There are many benefits to properly maintaining and cleaning your conservatory. All you need to do is stick to a regular and basic cleaning maintenance program and you will be able to get many years of pleasure out of it, and its looks will always remain intact.
When a conservatory is newly completed, it looks gorgeous, but that look will not last for a long time. Constant exposure to elements and other factors like dust, mold, and mildew affect its looks and makes it look run down and dull. However, this is some good news; you can go against the natural order of things by making sure you keep your conservatory as new as possible through regular cleaning. Below are some useful tips to get you going with keeping your conservatory in shape and ready for the upcoming summer season.
Most of the parts of your conservatory will not cost you too much to maintain but if you own a wooden conservatory, make sure you pay utmost attention to polycarbonate and glass.
You can hire a cleaning company service to prepare a conservatory-cleaning program for you, and they will create a schedule for you round the year so they can come around and handle the cleaning of your conservatory for you. A professional company will come around with specialist equipment and tools so they can reach the high and difficult places to clean, while using cleaning products that are not deleterious to the fabric of your conservatory.
If you want to and can clean your conservatory by yourself, the guidance notes below will get you started;
First off, you should know that there are different cleaning products that you can use; therefore, you must make sure you are using the appropriate cleaning product for cleaning a conservatory. You do not want to damage your conservatory in any way. Find out the different types of conservatory cleaning that you can avail.
in this article
Straight forward conservatory cleaning
This can clean all the easily accessible areas of your conservatory. Clean with a special detergent and a fed pole brush with water.
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- Rinse of the soap.
- Squeegee off the windows
- Wipe the sills.
This will effectively clean most conservatories and will also clean off algae, moss and green slime located in the accessible parts of your conservatory. You do not have to climb anything as you can clean from the ground. All you need is a low-pressure water-fed pole, and the entire process costs between €55 and €90 depending on the size of your conservatory and how much area you want to clean.
Full exterior conservatory deep cleaning including a back to white valet
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- Use a special detergent to clean every area in your conservatory. Use a conservatory cleaning ladder so that you can reach more areas.
- Scrub and rinse with water.
- Hand-clean the spiky parts on top of your conservatory.
- Empty the vacuum in downspouts and gutters.
- Squeegee the window.
- Wipe sills and frames to dry.
- Use a UPVC or PVCu solvent cleaner.
- Apply a UPVC/PVCU shine restorer with hand to give your conservatory a professional finish.
This method of conservatory-cleaning is ideal for all conservatories and homeowners who want to make sure their newly installed conservatory retains its fresh and good looks for a long time to come. It is also suitable for conservatories that haven’t been used for a long time or have been overrun with weed, plants, and trees. This cleaning method has yielded some excellent results.
How Much Does it Normally Cost to Clean a Conservatory?
According to our research conservatory cleaning prices vary depending on the size of the conservatory, the service package (inside cleaning, outside cleaning or both) and your location in the country. For an average size conservatory you should expect to pay from around £150 for inside cleaning only and £300 for both inside and outside cleaning. Full valet service prices come to around £650.
The table below is an average of prices given to us:
| ITEM: | PRICE: |
|---|---|
| Average size conservatory – external only | From £150 |
| Lean to conservatories – external only | From £80 |
| Average size conservatory inside and out | From £300 |
| Average size conservatory full valet service | From £650 |
How long does it take to clean a conservatory?
The time needed to clean your conservatory depends on the size, level of access and numbers of professionals working on your conservatory. For a medium size Victorian style conservatory, it usually takes not more than 4-5 hours for a team of two cleaners, to clean both the outside and inside of the conservatory.
How Frequently Should You Clean Your Conservatory?
As the year runs by, it is very easy for debris and leaves to accumulate on your conservatory roof especially during the Winter and Autumn seasons when trees shed their leaves. For these reasons, you should clean your conservatory at least once throughout the year. Whether your conservatory is made of polycarbonate, tiles or glass, you should carry out a deep cleaning once in a year, and this cleaning should reach every corner, nook, and cranny of your conservatory.
How to clean a Conservatory
What are the things required?
You have to, first of all, be determined and depending on how big your conservatory is, you may need to buy some quality cleaning equipment. If you have a long conservatory in which some areas are beyond your reach, you will need a strong ladder that you will climb, a telescopic brush that you can connect to a hose-pipe, a car-cleaning brush, sponge, bucket, and some liquid wash. If your conservatory has glass features, you will need a squeegee and high-quality microfiber cloth. Some areas may require pressure-washing, but you have to know what you are doing.
Clean the gutters
You should clean your gutters two times in a year – not an exciting task but a necessary one. Get a ladder, climb it and get rid of any leaves or organic matter that has built up during the course of the year. If the downpipe is blocked, hire a plumber to dislodge the debris obstructing.
Clean the Roof
Conservatory roofs cannot hold too much load. Do not stand, walk or crawl on the roof. If you have any reason to get on your roof, get a crawl board and place them over the bars of glass on the roof but this is dangerous in itself; therefore, you should avoid climbing the roof.
To clean your conservatory roof safely, use a telescopic brush and climb a ladder. In a lot of cases, hot soapy water makes cleaning easier and when you are done using the brush on the roof, rinse the roof properly with water using a garden hose or pressure water.
Cleaning the Roof with Self-Cleaning Glass
You can dislodge the dirt using a warm soapy water spray although the more stubborn dirt stains have to be scrubbed gently before rinsing off with clean water. After cleaning the conservatory roof, it will take some days for the self-cleaning features to start working again automatically.
Cleaning the Exterior
You have to keep up with the cleanliness of your uPVC frames. Some hot soapy water should do the trick most of the time if you rinse with a hose-pipe.
To begin with, when you are cleaning the exteriors of your conservatory, clean the frames first. Use warm soapy water and sponge to wash off accumulated grime and dirt. Use the same method you used to clean the windows to clean the glass, but you may need a window wiper and a telescopic brush.
Cleaning the interiors of the Conservatory
Not only the exterior of your conservatory is exposed to the elements, but the interior also puts up with some abuse too, for instance, the unsightly yellow stains on the frame caused by smoking. There could also be a buildup of mildew and mold inside your conservatory especially if it does not have proper ventilation and it experiences a long period of not using it during the cold months.
Before you make a move to start cleaning the conservatory windows inside, check the documentation of your conservatory to be sure of not making any wrong moves. Confirm if the wrong cleaning materials can damage the seals.
While cleaning the interiors of the conservatory, check the rollers and locks on all doors. Make sure you keep all handles, hinges, and locks lubricated with WD40. You should, however, not oil the rollers or tracks. If a door is stuck and you are unable to move it, clear any debris that may be clogging up the door tracks. If this does not work, hire a conservatory engineer.
Cleaning the Glass
You need to clean the outside first, so you can see more clearly if there are any smudges or dirt inside the conservatory. Clean external glass with soapy water and rinse it off with clean water. Using a squeegee will get rid of any water residue on the glass. Wipe it with a microfiber cloth to ensure that there are no streaks of smudge or dirt left on the glass.
Do the same on the interior but use a damp cloth and a washing up liquid. Do not forget that the white streaks left behind in glass are caused by “hard water” in chalky areas.
Cleaning the glass with a self-cleaning glass
Massive deposits of organic dirt easily get broken down by the self-coating on the self-cleaning glass but should the surface be son dirty to the point that the glass has become opaque, the self-cleaning property of the glass may not have any effects. In that case, you will need to clean it with a soft cloth dipped in warm soapy water.
After self-cleaning the class, you will have to wipe any dirt residue after every cleaning cycle, and of course, a self-clean cycle uses up a lot of energy, and while it is burning off thick layers of debris or grime, it could give off a barbecue-like smell.