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Pressure Washing Pavers vs Concrete in Orlando, FL

The King of Construction · Oct 3, 2026

Orlando's heat and humidity turn pavers and concrete green, black, and slick faster than almost anywhere else in the country. But blasting both surfaces the same way is how homeowners end up with eroded joint sand, etched concrete, or pavers that look worse after cleaning than before.

The King of Construction treats pressure washing as the final step on every paver job we install, and we also clean existing pavers and concrete for homeowners who never had us install anything. The approach is different depending on what's under your feet.

Why Pavers and Concrete Can't Be Washed the Same Way

Concrete is a single poured slab. It can usually take higher PSI because there's no joint sand to lose and no individual unit to chip. Pavers are different — they're individual stones sitting on a compacted base with sand locked between the joints.

Run a surface cleaner at full pressure over pavers and you'll blow the joint sand right out. That sand is part of what keeps pavers from shifting. Once it's gone, pavers start rocking, edges lift, and weeds move into the empty joints within a season — which in Orlando's growing climate can happen fast.

• Concrete: typically cleaned at 3,000–3,500 PSI
• Pavers: typically cleaned at 1,500–2,200 PSI with a wider fan tip
• Joint sand (polymeric or regular) often needs to be reapplied after washing pavers

What Orlando's Climate Does to Each Surface

Central Florida gets roughly 50 inches of rain a year, most of it between June and September, combined with high humidity almost year-round. That combination feeds algae, mold, and mildew on any outdoor hardscape — but it shows up differently depending on the material.

Concrete is porous and absorbs moisture, which is why driveways and walkways develop that black, tire-track-looking staining near shaded areas or under trees. Pavers have tighter, denser surfaces in most cases, but the sand-filled joints between them become the growth zone for moss and weeds instead.

• North-facing and shaded concrete slabs in Orlando often show algae staining within 8–12 months of the last cleaning
• Paver joints exposed to sprinkler overspray grow moss noticeably faster than joints that stay dry
• Pool decks near screened enclosures trap humidity and tend to need washing more often than open driveways

Chemicals: What's Safe on One Surface and Not the Other

Straight bleach is common for concrete because it's cheap and effective against mildew, but it can strip color sealers and bleach out the joint sand on pavers if it's overused. For paver cleaning, a sodium hypochlorite mix at a lower concentration, followed by a thorough rinse, protects both the paver color and the surrounding plants and turf.

Travertine-style pool deck pavers need even more caution — these stones etch if acidic cleaners sit too long, so the dwell time has to be shorter than on standard concrete pavers or poured concrete.

• Concrete: can generally handle stronger degreasers for oil stains and tire marks
• Pavers: need pH-balanced or diluted cleaners to avoid stripping sealer or sand
• Travertine pool decks: shortest chemical dwell time of the three surfaces

Pricing and What's Included Differs Too

Washing a plain concrete driveway is usually a straightforward single pass. Washing pavers is a multi-step job: pre-treat, wash at lower pressure, rinse, let dry, then re-sand the joints and often reseal. That's why a paver cleaning quote and a concrete cleaning quote for the same square footage won't look identical — the paver job has more steps built in.

As a rough range homeowners in the Orlando area typically see, concrete pressure washing runs lower per square foot than full paver cleaning with re-sanding and sealing, often landing somewhere between $0.15–$0.30 per square foot for concrete versus $0.40–$0.90 per square foot for pavers once sand and sealer are factored in. Exact numbers depend on the size of the area and condition of the surface.

• Concrete: wash only, usually one visit
• Pavers: wash, re-sand joints, optional reseal
• Pool deck travertine: often priced separately due to the gentler process required