use about 5 times a year, but love having.

They're great aren't they? You're right, once you have one you wonder how you ever lived without it. I use mine a lot in the summer. They're great for cleaning all the algae and slime off crab pots or cleaning the boat after a fishing trip.

I scored some serious brownie points last spring doing my in-laws siding. The back of their house doesn't get enough afternoon sun and the mold/mildew builds up on it. The medium tip strips it right off with no damage to the siding.

I have a Craftsman. I think it's 6.5hp and 2500ish PSI. I think it was $300 or so.

They are the best thing that come along in a long time. I use it all the time. I cleans concrete really clean.

One warrning. If you are on a well. You have to be careful with well pressuer. It will suck the hose flat. You have to use it off and on so as not to suck down the hose. Well pressure is not high enough to supply the water fast enough the sprayer wide open spraying. I know first had. Been there done that. Not fun.

Mine is a Yamaha but it only has one tip and you turn it to adjust the spray pressure. Got it at Home Depot for about $350.

Word of advice....if you get one and do it yourself on a sunny day, wear lots of sunblock on your neck. I found out the hard way.

I appreciate all the offer of a loan...
One thing I forgot to mention is that I am disabled... 3 herniated disks and an artificial knee that does not always work... LOL
I don't want SWMBO to do it because I know she will think if setting 2 is good then setting 5 is going to be better and I can see the damage now...
Also being on a well I can see the water pressure problem...

Do you think the quote I got is fair??

Probably. Even though mine only took a couple hours, the house is pretty small and the debris had only been on it a couple days, so there are other things to consider. And as you've already indicated, how many people are you going to get to even respond?

I'm curious, did they quote it without seeing it?

Nope, the guy came out from Frederick and we walked the house and he even put up a ladder to check places he could not see well to determine what he would need to do the job properly...
I was rather impressed with his inspection....
I joked about not doing it myself because I didn't want to replace any windows.... his response was that if anything at all was damaged by the power washing he was liable and it is in his estimate as such..

That makes me feel more comfortable. I would probably go with him Griz.

Good luck.

Question for the power washing vets. Will it take oily stains off of an asphalt driveway? I have a couple of oil stains at the end of my driveway from where my old trash guy used to do a u-turn every week to turn his jaloppy truck around. The way that thing dripped, he must have had to put a quart a day in it to keep it running. I also have some oily streaks from the tire shine goo I use on our cars.

I'm trying to plan out everything that needs blasted this spring.

it should work. Get some degreaser first (simple green or something similar) and pour it on and use a heavy shop broom to scrub it in first. It should come out after that

I use this stuff I got at Agway in Waynesboro that worked great. It's trisodium phosphate in powder form. You first get the spot wet, sprinkle it on generously, brush it in like Samy said with a regular bristle brush (not wire), let it set about 15 minutes, and then rinse with a hose. You may need to do it a couple times.

I think a power washer might break up the asphalt.

If you have any cracks theres a good chance it might.

Bristly brushes and cleaning solutions? What fun is that? I want to blast away with the power washer!

Go for it SMan, But first get quotes for patching up the black top.

The cleaner solution should do the job.

Sman
Use some simple green on the spot's and let it soak a little bit then power wash it off we had to do this due to our son's suburban leaking oil and transmission fluid on the driveway. I figured what the heck I'll try it and it worked.