PressureWashingBossPro Blog — House Washing & Recurring Plans

House Wash Job Details: Square Feet, Stories, Siding and Method on Every Job

Two houses on the same street can be completely different jobs. One is a 1-story brick ranch with a short driveway. The other is a 3-story vinyl colonial with a walkout basement, a long drive and a deck off the back. If your schedule just says “house wash, 412 Elm,” the crew finds out which one it is when they pull up. Job details fix that.

Why the Details Belong on the Job

In Running a Soft Washing Business From One System: Calls, Quotes, Jobs and Payments we followed a single house from the first call to the paid invoice. The thread running through that whole story is the job details, so this article looks at them one at a time.

Every job in PressureWashingBossPro carries a set of details that describe the work. They are shown under the address on the lists in the office and on each card in the crew app, in one line the crew can read in a second:

House Wash, Driveway · 3,800 sq ft · 2-story · Vinyl · Soft Wash

That line tells the crew how long the stop will take, what ladder or extension wand they need, what mix they are likely running and whether the surface cleaner comes off the trailer.

Surfaces

Surfaces name what is getting washed. For residential work the usual ones are House Wash, Roof Soft Wash, Driveway, Sidewalk, Patio, Deck, Fence, Pool Deck and Gutter Brightening. A job can have more than one. A house wash with the driveway and front walk is three surfaces on one visit, and listing them means nobody forgets the walk.

Roofs and flatwork have their own guides: Roof Soft Washing Jobs: Measuring, Quoting and Scheduling Roofs and the driveway article after it.

Square Feet

Square feet is the number most washing companies price from, and it is the best single predictor of how long a house takes. Record it once and it stays with the job. When you quote from the office, the property map can measure square feet from the satellite view, which works well for driveways and roofs. For siding, many owners use the home's living area as a starting point and adjust for height and shape, which is a pricing habit, not something the software decides for you.

Whatever method you use, be consistent. If one estimator records wall area and another records living area, your prices and your crew's time estimates will drift.

Stories

Height changes the job more than size does. A 1-story house can usually be soft washed from the ground with ease. A 2-story needs more reach and more time on the back side. A 3-story may need extra equipment, a second crew member, or a decision about whether the job is one you want at all. Putting stories on the job lets the office send the right crew and lets the crew bring the right gear.

Siding and Surface

The siding or surface field records what the crew is washing: vinyl, brick, stucco, wood, fiber cement, stone or concrete. Each one behaves differently. Vinyl is the classic soft wash. Stucco and painted wood need a gentle approach and careful rinsing. Brick and stone can hide staining that takes longer. Always check the manufacturer's guidance for the siding in front of you and test a small area when you are unsure.

Knowing the siding before arrival means the crew is not guessing in the driveway, and it gives the office a reason to call the customer ahead of time if the house needs a different approach.

Method

The method field says how the job is done: soft wash, pressure wash, hot water or surface cleaner. On a typical residential stop, the house gets a soft wash and the driveway gets the surface cleaner. Recording the method on the job does two things. It tells a newer crew member what the estimator promised, and it protects you when a customer asks, “You didn't blast my siding, did you?” The job says soft wash, and the photos show the result.

Access Notes and Where It All Comes From

Below the details sit the access notes: spigot location, gate code, dog, plants to cover, cars to move. Those get their own guide later in the series, because they decide whether the first ten minutes on site go smoothly.

Most details are entered on the estimate, not the job. When the customer approves the estimate online, the details carry onto the scheduled job automatically. For a recurring house, they stay on the address and show again every time the plan comes due, so next year's crew sees exactly what this year's crew saw.

To see job details alongside yearly plans, the Waiting List and the rest of the residential features, visit the PressureWashingBossPro house washing software page.