How to Pressure Wash a Driveway

A driveway is the first thing anyone sees when they pull up to your house, and years of tire grime, oil drips, and green algae make even a good home look tired. Done right, a weekend of pressure washing takes a decade off your concrete — done wrong, too much pressure at the wrong angle can etch permanent stripes into the surface that no amount of sealer will hide.

What you’ll need

• A pressure washer — gas (2,800–3,200 PSI) chews through driveways faster than electric; DeWalt, Ryobi, and Simpson are all solid
• A surface cleaner attachment — the single biggest upgrade; its spinning bar leaves zero stripes and cuts your time in half
• A garden hose — feeds the washer; a kink-resistant 5/8″ hose keeps pressure steady
• A spray nozzle for pre-rinsing and knocking down debris before you start
• Concrete cleaner or degreaser — a dedicated driveway detergent lifts grime the water alone leaves behind
• A general-purpose cleaner or oxygenated formula for algae and mildew streaks
• A stiff scrub brush for working detergent into stubborn oil spots
• A push broom — sweep loose grit first so you’re not blasting it around
• Safety glasses — a 3,000 PSI stream throws back sand and chips at your face
• Closed-toe waterproof boots — never wear sandals; the stream can cut skin
• Work gloves for grip and to keep the recoil manageable
• Concrete or blacktop sealer — optional but recommended once the driveway is clean and dry

Step 1: Clear and sweep the driveway

Move cars, planters, the basketball hoop, and anything else off the slab. Then sweep the whole surface with a push broom to clear loose leaves, dirt, and gravel. Pressure washing over loose grit just fires it under nearby cars and windows — and it hides the stains you’re trying to see. If weeds are growing up through cracks, pull them or hit them with a product from weed control a day ahead so they’re dead and easy to blast out.

Step 2: Pre-treat oil stains and algae

Water alone won’t touch a set-in oil drip or a green algae patch. Apply a concrete degreaser or driveway cleaner to the trouble spots, and use an all-purpose or oxygenated cleaner on mildew and organic staining. Work it in with a stiff scrub brush and let it dwell 5–10 minutes. Do not let it dry on the surface.

Pro tip: Pre-wet the driveway before applying detergent. Concrete is porous; a dry slab drinks in cleaner (and any leftover oil) rather than letting it float on top where the washer can rinse it away.

Step 3: Set up the washer with the right tip

Connect your garden hose to the inlet and run water through the machine before you start it — running a pump dry burns it out. For flat concrete, a 25-degree (green) tip is the safe workhorse; a 15-degree (yellow) tip is for stubborn spots only. Skip the 0-degree red tip entirely on driveways — it will carve visible lines. Better yet, install a surface cleaner attachment, which spreads the force evenly and is nearly impossible to stripe with.

Step 4: Wash in steady, overlapping passes

Start with the wand about 18 inches off the concrete and move closer until you find the sweet spot — usually 8 to 12 inches. Sweep in smooth, straight passes and overlap each one by about a third so you don’t leave “tiger stripes” of clean and dirty concrete. Work with the slope so runoff carries dirt away from you, and keep the wand moving; pausing in one spot even for a second can etch the surface.

Common mistake: Angling the tip straight down at 90 degrees blasts grime into the pores instead of sweeping it off. Hold the wand at a slight angle so the stream pushes debris ahead of you like a broom.

Step 5: Rinse and let it dry completely

Once the whole slab is clean, drop to a wider fan or a hose nozzle and rinse all the loosened dirt and detergent film toward the street or a drain. Let the driveway dry fully — at least 24 hours of warm, dry weather — before you seal or park on it. Concrete that looks dry on top can still be damp in the pores.

Step 6: Seal it to lock in the results

This is the step most people skip, and it’s what separates a driveway that stays clean from one that’s green again by next spring. Once the concrete is bone dry, roll or spray on a concrete or blacktop sealer. Sealer repels oil, water, and UV, makes the next wash far easier, and can double the life of the slab. Follow the label’s temperature window and give it the full cure time before driving on it.

Frequently asked questions

Pressure washing is one of the highest-payoff weekend jobs there is — a few hours of work and your whole home looks cared for. If you want a hands-on look at a surface cleaner before you buy, or you need a fitting or a bottle of degreaser today, your local independent hardware store has you covered. Questions about a specific stain or setup? Ask us here.