Is this driveway pressure wash quote fair?

blackstar

Hi all

Just hoping for some advice. 

I would like to get my driveway cleaned and also the little bits of weeds removed and treated so they don't come back too soon.

I have been given a quote for £160 to pressure wash the drive way but that seems quite expensive? Would it not be cheaper to buy my own pressure washer and do it myself? 

Another guy said he would pressure wash it and it is so powerful it would remove all the weeds and it would be then up to me to put something down after he was done?

Really don't know what to do so any advice appreciated?

Please see picture.

Thanks all

Grumpy_chap

blackstar said:

I have been given a quote for £160 to pressure wash the drive way but that seems quite expensive? Would it not be cheaper to buy my own pressure washer and do it myself? 

That sounds like an absolute bargain to me - I just paid £600 to get my drive and patio done.

A quick look at one site and the pressure washers start at around £90.  Other sites may have them cheaper.
That would leave you £70 to cover your time.  Can you do the job within a day?

You will need to sweep in some kiln dried sand after the job is done (and the drive way dried) and then probably a dose to drive and patio weed killer.

35har1old

blackstar said:

Hi all

Just hoping for some advice. 

I would like to get my driveway cleaned and also the little bits of weeds removed and treated so they don't come back too soon.

I have been given a quote for £160 to pressure wash the drive way but that seems quite expensive? Would it not be cheaper to buy my own pressure washer and do it myself? 

Another guy said he would pressure wash it and it is so powerful it would remove all the weeds and it would be then up to me to put something down after he was done?

Really don't know what to do so any advice appreciated?

Please see picture.

Thanks all

Don't buy the cheapest pressure washer 
If it's a karcher K4 at least

EssexExile

That's a good price if he does a good job. Everyone and his brother thinks he can pressure wash a drive or patio. My drive is a lot bigger and I paid a man who has been doing it for 25 years £500 to have it cleaned, all the rubbish taken away and re-sanded.

blackstar

35har1old said:

blackstar said:

Hi all

Just hoping for some advice. 

I would like to get my driveway cleaned and also the little bits of weeds removed and treated so they don't come back too soon.

I have been given a quote for £160 to pressure wash the drive way but that seems quite expensive? Would it not be cheaper to buy my own pressure washer and do it myself? 

Another guy said he would pressure wash it and it is so powerful it would remove all the weeds and it would be then up to me to put something down after he was done?

Really don't know what to do so any advice appreciated?

Please see picture.

Thanks all

Don't buy the cheapest pressure washer 
If it's a karcher K4 at least

35har1old said:

blackstar said:

Hi all

Just hoping for some advice. 

I would like to get my driveway cleaned and also the little bits of weeds removed and treated so they don't come back too soon.

I have been given a quote for £160 to pressure wash the drive way but that seems quite expensive? Would it not be cheaper to buy my own pressure washer and do it myself? 

Another guy said he would pressure wash it and it is so powerful it would remove all the weeds and it would be then up to me to put something down after he was done?

Really don't know what to do so any advice appreciated?

Please see picture.

Thanks all

Don't buy the cheapest pressure washer 
If it's a karcher K4 at least

Thanks, would this one be good enough?

https://www.toolstation.com/karcher-k4-universal-pressure-washer/p42670

blackstar

Or would this one be better?

https://www.screwfix.com/p/karcher-k4-classic-car-home-130bar-electric-high-pressure-washer-1-8kw-240v/710rl

I don't have an outdoor tap though? What would I need to attach it to a bathroom tap etc?

Grumpy_chap

The hose with the pressure washer is usually quite short, so if running from far away, you will need a normal hose to get from the tap to the pressure washer.  Do you have a hose / how do you water the garden?
To get enough flow for the pressure washer you need to have the hose connected to a mains tap (not from a header tank), plus the hose needs to be sufficiently robust that it does not collapse under vacuum when the pressure washer sucks too much through.

How was the person that quoted to do the job going to provide the water?

blackstar

Thanks.
I have a outdoor tap in back garden so can run it around the outside of the house. 
But if I buy my own and do it myself I need to ensure I have a suitable pressure washer to clean the driveway and that would blast away the weeds throat are there and one that is long enough or alteast one that I can buy a extension hose for to extend the length?

Any links to one would be great please. Under £200 though.

Thanks all

Bookworm105

£160 is very cheap

BUT it depends on:
a) what chemicals are they using? ("hypo" , ie bleach?0 or just water alone?
b) the quality of the equipment they use, Hopefully it will be a professional stuff rather than the DIY Karcher stuff you link to above. The "T5 surface cleaner" is a gimmick on a K4, you'll get better results ignoring it and using the vario lance only (though that will take longer to do) 

pressure washing block paying should blow out the weeds but it certainly will also blow out the joint sand, so does the quote include re-sanding afterwards?
Re-sanding can't be done until things have dried out, so are they intending to return for a second visit or, given the small size, wash in the morning, have a long lunch and re-sand late afternoon?

frankly a chemical weed killer will be better long term than pressure washing for dealing with weeds.

and as others say, given your lack of tap, where will the mains pressure water come from? 

you thinking you will save money given you don't appear to have hose, connections and pressure washer is moot as it will take 2 years just to recover your outlay. Fair enough if you intend to do an annual wash and are happy it will take more time to do and not be quite as good as professional kit achieve.

blackstar

Thanks
I got two quotes.

One £160 just to pressure wash drive.
2md

"It would be £60 to come and put a weedkiller down. Leave this to work and then come back and pressure wash which would be £150. Then you’ll need sand, which you could do yourself with a few bags on a dry day or it would be £50 for me to come back and do it."

We are not too keen on getting weed killer on the ground and would rather miss this bit off unless anyone can see any reason it would be really important to get this done?

FreeBear

Bookworm105 said: pressure washing block paying should blow out the weeds but it certainly will also blow out the joint sand, so does the quote include re-sanding afterwards?

There is also a good chance that the pressure wash will take off the top layer of the blocks leaving them a bit rougher. If the drive has been jet washed before, the damage will have already been done.

Looks like the drive is sinking where vehicles have been parked - Probably due to insufficient sub-base thickness and/or poor compaction during construction. If the ruts continue getting deeper, you might want to budget for a replacement drive with a thicker base.