Okay, let me tell you about cleaning the sidewalk the other day. It was looking pretty grim, seriously. Years of dirt, some green stuff growing in the shady spots, you know how it gets. Just looked depressing.

Getting Started

So, I dragged the power washer out from the garage. Thing's not light, lemme tell ya. Had to untangle the hose, find the right nozzle. I went with one that fans out a bit, not the pinpoint one that can etch the concrete if you're not careful. Hooked up the garden hose to the machine, then the high-pressure hose to the wand. Checked the oil, filled it up with gas. Always gotta check the fluids, learned that the hard way once.

The Actual Washing Part

Fired it up. It sputtered a bit, then roared to life. Pretty loud, actually. Grabbed the wand and started at the end of the walkway closest to the house. You gotta keep moving, find a rhythm. I went side-to-side, overlapping each pass just a little. You can see the difference right away, it's pretty satisfying.

• Started slow near the edges.
• Worked my way down the path section by section.
• Had to pay attention not to blast dirt onto the house walls.

Some spots were tougher. Had to go over them a couple of times, maybe hold the nozzle a bit closer. Not too close though. Just slow, steady sweeps. It takes longer than you think. My back started complaining a bit after a while, standing hunched over, moving that wand back and forth, back and forth.

Seeing the Change

Man, the difference was huge. One side looked brand new, bright concrete. The other side, still dark and dingy. It really motivates you to keep going when you see that contrast. You forget how clean it's supposed to look until you start cleaning it. Got splashed a fair bit, boots were soaked, pants too. Part of the job, I guess.

Finishing Up and Cleanup

Finally got to the end of the sidewalk by the street. Went back over a few missed spots I noticed. Then I switched to a wider nozzle just to rinse everything down, push all the loose dirt and gunk away towards the drain. Turned off the machine, disconnected the hoses. Let the pressure out of the wand, always remember that step. Coiled up the hoses, wiped down the machine a bit, and rolled it back into the garage. Felt good to have it done.

The sidewalk looks a million times better. Bright, clean, no more slippery green stuff. Took a good chunk of the afternoon, but yeah, worth it. Makes the whole front of the house look cleaner, you know?