Power washing in Kilkenny

Kilkenny limestone

Kilkenny has built with its own stone for centuries. The dark blue-grey limestone quarried in the county, which polishes up almost black and gave the city its "Marble City" name, turns up everywhere: in old walls, steps, sills and door surrounds in the city, and in a great many newer patios, paths and drives across the county.

It's a fine paving stone, but it has quirks worth knowing:

• It reacts with acid. Limestone is mostly calcium carbonate, so acidic cleaners etch and dull the surface. We don't use them on it.
• It darkens when wet. Freshly washed limestone looks patchy until it dries right through, which can take a day or so.
• The finish matters. Honed, smooth slabs show marks more readily than sawn or riven ones, so the pressure is set to suit.
• Growth settles on and in the surface. Algae, moss and black lichen spots build up fastest on shaded slabs.

Hot water suits limestone well. It lifts algae and grime with nothing acidic involved, and the pressure can stay moderate so the face of the stone isn't scoured.

Cleaning a limestone patio

We start by looking at the finish and the joints, then work across the patio with hot water at a pressure suited to the stone, keeping the lance moving so there are no tide marks. Moss and weeds come out of the joints as we go. Most patios are laid with a slight fall towards a drain or the lawn, and we work with it, so the dirty water runs off rather than pooling on the stone. Black lichen spots usually fade over the following weeks rather than vanishing on the day, and we'll tell you that from your photos.

Rust rings from metal furniture and plant pots, and old grease near a barbecue, are the usual stubborn marks. They lighten, but they may not disappear completely.

We don't seal limestone. Some owners choose to have it sealed once it's clean and dry, and if you're considering that, a stone specialist can advise on the product. Our patio cleaning page has more on every kind of stone.

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Period stone in the city

Around the medieval centre and the older streets leading off it, houses and terraces often have limestone steps, sills and boundary walls bedded in lime mortar. The stone is hard enough; the joints are not. We keep the pressure well down near old pointing, try a small area first where the stone looks worn, and won't blast anything that's already crumbling.

Painted render and door surrounds on these houses get a low-pressure wash rather than a lance. See stone cleaning for more on how granite, brick and limestone are handled.

Businesses in the centre, from shopfronts to guesthouse entrances and courtyards, can be done early in the day before customers and guests are about. Tell us your opening hours when you send photos.

Driveways around Kilkenny

Out from the centre, estates off the Freshford, Castlecomer, Callan and Waterford roads mostly have block-paved or concrete drives, while tarmac is more common on one-off houses in the countryside. Hot water lifts the green and the traffic film from blocks and concrete and clears the joints, and tarmac gets a gentler wash so worn edges aren't loosened. Our driveway cleaning page covers each surface.

Some newer drives in the county are laid in limestone setts or have limestone borders. Those get the same acid-free, moderate-pressure approach as a limestone patio.

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Scheduled trips down the M9

We're based in Dublin, and Kilkenny is a straight run down the M9. Kilkenny jobs go into scheduled trips, and the date is agreed with your price, so both arrive in the same reply. It's worth getting everything done on one visit: patio, drive, steps and the roofline if it needs attention. We clear blocked gutters and take moss off roof tiles without blasting them (roof cleaning).

What to send from Kilkenny

• a wide photo of each area, plus a close-up showing the finish of any limestone
• your Eircode or nearest town, such as Callan, Thomastown, Bennettsbridge or Castlecomer
• access to the back garden, and somewhere for the van to stop
• anything you'd like left alone

We'll need an outside tap and a power socket we can use, so tell us where they are when you send photos. Every job we do is fully insured, and you'll have the fixed price before a date is pencilled in. Beyond power washing, we clear houses (house clearance in Kilkenny) and offices (office clearance in Kilkenny), and clean carpets (carpet cleaning in Kilkenny), so one trip can cover more than one job. For the county next door, see power washing in Carlow, and for everything we clean, our power washing page.