How often should business premises be cleaned outside? A schedule that stands up

For a home, exterior cleaning is about pride and maintenance. For a business it's something blunter: the frontage is your first impression, and the car park is your liability. Algae on a forecourt isn't a cosmetic problem — it's a slip hazard on premises you're responsible for. So the question isn't really "how often should it be cleaned?" — it's "what schedule can you show you kept?"

Before

After

A schedule that actually fits the premises

1. 1

   Shopfront glass and signage — every 4–6 weeks

   Monthly or more on a busy high street. Retail glass is touched, breathed on and rained on constantly; it's also the cheapest thing on this list to keep right, and the most visible when it isn't.

2. 2

   Office windows — every 6–8 weeks in town, quarterly out of it

   Urban premises pick up traffic film faster; suburban offices and schools can usually hold a quarterly cycle. Busy roads, construction dust nearby and tree cover all shorten the interval.

3. 3

   Gutters — at least twice a year

   Late autumn after leaf fall, plus spring — moving to quarterly under deciduous trees. This one has teeth: if water damage occurs and the gutters were visibly unmaintained, insurers can reduce or reject the claim.

4. 4

   Car parks, forecourts and entrances — by footfall

   The target is the algae biofilm that holds moisture and cuts friction underfoot, plus oil, gum and rotting leaves. High-footfall entrances need attention on a much shorter cycle than the back of the car park — the schedule should follow the people.

5. 5

   Render and cladding — inspect annually, soft-wash when greening

   Painted cladding and render take a low-pressure soft wash, not a blasting. uPVC gets warm soapy water — the manufacturers ban solvents, bleach and pressure washers outright, and misuse can void the product guarantee.

6. 6

   Keep the record

   Dated logs, photos, and the contractor's risk assessment on file. The paperwork is half the value: it's what stands between the business and a rejected insurance claim or an undefendable slip claim.

The liability bit — in plain English

In England and Wales, the Occupiers' Liability Act requires you to take reasonable steps to keep lawful visitors reasonably safe, and the Health and Safety at Work Act covers your staff and anyone your business affects. Algae, moss, oil and wet leaves are all recognised slip hazards. None of this is legal advice — but the practical takeaway is simple: a regular, documented cleaning schedule is how a business demonstrates it took reasonable steps, and an undocumented one might as well not exist. Cheap insurance, in the most literal sense.

What your own staff can safely handle

1. 1

   Ground-level glass and doors between visits

   Warm soapy water and a soft cloth keeps entrance glass presentable. No bleach, no abrasives — and nothing that involves steps or ladders.

2. 2

   Sweep and spot-check

   Entrances and paths swept regularly, spills and leaves dealt with promptly, and a phone photo taken when hazards are spotted and fixed — that photo log is the cheap half of showing reasonable steps.

3. 3

   Watch the gutter line in heavy rain

   Water sheeting over the edge, sagging runs, green streaks on the wall — visible from the ground. Film it on a phone from a window if you need evidence for the landlord or the contractor. Never send anyone up a ladder to look.

Scheduling around trading

Exterior work on a trading business is normally planned so customers never meet hoses, wet floors or cordons — and any wet area gets signed or cordoned until it's dry. Commercial sites vary too much for a price list — size, height, access and condition all move the number — so every commercial job is quoted individually, as a one-off or a scheduled maintenance contract. Send a brief description or a few photos and we'll come back to you quickly — usually the same day.