Portland exterior cleaning blog
Short, honest updates from the field — seasonal reminders, real job notes, and answers to questions Portland homeowners actually ask. Our evergreen guides go deeper; the blog stays current.
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Seasonal tip 6 min
Portland atmospheric river gutter emergency
A Pineapple Express is in the forecast and your gutters are already marginal. Here is the triage order we give Portland homeowners before the rain arrives.
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Seasonal tip 5 min
July gutter check before Portland fire season
Fire season is not a gutter topic until it is. Dry needles in a trough are fuel — here is what to look for in July across the Portland metro.
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Job story 4 min
What we pulled out of a Sellwood gutter in June
We cleaned a 1920s Craftsman off SE 13th last week. The gutters looked fine from the driveway. They weren't.
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Job story 5 min
West Hills skylights and a daylight basement
The basement was not dark because of bad bulbs. Three skylights on the west slope had a film of winter rain mineral and fir pollen so thick you could not see it from inside. We cleaned a SW Portland hillside home in April and the owner called it a different room.
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Job story 5 min
Fir tannin stains on a Hillsboro driveway
The driveway looked like someone spilled coffee on it every six feet. Douglas fir overhang, winter rain, and a decade of tannin bleed — we washed a Hillsboro ranch off NE Cornell and documented what actually moved the stains.
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Seasonal tip 5 min
January Christmas light takedown timing in Portland
The lights still look fine on January 2. By February 15 the same strands have UV damage, corroded clips, and a windstorm tangle. Here is the January takedown window we run every season.
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Job story 5 min
Forest Park moss treatment and the gutter follow-up
We treated a Forest Park roof in late September. By November the moss was brown and brittle — exactly as expected — and the gutters were full of it. That follow-up visit is the part most homeowners skip.
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Job story 5 min
A Clackamas HOA Christmas light install week
Fourteen townhome units, one design spec, five install days in late October. A Clackamas HOA wanted matching rooflines before the first November storm — here is how that week actually ran.
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Seasonal tip 5 min
Bethany two-story roofline prep before Christmas lights
A Bethany homeowner booked lights in September. Smart move — we walked the roofline in daylight, cleared fir needles from the gutters, and mapped a two-story C9 run before anyone was thinking about December.
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Job story 5 min
Gresham roof algae streaks we cleaned before fall moss season
Black streaks down the north slope of a Gresham ranch looked cosmetic. Left through a wet fall they would have been a moss mat by March.
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Job story 4 min
North-facing vinyl in Beaverton was growing mildew, not dirt
The homeowner thought her Beaverton siding needed repainting. It needed a soft wash — the north wall had gone gray-green under the patio cover shadow.
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How we work 5 min
How we text before-and-after photos on every job
You should not have to take our word for it. Here is exactly what lands in your text thread after every job — and what we deliberately do not send.
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Job story 5 min
Soft-washing cedar siding on a West Linn Craftsman
Green algae on the north cedar wall of a 1924 Willamette Craftsman. The last guy offered to pressure wash it. That would have been a mistake.
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Job story 4 min
Milwaukie pollen left window streaks that looked like hard water
The homeowner in Ardenwald thought her windows had mineral buildup. Up close it was alder and birch pollen baked onto the glass by three weeks of sun.
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Seasonal tip 4 min
March moss booking window for Eastmoreland north slopes
Spore release peaks in late winter. Eastmoreland's big lots and heavy canopy mean north slopes are already green by March — book now or wait in line.
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Customer Q&A 5 min
West Hills moss treatment week two — why the roof looks worse
The roof looked better before treatment. Now it is brown and patchy. That is the call we get every February from West Hills — and the answer is almost always the same.
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Seasonal tip 4 min
Portland freeze, ice dams, and clogged gutters
Portland got a real freeze last week. A few SW Portland homeowners called about ice in the gutters. Here is what was actually going on.
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Customer Q&A 5 min
Roof cleaning or moss treatment — which comes first?
We get this question every fall and winter. The answer depends on what is actually on your roof — but the sequence is almost always the same.
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Job story 4 min
Alberta Arts bungalow windows before the holiday rush
The homeowner wanted clean windows before the holiday lights went up. The north-facing kitchen panes had not been touched in three years. Good call.
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Job story 5 min
Lake Oswego hillside gutter access on a two-story
The house looked straightforward from the street. Around back the lot dropped six feet in twelve — and every gutter run was on the downhill side.
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Job story 5 min
Laurelhurst fall gutter cleaning during fir needle drop
Peak fir needle drop hit Laurelhurst the week we were on NE Glisan. The gutters looked half full from the sidewalk. They were completely packed.
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Seasonal tip 4 min
September is when Portland Christmas light installs actually book
Everyone waits until the first cold snap in October. By then the good install weeks in November are gone and you are choosing between dates nobody wants.
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Job story 5 min
Three wet winters on a Tigard rancher driveway
The homeowner said the driveway was just dirty. Up close it was green-black moss, algae in every expansion joint, and oil spots that had been there since 2021.
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Seasonal tip 5 min
July window cleaning before pollen and haze hit Portland glass
Your windows looked fine in May. By late July they are hazy, sticky, and covered in a yellow pollen film you cannot wipe off with a towel.
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