How to Clean Stucco Exterior: An Effective Guide For Homeowners In Louisiana

Algae, mildew, and mold are very common to grow on stucco in Louisiana’s warm and humid environment. This can leave your house looking dirty, old, or even worn down. 

The good news is that with some simple cleaning techniques, you can get a nice and clean look on your stucco, without causing any damage to its surface. Regular cleaning not only boosts appeal to your house but also extends the life of your stucco exterior.

This step-by-step guide will specifically follow some effective cleaning techniques you can use to clean your stucco and will teach you how to clean your stucco exterior softly, properly protect your home, and make it look appealing for you.

Why Your Stucco Requires Specialized Maintenance

Stucco’s inherent porous nature means it is very open to certain issues, especially with Louisiana’s humid environment.

So here are the 3 main reasons why your stucco house requires specialized maintenance:

1. Organic Growth Increased

The humidity and rain we experience in Louisiana provide conditions for mold, mildew, and algae to flourish. They can consume your stucco over time, and if you allow it to increase, they can affect indoor air quality. 

2. Dirt, Dust, and Treatment Residues

One problem stucco surfaces face is the accumulation of dirt, dust, and airborne pollutants. These particles often get trapped on the surface or deep within the textured, porous material, and make them hard to be removed.

3. Protecting Your Investment

Your house is likely the largest asset that you have. When you neglect stucco cleaning, it can reduce the appeal of your house. 

Over time, when it is combined with moisture infiltration from large amounts of organic growth or damage it can create many structural issues. And this leads your house value to drop

That’s why cleaning and maintaining your house is very important to keeping its value.  

How to Clean Stucco Exterior: A Simple Step-By-Step Guide for Louisiana Homeowners

Soft washing is best left to professionals for ease of cleaning. But if you have a small area that is easy to reach, and you only have minor staining, here is a gentle cleaning method guide related to stucco cleaning for you as a homeowner.

Materials You’ll Need:

• Garden hose with a spray nozzle
• Soft-bristle brush (like a car wash brush or a long-handled utility brush)
• Two buckets
• Mild, pH-neutral cleaning solution (e.g., a few drops of dish soap in water, or a specialized stucco cleaner available at home improvement stores. For light mold, a very diluted bleach solution – 1 part bleach to 10 parts water – can be considered, but test thoroughly and rinse immediately).
• Safety goggles
• Rubber gloves
• Drop cloths or plastic sheeting (to protect plants)
• Painter’s tape (to seal off outlets/fixtures)

Make Sure To Be Prepared:

1. Protect Your Property: Protect plants, shrubs, and any fine landscaping; cover them with plastic sheets or drop old clothes in order to prevent runoff over the vegetation.

2. Cover Outlets: Cover electrical outlets or lights on the stucco with painter’s tape and secure them well so nothing goes wrong.

3. Try The Cleaner First: Test the cleaning solution on a small area of the stucco first. We suggest you wait 24 hours to see if it causes any stains or damage.

4. Wash The Stucco: Use a garden hose to gently spray the whole stucco surface. This will help you to remove loose dirt and get it ready for cleaning. Don’t forget to not use strong water pressure.

The Stucco Cleaning Process:

1. Prepare The Solution: Mix together your selected mild cleaning solution in the first bucket, as the instructions given on the package. (To make a 1:10 diluted bleach solution, for instance). Fill the second bucket with plain water for washing your brush.

2. Solution Application: Use a soft brush and apply the solution on a small section of the stucco wall. Work in small areas to prevent the cleaning solution from drying. The brush should be well saturated with very little solution dripping from it to avoid overapplication.

3. Gentle Scrubbing: Start washing the stucco with a circular motion. This scrubbing action is intended to loosen dirt and organic matter, but make sure not to put abrasive force on the surface. If the mold is hard to remove, leave the solution on for about 5-10 minutes but never allow the solution to dry on the surface. 

4. Thorough Wash: After the wash, the scrubbed section of stucco should be rinsed thoroughly with a mild spray from the garden hose to ensure that every trace of the cleaning solution has been washed away. Work working from the top down, or any runoff could stain an area already finished.

5. Repeat: Continue cleaning the stucco in sections until the entire surface has been cleaned.

So that was the step-by-step guide on how to clean a stucco exterior. Now let’s get into some mistakes that people make while cleaning stucco, including some that you should make sure you avoid.

If you want to learn how to clean stucco effectively, this article is your complete guide to doing it right: how to clean stucco

The Wrong Way To Clean Stucco

When faced with stubborn stains, you might think that using the strongest cleaning method is the best way. But the existence of several solutions might worsen stucco conditions, leading to hefty repairs. 

High-pressure washing is one of those methods that you should not consider, especially when cleaning stucco surfaces

If you want to apply a gentle process for cleaning your stucco, without using a pressure washer, check out our article: How To Clean Stucco Without A Pressure Washer.

The Dangers of High-Pressure Washing

Many homeowners intuitively turn to a pressure washer outside for cleaning, believing the more power, the better. That is a common mistake for stucco. Here are the damages that high-pressure washing leaves when used for stucco cleaning:

1. Structural Damage: The intense force of a very high pressure causes chipping and cracking to the surface of the stucco. 

It makes the stucco’s appearance to be low and serves as an avenue where moisture can be allowed to permeate through.

2. Water Intrusion: High-pressure water can force its way into tiny crevices, around windows, and behind siding, leading to trapped moisture within your walls and causing structural damage.

3. Uneven Cleaning and Streaks: High-pressure washing often results in visible streaks and uneven cleaning. This can make your stucco look even worse than it was before.

To understand the risks of high-pressure cleaning on this delicate surface, check out our detailed guide: Can you pressure wash stucco?

Why Soft Washing Is The Best Method For Stucco Cleaning?

Soft washing is the best type of cleaning for stucco. The soft wash treatment consists of very low pressure (similar to a garden hose) combined with specialized cleaning solutions, made to degrade and kill organic growth at its roots while loosening dirt and grime without any brute force being applied.

Soft Washing Benefits For Stucco

1. Gentle Yet Powerful: Soft washing effectively cleans even the most stubborn stains and deeply embedded organic growth without any risk of damage to your stucco. The solutions do the work, not the pressure.

2. Long-Lasting Results: Soft washing gets to the spores and the roots of mold and mildew for a more lasting clean. The spraying goes against the fear of recurrence common in Louisiana’s climate.

3. Safe for Your Property: The solutions used during professional soft washing are mostly organic and are allergy-free to plants, landscaping, or even pets when applied with procedural care.

4. Great Cleaning Method For All Surfaces: Despite stucco, soft washing cleans all surfaces well including roofs, sidings, fences and everything else from top to bottom of your property.

This Was The Step-By-Step Guide On How To Clean Stucco Exterior

Seeing your stucco transformed from dingy to dazzling is incredibly satisfying. You can take pride in your home’s appearance and enjoy the peace of mind that comes from knowing your investment is protected. 

While understanding how to clean the stucco exterior is a valuable skill, sometimes, the best solution is to trust the experts.

If you goal is to have that complete finish on cleaning your stucco exterior and wish to rattle free from any worries of perhaps damaging the house any further in the process, Cajun Softwash is Louisiana’s No. 1 soft washing company specialized in soft washing techniques perfectly suited for the needs of local homes and their stucco exterior.

We’re your local experts at safely removing mold, mildew, and dirt. We give your home a deep clean that lasts, looks great, and helps keep its value. Learn more about our soft washing services here, and see how we can help you with stucco washing.